Colon Cancer Sucks Ass

Monday, October 25, 2010

Time Warp

Kristen here, finally chiming in...

If Christy were still living in her apartment in LA, one thing I know we would be talking about constantly is GLEE! She would have loved the show so much, with its fabulous show tunes, fun dance numbers and hilarious dialogue. The show has made me think of her even more this season, as the Gleeks sing numbers from the 90s and other nostalgic songs.

When we were teenagers Christy and I used to drive around Bellevue, NE, bopping along to whatever was on the radio or mixtape we had in the cassette player. We loved entertaining the people stopped next to us at red lights with our car dancing, and one of my favorite things was Christy's rendition of "What If God Was One Of Us." I wish I could describe it for you here, but it loses something in translation. Suffice to say she always cracked me up with that one and I still get the giggles thinking about it.
Hearing it sung during the "Grilled Cheezus" episode brought simultaneous laughter and tears as I tried to explain the story to my husband and replicate her awesome dance.

Another of her very favorite shows in high school was Rocky Horror Picture Show - she loved, loved, LOVED the character Columbia and especially loved the song "Time Warp," which was harder to car-dance to but extra fun to act out anywhere there was a tape player. When I saw the preview for this week's episode, I couldn't help but think how much she would love this too!

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Bittersweet Happiness

I haven't posted in awhile, so I thought I'd just write a little note.

It's been a week since I, along with the rest of the world, was glued to the live footage of the Chilean miners' rescue. Witnessing each man as he was reunited with the Earth's surface and his loved ones (even mistresses, I suppose) made me practically giddy.

I think it was seeing how those men survived over 2 months in a hot, dark tomb one-half mile below the surface -- the camaraderie, the compassion, the faith, and the drive to survive. It was also witnessing all of the measures taken "up top" to bring about their amazing rescue -- the epitome of true team work and a glimpse of humanity at its best.

The odd part is that I found myself a bit envious of the rescuers and the families. When they found their loved one, friend, co-worker in dire circumstances, they were able to pull together their brains, talent and resources as a community and save 33 lives.

When Christy was diagnosed, her friends and loved ones rallied around her to offer whatever support we could, but we were helpless in that the rescue effort was all up to Christy, chemo and fate. If only we could have built a capsule to release her from cancer's grasp...

~Mandy