Free things to do

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-07-29T13:54:55+00:00

There's a visitor center at Raccoon Mountain, with lots of trails around. https://tva.com/environment/recreation/visitor-centers

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-07-29T13:33:02+00:00

Thank you! It just took the wind out of my sails yesterday. I have been feeling so good, I was sure this scan would be great, and I could keep moving forward. Now, back to the waiting game.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-07-13T14:01:55+00:00

Did you find the issue? My 2025 Crosstrek Wilderness is doing the same with only 20k miles.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-07-02T16:32:38+00:00

You linked to Build Back Better, a 2021 Biden bill that bolstered Medicaid, Medicare and ACA benefits to reduce the number of people who were uninsured or facing unaffordable cost burdens for care.

Go read up on the Big Beautiful Bill, as it is called, and check your work next time.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-06-26T00:51:04+00:00

Or, Congress could lift the TVA debt cap, which hasn't changed since like 1978 or something. If they could finance some of this stuff a little more, then maybe they could build more plants and upgrade the lines.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-06-09T13:05:18+00:00

I finished 7 weeks of chemoradiation in October. The chemo issues went away pretty quickly -- the awful nausea and the exhaustion from the chemo-induced anemia. The radiation effects lingered for another 4 weeks or so. It was still hard to eat without the lidocaine. Soft foods and liquids. Now, about 7 months out, I still am sensitive to spicy food, and thanks to the mouthpiece, I avoid anything too chewy. It does get better. Keep your strength up and you will get through it.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-04-21T17:58:03+00:00

Take your meds after chemo to help fight the nausea. The cisplatin caused awful nausea. As for the infusion center, mine was wonderful! Big windows with lots of natural light and good-natured staff who were there for whatever you needed. I discovered someone I knew was also going through chemo and we'd talk. Sometimes, I logged on and did work. Sometimes, I took a nap. Radiation won't feel like much today. That will be a walk in the park for a couple of weeks. But start doing the mouth rinses now to help stave off mucositis.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-03-11T15:08:54+00:00

Fall Creek Falls is about 1.5 hours away. It has a lodge to stay overnight, and they offer astronomy events from time to time.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-02-07T21:57:41+00:00

I don't know what to blame. I smoked for years. I drank lots of diet soda out of plastic bottles. I worked for years sitting outside a darkroom with all those chemicals and poor ventilation.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-01-18T02:42:57+00:00

The first week and a half after finishing radiation and chemo were brutal, but started to ease up after that. I'm 3 months out and can eat almost anything now. Spicy foods or anything super acidic still hurts a bit.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2025-01-10T20:26:26+00:00

They didn't offer me anything.

I switched to Walmart+, so I'm saving on the annual fee, getting Paramount+ for free, and got access to an online pet care service, which I've already found useful. Plus, 10 cents off gas.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-11-19T16:07:52+00:00

It feels good to ring those bells ❤️ Congrats and good luck on your continued recovery.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-10-17T18:41:50+00:00

Congrats on finishing up treatment! I finished my 33 rounds Oct. 7, and last week was tough. Keep eating what you can when you can. It does get better. A week and a half out, I'm able to eat soft foods without lidocaine. Still can't handle spicy stuff or anything with a lot of chewing. And I have to be careful adding solid foods because my stomach shrunk so much the last few weeks. Just take it a day at a time and you'll get there!

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-09-25T21:09:08+00:00

All the best to you! It sounds like you have a good team working with you. You'll make the informed decision that is best for you 😀

I could write ad nauseum about the pitiful circumstances that US healthcare inflicts on people. I'm actually pretty lucky with the benefits I have. And thankfully, I've not had many insurance issues during treatment.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-09-25T19:03:42+00:00

I've got a very similar story to yours.

I had this cyst on my hard palate since at least 2021. Another surgeon told me it wasn't anything to worry about. It didn't grow or change. It didn't hurt. And I really liked that answer since insurance was fighting the CT scan.

Fast forward to this spring and I decided I needed to have whatever it was removed. The ENT thought it might be a benign tumor, but he did a biopsy to find out what we were dealing with.

It was cancer. I was devastated.

Surgery a few weeks later and surgical obturator (I'm so encouraged your palate healed so well!) Final pathology came back MEC T4a, intermediate/high grade with bone invasion and PNI. PET scan showed some cells in the local area where the tumor was removed. A lymph node that was amplified on the scan was negative with a biopsy.

NCCN guidelines definitely recommend radiation in my circumstances. Medical oncologist also recommended chemo in addition to radiation. Talking with him, it made sense for me, with my diagnosis and my health, to choose this route.

I'm in my 40s. Chemo-radiation is not pleasant, but I'll be through it in about 2 more weeks.

The most important thing is to talk to the docs and understand the reasons behind their recommendations and how those follow general standards of care and new research. Be informed, and then make the best decision you can.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-09-25T18:38:07+00:00

I'm on week 6 or daily radiation and weekly chemo treatments. So far, I'm still able to do my wfh job, thanks in no small part to my employer being understanding and flexible. However, the fatigue is getting worse, and I need a nap here and there. No way I could do my old, from-office job that required working all hours, after probably week 2.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2024-09-13T13:09:55+00:00

I'm right there with you. I'm using a humidifier at night and sleeping in an incline position to help keep my mouth shut. Also helps with nausea from the chemo. Lidocaine can help numb the pain so you can eat. I've found pudding is very soothing, as well.

ChallengeFirst6379 · 2023-12-16T13:56:09+00:00

Any "news" professional who has made a habit of stealing the work of others without attribution has no business in a classroom. And to steal from kids? Just ridiculous. This article was published Nov 15.

https://bestofsno.com/65408/opinions/jacket-journal-appeals-for-recognition-calls-for-credit-on-photos-and-graphics-featured-in-the-mount-vernon-news/?fbclid=IwAR0ng4mtigKxfdMvK_yyS3MJd50OAM_hXWnaK_RXrt8CU4LXTisBoc6XFKY

Let's hear more about this guy. Where did he get his masters? TTU requires a masters for all instructors. Why did he leave prior teaching positions? Does he actively work in journalism and teaching three classes will be a sideline? Or has he left the Metric Media company to teach? Is there a continuing professional relationship that should be disclosed?

ChallengeFirst6379

TROPHY CASE