Vale Christopher Booth

Chris died peacefully yesterday. He had oesophagal cancer which spread to his bones. I have never met him because he lived in England, but I have been following his journey in his blog and I feel his death keenly. He and I were diagnosed within a day of each other and up to a month ago he seemed to be doing well. It is devastating to lose a fellow traveller, especially one so young. He was only 46. My deepest sympathy to Gillian, his wife.

Haddon has gone

Our friend Haddon died in hospital this morning at 1 am. He has been in hospital for three weeks (actually since the day I fell and hit my head) fighting fluid in his lungs and a urinary tract infection. We went to see him yesterday afternoon, but he was unconscious, so we have to hope he felt our love and concern through holding his hand. Haddon has been a cancer survivor for six years. He had prostate cancer which metastised to his bladder and bones. He has had numerous rounds of both chemo and radiation, but has managed an annual trip to Bali. He will be missed, especially by his wife Margaret and by his lifetime friends like Kevin who has known him since he himself was 13, nearly 60 years.

I hope I last as long.

The soreness on the outer soles of my feet is still there, but I am getting relief by frequent application of moisturing lotions and creams. The chemist gave us a range of samples to try. I recognise one - Aveena - from various web postings, but it is a lotion and a bit runny. The best one to date is one called QV which is a cream. I have also found that I have one pair of shoes - soft leather which I have had for at least ten years and which unfortunately are almost ready for the scrap heap - which are really comfortable, even more so than the sheepskin slippers. I put on the cream, then socks and shoes and my feet are comfortable all day.

The Bowan therapy seems to have made some improvement of my leg pain. Yesterday I was able to walk quite a long distance from the carpark to the hospital, and then back again,though not without some pain. There is no improvement in my shoulder. I am to have another session on Friday. Also next week I will have my decaying wisdom tooth removed, which should help in reducing mouth infections.