Hi Everyone, and a Happy Easter to you all!!

Spring is here!..And so is the rain!..But its warmer, And the oil man wont be around as often!..Id rather have a root canal than see him again!

I went to have an upper Endoscopy last Monday, because I have the acid reflux disease..(gerd)..and the results were good..No cancer..I have to go in this Wednesday for a routine Colonoscopy..GIT ER DONE!!

I can recall Chasmo saying many times that pd was not the beginning of the end..but the end of the beginning, and I understand now what that means..The journey that I was on prior to dx has changed course..New people are put in your life, especially if you get involved in pd support, etc..I met a man who has pd who became a fellow APDA board member..He just so happens to be a Marine Biologist and a Professor at the University of Rhode Island..His name is Stan..He asked me if I would be interested in participating in volunteer work at the Paul Cuffee School in Providence..The Paul Cuffee school is a school for under privileged kids, mostly minorities, that Stan explained to me, were enrolled in that school because they were fortunate..54 of the middle school aged children are studying the Cod Fish, and its importance through our history..The students will also see a Cod Fish disected etc, and my job is to give a talk about my expeience in the fishing industry, and how it has changed through the years environmemtally, as well as finacially, and the roles that the strict regulatory process has played..So this past Thursday I went to the school to meet the teacher, with Stan and another biologist from URI to discuss a strategy..Many of these kids, even though they live in a state blessed with miles upon miles of coastline, have never been to the beach..So we are planning some field day trips on the R.I. Dept of Fish and Wildlife Research Trawl Vessel, the "Capt Bert"..The Capt Bert basically has a trawl gear set up like my boat did, and they drag for marine species with a net, to do stock assessments, and research..The kids will get to see the operation, and see how fish are caught, and how research work is done..Should be interesting, and exciting!..It will be great for me as well..There are times when I..we..render ourselves useless because of pd..I go through this processs sometimes, but dont talk about it much to anyone, because after all..We're supposed to pull ourselves up by the boot straps arent we?....Ive also said before that this journey is what we make of it, and that it presents opportunities that would have probably not have presented themselves otherwise,..(providing that we are still well enough to participate of course)..and opportunities like this one give me a reason to get up in the morning and feel useful..My life with pd has been bittersweet, but it has been inspiring to experience the "sweet" part of this journey..like meeting Lonnie Ali last month for example, and being a part of that Symposium..Being a past PAN Rep..Becoming a APDA board member, and participating in, and helping to plan pd events in my state, and becoming a part of our online community here and having the pleasure of meeting many of you folks in cyberspace, and some of you in person..Ive heard it said that when one door closes, another one opens, and it certainly has been the case for me, even in the presents of pd

I wish you all a Happy Easter!

How was your week?