BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY 25TH AUGUST 2008 - STARTING AT 2PM

As promised, today I am announcing what I sincerely hope will be a totally enjoyable day out for all, plus an opportunity to raise funds for Weston Park Hospital...

How many times have you spent an August Bank Holiday sat in your car on the way to the coast, along with thousands of others who all had the same idea, only to arrive and have a wander around, a bag of soggy fish and chips (lets face it they are rarely as good as back home in Yorkshire) before rejoining the queues of traffic on your way home??

Well this year there is an alternative.

As promised throughout the blog - when I feel better I will be holding a BBQ to celebrate.  Only this will be no ordinary BBQ.  I have secured a teriffic venue for the day (and night), and as there is no real restriction on space - you are all invited!!   And as I intend to use the day to raise funds for Weston Park Hospital, I would be delighted if you bring along your family and friends too!!

Heres how it will work.

Thanks to James Sandham and Jon Raduch I have some very trendy tickets available.  I would prefer to get these allocated in advance so all you have to do is let me know how many you need and these will be reserved on the gate for you, or preferably posted out if you have paid in advance.  Tickets are just £5 each and include your first trip to the BBQ.

The venue is Aston Hall Cricket Club, literally 1 min from J31 of the M1.  It is a huge field with a nice pavilion and a very cheap bar (try to ensure your partner is driving or better still, organise a taxi!).  As the field is so large we will be organising some activities for those who prefer a more active day, such as Beach Volleyball, Football, Cricket and Rounders.  There will obviously be a bouncy castle for the younger members of your party too...

There will of course be music throughout the day and this is your chance to come along, chill out and relax with family, friends and people who have been supporting me throughout the last 8 months.  Bring along a deckchair or two to guarantee yourself a seat on the day, and as you will see from the poster, beachwear is essential (lots of shorts, t-shirts etc!)  And as the day progresses into night you never know, dancing and general merriment may well ensue too!!

I really hope you will join me and my family on the day - and hopefully we can stick another £grand or two in the Weston Park Hospital Charity while we are at it.

All the best

Nigel xx

PS: If you want to reserve your ticket please email me your requirements at nrshort@btinternet.com

I make absolutely no apologies for kicking off with a picture of me taken on Thursday afternoon, the last day of our break to Spain.  I feel like a £million at the moment and I reckon that shows in the picture.

When I think back to how I was feeling just 4 weeks ago, never mind 3 months, I realise just how much in need of a holiday I really was.  To be able to spend that holiday with Sarah and the kids, as well as with such amazing friends new and old in Spain was the icing on the cake.  We had a fantastic time  and relaxed in the best possible way, by a pool with a constant supply of drink, good music and outstanding food.  We laughed constantly, reminisced about old times, threw each other in the pool and generally behaved like kids!  We spoke some Spanish - though most of it was Spanglish - sticking an 'O' on the end of most words to make them sound 'authentico'.

I even managed a beer.  Or 3 to be precise.  I had tried a sip of the Cruzcampo every day - John has it on draught at his house in the poolside bar (how cool is that?).  Initially the after taste of the beer was horrible, on the last day of the holiday I persevered and drank 6 half glasses of it - and the following morning I had the headache to prove it.  On 3 pints - what a lightweight - I can see me being a very cheap date in the future!

I also managed just about everything put in front of me on a plate.  Pork tenderloin marinated in (well, its a closely guarded secret what its marinated in), chicken, sausage, steak, chips, a chocolate eclair.  I have to wash everything down with a sip of water but its such a relief to be tasting good food again.  The only thing I didn't cope too well with was one of John's special curries, but to be fair - nobody else seemed to manage that too well either!!   I spent the next half hour after tasting it sat in the kitchen drinking copious quantities of water and consuming chocolate and vanilla ice cream to provide some relief to my stinging throat!!

While we were there we managed a trip to Ronda, a beautiful Spanish town set in a spectacular location and only 20 minutes drive from Teba.  Ronda is famous for its bridge over the gorge that runs through the middle of the town, and its huge cliff-face at the south of the town.  We did some shopping and ate out for lunch.  Sarah and I also visited the lakes and El Chorro, another famous location in Spain and home to scenes from the Sinatra movie Von Ryans Express.  We ate lunch in a bar overlooking one of the clear turquoise lakes nearby with the unmistakeable scent of pine trees in the heat - something more associated with Greece.  The view from our table is below;

On our last day we decided to leave the mountains and head for the water park at Torremolinos where we met Sarah's friend Nadine who is holidaying there.  Nadine has her daughter Immy and friend Chloe in tow so a day for the kids seemed fair - in reality I went on just as much stuff as the kids and thoroughly enjoyed the day.  Later we ate in a pizza place in Benalmadena that the kids and I had eaten in 3 years previously, right on the front overlooking the beach.  The pizza was great, although I left the crusts, something I tell the kids off for doing!!

I want to round off this blog by saying a massive thank you to both John and Jill for their hospitality, to Sarah and the kids for making this holiday such a brilliant experience and to everyone else who was there for wishing me well and then not dwelling on the past 6 months, it was great to put things completely out of my mind and be normal again.  I'm looking forward to seeing you all very soon.

And the very last thing I want to do is post one last picture - taken on the first morning of the holidays - for no other reason than to demonstrate I did take more than one t-shirt away with me!!!

All the best

Nigel xx

PS: I'm going back to work tomorrow, Monday, and I'm thinking that might be a good milestone for bringing the blog to an end.  I have to consider the publication of fund raising efforts in that decision and please watch this space for news of a massive event coming hopefully this August Bank Holiday - confirmation tomorrow hopefully.

Can I ask you all - if you havent done so already - to please subscribe to the blog by popping your email address in the 'Subscribe to this blog' box at the right hand side - that will save you constantly popping back  to check for posts when I clearly have much less to write about.

Yesterday was the big day - removal of the PEG feeding tube from my stomach.

Went to the Royal Hallamshire Endoscopy Suite for this to be done, or to give it the full name The Bert McGee Endoscopy Suite.  I knew Bert McGee, he was the former Chairman of Sheffield Wednesday and a fantastic man.  I had no idea he had done so much work with charitable trusts and it felt nice to be sat in a waiting room with a large oil painting of him looking down at us!

I was taken into a room with a few other patients by the nurse who explained to me the choice of procedures i had.  The first option was to cut the pegtube at my stomach and push the grommet holding it in place inside my stomach into the stomach and pass it naturally.  This is totally pain free but explained the nurse carries a 10% risk of creating a bowel infection.  With my impending holiday to Spain I thought 'Thats the last thing I need', so we opted for option 2...

'Basically I just pull it out' said the nurse, 'I wrap the tube around my hand, we count to 3, you take a deep breath and I pull very hard.  Most people say it feels like being kicked in the stomach'... She was absolutely right, and she tricked me by saying she would pull on the 3rd deep breath.  She gave it a sharp pull on my 1st deep breath and said 'Everybody falls for that one'

It took my breath away, but within 20 minutes I was back in my car and on my way home.

She had taped some gauze over the hole telling me that the stomach wound would heal within the hour and that my hole on the outside of the body within 24-48 hours. Incredible.

Im sat here the following day and I can assure you, the pain of removing the micropore holding the gauze in place is far greater than the pain of having the peg removed!! Its sticking to the hairs on my chest and I'm doing that thing that all kids do with plasters, taking it off millimetre by millimetre and saying 'Ow' every time!!

Ah well, if it takes all morning its not a problem...

Last post this one til I get back from Spain, I have never ever looked forward to a holiday so much in my life.  Really looking forward to seeing John, Jill and the kids and obviously Jon Paul and Vanessa.  And I'm really looking forward to chilling out by the pool and relaxing with my Tommy Cooper autobiography, visiting the Spanish lakes, doing some sightseeing in Ronda, extending my food choices.. and maybe having 1 or 3 beers too...

All the best

Nigel xx

Thank you all for your recent telephone calls, text messages and e-mails!! I am fully aware its been nearly 2 weeks since I last posted on the blog, but there has been a very good reason for that (which will become clear!!).  I didn't want to post a 'no news' post for the sake of it last week, and this week I have had 4 separate appointments with hospital/healthcare professionals so thought it best to wait their verdicts.

Following on from the last post and the progress I made with eating in Northumberland, my diet is now quite varied.  Its still mostly soft stuff, easily digestible and most of all, easy to swallow.  Nearly everything I swallow currently has to be washed down with a glass of milk, water or Coke but I can live with that.

Since I last posted of course we held Sarah's 40th party at Aston Hall Cricket club and it was fantastic to see so many friends again.  Being laid up at home I have been limited in my social contact for the last 8 months so it was wonderful to meet and chat to so many old friends.  I had a great time and Sarah did too - so thank you to everyone who showed up.  I also thoroughly enjoyed myself throwing a few moves on the dance floor towards the end of the night, its good to see the old magic is still there!!

Also on the night one of the more popular items of food (well, it was first to go!) was my ham, boiled for 3 hours in 2 litres of coca cola, then roasted in the oven having been glazed with black treacle, demerara sugar and mustard.  I'd love to say it tasted nice but the gannets got to it first and I didn't get to try it!!

Our Dan did a fantastic job of dj'ing on the night and Gina was the perfect amabassador for Weston Park Hospital, prising cash from most of the guests in exchange for a blue or pink bow pin badge!

On Saturday evening, while distracted due to watching the final Doctor Who episode, I was overcome with temptation and stole a slice of pepperoni pizza from our Dan.  Surprisingly it was fairly easy to swallow when washed down with coke, and I went on to steal a piece of Gina's and also a slice of Sarah's Pollo Funghi - though the chicken proved more of a challenge than the pepperoni - good choice Sarah and i'm sure you will go for that pizza again to save you being ransacked in future!

Sunday saw me being even more adventurous, with a large bowl of Frosties (microwaved and soggy) for breakfast, a Pot Noodle (yes, I know - eeeergh) for lunch and I was so encouraged I made my Irish Stew dish (as described in great detail in March) for dinner and served it in large Yorkshire Puddings.  I managed half my Yorkshire Pud, and all my Irish Stew - and it felt great to be eating something so tasty again.

Monday again was a big food day, and even saw me eating out while on a shopping trip to Meadowhall with our Dan.  We went to his favourite restaurant, Nando's, home of Piri Piri chicken.  Now this was a step I was nervous about - spicy food.  I had a childs portion of chicken strips and chips, managed the chicken and half my chips.  I was so pleased with myself I texted half a dozen people to let them know!!

Tuesday and again I was in meadowhall, but with Gina.  We had jacket potato for tea, me with lots of butter and a little grated cheese, and i spent a good few minutes mashing it all together to make it palatable.  It was the first food I can honestly say I enjoyed since i started eating again, the other stuff seemed like a chore such was the pain against my ulcers and the difficulty I had in swallowing.

As the week has progressed I have even eaten a McDonaldsHappy Meal (minus the toy!) and last night Sarah cooked me the most gorgeous portion of cod in butter sauce (not boil in the bag either!!).  That was delicious.

So, things are certainly looking up on the eating front.

On Monday I had an appointment with a Speech and Language therapist who gave me a long list of exercises to do with my mouth neck and throat to get me moving more normally, and of course speaking too without the pain.  I reckon that when my ulcers finally take their leave that things will become much more natural.

Tuesday and I saw the dietician who was obviously delighted with progress although she did insist I keep using some milk shakes to top me up.  Ive now lost 5 stone since my treatment started.

Wednesday and the appointment was with the nurse from the milk shake company, again delighted with progress and she checked my peg tube over - thats all ok too (as of Wednesday I hadnt used the peg in 9 days).

Thursday and it was the big appointment, 3 month review at Weston Park.  Can you believe its been 3 months since my last session of radiotherapy?  Time has absolutely flown, and when I think back to how I felt in that last week just 3 months ago - the improvement is incredible.  Bernie Foran was away and so I saw Dr Thanvi.  Now I get on very well with Dr Thanvi, we have a similar sense of humour, he's always smiling and you can have a good chat about nothing in particular!  I had prepared a food diary covering the previous weeks eating exploits and he was delighted too.  I told him how desperate I was to get rid of my peg tube so that I can get in a swimming pool and start exercising - and guess what?! he's arranged it!!  The peg will be removed at the Royal Hallamshire in Sheffield on Tuesday morning - and that means just in time for my holiday too!

I am over the moon about that - I can really begin to feel human again once I don't have a plastic tube sticking out of my stomach.

Dr Thanvi also told me he regularly uses me as an example to his patients of how a positive frame of mind can help you overcome the trials of cancer treatment which was a brilliant compliment.  He asked me if I would be prepared to speak to some of his patients if he passed on my number and of course i would be only too pleased to help, its the very least I can do.

So, I was walking on air when I emerged from Weston Park on Thursday.  What an amazing transformation in just a few months.  The blog certainly makes very interesting reading going back 3-4 months and the contrast from rock-bottom to walking on air is hugely satisfying.

Ive decided that I'm going back to work from the beginning of August.  I'm only undertaking light duties at first on doctors advice but most people who know me would say thats all I ever do anyway!!  A couple of days a week will suit me at first and I can slowly build up to being normal.  And obviously thats one of the last major milestones for me, other than the upcoming scans and hopefully continued 'all-clears'.

The next 5 years will mean constant supervision from the team at Weston Park to ensure that there is no re-occurence and so it will be a case of holding my breath every time I have an appointment but its no different to many many people.  And as I always say - there are many people far worse off than me.

Finally, I am undertaking a sponsored walk in September for Mouth Cancer Awareness. Its in Hyde Park in London and Sarah, Gina and Dan have already said they will accompany me.  This is an open invitation to all of you to join me too, if you fancy spending a Saturday afternoon in London walking 10k for a very good cause with a nice meal on the Saturday evening to celebrate (we may even trouble Gordon Ramsey to cook for us in one of his restaurants), then please let me know and I will sign you up to join in.

All details on the walk, to take place on Saturday 20th September, can be found at this website.  http://www.mouthcancerwalk.org/    And my friend (and sometimes inspiration) Hayley who's blog I have linked to on here a number of times, is doing the walk too so it will be great to meet her.

Please think about it - it will be great to have as many of you there as possible.

All the best

Nigel xx