Last month I entered into a new phase of my “retirement”. I started collecting my social security. But because I have retired “early”, I am only allowed to work a few hours a month. If I earn more than I’m allowed in any month, I’ll be penalized and forfeit a check. So I have had to cut back on the hours I can spend on my day job. But the good news is that I now have more time to spend in the studio.
Most of my life I have had a day job and then worked in the studio on weekends and evenings as much as I could. Now I find myself with three full studio days each work week! I’ve always had lots of projects to work on and now I’m also working on the backlog of things I put aside for a future day. Last week I gathered up several sheets and rolls of film taken in the past but never processed. And I processed them.
One surprise was a pinhole image I took about this time last year of a scan after my last radioactive iodine (RAI) treatment. The treatment involves taking special drugs for a couple of weeks prior to the RAI. Then, on the day of the RAI, I am admitted to a special lead-lined room and I drink a small vial of RAI. Then I shower a lot and drink a lot of water to flush the RAI out of my body as quickly as possible. I’m kept isolated until the radiation safety officer determines that my radiation level is low enough to not be a threat to the public. For me that was only about a day. I had showered a WHOLE lot and drank a WHOLE lot of water and got out earlier than expected.
Post RAI scan, Fall of 2008
A week later I returned to the hospital for a scan to look for evidence that the RAI had collected in my tumor and killed it. This is the Trojan horse approach, as the tumor originated in my thyroid and should take up the iodine just like the thyroid did. But my tumor didn’t fall for that trick this time. And all I got out of the treatment was this photo.
Anyway, its great to be catching up on things and having more time to start new projects. I do have to figure out what to do on weekends and evenings though.