Well, we tried it out yesterday for our chemo treatment day at Swedish Cancer Institute.   We as in Jennifer and myself.  We are both here on Vashon Island and it was just a matter of time before the island grapevine got us together.  And we do what Islanders do when faced with the big city, we car pool.  And actually it is beyond that to a budding buddy system relationship.  We found that we had the same docs and treatment pathway but she was being treated one week and I was on the next week.  Anyway with a little help from folks at the hospital I changed my schedule to hers and now we can team up on it.

Also what is important about this is that I am been doing this for going on four years and have grappled with many things that I can hopefully coach her on.  And visa versa she is seeing the situation with new eyes and coming up with some new angles.   ( just listening to my Soul music and Laura Lee just had a line that might be apropos, “I’m going to slap him in the face with the unexpected!”  Putting cancer in it’s place!). Jennifer is just starting  with chemo and this is a totally freaky prospect.  It’s all so foreign and difficult.  I am happy that I have some extra energy at this point  to help out in some small or large way, who knows.

And with me at this point the endeavor of keeping the cancer to a dull roar is an endurance race at best.   Being able to keep my health in other areas to give me a strong base to work from is important.  And then to be able to keep one step ahead of the chemo side effects and carry on is important.   Then to keep the whole person, me, intacted with the help of prayer and advisors and strong family.  This blog is part of it also.  I have a mission with the Camino and you the Caminoheads to help keep things burning that gives me a focus and helps keep me alive.  Thanks for reading and being here for me and Jennifer.

Yes, but the world is chock full of different realities.  This was just a little glimpse into this little backwater.  Good luck with your struggle where you are.  Buddy system loves, Felipe.

We might be lacking in other areas but putting out and devouring tapas is taken care of. I know that it is almost ancient history but way back in this blog I had quite a bit of material tapa related.  And we are still doing it in style.

Yesterday Esther joined us.  She has traveled the Camino Frances three times and is currently writing a book on the topic for young readers.  Then Catherine and Dana were here to regale us with fresh stories and insights.  They are doing the reentry thing which is challenging and rewarding and we were avidly listening.

So we are walking with the next date being tomorrow 0900-1000.  Hope to see you sometime soon, add to the conversation.  Love, Felipe.

We are barreling ahead, here there and everywhere.  Annie just emailed that she and the music people are getting together today to record a piece that will go over the credits on Phil’s Camino, the movie.  Yea, the movie!  Coming soon.  It ‘s been a long birthing process but a miracle in it’s own right.  Thank you Annie, thank you all, thank you Saint James.

I’ve got to barrel ahead and finish up a job this morning.  We have an afternoon walk and tapas afterward today.  This is on the new walking schedule.  Will repeat the schedule below.  Yea, Jennifer and I will be off for our treatments tomorrow, the buddy system.

Ok, the best to you all.  Get out there and stir the pot, move it all along.  Love your stuff, Felipe.

We walk:

Monday 0900-1000

Tuesday 1600-1700

Thursday 0900-1000

Sunday 1600-1700

Sunday we finally got Sister Joyce, my spiritual advisor,  to come and see Phil’s Camino.  Jennifer was here to help me host her.  Basically we enjoyed each other talking away.   Then I thought that we should show Sister Joyce the trail and she said that she couldn’t walk that far.  So, Jennifer got this great idea to have her ride the mower around for a half mile, which she did.  Check out these pix.  She is such a good sport!

Let me mention the new walking schedule here.  Please come and walk with me, with us.  Monday 0900-1000

Tuesday 1600-1700

Thursday 0900-1000

Sunday 1600-1700

Well, I’m pretty beat after all the Memorial Day activities that went on today.  Just having a little tomato beer and watching some baseball.  OK, catch you tomorrow, love, Felipe.

Sorry about no post yesterday, that very seldom happens.  Just a little too much happening.  But off to a steady start this morning.

Off to Mass, walking a few laps, off to the cemetery to help put up 500 flags on vet’s graves.  I need to get those  accomplished to get to my afternoon with Sister Joyce.   She is finally going to come over to see the Camino.

Know that I am thinking of you and praying that your day will be fruitful.  Always remember that you are loved.  The road goes on but we know how to do that.   Take care, Felipe.

It’s tapa time here at Raven Ranch with our neighbors fresh back.  They are bubbling over with stories of the Camino.  A little miracle here and a little miracle there.  Rain going sideways here and walking in the fog there.  No room in the albergue here and gosh I was sick there.  Swimming in the ocean, meeting people, remeeting people, all good to the end.  Felipe.

And what more perfect place to re-enter than Raven Ranch with Phil and Rebecca and a glass of wine and tapas.  The blessings continue. Buen Camino in my heart always. Dana

We were blessed to have met you Phil, to have been mentored by you (take care of your feet) hosted by you and Rebecca before, and now after… it is so good to be home and yet some part of us is still rising and dressing, lacing boots and shouldering packs and walking, and walking, and walking, and so it shall be for the rest of our lives as it always was – we just didn’t know it.   Catherine.

OK, we did it, tapas can be tough.  Love, Felipe.

Our Camino buddies Catherine and Dana will be here later today.  We are walking in the morning from 9 to 10, if you want to join us.  Then tapas at 5 PM.  So I will blog from tapas later with the gals fresh back from Spain.

Jennifer came over for tapas last evening.  It is  fun to sit outside on the deck on these evenings.  Hard to imagine winter and the rain and the dark of a few months ago.  You have to live in the Northwest to really get that.

Anyway, the important thing is that she brought this little baggie with some sprigs of a new mint that  I  have never seen or tasted before.  As a new cook I thought it was nice.  Just a little gift from the herb garden.   Just another form of beauty to enjoy.  I have been concentrating on visual beauty lately with all the wonderful blooms of spring and Jennifer comes in with this little baggie of something different.  I like it, thanks Jennifer.

All right, be back later.  Maybe we will pass the iPad around like we did a at tapas in Spain.  Just trying to capture the moment.  Make it happen, love, Felipe.

There are some happy campers back in the neighborhood looking to get debriefed.  Yes, the famous Catherine y Dana are back and the wine is chilled for their visit.  I just invited them to come this afternoon to walk and talk and the have tapas.  So, if that happens I would like to post a blog directly from that gathering.   Later, love, Felipe.

When I first saw blogging in action it was in that lovely movie about Julie trying to do all the recipes in Julia Child’s Famous French Cookbook.  Julie would bust her butt all day and then try a do one of the insanely complicated recipes each evening.  Then the short daily blog to tell us able the success or disaster.   Things don’t always work out.

Well, I was so mortified last evening when I realized that I missed an important meeting.  I was so happy here at the ranch working on a little project totally unimportant to the world until I realized that I had totally blown it.  For the last year I have been trying to cut back on my voluntary commitments realizing that I can’t operate at the same level as in the past.  This was the classic example of getting more on my plate than I could eat; too many irons in the fire.

Anyway this is shading my thinking this AM.  I’m trying to keep it simple and not take on too much.  Of course, my basic problem is that I want to do everything.  I guess that’s what heaven is for.  “Mustang Sally” playing right now.  Love you guys, keep it to a dull roar, Felipe.

Chris, who says he is no photographer, sure takes a lot of pictures.  And he took some a while back that I have never gotten on the blog and which might give you more of an idea what goes on here.  And it is a way of bringing up the new walking schedule which will start on Monday.

That’s the day that Chris took…   Wait a minute.  Isn’t this the guy that was just interviewed by the BBC about his photos from the Vietnam War.   Oh, and then there was a little mention in Time Magazine.   Well, that guy, and here he is documenting our little old Backyard Camino.   Thanks Chris, Esther and I never looked better.

These shots were taken on a Wednesday afternoon which has turned into the most popular walking time of the four times.  Now with the new schedule it has moved to Tuesday afternoon.  And then I have changed the Sunday walk from morning to afternoon.

Here is the new schedule that we are going to try:

Monday – 0900-1000

Tuesday -1600-1700

Thurs 0900-1000

Sunday – 1600-1700.

Good and now we need one of Annie’s little kid definations of love:

Love is what makes you smile

When you are tired.

Terri

age 4

OK, going to water the corn seed that I replanted.  Keeping it more wet this time.  Here we go, love, Felipe.