IMF and Washington, DC

UPDATE: We received an invitation in the mail to the International Myeloma Foundation Patient and Family Seminar held at the Weston Hotel in Washington, DC Friday afternoon August 7 and all day Saturday. We stayed over an extra day Sunday to tour the mall. We walked almost all day in the 95+ heat and pretty much over did it. It has taken us most of this week to recover our energy levels. I understand this is quite common among those who visit the mall. Even though we bought all day passes to the circulator buss system and did quite a bit of riding, we did a massive amount of walking.

Vinita wanted to see Archie Bunker's chair and the original constitution. We found Archie Bunker's chair in the Smithsonian Castle main entrance atop a pile of post modern leftovers like Fonzie's jacket. We couldn't view the constitution because it is in some archive somewhere. It was a very educational visit. If you want to view diversity real time, go to DC. There are people from all over the world visiting along with you. You won't understand a word they are saying (unless you happen to speak their language).

I learned a few new things at the seminar which have prompted me to get a bone marrow biopsy and skeletal x-ray bone survey done at Emory next week or the next. Since my myeloma cells have apparently changed in some important ways, we need to do a cytogenetic study to determine how they have changed and what if anything to do about it. I may be having a second stem cell transplant at Emory in a few months if tests indicate I stand a better than average chance of getting a response. Last time, I got no response. I don't want to repeat that if I can help it.