Hit the Showers Stinky...

I'm finally emerging from the chemo fog. To be honest this round was not too bad. The seizure Saturday night didn't help, but I'm actually feeling pretty good today. It is difficult to describe what we fondly call "chemo week"...waves of nausea, headaches and pins and needles that seem to come out of the blue. The next thing I know, I have been in bed for 5 hours, with Sports Center on loop and I know more about UCONN women's hoops than is appropriate for someone without a daughter on the team. I dread these weeks, but it is part of the battle.

Bro, Stevie and Clemetine are down in Jupiter Island for the next two weeks. It has been very quiet and I really miss the girls. Ryan and Sam check in daily. The plan is to get back in the goal tomorrow and maybe shower...it has been since Saturday!

Go Huskies!

Big win for the Wings last night. Seem to be on a roll. Organization did a cool fundraiser to generate awareness for breast cancer. The players wore pink helmets that were auctioned off after the game. Unfortunately a few of those helmets were in rough shape after the knuckle-dusting. And, all of the excitement from the late game fist-a-cuffs spurred on a little bit of a "focal seizure". In the moment, I sort of lose the ability to speak and put my words together and my right side gets tingly. But believe it or not, I'm told it's normal. Usually it lasts less than an hour but then I have what feels like a seizure hangover for a few days. I have had a couple of these things after games, often when I'm coaching on chemo. Back at home now. Girls are leaving for Florida in the morning. I'm hunkering in for a few more days of feeling crappy.

"The Weapon" modeling the breast cancer awareness shoes.

Blazer with his pink helmet.

Shout out to Foxy for giving brain cancer some awareness with the grey numbers.

Voyeur shot of chemo - me assuming my position for the next few days.

Chemo Week

Kicked off what I believe to be my 13th round of Chemo on Thursday night. I take 430 MG of Temodar, over five straight nights. Similar to Shark Week except with a bunch of nausea and fatigue. The Wings had practice last night in preparation for our home tilt with Boston. The team had a good run, but I didn't get back to the hotel until midnight. Took my Zofran, Ativan, melatonin and had to wait an hour to take Temodar. Needless to say it was a late night. 2 days down and 3 to go!

I will spend most of the day at the hotel in bed. I really miss my family when I'm travelling on chemo - I feel awful the entire day and it is hard to not be with the girls. Brogann is a great nurse and the kids are so funny right now...it is impossible not to to smile we you are with them.

MIDNIGHT SNACK - TEMODAR

BREAKFAST - KEPPRA, ZOFRAN, BACTRIM, LISINOPRIL, AMLODIPINE

No Bouncers & the Horn

Jumped in the goal this morning. Still easing into it - had to set a couple of ground rules. One is a standard for me, no bounce shots. There is a time and a place for bounce shots, but if you think about it, when was the last time a bounce shot was taken in an actual game? I think it was 1995. Ryan and Pat Heim (Wings/Cannons/Penn State '07) brought the heat as certified by our post-workout radar session. Heim Time was the high gun.

WARM UP

TURNS

RADAR GUN

Hitting the Gym & Celebrity Visit

R and I hit PEAC for an early morning lift. Patrick & Brodie Merrill, along with the boys from the Hill Academy, stopped by the store in Pennington in the old Denny's bus on their way to play Delbarton. Great to see the Merrills and get a little "glory days" about good times at the Pennytown, le Fleur and the Hover's pool.



L to R- Brice Queener (G-Town, 2006), Jess (PBE), Brodie (Team Canada 2010), Patrick (Team Canada 2010)

Not sure what the trainer calls this...

A little lat work.

HALL OF FAME INDUCTION, November 2009

To start things off on this blog, here is a copy of the CLA's induction of Chris into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame this past November, as well as an excerpt from Chris' speech in which he references his plans to play in the 2010 Lacrosse World Championships.

Chris Sanderson (Pennington, New Jersey) Chris started his career as a box lacrosse player in Orangeville, Ontario. A box lacrosse goaltender by trade, Sanderson learned the field lacrosse goaltender position on his own. He was recruited by the University of Virginia where he played from1995-98 and lead the Cavaliers to two NCAA Final Four Tournaments. Sanderson was the starting goaltender for the 1998, 2002 and 2006 Team Canada Senior Men’s Field Lacrosse teams winning silver in 1998 and 2002. Sanderson, a two-time International Lacrosse Federation All-World Goaltender in 1998 and 2006, backstopped the 2006 Team Canada squad to its first World title since1978 defeating the USA 15-10. He has the distinction as the only goalie in World Games history to hold Team USA to 10 goals in a game. His 14 wins and 5 losses ranks as the best record of any goalie in the history of the World Games.
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"As some of you know, this has not been an easy year for me. Last winter I was diagnosed with what most doctors consider to be incurable brain cancer. According to my prognosis, I am not even supposed to be here to accept this honor tonight, so you can understand why it is so meaningful to me. I am doing everything I can to beat the odds, and have set a personal goal of playing in my 4th consecutive World Championships in Manchester, England this summer. This time, my training may be interrupted by chemo schedules and MRI appointments, but I am still determined to be there." - Chris Sanderson