Once More Unto the Breach

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-201169832008-09-30T06:09:27.448-04:00Once More Unto the BreachTales of my second go-round with breast cancer before the age of 40. A chronicle—sometimes raw, sometimes reflective, always irreverent—of a life upended by a long shot and of the daily indignities and tiny victories that comprise it.Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comBlogger450125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-88599904603132528332008-09-24T02:39:00.003-04:002008-09-24T02:44:23.174-04:00Byline

No cosmic intervention (this time). So here it is. (Scroll almost all the way down.)

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-16231268678338264672008-09-13T15:28:00.001-04:002008-09-13T16:28:09.203-04:00Return of the Orange You-Know-Whats

I broke out the orange panties on Thursday for my first West Coast mammogram. The technician gave me the good news right away: Everything looks normal. For the record, those are some of my favorite words. I'd gotten lucky when I called for the appointment the previous week. There's usually a three- to four-month wait, the scheduler told me. But, he said, there had been a cancellation.

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-24878302201655842922008-09-08T23:32:00.004-04:002008-09-09T02:08:19.510-04:00A Dollar a Word

A few weeks from now, absent some kind of cosmic intervention, some words that I wrote are going to appear in actual print. With my name attached. And for which I will have been paid. In real U.S. dollars. This will be a first. The piece is a departure from my usual fare, and it's a very different—and dramatically shorter—version of what I originally wrote for a class I took at the J-school

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-59841350537181668302008-09-01T23:23:00.004-04:002008-09-02T00:54:44.763-04:00Interregnum

When Zach was here for the weekend in mid-July, he noticed that the plants in front of our new place were showing signs of neglect. Back in Brooklyn, the yard was Zach's domain. He planted the daffodils and tulips, seeded and mowed the lawn, trained the wisteria along the fence, and cultivated an herb garden. He created a beautiful outdoor oasis, which I enjoyed and admired but toward which I

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-21235639815747359882008-07-31T01:47:00.003-04:002008-07-31T01:55:16.322-04:00Back to Haiku

So the Locals Say Only 5.4 on the Richter scale? That's a hiccup, not a quake.

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-43301208055848910232008-07-24T00:41:00.002-04:002008-07-24T01:21:17.693-04:00Well Then

Someone I work with in my new job recently offered to introduce me to a fellow breast-cancer veteran. I'm so accustomed to having seniority in this realm that I just assumed I'd be the one offering advice and counsel, that my experience would be the more intense and complex of the two. I just don't meet that many people who've had breast cancer twice, or who've had it young—let alone

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-38986593676227584492008-07-21T23:57:00.002-04:002008-07-22T01:58:23.951-04:00Where I've Been

The thing about a sewer backup is that it's not exactly the kind of thing you want to write about. Or talk about. Or think about. Especially when it's a bad sewer backup. One that requires environmental remediation. To the tune of $3,000. (We didn't have to pay for it, but still. Three thousand dollars.) It was not the way I'd hoped to kick things off on this coast. As a start, it was

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-70637351131810339972008-07-06T01:50:00.003-04:002008-07-06T02:42:38.763-04:00One Month In

Zach and I touched down at LAX a month ago today. Within the first week, we'd found a place to live, signed the lease, and moved in. Oh, and I started my new job and went on my first business trip. We were running so fast I don't even think we hit the ground first. After 10 very full days on this coast, Zach reversed course and returned to New York, first to film a couple of commercials and

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-88017218102845659112008-06-21T20:19:00.004-04:002008-06-21T21:12:44.455-04:00Stocking Up on Tissues

It is 99 degrees here in LA today, and I have managed to come down with a cold. It seems absurd to be sneezing and blowing my nose when the temperature of the air outside is actually hotter than that of my body. Even if it's only by 0.4 degrees. Between the heat and the cold, I've got two good reasons to stay indoors this afternoon. If you add central air and DirecTV, that's four. And

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-5307659420326394682008-06-16T01:57:00.007-04:002008-06-16T02:37:43.007-04:00Fathers/Daze

Today was my first fatherless Father's Day. We are in such an unsettled state that the holiday, such as it is, passed without much ado. But it dawned on me that having lost my dad, and Zach's dad, and the only grandfather I ever knew, I won't have cause to celebrate Father's Day again until Zach and I become parents ourselves. And that just reminded me that any children we have will never know

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-89949452596374862422008-06-12T20:05:00.002-04:002008-06-12T20:09:21.260-04:00Do Not Adjust Your Set

Hello. Zachary checking in. I'm pinch-hitting because it's been a while since anything has appeared here. Rest assured all is well. We're just in the middle of the transition to LA, and internet access has been sparse at best. Your regularly scheduled blog author will be returning shortly to share her impressions. Just didn't want you to think we'd gone away. Okay, we actually have gone

Zachary Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13398930749178275730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-86550958060867730742008-06-03T22:53:00.002-04:002008-06-03T23:41:28.147-04:00Lingering Question

From the top of my degree: "To all persons to whom these presents may come greeting. . . ." What in the world does that mean?

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-69763397941255774922008-05-29T22:35:00.001-04:002008-05-29T22:35:32.365-04:00Reading List

One of the many things I'm looking forward to doing once we get out to LA is reading for pleasure once again. Not just New Yorkers, but actual books. That I choose. For myself. That do not appear on a syllabus. Or require me to write a review. I've never been one to read thematically, but I've decided to do just that this time around. In honor of the move, I'm going to read books that

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-82328969661953679842008-05-23T18:11:00.003-04:002008-05-24T00:08:18.171-04:00Got My Paper and I Was Free

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-46682599957960724842008-05-18T20:02:00.003-04:002008-05-18T21:50:34.507-04:00On the Spot

I attended my 20th college reunion over the weekend, and it was a kick to be back on campus and to reconnect with people after so many years. I'm a reunion geek, so I love these events and always wish more people embraced them, even though I understand why so many don't. Most people looked better in their early twenties than they do in their early forties, and that's one reason some folks

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-7775708284343286612008-05-14T21:11:00.006-04:002008-05-18T20:01:26.188-04:00Walking in Sunshine

While we may be joining the biggest car culture in the country, Zach and I are planning to spend lots of time in Los Angeles on foot. These were our first two LA-related purchases: Oh, and you can be sure that I'll be commuting to work via public transportation. You can take the girl out of the city. . . .

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-23929758539053533112008-05-13T22:52:00.001-04:002008-05-13T23:40:17.771-04:00Here We Come

It's been an eventful time here in Knowerville these past few weeks. Of the many changes afoot, the biggest is this: We are picking up and moving to the West Coast, to a little-known hamlet called Los Angeles. Zach and I have been flirting with LA for many years now, since he was in grad school in San Francisco a decade ago. We always planned to give it a go at some point but just hadn't

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-81170997146383707172008-05-07T21:57:00.006-04:002008-05-10T20:15:13.199-04:00Class of 2006 2007 2008

I turned in my last assignment yesterday morning and got the good news about eight hours later: I graduate in 14 days. Yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-8156224362852025922008-05-01T16:35:00.003-04:002008-05-01T22:53:43.057-04:00At Long Last

It's been nearly two years since I managed, under fire-drill-like circumstances, to produce an essay for a magazine contest I had absolutely no chance of winning. At the time, I was so happy to have gotten the thing done—and so grateful to the GPO for allowing me to get it postmarked late on a Sunday night, just hours before the deadline—that I didn't focus at all on submitting it to other

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-83648173925898382482008-04-26T18:30:00.005-04:002008-04-26T18:46:48.093-04:00Possibly the Funniest E-mail I've Ever Received

From: Facebook Subject: Zachary Knower said that you two are married... Date: April 26, 2008 10:17:36 AM EDT Zachary said on Facebook that you two are married. We need you to confirm that you are, in fact, married to Zachary. To confirm this relationship request, follow the link below: [Facebook link] Thanks, The Facebook Team Of course, I confirmed the request. And here's what Facebook

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-62947952121775400192008-04-20T21:31:00.003-04:002008-04-20T22:57:04.363-04:00Why Was This Night Different from All Other Nights?

It's Passover, and I miss my dad. He always led our seders from the head of the table, with me sitting right next to him—to keep him on track and to read the Hebrew he didn't know by heart. I was his co-pilot, I guess. Every year, we stumbled through the service together. Last night, we had a small seder—just my mom, my sister, my two young nieces, and me. And suddenly I was the one at the

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-66781093234137765702008-04-14T23:31:00.002-04:002008-04-14T23:51:07.991-04:00Always a Good Day in Our Family

I guess that for many (most?) people, April 14 is synonymous with tax-deadline dread—the last day to hunker down, crunch the numbers, collate the documents, and make some sense out of that stack/box/tangle of papers that gets no attention whatsoever on the other 364 days of the year. I have a very different association, because April 14 is my dad's birthday. He would have been 82 this year. So

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-15013445731118835192008-04-06T19:34:00.002-04:002008-04-06T20:47:12.823-04:00There Once Was a Girl

The first time I lost my hair, it took a little more than six months for it to come back. In the meantime, I met lots of other breast-cancer patients and veterans, several of whom had decided that once their hair grew back, they'd let it keep on growing. Forever. Their reaction to spending time at one end of the hirsuteness spectrum led them to resolve—defiantly—to live the rest of their

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-13217093191312879672008-03-30T22:39:00.003-04:002008-03-31T10:19:06.881-04:00Under the Wire

March 2008: Treat 2 of 2 A generous serving of Ben & Jerry's organic vanilla ice cream. On a bed of sliced banana. With a handful of frozen Thin Mints—the only way to have the Girl Scout Cookie classic—crumbled on top. YUM! A big shout-out to Zach, who talked his way into the market moments before closing time in order to procure the aforementioned Ben & Jerry's. (And came home with a pint

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20116983.post-35855448065781565222008-03-26T21:06:00.002-04:002008-03-26T21:56:23.631-04:00Again with the Treats

It's official. I've started fetishizing my twice-monthly treats. The way this month has played out, I'm almost 27 days in and have not yet had my second treat. I've noticed that the later it gets, the higher the stakes. What might have been treatworthy a week or two ago has absolutely no chance now. Treat number two is going to have to rock. No single scoop of ice cream this time around.

Jody Rosen Knowerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17638066371993482277noreply@blogger.com