Chat with @reservedOwl321 and @FaithfulScout
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Hey @reservedOwl321 …
Are you familiar with this section of 7Cups?
If okay with you, I’d like to share more about my medical stuff separate from the parenting teens thread (unless someone else brings it up there).
If you’ve got too much on your plate, that’s cool, no worries. I can talk about this anytime 🙂
(Oh yeah, as I get to know someone, I prefer using my real name … Tom. (Ofc I’m totally okay if you continue to use your username.)
Hi Tom. Glad you reached out here. I still get lost on the site pretty easily, but I try to keep up with my "pen pals" That's actually the main thing that keeps me coming back to the site. How is your day going?
Just saw you were jus married, CONGRATULATIONS 👏 Tom. I'm glad you found the right person!
@reservedOwl321
Thank you so much for the congrats and for joining me here!
It’s been a great day today, especially since I’m slowly getting back into a 7Cups “rhythm”. See, I’ve been away for a few weeks since I started my new chemotherapy treatment. That practically “knocked me out” for the whole duration. I’m sure I’ll be talking about it more now that our new line of communication has opened up ☺️, so I’ll leave it at that … unless you have any questions.
I also feel the same way you do, about the Pen Pal area of the website.
Thanks again for connecting—I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!
Hi Tom, It’s good to hear from you again. It sounds like you have been going through a lot. With your attitude I think you will undoubtedly make it through the treatments and beat the odds. I’m glad you are feeling a little better today. How many more treatments do you have left/how many have you been through? I’m glad you reached out to me here. What would you like to chat about? I don’t know much about the c word, but I am pulling for you my friend.
What is on your mind today Tom?
@reservedOwl321
If by “beating the odds”, you mean not let the cancer get me down—you’re totally right there ☺️
My "treatment" started in early 2024 with just a daily pill up until this summer. When that started to become ineffective, I tried one type of chemotherapy infusion for about 3 weeks at the beginning of the fall and then switched over to my current chemo at the beginning of November.
As for chatting, I’m an introvert by nature, so checking in here and there is fairly satisfying. I like getting to know people and vice versa (but not in a gossipy/nosy way). What I’m really fascinated by is how our spirit and minds work against and with each other.
Thanks so much for your encouragement and support (I didn’t know anything about, or anyone with, cancer either until it showed up in an x-ray last year).
And as for today, I’m hoping to get a good start filling out financial aid info for my son … once the government website is done with its routine maintenance schedule, in about 2 more hours.
What’s going on for you today?
@faithfulscout
I have recently started the Miracle Morning. It is a book/ morning routine by Hal Elrod. His journey is pretty inspiring. He came back from a bad car wreck and was told he wouldn't walk again to running a super marathon. Then he overcame cancer, and he also came back from hard financial times mainly through an extremely positive attitude. If you haven't heard of it I recommend it. Do you like to read/listen to books?
Otherwise I am getting ready for a busy week. I have surgery on Wednesday, so if I am slow to respond that is why... I have a whole slew of reading and books to listen to and goals lined up while I am recovering. I probably won't have time for it all... I won't be bored though.
I'm glad you are in the mindset to overcome the cancer. That's important.
What are your interests? I'd love to know more about you.
@reservedOwl321
I love listening to books! I’m into thrillers these days: James Patterson and Nora Roberts. I was into memoirs a couple of years back. Do you like the show, Friends? Matthew Perry’s memoir is hysterical. Thanks for telling me about Hal Elrod! He does sound inspiring!
It seems like you’re prepared for the week … glad you won’t be bored
Interests? I follow a sort of alternative news podcast, “Good News For Lefties”. I’m particularly focused on compiling a set of recordings from that podcast, so I can share them with my kids. I’m also updating my music collection … and that’s about it (other than listening to audiobooks and being concerned about my medical care). Oh yeah, I love talking about spirituality, God, and psychology 🙂
What about your interests?
Good to hear from you today Tom. I haven't heard of that podcast. I like the Bobbie Bones show and he has a podcast too. It's along a similar line as your podcast I guess as he talks about upbeat topics. Other than that I listen to C-SPAN sometimes. I know fun....
I like James Patterson type stuff, but I usually lean toward the non-fiction genre first, and then whatever's on my book club list which seems to be a lot of history so I haven't had a lot of time for mysteries. I will keep the Matthew Perry memoir in mind. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'm not a huge fan of TV, but I watched a bit of friends and enjoyed it. I also really liked Seinfeld back in the day.
I had a rough day today. I have been pretty down which is not common for me, at all. I know you have enough on your plate, so I don't want to bother you with it. It was a really big happy sad day for me kid wise today.
I am trying to decompress a little bit now, resting with a heating blanket.
My interests would be traveling. I love planning trips and traveling. I even wrote a book and a journal on affordable travel. I go to national parks and collect stamps. And follow the civil War trails... We have lived all over the United States and I can always find places I'm interested in traveling that are nearby where we have lived. I never seem to run out of places. I'm interested in traveling nearby.
I have a lot of interests really. It's hard to narrow it down sometimes. Other than reading, writing and travel I am also learning Spanish. I have a thousand day streak on Duolingo that my daughter is trying to kind of hijack. I like personal finance and retirement planning, Gardening, cooking. I wish we had an ice skating rink around here. I like ice skating. I also used to bike when I was younger and I love rails to trails.
It's funny as I keep writing it seems like I keep coming up with more interests that I hadn't thought of. It sounds like you and I have a lot in common. Psychology was very interesting to me when I was in college. What interests you about it? I also did a lot of religious studies classes in college, and I'm pretty familiar with most of the major world religions on a general level. It's not always the best topic for me though.
Anyway, sorry this is getting long. I hope I'm not putting you to sleep. How has your health been today? Do you have much time before your next treatment? I have a full schedule of dr. appointments tomorrow and then my surgery is on Wednesday.
Thanks again for keeping in touch with me on here. It's fun chatting with you 😊
@reservedOwl321
I appreciate getting to know you, too ☺️
I hope you're recovering well from your surgery.
I went in for my 4th round of infusions yesterday. It was fine until the end when I missed my pickup time for the transportation service I use. I ended up waiting for 2 hours before I called them to ask what the ETA would be. When they said another 1 to 1.5 hours, I decided to cancel the ride and try to make my own way back.
My doctors are in Boston, and I live 2 hours away, so it was a little adventure to find my way through the public transit system to get home. I grew up and lived in the Boston area as a young adult, so my “adventure” wasn’t as daunting as it could have been. It actually felt great to be back in the pulse of the city again! (I haven't been back in this way, on foot, in decades.)
Boy, was I exhausted when I got home, though 😪
And now I’m paying for it with extra muscle pain and soreness 😭😭😭
Hey, I also liked Seinfeld—on “Must See TV Thursdays” 🤣
It is extremely cool that you have such a real passion for travel 🤩 I really admire that fact about you! Did your family take you all over when you were growing up?
And you certainly do have a lot of interests! Just curious … what makes you say we have a lot in common? I consider myself someone simple, not very exciting (but in a good way). I think you’re amazing!!
What I find interesting about psychology is I consider it to be one of the pillars that make us who we are. The other 2 are spirituality and intellect. Like a 3-legged stool, if all 3 are present and in balance, then a person is rather stable. Does that make sense?
Why do you say religion is not the best topic for you?
Last question … how are you feeling about being down a few days ago? (And FYI, it is not a bother at all—to learn about you and to care about how you’re feeling.)
@faithfulscout I'm worried about you walking home after a treatment. I don't know a lot about the c word, but I hope you are home resting and that you will catch your ride next time!
I wish I could help you more. I sincerely hope you are resting and recovering! Talk to you soon.
@reservedOwl321
[Copy of missing text from 12/12/25 …]
Hey, I also liked Seinfeld—on “Must See TV Thursdays” 🤣
It is extremely cool that you have such a real passion for travel 🤩 I really admire that fact about you! Did your family take you all over when you were growing up?
And you certainly do have a lot of interests! Just curious … what makes you say we have a lot in common? I consider myself someone simple, not very exciting (but in a good way). I think you’re amazing!!
What I find interesting about psychology is I consider it to be one of the pillars that make us who we are. The other 2 are spirituality and intellect. Like a 3-legged stool, if all 3 are present and in balance, then a person is rather stable. Does that make sense?
Why do you say religion is not the best topic for you?
Last question … how are you feeling about being down a few days ago? (And FYI, it is not a bother at all—to learn about you and to care about how you’re feeling.)
I appreciate you reposting the questions. I am usually on here on my phone, but it is a completely different experience to use seven cups on a computer. I probably should try to respond on my laptop a little later when I pull it out. I've also been on medication from my surgery and I really feel I cannot focus at all lately. I guess it doesn't help that I have lots of interest in hobbies. About travel, know my family did not take me all over when I was young at all. I guess that is why I enjoy it. My kids have gotten to go a lot of places, I guess time will tell if it's something that they appreciated and gained from. I don't know pat this point. Have you traveled much and is it something you enjoy?
@reservedOwl321
I like the idea of travel, but that’s as far I as get. I think I’ll have to wait until they a make life-size (and functional) transporter like in Star Trek 🙂
@FaithfulScout. I wanted to check on you Tom. How are your treatments coming along? I hope you are doing alright. Please check in when you get the chance!
Good morning @faithfuilscout
Hi Tom
I'm surprised they let you go on your own. Glad you made it home safely. I hope you'll please take it easy! Sometimes that is easier said than done.
My surgery went well I think, It was a long day! Recovery has been better than expected. I haven't needed opioids yet.
I couldn't find information on your 3 pillars. Is that a personal theory? What do you mean by stable?
Religion... I could go on and on. I have a lot of trouble with people who judge you and a lot of them seem to be at church (that may be a good thing). I feel my faith aligns with the Jewish faith more closely than Christianity, does that bother you? I work to live a Christ like life as that was how I was raised.
It is a bad topic because maybe I just overthink it like I said I could go on and on. My husband is a scientist and doesn't care for tithing. This has made it hard to teach the kids and help them spiritually, However they had a lot of private schooling in a faith based school. I was in Catholic, Lutheran, and Baptist Church as a young person, but have been exposed to many world religions. It seems like religion has caused so many of the wars which seems counter to the mission as I see it. I'm embarrassed to say I am pretty conflicted when it comes to my religious beliefs, but I am happy to talk about it a little. How about you? How do you feel about your own spiritually and that of others with different views? How familiar are you with religiona other rhan your own? You wouldn't happen to be lds or Muslim?
Your post was mostly grayed out, so I couldn't get all of the questions, I'm sorry . I really would like to explore my spiritualty more, but it is complicated for me at this point in my life.
According to your theory I would be out of balance ⚖️ I would guess right?
As for what we have in common we both care deeply for our teenaged kiddos, like reading mysteries, are educated and I would think we are similar aged. You might be younger than me. I turn 50 next year.
I was feeling down because my autistic daughter was just accepted into a private placement for a smaller school for autistic kids she has been struggling in school for a while and I'm just not sure how I feel about taking her out of regular high school. It is going to be a big adjustment for her. It was exhausting and overwhelming for me because we tried and tried last year to get this placement for her, but the middle school refused to say she needed it. We even had a really good advocate for her. This time it was quick and easy with the new high school and I am in shock after all of our trouble last year! Change is hard, but it will be a good change I think. Getting to this point was just traumatic for all of us. 😔
Today I plan to work on an advice to my kids booklet since teenagers listen so well and all. Maybe they will see the wisdom one of these days. I guess it is similar to your podcast compilation. How are you putting that together and how is it going? Do you use a particular software? Hopefully you'll have your own voice on it too , I'm sure they will treasure it.
Have a good restful day today!
It sounds like your post-op recovery is going well?
The 3 pillars idea was my own (but I’m fairly sure I heard the metaphor used in some other context). When I say stable, I guess I mean that a person is at peace and appreciation with their 3 pillars: they acknowledge and value the existence of their pillars. I honestly haven't put that much deep thought into this theory. I was meditating on what I valued about living, then these 3 areas of consciousness came up … they morphed into pillars and then became legs of a stool. And that’s about as far as I got.
On religion, and I guess with people in general, I try not to judge others; therefore I’m not bothered if a person identifies themselves with more than one religion or group of people. Just FYI, I didn't really grow up with any religion. My family is from China, and we had plenty of cultural and traditional practices which probably came from a religious source, but because I never was taught the meanings behind what we did, I never equated it with what my friends did at a church or in a synagogue. And as far as other religions, I am fairly ignorant of them, but I try to keep an open mind (unless freedoms are restricted).
According to my “underdeveloped theory,” I wouldn't say you're out of balance categorically, but maybe you can (as you said) “explore my spirituality more”; therefore, metaphorically speaking, one of the legs on your stool might be a ¼ of an inch askew, which is probably imperceivable to your friends and family 🙂
As for our similarities, I see what you’re saying, especially about our values—Yes definitely! I guess I was only looking at how many different activities that capture your interests like, religious studies, gardening, cooking, travel, language studies, the outdoors, stamps, the civil war …
And about our ages, I’ll be 55 next month! It sounds like your post-op recovery is going well?
The 3 pillars idea was my own (but I’m fairly sure I heard the metaphor used in some other context). When I say stable, I guess I mean that a person is at peace and appreciation with their 3 pillars: they acknowledge and value the existence of their pillars. I honestly haven't put that much deep thought into this theory. I was meditating on what I valued about living, then these 3 areas of consciousness came up … they morphed into pillars and then became legs of a stool. And that’s about as far as I got.
On religion, and I guess with people in general, I try not to judge others; therefore I’m not bothered if a person identifies themselves with more than one religion or group of people. Just FYI, I didn't really grow up with any religion. My family is from China, and we had plenty of cultural and traditional practices which probably came from a religious source, but because I never was taught the meanings behind what we did, I never equated it with what my friends did at a church or in a synagogue. And as far as other religions, I am fairly ignorant of them, but I try to keep an open mind (unless freedoms are restricted).
According to my “underdeveloped theory,” I wouldn't say you're out of balance categorically, but maybe you can (as you said) “explore my spirituality more”; therefore, metaphorically speaking, one of the legs on your stool might be a ¼ of an inch askew, which is probably imperceivable to your friends and family 😊
As for our similarities, I see what you’re saying, especially about our values—Yes definitely! I guess I was only looking at how many different activities that capture your interests like, religious studies, gardening, cooking, travel, language studies, the outdoors, stamps, the civil war …
And about our ages, I’ll be 55 next month!
Now I get what you mean by it being a happy and sad day, regarding the news about your daughter’s acceptance into her new school. School Administrations suck. (I can say that because I used to work for several school systems, so I’ve seen things from different angles.) I’m sorry you all had to go through that. It does sound traumatizing. I hope, with less of a struggle in school, the change itself to a new environment will only be a temporary one for your daughter.
I love your idea of an advice booklet for your kids. Even if they don’t crack it open at all, I am sure they will treasure it when they get older. Did your parents do anything like that for you? (My parents didn’t, and I remember being so curious about their lives. One day in my mid-20s, I sat my mother down with a tape recorder and interviewed her about her life. I’ll have to find the recording and transcript, so I can pass it onto my kids!)
My podcast project is coming along slowly. Here’s the first compilation (for this file, I reviewed stories aired between 4/30/25-5/10/25) It’s helpful that the podcast has all their episodes on their website, so after I identify 3 or 4 news stories I want to record, I use Audacity to create and edit the audiofile, then I upload it to Google Drive to create the link, like the one above. So far, I’ve recorded episodes covering 4/30/25 up through 10/22/25. I stopped making recordings when I started my first chemo treatments. Hopefully I’ll get started again before the new year!
Thanks for letting me share this process with you!
@FaithfulScout Good Morning Tom,
I am on my computer now so I can review what I write a little better. I guess my surgery went well. I am on pain meds and have fuzzy thinking sometimes. I take my next dose in half an hour so it is a good time to try to use my brain… How are you doing?
The three pillars is an interesting concept. Looking for balance. I guess I get so busy with my everyday life these days I don’t have a lot of time to philosophize, but in college I was in philosophy class and I took a lot of those classes really seriously at the time. I also loved my cultural Anthropology class, but I took it at the end of my degree program, otherwise I may have switched majors and went that route. I have no idea what I would have done with it though. I ended up going from International business to accounting so I could have sort of a defined career field and have worked in this field for 10 years. I enjoy the flexibility I have with it as I can work from home.
I totally agree on administration I have dealt with in schools! It has been such a bumpy road in public school and IEP meetings and all! Very frustrating!
That is an interesting fact that you are originally from China. May I ask what brought you here and when did you come here? My husband and I were recently talking about the different generations and cultural differences. I’m sure you have heard that the first generation Americans tend to be very successful compared to say 3rd generation foreign born immigrants. I am of German/Austrian heritage though I am also Irish and even a little Swiss among others. I am also really hard on myself :( but trying to be less hard on myself. I think I am more of a 3rd or further generation American though if that makes sense.
As far as the “book” I wrote. I spent a lot of time on it and asked AI to help me with it. AI turned it into a letter which I sent to my 23 yo son for Christmas. I will customize it a little for the others, but I am amazed at how good AI was at summarizing what I had to say so I was happy with it. I think he already knows it. A lot of personal finance and financial security fun facts which are easier said than done. I also sent a fill in the blank book to my mom asking about her life. I like the idea to get it on tape. I will ask her to do an interview next time I see here. She is in good health still thankfully.
Your recording is really good. It sounds like you are very good with technology. Modern technology is a little overwhelming for me especially AI.
I hope I’m not boring you. I’m glad you reached out. Honestly my thinking feels a little fuzzy right now probably the meds, so hopefully this makes some sense. I appreciate you including me as well. I’ll leave it at that. I hope your day goes smoothly!
@FaithfulScout
I’m bumping as I worry about you Mr. Faithful Scout. If you don’t want to chat anymore, feel free to tell me it’s all good, but I truly hope you are getting by ok. I am concerned for your health.