Let’s just address the reason for this blog right up front.  I have stage 4 prostate cancer.  They tell me that the cancer has advanced too far and is not curable, and that fucking sucks.

Let me explain my word choice.  You see if you are going to be a reader of this blog you will need to be sure that you have your big boy/girl panties on because I plan on using big boy words.  As for me I wear my big boy Depends.  Prostate surgery and incontinence you know.  That radiation did a hell of a number on me as well.  Fuckers!

Anyway I find that the F word can be used to help explain many things.  I use the word as a noun, verb, and adjective.  So you will probably see it from time to time.

Moving on:  Okay Kevin you have cancer, why the blog?

I am writing for a couple of reasons:  One I find it to be a form of therapy.  I talk to myself a lot and if you are a writer you get to answer.  The second reason is for my three children and grandson and any future grandchildren.

The whole fam! My wife, my three kids, my son-in-law and my grandson.

My kids are adults and have moved on with their lives.  My home will always be their home.  The job of a father is never over, but I do not have the influence nor do they need me like they once did.  And that is good.  With the kids we have memories that they will have for the rest of their lives.  If things turn ugly we have had our time together.

With Camden it is a different story.  Camden is my three-year-old grandson.  I love him more than I can ever explain.  My greatest fear in all of this cancer shit is that my time will come before he has had the opportunity to form lasting memories of our relationship.  I can only remember bits and pieces of when I was say five, six, seven, or eight years old.  I would imagine that his future memory of what was going on in his life at that age will be cloudy as well.

Camden

So I take videos with him as often as possible, and you will see those here and on Facebook.  I will use this blog to say things to him that maybe he will be able to look over in the future and smile.  I hope, I hope, I hope, that maybe something will happen to change things and Cammy and I will be able to sit down together and read over these pages years from now and laugh.  Unfortunately that is most likely not going to happen.  So these pages will be my branches that I am leaving behind for Cammy.

Me and Cammy on vacation August 2017

I read a story many years ago that stuck with me.  In that story a son was taking his mother up a mountain to die.  As he carried her up the mountain she would grab branches from the trees and drop them onto the forest floor.  The son asked her why she was doing that and she explained:  We are going up the mountain together, but you will be coming back down alone.  These branches are to help you find your way.

Maybe something I say here will help my family find their way in a world without me.  I hope that is not anytime soon.  But as I have always said you gotta be prepared for the worst and hope for the best.

You will be learning a lot about me here on these pages.  I will try to be as open as possible and that is really hard because that is not me.  I will be talking about my hopes and fears, and at times that might get uncomfortable for me or you.  If that turns out to be the case and you feel that I am providing TMI, I ask that you stop following the blog.

I hope to also help others with cancer. I will be talking about my treatments, doctors, and insurance companies.  I guess the entire medical establishment.

For those of you who decide to check in from time to time all I can say is strap on your seat-belt you are in for a hell of a ride.  Ha ha ha!

You will learn that another reason for the blog is just to get myself to laugh.  You might laugh along with me.  I will probable laugh harder, according to my kids.

So that is kind of an intro to what you will find here.  Oh I almost forgot.  I probably need to introduce myself in case someone finds their way to this page through a Google search because they also have cancer.  Welcome.

My name is Kevin Brown and I am 58 years old.  I am a 1978 graduate of Wellsville – Middletown R-1 High School and a 1982 graduate of the University of Missouri.  Go Tigers!

I am the father of three and husband of one.  I am also the grandfather of the cutest little Camden you will ever see.

I am also a cancer patient and I will forever be a cancer patient.

Until next time keep on Living…Loving…Laughing.

-Kevin

“Time is shortening. But every day that I challenge this cancer and survive is a victory for me.”
-Ingrid Bergman