My kind of 10/2

Today will always be an important day for me. Last year on this day (June 21, 2006), I had a beneign tumor removed from my right salivary gland. I've called this blog as I have in reference to Lance Armstrong's cancer diagnosis. But my story is quite different. My surgery lasted almost 4 hours as the doctors had to carefully peel the salivary gland out from a bunch of nerves that are centered there. Turns out that nervous center of all one's facial muscles wrap around this gland so to preserve my ability to move my facial muscles, all the nerves have to be individually separated. This process takes some time and that was the main reason the surgery took so long. Anyway, this surgery was a turning point in my life as it was a genuine cancer scare without any real long term complications. In essence, I got really lucky. I'm making today the day that I thank my friends and family for all they do for me and take stock of where I'm at. It's been an interesting and exciting year for sure. It's great to be alive!