Oh my god I am in a boat which is pitching and rolling I think I will die its force 8 and seas are bloody big in my opinion!! Instructions from skipper ‘clip on at all times’ … why oh why did I ever think 50 things in my 50th year should start with this!!! My maiden voyage Oban (scotland) to Port Dinorwic (North Wales) 3 days at sea …
For the love of adventure and pushing my boundaries ..first stop was to get Scopolamine patches private prescription at local surgery ..which ironically they use for chemo to prevent sickness .. I didn’t have them during chemo thou .. 2nd stop new Musto BR2 salopettes any excuse to shop…. one of my passions along with travel, gin, cider & of course good food.
Planning any trip for me begins with consulting the calendar checking where I can fit my treatment in ..or try to persuade my wonderful consultant to let me do it myself … I have the wonder drug Herceptin every 3 weeks and have done for 6 years … this is a injection given in my endowed rump slow release over 5 minutes … this is a far cry from a 90 minute drip which was the only time I sat still up until 2 years ago … Healthcare at Home deliver my treatment at home or I should say at Mumma Bear’s house (it’s cleaner and tidier than mine!) … hearing the words sharp scratch is the norm for me. I am genuinely an upbeat kinda gal and I think of it as the drug that keeps me alive … the amber nectar of life .. I don’t suffer with any side effects from Herceptin and am sure that’s why! High five for Herceptin. I also quaff a daily dose of tamoxifen (makes me feel nauseous at times but hell small price to pay)!
I am on board the ‘Good Ship Lollypop’ with Mr Lover Lover (3rd time lucky) or maybe it’s not luck maybe when your life is in the balance you decide to make some radical changes and that meant packing up my idyllic home in the heart of Snowdonia (although someone else had their sights set on it)! The plan was for an amicable divorce .. sell up mortgage had been paid by my critical illness cover … to those who don’t have it get it … recommend Scottish Widows they paid up promptly easing the way whilst having two lots of surgery Lumpectomy & removal of lymph nodes closely followed by 6 months chemo … having some spare cash and no hair … it was off to Chester with Mumma Bear and bestie to the Grosvenor Hotel and The Hair shop for some wig buying … I bought 3 felt like Mrs Ben .. for those who remember the kids TV programme Mr Ben … in and out of Grosvenor with different wigs on .. oh god how we laughed a lot … incidentally the wig the good old NHS presented me with was put straight in the bin I looked like I had road kill on my head much to kids hilarity. I have a funny story about my wig coming off which I will share another time.
Sailing is Mr Lover Lover’s passion he has his own 30ft ocean crossing yacht…his and my ideas differ .. I thought I would be sipping a G & T on deck enjoying sunsets not picking mooring buoys in the Menai Straits wrapped in a life jacket clinging on .. the only consolation being thank god I can see land and know how to radio the marina for a river taxi.
The maiden voyage as scurvy crew .. I think I was asked along as I make a mean bacon buttie certainly not for my rope skills … I think I have rope block when it comes to knots .. we took the train from North Wales up to Glasgow changing twice as we had split fare tickets (the cheapest way to travel by train) 
Splitmyfare when we arrived in Glasgow I thought happy days not a bad trip until I realised we had three more hours of travel before Oban our final destination …. not to worry I was duly escorted to the nearest public house for a pint of cider…had to wipe my feet on way out say no more!
Glasgow to Oban train journey is one of the best rail journeys in Great Britain .. breathtakingly beautiful…. I spent the whole journey glued to the window in awe apart from the essential visits to the less sulubrious “please do not flush your goldfish” train loos.
Talking of trains the reality of what was coming was starting to loom no plug sockets to charge my phone .. my phone is my lifeline to my kids although one 18 studying A levels (last minute decision as she was off to do a ski season) and one 19 who is as I write working on a vineyard in Oz ..Mummy instinct has not wained although they are both essentially adults … how in gods name am I going to manage 3 days at sea …..
A friend was buying the boat we were sailing home and Mr Lover Lover and I were tasked with provisioning the boat … for those who don’t sail it basically means do a shop in Tesco’s! Look at video clip below to hear my take of what happened next in my dreadful scottish accent ….
Fast forward to casting off the bow lines whilst I am still down below struggling with thermals, salopettes, boots (imagine hanging on and trying to get kitted up) and of course life jacket & safety line. We set off from the tranquil marina into the Sound of Mull … I will leave it there until next time when I will continue to amuse you with tales of a novice sailor … how I leant quickly to hang on and de-kit to have a wee at sea…
Cariad mawr xx .. (big love in Welsh)
A Road less travelled - Life in the fast lane with Breast Cancer - My Blog 