On the go after biopsy results

I went to Boston yesterday to see the dental surgeon who extracted two teeth last week and did a biopsy on a spot under my tongue.

The dentist said that the biopsy result was not that easy to read, and he was waiting for a specialist to check it; she will not be in until Monday, so for now this is what I have:

It is either pre-cancerous or an early-stage cancer that is on the surface layer of the skin. If it is just pre-cancerous, the same dentist will be able to remove the small portion that is left. If it is more than that, someone at Dana-Farber will need to cut a little more out in order to make sure the margins are clear.

Either way, it does not sound too bad, although I am anxious to get an answer. I searched the recesses of my brain for freak-out possibilities, but I couldn't find any, so I think I can just go with it...although I am not looking forward to having another piece cut from my tongue.

In the meantime I have been applying a cream to treat the (squamous cell) skin cancer on my forehead. This resulted mostly from the effects of the sun on my chemo-damaged skin. I need to talk to Melissa to better understand what connection this tongue thing has with my illness and treatment.

So...onward.

I timed it so that I could go to tennis (5:30 p..m.) on my way home from Boston. I hadn't been for a while, but my feet finally feel OK, and I thought I would give it a try. I was pleasantly surprised. George said he has never seen me hit so hard. I guess it's because I have been lifting weights and going to a "Total Fitness" class at the Y.

If I'm to run part of the 10-miler in Philadelphia May 1, I decided I needed to run two miles without stopping today. I did it and felt OK. It was a beautiful day, in the high 50s and sunny, and Maddie needed her exercise too, so we walked the mile around the lake. Feeling kind of tired by then, I got a cappuccino and drank it while we walked.

Under the category of not overdoing it, that should have been the end of my exercise for the day. But I always go to yoga on Thursday night, so off I went, almost straight from the walk, hoping for an easy class.

The first thing we did was supta virassa. (Reclining hero pose.)

After I got down, I couldn't get up.

This next part is hard for me to write after so many years at a family newspaper, but since this is the blogosphere, I'm going to take a big leap.

"Shit!" I said. I was sorry that it slipped out.

"Hey," Erin said, "No cursing in the yoga studio." But then she laughed and said she was only kidding. She gave me a hand and pulled me up.

The class was actually pretty challenging. Later, as she had us hold one difficult pose (which I can't remember) and told us to reach with our arms as though we desired something, another person mumbled, "How about pain killer?"

Everyone laughed.

I was glad I wasn't the only one who had said something not yogini-like.

And besides, sometimes you just have to laugh.