The blog has been a bit of a bummer lately, so today we are posting good news! Mom had knee surgery this morning and is feeling great. She was finished and back home by 10:00 a.m. In honor of Dad (and due to the anethesia) she took a huge nap when she got home.
Hopefully, Amy will do a better job of 'watching' her than I did. She was with me when she hurt her knee and Uncle Ray and I had to carry her out of the Village Bar. Guaranteed she wasn't the first person to be carried out of that place!
So, all is well with the Herbsts'...life goes on...and so does the blog. We've spent the last week quoting some of Dad's more memorable lines, so I'll leave you with this one...
'It is what it is!'
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Details on Arrangements...
Dad's visitation will be on Tuesday and his funeral and burial on Wednesday. We didn't want to have any conflicts with the scheduled book signing on Monday night. Our family will be at the event on Monday to support Dad, Kevin, and Don's efforts on the FANTASTIC book. You'll love it. We'd love to see you there and we'll raise a pint to Dad! Below are the details for the week:
Monday – The St. Louis Brews Book singing at Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave, 63143, in Maplewood from 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm.
Tuesday – Visitation is at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 350 East Fourth Street, Eureka, MO 63025, click here for map, from 3:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
Wednesday – Funeral Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 350 East Fourth Street, Eureka, MO 63025, at 11:00 am. Burial following at 1:00 pm at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, 2900 Sheridan Road, St. Louis, MO 63125. Reception in celebration of Dad's life following from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm at Schlafly Tap Room, 2100 Locust Street, St. Louis, MO 63103.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
"Lighten Up Dutch"
I am sad to say that Dad passed away last night. I'm pretty much at a loss for words this morning. The phrase 'Lighten up Dutch' has been in my mind all morning. Dad told me that about a million times over the last 35 years. Apparently, I got the lionshare of his stubbornness. It is one of my favorite 'Hankisms.' Although I didn't appreciate it most of the times he told me that :)
I'll post the wake and funeral details here when I have them. But, I'll leave you with a few Hankisms. The first is one I'm sure he has thought recently...
Who signed me up for this shit?
I'm just a kid from Dogtown, what do I know?
Don't let the bastards get you down.
I'll post the wake and funeral details here when I have them. But, I'll leave you with a few Hankisms. The first is one I'm sure he has thought recently...
Who signed me up for this shit?
I'm just a kid from Dogtown, what do I know?
Don't let the bastards get you down.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
It's Raining, It's Pouring...
In typical Dad fashion his 4 day hospital stay has now turned into 9 and the end to the stay is not in the immediate future. He has had a roller coaster week, with ups and downs coming in his blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, but never in his attitude. Even when he was in ICU last Saturday he said he felt fine. The good news is, he is not in pain.
The story is very long and involved for what he's been through in the last week, so we'll just play the highlight reel...lots of fluids in...2 gallons of fluid drained off his stomach...started chemo...ICU for 24 hours because of low blood pressure (ironically, this was at the same time the Cardinals lost the series, which would make you think his blood pressure would have gone up)...liver not functioning correctly...had to skip chemo this week because of low platelet counts. The bad news is the fluid from his stomach cavity contained lots of cancer cells, which means it is 'everywhere' according to the doctors. So, what next?
Dad's friend Fr. Anderson came yesterday and gave Dad the sacrament for the sick. Father guaranteed him this doesn't mean the end and he can even get it more than once. When he was finished, Dad asked how long it was good for. Even in his weakened state he is cracking jokes. They hope to get another round of chemo in him soon, to fight off the cancer and get his liver to start functioning properly.
The book signing is still on for Monday night. Dad will be there, although it may be through modern technology. So, come join us and raise a pint to Dad on Monday, October 19th at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood at 7:00 p.m. He will either be there in person or via Skype. While you are there you can pick up a copy of this book Dad co-authored called 'St. Louis Brews.' It is really a great book (I'm truly not biased) and you can see the cover and a description here: http://www.reedypress.com/
On another note, that is so ridiculous it's almost funny (almost)...Mom torqued her knee and had to make a trip to the orthopedic surgeon and get an mri. They think she tore her meniscus - we'll find out more next week. In the mean time, she stole Dad's walker since she can't bear weight on that leg. Sue's husband Jeff suggested they get a double-walker, similar to the double-strollers for twins. I took a picture of Mom with the walker, but the gesture she was making at me made the photo rank above a G rating, so I didn't post it here. When it rains, it pours....and I'm sitting in the middle of a tsunami. (Did I mention my niece has swine flu...my car broke down...Amy's car broke down...and the list goes on and on.)
The story is very long and involved for what he's been through in the last week, so we'll just play the highlight reel...lots of fluids in...2 gallons of fluid drained off his stomach...started chemo...ICU for 24 hours because of low blood pressure (ironically, this was at the same time the Cardinals lost the series, which would make you think his blood pressure would have gone up)...liver not functioning correctly...had to skip chemo this week because of low platelet counts. The bad news is the fluid from his stomach cavity contained lots of cancer cells, which means it is 'everywhere' according to the doctors. So, what next?
Dad's friend Fr. Anderson came yesterday and gave Dad the sacrament for the sick. Father guaranteed him this doesn't mean the end and he can even get it more than once. When he was finished, Dad asked how long it was good for. Even in his weakened state he is cracking jokes. They hope to get another round of chemo in him soon, to fight off the cancer and get his liver to start functioning properly.
The book signing is still on for Monday night. Dad will be there, although it may be through modern technology. So, come join us and raise a pint to Dad on Monday, October 19th at Schlafly Bottleworks in Maplewood at 7:00 p.m. He will either be there in person or via Skype. While you are there you can pick up a copy of this book Dad co-authored called 'St. Louis Brews.' It is really a great book (I'm truly not biased) and you can see the cover and a description here: http://www.reedypress.com/
On another note, that is so ridiculous it's almost funny (almost)...Mom torqued her knee and had to make a trip to the orthopedic surgeon and get an mri. They think she tore her meniscus - we'll find out more next week. In the mean time, she stole Dad's walker since she can't bear weight on that leg. Sue's husband Jeff suggested they get a double-walker, similar to the double-strollers for twins. I took a picture of Mom with the walker, but the gesture she was making at me made the photo rank above a G rating, so I didn't post it here. When it rains, it pours....and I'm sitting in the middle of a tsunami. (Did I mention my niece has swine flu...my car broke down...Amy's car broke down...and the list goes on and on.)
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Much has changed...
It has been several weeks since I have updated the blog and much has changed especially in the last few days. Dad has started at an oncologist and the first test they did was a PET scan. This scan shows the location of cancer in the body. The results came back today and were not good. The cancer is spreading very quickly and is now in Dad's liver and lymph nodes. His stomach cavity also has a lot of unexplained fluid.
They admitted him to Missouri Baptist Hospital (Room 1356B) this afternoon to try and resolve a number of issues including the fluid in the stomach, edema in his legs, his lack of strength, and a couple of other general things that as Dad said are 'fu#&ed up' (that's a direct quote). He will probably be in the hospital about 4 days and they'll start chemo while he is there.
We're trying to stay positive, but this news came like a punch to the gut. Dad's internist called to discuss his options and noted that he had quite the battle ahead of him if he chose to fight. Dad said, 'Laying here and doing nothing is not on my to do list, so let's start chemo.' His stubborn nature may just be the key. I guess we're back to hogging up some of the lines to heaven, but if you can throw a few extra prayers Dad's way we'd appreciate it.
On a good note...Dad got to see the final book today (he even signed 100 of them before they took him to the hospital) and he was ecstatic over the final product. Book signing at Schlafly Bottleworks on Monday, October 19th at 7:00 pm - still on tap. I have noticed that in between his major beer events, Dad fills his time at hospitals. I'm wondering if he has a nurse-fettish or if we should just schedule beer things every weekend to keep him on the up and up! Hmmm...
They admitted him to Missouri Baptist Hospital (Room 1356B) this afternoon to try and resolve a number of issues including the fluid in the stomach, edema in his legs, his lack of strength, and a couple of other general things that as Dad said are 'fu#&ed up' (that's a direct quote). He will probably be in the hospital about 4 days and they'll start chemo while he is there.
We're trying to stay positive, but this news came like a punch to the gut. Dad's internist called to discuss his options and noted that he had quite the battle ahead of him if he chose to fight. Dad said, 'Laying here and doing nothing is not on my to do list, so let's start chemo.' His stubborn nature may just be the key. I guess we're back to hogging up some of the lines to heaven, but if you can throw a few extra prayers Dad's way we'd appreciate it.
On a good note...Dad got to see the final book today (he even signed 100 of them before they took him to the hospital) and he was ecstatic over the final product. Book signing at Schlafly Bottleworks on Monday, October 19th at 7:00 pm - still on tap. I have noticed that in between his major beer events, Dad fills his time at hospitals. I'm wondering if he has a nurse-fettish or if we should just schedule beer things every weekend to keep him on the up and up! Hmmm...
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