Saturday 23 October 2010

The Mark Of The Vampire


I'm three years into treatment for lymphoma (chemo, radiation and the rest), and I'm just emerging now from a particularly nasty few months of heavy chemo and a stem cell transplant. My strength is just
starting to return, and it feels great. All this shit has kept me from writing as much as I'd like to recently, and I'm hoping to start posting more frequently again until my next round of treatment begins.

I want to show off a gory bit of medical tech that I had to wear around for a couple of days recently. It's called a Vas Cath, or central venous catheter. It's a "port" that is stitched into the neck and connected to an access tube that runs directly into the Jugular Vein, on down through the Superior Vena Cava and into the heart. In spite of the fact that it sucked having it in, a perverse part of my sci-fi horror lovin' mind couldn't help but appreciate it's similarity to some cool biomechanical imagery in some of my favourite flicks:

unfortunate Max Renn's Videodrome-tumour induced episode of a gun assimilating itself into his "old flesh" via a series of gorily tunneling conduits...


... and even more so, the disgusting Harkonnen "heart plugs" from Lynch's Dune.


Finally, much to my amusement, after having the device removed, my doctor described the hole left in my neck as "the mark of the Vampire". Groovy.


20 comments:

  1. Geez, man! Glad to hear your feeling better. Cool shirt, btw. Haven't listened to Lords in a while! Take care.

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  2. At any point did you find yourself yelling "WHERRRRRRRE'S MY DOCTOR??" whilst fondling a flower-arranging Ziggy Stardust lookalike in a see-thru jumpsuit?

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  3. Great post... Very happy to read that you are doing well, and very impressed - damn it - amazed that you have such a great sense of humour about your condition. If I should face something like this in my life, I hope I will have the same courage, positivity and brass balls that you have... And yeah, more posts please, your fans are waiting !

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  4. Aaron: yeah, Lords rock.

    Thing: totally dude. I love Lynch's Dune.

    Wes: I never would've thought I'd cope, but when it happens ya just do. What choice have you got after all?

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  5. YOU ARE A HARDCORE MOTHERFUCKER, I RAISE MY COFFEE CUP TO YOU SIR.

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  6. Fucking Hell! Sounds like some heavy shit Aylmer!
    Glad to hear that you are feeling better and earning some cool scars along the way.

    Stay strong trooper!

    J.

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  7. Woah, that fucking neck thing is super metal.

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  8. Always love your post. Never know about your ongoing medical attention but glad you're recuperating.

    Godspeed.

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  9. hahahaha 6 million dollar man or what?

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  10. I lost one of my best friends a month ago to a brain tumor. He was two days short of turning 34, and battled through three tumors in 10 years. There is no god, I say.

    I had no idea you were ill, and I am glad to hear you are responding well - CANCER CAN SUCK IT!

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  11. Thanks for your support everyone, you all rule. And I'm sorry to hear about your friend Lo-Res. Brain tumours are horrible, and far worse than anything I've had to go through.

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  12. You look very much healthy (apart from the tube staring out of your neck :D). Stay strong man!

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  13. Wow, you are my hero now. Sorry about what you're going through, but it sounds like you're staying strong and optimistic and I thoroughly respect you for that.

    More posts would indeed be awesome, I love reading your stuff. I love that picture, you look rad.

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  14. I hold a vision of you in perfect health, sir. The flesh must obey!
    \m/

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  15. Sorry to hear you've been having such a rough time of it lately - hope you continue on the road to recovery and good health.

    Long live the new flesh! ;o)

    Best wishes and Cronenberg movies,
    James

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  16. "Long live the new flesh" is definitely appropriate.

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  17. Good intentions to your health. I thoroughly enjoy your writing.

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  18. i like animes and i also watch hentai. and i love to play basketball also

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