The Bait and Switch

Looking for a little light hearted entertainment, we rented a few movies over the weekend.
A little background and opinion. I think the majority of movies produced today are garbage. One reason is they usually contain language and innuendo that are totally uncalled for and add nothing to the plot or value of the movie. Is it a requirement for a script writer to include a minimum number of curse words in each film? As a parent of a nine year old boy, we find it extremely difficult to find movies that we can watch as a family (animation aside).

First up was "Last Holiday" starring Queen Latifah. This was semi enjoyable. It's easy to get some satisfaction out of movie when you set your expectation level low. The premise is that she gets mis-diagnosed with a rare brain tumor(s) and has three weeks to live. Consequently, she lives like she's never lived before. It was a lighthearted, whimsical movie (OK, I stole that from a review) and it was entertaining enough for the whole family. It had a happy ending, so we figured Brad would enjoy it, and he did. Language is the primary reason for the PG-13 rating, go figure.

Next up was "The Family Stone". Again, we weren't expecting much, but we weren't expecting this. The preview/trailer mentions or suggested NOTHING about Diane Keaton's character. As it turns out, she has breast cancer, and she dies! No, we did not watch this with Brad. Mary and I had been forewarned but it obviously hit way too close to home and hence, triggered some emotional repercussions. It was a good thing though. Mary and I have been keeping a pretty stiff upper lip for the better part of a year, an emotional release was needed for both of us.

In the end, after getting over the bait and switch issue, I feel fine about the whole incident. We can’t hide from what is going on. We can't suppress our feelings and our fears and if it takes a really bad movie to trigger an emotional reaction, so be it.

I'm learning more and more everyday about cancer, about life and about people in general; there are no rules, there is no blueprint. You just have to keep rolling with the punches. Don’t get too down from bad news or too high from the good, just live somewhere in the middle…..emotionally, it might be the safest place to be.
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BTW - I had my PSA test yesterday, not last Friday. Results should be in today or tomorrow.
Friday 5-12 I will have a Bone Scan and MRI
Friday 5-19 We will meet with my Oncologist to review all of the test results