First the volcano and now this!

What the heck is going on! If I had suggested to anyone 6 months ago that I was worried about the effect volcanoes or illness would have on my chances as a freelancer (bearing in mind that I am the fittest, healthiest 40 something I know!)  they most probably would have thought I was totally paranoid!  

And then what happens? I start my business on 1 April and the work is rolling in all by itself – 3 assignments lined up each for April, May and June.

I already wrote about having to cancel assignment 1 because of our friend the Icelandic volcano https://kirstenejlskov.wordpress.com/2010/04/21/night-sweats/.

Assignment 2 actually went off without a hitch last week, phew – invoice in the post today!

Assignment 3 was due to be a 4 week trip to Afghanistan in June. And then this week I find out I have a form of cancer called Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and now I have to cancel Afghanistan, plus any other possible trips in the near future….

This, my friends, is not the perfect start-up for a freelancer whose business depends on delivering advisory services out in the big wide world! But to be honest, this does not feel particularly important now that I have bigger fish to fry. It is a total shock to be told you have cancer under any circumstances, but as 40 something health and fitness freak with no symptoms other than a swollen armpit, it is close to surreal. It is not an exaggeration to say that it pretty much dominates my every waking thought at the moment.  

It’s not all bad news. If you’re going to get cancer then Hodgkin’s is a good one to get – it has one of the best cure rates.  Right now I’m waiting for an appointment to go for additional tests to find out the stage of the cancer so as to plan the treatment, which will presumably be chemotherapy. I’m happy to say that all in all I’m feeling optimistic and positive most of the time. The theme of my blog is going to be a little different than originally anticipated now though…