In Which I Discuss Breast MRIs and Saving Nipples

Gentle readers, for this entry, I'm going to back track a little and discuss the breast MRI. You, like I, may be wondering "but, what makes this so different from a regular MRI?" Never fear, for I will explain. First, photos. The stark, plain one is a photo of what I referred to as the rig, the second is an example of how I (and other patients) are positioned for the scan. In my case, my arms were more extended, more like Supergirl or something, and I had an IV in my right hand. (And a 'panic button' bulb in my left.) 

The patient is naked from the waist up and, see those rectangular holes? That's where the breasts go. And then something was moved inwards to rest right next to them - unsure if it was to help with placement or to help direct the 'waves,' but it was fucking weird. I walked into the room in my gown & scrub pants and started giggling. Pretty sure the technicians thought I was crazy, but they ended up agreeing that yeah it is "unusual" looking. The people at Valley Radiology's breast center did their best to make it, um, comfortable, but my hands were going pins & needles by the end. (It was roughly 25 minutes long.) This procedure sucked ass. But, it did conclusively show that there was only cancer in my left breast. Side note: had I opted for a lumpectomy, because of my genetic mutation, I would have had to do this as well as the diagnostic mammogram & ultrasound every 6 months. 

Now, on to the discussion of nipples. Namely, mine. During the to keep or not to keep my breasts, I brought up the possibility of keeping some of the outer parts. Keep in mind, Jason & I had found out the evening before and had spent a little time researching how this works. Dr. O'Neill (my surgeon) said there were different types of mastectomies - including skin sparing and nipple sparing. She thought I should speak to a plastic surgeon, so I went. You see, and this may be TMI for some people, I wanted to keep as much of the original me as possible. Particularly my nipples, for reasons of sexy times. Mentioning this to one of my good friends, Amarise, resulted in this exchange:

Amarise: "Nipple conservation sounds like something people would pass out pamphlets about."

Me: "YES! HAHA! 'Save the nipples!  

Amarise: “Every year more and more nipples are disappearing. How will you stop it?”

Me: "Won't you please help?"

sad music in the background

Amarise: Cue Sara McLaughlin

So you can see I tried to keep a sense of humor about all this. The plastic surgeon advised that due to the size & shape of my breasts, nipple sparing surgery would not be a good plan. When rebuilt, my nipples would end up pointing down, which...ew. I did not want that. I later found online something about procedure called free nipple grafting. Where, during the mastectomy surgery, the nipple and part of the areola are removed & grafted to another part of the body. I was excited about this option and my plastic surgeon was game to try it, so that's what we did during the mastectomy. 

Getting the surgery scheduled was a pain in the ass. Two surgeons were involved which meant getting both schedules to align. And it would have been easier if the plastic surgeon's assistant hadn't sat on a VM I left for an entire week. There was a lot of back & forth prior to this, but then yeah. She sat on it for a week, then informed me my surgery was on 5/15 and I said "no," asking for it to be rescheduled because Phoenix Comic Fest (or whatever they call themselves currently) was the following week.

Now look, I know many of you reading probably think I'm crazy. That's fine. But the fact is, it was a small tumor, caught very early, I was expected at con as a panelist, and dammit, I was going to have some fun before this all got super serious. After a little more back & forth, they were able to acquiesce to my request and scheduled me for surgery on 5/30. Everything leading up to a surgery date felt like a runaway train, despite medical professionals saying things like "you're in control" and "whatever you want." I saw making them schedule when I wanted as a way to take back control - besides, I hate it when doctors schedule appointments & then tell you when to show up instead of asking. So, I got to meet comic writers I love, be Black Widow, and Osgood.

Me with some Bombshell Batwoman
cosplayers

Comics writer James Tynion IV

           

  

Marguerite Bennett, comics
writer, cat lover, Hufflepuff

                                  

Comics are Tasty

In late summer 2014, I was contacted by a friend and offered the chance to write comic & graphic novel reviews for a new site/zine she was cooking up with others. I jumped at the chance because - hey, I like writing reviews and why not do it for a wider audience? Besides, like just about any writer, I like validation. To me, that was awesome validation that some of the things I've posted here were good enough for a wider audience.

I wrote about 1 item a month until June of 2015, when a car accident sidelined me for most of the rest of the year. I often shared the reviews on Twitter, tagging writers & artists of the comics. It was kind of a rush when they liked and/or re-tweeted. (It's the little things.)

I had one last item on the online boards when I noticed an announcement from them on Facebook the other day. They were changing direction. Focusing elsewhere. So I asked, "what does this mean for me?" Yup, totally going in a different direction, best of luck in the future & thank you for my contribution.

The Felicia Day review that is in this blog was that last piece. It was edited professionally, hence the editor credit at the end.

I'm proud of the work I did for them. I'm so grateful to have had the experience of being professionally edited, too. It has made me a better writer, even if sometimes it stung. I am pretty disappointed about how I found out I would no longer be needed, but, I guess that's how it happens sometimes.

The bright side: that same evening, I got a message offering me an opportunity to write for the site Eat Your Comics! They're a local site that covers, well, comics...and a host of other nerdy, pop culture things. Currently, it's a labor of love, but hopefully one day we'll all get paid. Just getting things set up with them now & hopefully I'll have something up for them soon. When that happens, I'll be sure & post a link here.

Serenity: Leaves on the Wind

Over the years, we've been given glimpses of the Serenity crew through the medium of comics. (Most have been set post-Firefly/pre-Serenity.) Ever since a one shot released on Free Comic Book Day in 2012 set post-Serenity that showed a pregnant Zoe, I've been dying for more tales. Earlier this year, Dark Horse Comics granted my wish with the publication of the first issue of Serenity: Leaves on the Wind.

The story picks up a short time after the events of the film and opens with Zoe about to give birth as they're trying to stay under the radar and hide from the Alliance. River is in the pilot's seat now, and as a nice nod, Wash's dinosaurs still adorn the console. Things go wrong and Zoe needs care that Simon is not equipped to handle, so they travel to an outpost with better med facilities, only to have the Alliance show up. Zoe insists that they leave her, so that her child will be safe, telling him "I can take care of myself." The plot turns then to figuring out how to rescue Zoe and along the way, see some familiar faces. We also get a taste of the program that River was part of before Simon rescued her, and it ain't pretty. 

Along the way, we also learn that a movement has sprung up that calls itself the New Resistance. (When we first see Jayne in the story, he's been tracked down by one of their members in hopes of finding Mal.) They've co-opted the Independent's flag as part of their symbol and rally around Malcolm Reynolds as their hero. 

Each of the characters gets time to shine, in some small way, and certain 'shippers will find some great stuff in these pages. 

The story is by Zack Whedon, with art by Georges Jeanty, a name familiar to some from his work on Buffy Season 8. Cover art is by Dan Dos Santos, and Joss Whedon is listed as an executive producer. Zack really captured the voice & tone of the characters, obviously he is a fan of his brother's work and paid attention. He gives Jayne a bit of dialogue that cracked me up, because it's a line that only Jayne could deliver! Jeanty's style may not be for everyone, but I enjoy it. (I also might be a teeny bit biased because 4 years ago I saw him at Phoenix Comicon and he geeked out with me about the Buffyverse for about half an hour. And he signed my stuff...and was super cool.) One of my favorite images is near the end of issue 6. It has no characters, just Serenity in flight, with clouds at her back, and a single green leaf in the foreground, drifting. 

So, fellow Browncoats, if you've had a yearnin' for the story of what happened after Serenity, do yourself a favor and pick up this series. It's all done now, so you can read it all in one go. I picked them up as they were released, but after seeing that issues 1 and 2 both ended on cliffhangers, decided to save myself some heartache by waiting until the run was finished. Sadly, there don't seem to be plans for more right now, but that could always change...and it was left wide open to continue. I'll leave you with an image of my favorite cover, issue 6. Stay shiny and keep flyin'...