Malcolm Cowen's Pages

Okay as promised here is the information for the Funeral.

Date Friday 27^th Jan 2017

Funeral Service @ 2pm at Levenshulme Baptist Church

Elmsworth Avenue, Levenshulme, Manchester, M19 3NS

There will be tea and coffee served after the service for people not going onto the crematorium.

Crematorium Service @ 3:30 at Stockport Crematorium

Buxton Road, Heaviley, Stockport SK2 6LS

Celebration Buffet and Open Mike @ 4pm till 8 pm at St Marys Church Hall

Elbow Street Levenshulme, Manchester M19 3PY

Drinks can be purchased during the evening

Parking:

The roads are not great for parking in Levenshulme and we need to ensure there is room for the Family and the hearse (a big white camper van) to park so please do not park at the Baptist church.

The best place to park is at St Marys Church which has its own car park; you will then have to walk to the service at the church (directions found here –> funeral-directions )

(you can try the side streets around the church but you have been warned)

If you are only coming for the funeral service then you can park across the road at the Sidings pub.

Broom Lane, Manchester M19 2UB

If you need directions to any of the celebration events then contact Euan Cowen

0161 947 9253

Cowen@btclick.com

and he can give you more detail.

Tomorrow will be busy.

7 00 clock to X ray to drink radio opaque stuff. (He will glow in the dark)

10 oclock Sonar to put chest drains into  both lungs as I have fluid on them

3 00 o clock toX ray stent in so I can eat again.

If fluid in lungs is clear and if I can eat then I can have  chemo and have a chance of life,ifnot ………..

This is all  beause last night I had really  bad arthritis pain and and also trouble breathing which left me very weak and unable to stand up.That has Improved during the day at I am glad to say.

If a group from theNational Union of Teachers hired the lobby of the Midland Hotel to put on a chess exhibition would it be

chessNUTS hosting in a hotel foyer.

a lobb

I

This afternoon 5 of our 7 grandchildren came to see Malcolm in the conservatory at Christies.  It was a noisy hour  and Malcolm loved it. Our 4 year old played doctors with her medical kit and the 5 year old was the nurse. They soon made  their taid better. Our 7 year old played  the ukulele and the baby was adorable. Our 19 year old was chatty and happy to be with us. It was lovely.  Lots of  photos were taken  and he had his 3 sons there too. It was poignant when  Malcolm had to return to the ward and a few tears were shed. You must never hide the truth from children but you can make it bearable.

Malcolm seems a lot better to day. Painfree and able to go to  the toilet. He is hungry but has another day on the drip only. We wait for Monday.

And so to bed.

I am sorry to say this new  fight is a losing battle for Malcolm. The cancer is in the stomach lining and cannot be treated. The consultant said if he was strong enough they would consider chemo after Jan but that gives him a year. Without chemo need I say more.

Yesterday he was spaced out on morphine and  annti nausea tablets and antibiotics and he was falling and unable to  eat . He did not know where he was and was confused. We  were worried. Today on the phone he sounded more with it but that was before they gave him pain relief.

Our family have been great. Engineer son spent 2 days at hospital with me and the others were on the phone almost hourly.

On a lighter note as visiting times are restricted on his new ward I went to a panto rehearsal. One of the songs I have to sing is “I want to be Happy” There’s irony for you. But I felt better for being there. Life goes on.  It must.

More later.

I am wrriting this as Malcolm is not well enough.  He has constant  headaches and  is not eating as much as  he should.  As Chemo starts on Wed this is worrying for me. He had been doing well and we have spent several days out but no sooner does he improve then the wretched disease takes over again  or the side effects of the many  pills he has been popping. One tablet  for example means he can’t take his blood pressure tablets and so his BP is too high and high BP means headaches that he cannot cope with. You cant win.  I feel really frustrated now and feel  Wed onwards will be bad.  I am also getting very impatient with Malcolm and accusing him of giving in and not working through these symptoms and at least trying to eat  which is wrong of me I know. Depression is not a good thng for a carer either so I need to  be stronger than ever and it is getting harder for me now as well. I am so glad I have God with me to talk to as I do not think I could  cope anymore without faith.  Sorry this is so depressing but living with illness makes you that way sometimes and I am being honest here not holier than thou.