After visiting my specialist in Sydney last Tuesday, I can let all those poor little dears worried sick about my health issues - such as the absence of teeth and anorexic condition - of the latest. Turns out the medication (which was experimental anyway) that I've been taking for almost 2 years has not worked. The doc said there's more exposed bone in my lower gum than there was 6 months ago when he last saw it. More dead bone means my lower jaw is susceptible to fracture. So next week I'm due in Port Macquarie for a CTC scan which is a 3D image that allows the doc to see inside the bone. If the situation is as he suspects, an operation will follow - a serious op that will mean 10 hours or so in surgery, 2 weeks in hospital and 6 months recovery. However, it will also mean new bone (taken from another part of my body) transplanted into my jaw, with holes drilled to accommodate a new set of lower teeth. An upper plate will be all that's needed to give me a full set of choppers.
So, although it's gonna be a PITA for 6 months (with a food tube for a while) at least there will be light at the end of the tunnel, unlike the way it's been for the past 2 years. Hopefully, if all goes well, I'll be ready to rock and roll by about March/April next year. More importantly, I'll be able to eat those 17 hotdogs that Billy says is my penance for being naughty.
So there you have it. While I was in Sydney, after arriving at 7am, I spent some hours photographing the sights touring Balmain. I put a photo album together which you can see here.
Dougwe said
06:44 PM Sep 12, 2014
Garry, I sure hope all goes well for you my friend. It sounds terrible but I'm sure well worth the time. Keep positive and you will be out in the playground before you know it, all mended and fit as a scrub malley bull and more than likely twice as dangerous. Just keep the first happy hour in that light at the end of the tunnel.
Plendo said
07:06 PM Sep 12, 2014
Good to hear there is light at the end of the tunnel Gary, it will be good to see you tucking in to those 17 dogs.
Like the new Avatar Doug, but I don't think the twins are happy.
Golddetectornomad said
07:12 PM Sep 12, 2014
Geez Gary...our little Forum racing tadpole..even I want to take you under my wing and nurture you and I'm nearly 6' and 16 stone..., so I can imagine how your Ladies' fan club here would lavish you with kindness and build you up.....I sure hope the next 30 years are a whole lot better for you than the last 2 years......you've got a heart bigger than Phar Lap...you'll win and be out there.....I'm going to take you out gold detecting mate and we'll find ourselves some gold for your trip..with all your 'reserves' of luck I reckon we'll find some.....my pick has a seat on it for you....get real better mate.....Hoo Roo
P.S...just be sure to check out which 'bone' they intend transplanting..don't wan't a periodic swollen mouth first thing in the mornings........lol......
-- Edited by Golddetectornomad on Friday 12th of September 2014 07:18:54 PM
Vic41 said
07:42 PM Sep 12, 2014
Hope everything goes well Gary, and you can head out into the playground in the not too distant future.
Wonderful shots of Balmain and Sydney Harbour, one of the most beautiful parts of Australia IMHO and it just blows you away.
I see the parking inspector was keeping busy too.
Isn't Balmain where they filmed "My Names McGooley"?
rosa said
08:16 PM Sep 12, 2014
hi Gary, good to hear you are going to get your choppers and good to hear you will be in the play ground soon
the rocket said
08:34 PM Sep 12, 2014
Hi Gary,Thanks for keeping us up to date. All good wishes , and love coming your way. rocket n strop
GaryKelly said
09:22 PM Sep 12, 2014
Ya know something? One of my dearest wishes has long been to meet a genuine prospector - a real Aussie one - with exciting tales to tell and cool things to learn about. So what happens when I pop in here to see if anyone's paying attention? Goldilocksnomad offers me an invitation! I'm so thrilled I can't begin to tell ya how much I'm looking forward to that day. I'm soooo excited! BTW Goldie, it's been 2 years without teeth. Before that it was the cancer operation and radiation. So that's almost 3 years altogether. Not exactly a fun-packed time but it's had its moments... the birth of PJ being the main one.
As to the wrong bone, mate, the less said about that the better.
And Vic, I agree about Sydney Harbor and inner burbs. I never tire of photographing that place. And I do believe Balmain is where McGooley was filmed. That said, I can't wait to get OUT THERE and photograph the whole of Oz. I love being behind the lens.
Thanks everyone for your good wishes and encouragement. I have way too much to look forward to to ever feel negative or depressed. Reading the Forum helps enormously as well.
KFT said
09:39 PM Sep 12, 2014
Gary you are a bloody marvel
Quite unique in this forum and we really enjoy your company
take care and hope we get to meet some time.
frank
Cruising Cruze said
09:45 PM Sep 12, 2014
Best wishes Gary
Before you know you will be touring again mate
Cheers John
cooee said
10:22 PM Sep 12, 2014
Hi Garry
Good to hear that there is some light at the end of the tunnel.
I join everyone else and wish you all the best of luck with your future treatment and look forward to hearing some real good news down the track
Vic41 said
10:37 PM Sep 12, 2014
If you need a reasonably priced place to stay in Sydney for appointments on the Ferry route around the Harbour, Glenferrie Lodge in Kirribilli is a good place to stay, short ferry ride from the wharf over to Circula Quay, see;
Bit of a steep walk up from Kirribilli wharf, but you can also catch the bus or train over.
We stayed there in 2008 to attend a function at Admiralty House which is just down the road in the same street (errrrr...Glenferrie Lodge is a beautiful colonial home, but a big difference inside between the two places, LOL).
-- Edited by Vic41 on Friday 12th of September 2014 10:42:50 PM
jules47 said
10:39 PM Sep 12, 2014
Gary - so good to hear that news - though it may seem that the last two years has been a bit of a waste - it was one of those things we sometimes have to do. I know you will be fine with the operation - please let us know when you are going in, an what hospital - might get one of Dougwe's twins to visit you and cheer you up!!!!
Take care - and won't be long and you can eat a pie!!!!!
billeeeeeee said
10:47 PM Sep 12, 2014
Gary, best wishes for the future, take care old friend,, see you early next year, we will go out and have a couple of hot dogs, take care ,,, Billeeeeeee
Best wishes from me too, Gary. You have been through a lot over the past few years and I look forward to reading your first post when you finally hit the road next year.
Joe50 said
11:10 PM Sep 12, 2014
Best of luck with your treatment Garry, I know you'll breeze through it with your positive attitude. And thanks for the pics, they brought a touch of nostalgia to me - Sydney will always be my home town no matter where I am. Slightly disappointed you didn't have a photo of the 2GB building on the corner of Sussex & Liverpool Streets - I believe from some of your previous posts that you worked there for a while as a copywriter - I was there with AAP in 1974 before defecting to the opposition.
Cheers
Joe
Golddetectornomad said
11:49 PM Sep 12, 2014
Gary, PM me your postal address mate and this "lucky" gold nugget will be winging its way to you on Monday....in a little case so you can't lose it.....keep it with you during the next 6 months for luck then I figure you may wish to get your dental man to implant on your new plate as one of your front teeth.?!?....you've no doubt heard the expression...."he's as flash as a Rat with a gold tooth"......
I call it the "lucky" nugget because I found it in W.A. in a former creek bed right next to a very large Brown Snake skin....and when I bent down after detecting the nugget to dig, I hadn't seen the snake skin, and I jumped 6' in the air when I saw it as I thought the skin was still occupied......!...lol....
I trust it brings you every luck too mate...its nowhere near as big as the caring this Forum has for you......Hoo Roo
Hi Gary we have not met yet but will some day out there. all the best with your op. now we can call you the golden boy with that nugget. what a nice thing to do. goodonya Golddetector.
oldbobsbus said
06:30 AM Sep 13, 2014
Hi There Gaz, Thanks for the update and we also wish you a speedy recovery and good luck for the future.
with that gold nugget in hand you will continue to be able to look on the bright side..
GaryKelly said
09:04 AM Sep 13, 2014
Well, that blew me away for sure... Goldie's offer of a gold nugget as a good luck charm. How special is that? I could hardly believe it when I read it this morning. I've PM'd you Goldie with my address. And thanks a million for a such a generous and thoughtful gesture. A nugget just like the prospectors in the gold rush days found, and something that was around when Eve did the fig leaf washing on Mondays. In fact, well before Australia's first human population.
Funny ya know. A mate from Ohio wrote this morning and mentioned the way one action leads to another, which leads to another, and on and on it goes. So I post a message about my upcoming operation and the next thing I know I'm the proud owner of a gold nugget. Who woulda guessed?
By the way, Vic. You're getting old mate. You told me about the Kirribilli place a while ago during one of my previous visits to see the doc in Sydney hehe. The doc has three locations... Liverpool, Kogarah and Newtown, and operates at 3 hospitals in or near those locations. At Newtown, it's at the Royal Prince Alfred which is where my cancer op was, and the jaw one will be. When I travel to Sydney to see him, I catch the XPT which arrives at Central at 7am. With a whole morning to myself, I catch a train to the Quay and wander about with the Nikon to fill in time before my appointment.
And Joe, I do have a pic of the 2GB building on my web site... I'll go look for it after I post this and post the URL a bit later. I was there in 1978 and remember the kerfuffle going on about the introduction of the monorail. Remember the Criterion Hotel across the street? I think it was called Studio B or something, and I spent a LOT of time there.
Thanks again for all the wonderful messages, dear Nomads. You're a bloody fine bunch.
jules47 said
09:12 AM Sep 13, 2014
You're a bloody fine bloke, Gary - and what a lovely thing for Goldie to do - good on ya mate!
GaryKelly said
09:33 AM Sep 13, 2014
Joe... here's the link to the pic of 2GB. I got it from the web. Couldn't find one I took myself even though I've been to Sydney to see the doc several times. Maybe next time.
And Jules... Goldilocksnomad reckons I should forget the hotdogs and take your advice about diet, given Billeeeeeee's "schoolgirl" figure. Hehe. Anyway, who said anything about eating 17 hotdogs in a single sitting? I like mine on a toasted bun with a sprinkle of crispy bacon bits and a scrape of hot English mustard. Can't wait for those teeth!
Phil C said
10:00 AM Sep 13, 2014
All the best with that Gary. Just getting over a total knee replacement myself after 6 months, so I have some idea of how you are feeling.
Take care of yourself and get well soon.
Cheers
Vic41 said
10:13 AM Sep 13, 2014
GaryKelly wrote:
By the way, Vic. You're getting old mate. You told me about the Kirribilli place a while ago during one of my previous visits to see the doc in Sydney hehe. The doc has three locations... Liverpool, Kogarah and Newtown, and operates at 3 hospitals in or near those locations. At Newtown, it's at the Royal Prince Alfred which is where my cancer op was, and the jaw one will be. When I travel to Sydney to see him, I catch the XPT which arrives at Central at 7am. With a whole morning to myself, I catch a train to the Quay and wander about with the Nikon to fill in time before my appointment.
Right on the first count Gary, I thought I may have but wasn't sure, when you mentioned Balmain I thought it may have been handy.
Can't beat Sydney Harbour, utter beauty and the Ferry Crossings in good weather are magnificent.
I lived in NSW for 14 years and one of my watering holes was Liverpool RSL, in fact two of my kids were born at Liverpool Hospital.
(another at Stanmore and another at Fairfield).
Nelly said
10:30 AM Sep 13, 2014
All the best Gary - I am sure you will be right as you have a very positive outlook - the gold will look good!! (I think)!! That was a great gesture from you Golddetectornomad.
Golddetectornomad said
10:36 AM Sep 13, 2014
Done, Gary, your nugget on its way to Taree......now.......you have to get yourself strong cos' you have to carry all this gear when we go out detecting......while I watch/instruct.....and have a beer.....
Photo shows your nugget with its bigger brother found in the same location, same day......all the best mate.....Hoo Roo
After visiting my specialist in Sydney last Tuesday, I can let all those poor little dears worried sick about my health issues - such as the absence of teeth and anorexic condition - of the latest. Turns out the medication (which was experimental anyway) that I've been taking for almost 2 years has not worked. The doc said there's more exposed bone in my lower gum than there was 6 months ago when he last saw it. More dead bone means my lower jaw is susceptible to fracture. So next week I'm due in Port Macquarie for a CTC scan which is a 3D image that allows the doc to see inside the bone. If the situation is as he suspects, an operation will follow - a serious op that will mean 10 hours or so in surgery, 2 weeks in hospital and 6 months recovery. However, it will also mean new bone (taken from another part of my body) transplanted into my jaw, with holes drilled to accommodate a new set of lower teeth. An upper plate will be all that's needed to give me a full set of choppers.
So, although it's gonna be a PITA for 6 months (with a food tube for a while) at least there will be light at the end of the tunnel, unlike the way it's been for the past 2 years. Hopefully, if all goes well, I'll be ready to rock and roll by about March/April next year. More importantly, I'll be able to eat those 17 hotdogs that Billy says is my penance for being naughty.
So there you have it. While I was in Sydney, after arriving at 7am, I spent some hours photographing the sights touring Balmain. I put a photo album together which you can see here.
Good to hear there is light at the end of the tunnel Gary, it will be good to see you tucking in to those 17 dogs.
Like the new Avatar Doug, but I don't think the twins are happy.
Geez Gary...our little Forum racing tadpole..even I want to take you under my wing and nurture you and I'm nearly 6' and 16 stone..., so I can imagine how your Ladies' fan club here would lavish you with kindness and build you up.....I sure hope the next 30 years are a whole lot better for you than the last 2 years......you've got a heart bigger than Phar Lap...you'll win and be out there.....I'm going to take you out gold detecting mate and we'll find ourselves some gold for your trip..with all your 'reserves' of luck I reckon we'll find some.....my pick has a seat on it for you....get real better mate.....Hoo Roo
P.S...just be sure to check out which 'bone' they intend transplanting..don't wan't a periodic swollen mouth first thing in the mornings........lol......
-- Edited by Golddetectornomad on Friday 12th of September 2014 07:18:54 PM
Hope everything goes well Gary, and you can head out into the playground in the not too distant future.
Wonderful shots of Balmain and Sydney Harbour, one of the most beautiful parts of Australia IMHO and it just blows you away.
I see the parking inspector was keeping busy too.
Isn't Balmain where they filmed "My Names McGooley"?
Hi Gary,Thanks for keeping us up to date. All good wishes , and love coming your way. rocket n strop
As to the wrong bone, mate, the less said about that the better.
And Vic, I agree about Sydney Harbor and inner burbs. I never tire of photographing that place. And I do believe Balmain is where McGooley was filmed. That said, I can't wait to get OUT THERE and photograph the whole of Oz. I love being behind the lens.
Thanks everyone for your good wishes and encouragement. I have way too much to look forward to to ever feel negative or depressed. Reading the Forum helps enormously as well.
Quite unique in this forum and we really enjoy your company
take care and hope we get to meet some time.
frank
Before you know you will be touring again mate
Cheers John
Hi Garry
Good to hear that there is some light at the end of the tunnel.
I join everyone else and wish you all the best of luck with your future treatment and look forward to hearing some real good news down the track
If you need a reasonably priced place to stay in Sydney for appointments on the Ferry route around the Harbour, Glenferrie Lodge in Kirribilli is a good place to stay, short ferry ride from the wharf over to Circula Quay, see;
http://glenferrielodge.com/home-2/
Their full breakfast (included in tariff) is something to die for.
Rates;
https://www.thebookingbutton.com.au/properties/glenferriedirect
Bit of a steep walk up from Kirribilli wharf, but you can also catch the bus or train over.
We stayed there in 2008 to attend a function at Admiralty House which is just down the road in the same street (errrrr...Glenferrie Lodge is a beautiful colonial home, but a big difference inside between the two places, LOL).
-- Edited by Vic41 on Friday 12th of September 2014 10:42:50 PM
Take care - and won't be long and you can eat a pie!!!!!
Gary, best wishes for the future, take care old friend,, see you early next year, we will go out and have a couple of hot dogs, take care ,,, Billeeeeeee
Best wishes from me too, Gary. You have been through a lot over the past few years and I look forward to reading your first post when you finally hit the road next year.
Cheers
Joe
Gary, PM me your postal address mate and this "lucky" gold nugget will be winging its way to you on Monday....in a little case so you can't lose it.....keep it with you during the next 6 months for luck then I figure you may wish to get your dental man to implant on your new plate as one of your front teeth.?!?....you've no doubt heard the expression...."he's as flash as a Rat with a gold tooth"......
I call it the "lucky" nugget because I found it in W.A. in a former creek bed right next to a very large Brown Snake skin....and when I bent down after detecting the nugget to dig, I hadn't seen the snake skin, and I jumped 6' in the air when I saw it as I thought the skin was still occupied......!...lol....
I trust it brings you every luck too mate...its nowhere near as big as the caring this Forum has for you......Hoo Roo
Hi There Gaz, Thanks for the update and we also wish you a speedy recovery and good luck for the future.
with that gold nugget in hand you will continue to be able to look on the bright side..
Funny ya know. A mate from Ohio wrote this morning and mentioned the way one action leads to another, which leads to another, and on and on it goes. So I post a message about my upcoming operation and the next thing I know I'm the proud owner of a gold nugget. Who woulda guessed?
By the way, Vic. You're getting old mate. You told me about the Kirribilli place a while ago during one of my previous visits to see the doc in Sydney hehe. The doc has three locations... Liverpool, Kogarah and Newtown, and operates at 3 hospitals in or near those locations. At Newtown, it's at the Royal Prince Alfred which is where my cancer op was, and the jaw one will be. When I travel to Sydney to see him, I catch the XPT which arrives at Central at 7am. With a whole morning to myself, I catch a train to the Quay and wander about with the Nikon to fill in time before my appointment.
And Joe, I do have a pic of the 2GB building on my web site... I'll go look for it after I post this and post the URL a bit later. I was there in 1978 and remember the kerfuffle going on about the introduction of the monorail. Remember the Criterion Hotel across the street? I think it was called Studio B or something, and I spent a LOT of time there.
Thanks again for all the wonderful messages, dear Nomads. You're a bloody fine bunch.
Joe... here's the link to the pic of 2GB. I got it from the web. Couldn't find one I took myself even though I've been to Sydney to see the doc several times. Maybe next time.
And Jules... Goldilocksnomad reckons I should forget the hotdogs and take your advice about diet, given Billeeeeeee's "schoolgirl" figure. Hehe. Anyway, who said anything about eating 17 hotdogs in a single sitting? I like mine on a toasted bun with a sprinkle of crispy bacon bits and a scrape of hot English mustard. Can't wait for those teeth!
Take care of yourself and get well soon.
Cheers
Right on the first count Gary, I thought I may have but wasn't sure, when you mentioned Balmain I thought it may have been handy.
Can't beat Sydney Harbour, utter beauty and the Ferry Crossings in good weather are magnificent.
I lived in NSW for 14 years and one of my watering holes was Liverpool RSL, in fact two of my kids were born at Liverpool Hospital.
(another at Stanmore and another at Fairfield).
Done, Gary, your nugget on its way to Taree......now.......you have to get yourself strong cos' you have to carry all this gear when we go out detecting......while I watch/instruct.....and have a beer.....
Photo shows your nugget with its bigger brother found in the same location, same day......all the best mate
.....Hoo Roo
All the best and i look foward to enjoying the photos of your travels.
Cheers Jeff
Gary, I was so pleased to look in on the forum this morning and read about your good news.
I'm really happy for you.
And...
Golddetectornomad, you sound like a great bloke.
Cheers to you both.