On Making the Bed
On many days—most days, actually—I spend more hours in my bed than out of it. This fact used to shame and spurn me. Not that the fact was the agent. I was. My bed-dwelling was cause for self-denigration. Somewhere between my late high school and early college years, I came to believe that the bed was a stigma. It was the place for sinful lust and lazy sleep. It was a necessary evil and, as such, should be a limited realm to inhabit. I ran from my bed like the gazelle from the
Anne Mason
Feb 24
A Day Off?
OK, here is an update on my Multiple Myeloma condition post-CAR T cell procedure which took place some 26 months ago near the end of 2023. It is hard to believe that it has been 26 months since the procedure. Time flies. I am thankful/ grateful to be able to write that my blood numbers have been holding steady. My monoclonal peak number registers as “not applicable” which means that it is not measurable. However, monoclonal proteins might be present just not at a pivotal leve
Mark Pajak
Feb 23
Thoughts Entering Year 12.
January 2026 marks the end of the eleventh full year after I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma. I am now living in the 12 th year since I found out. It has also been 25 months since my Car T cell procedure. That procedure was the fifth attempt by my oncologist and myself at managing this most persistent disease ( I could have used the word incurable instead of persistent, but it seemed so harsh and brother in my humble opinion, boy do we need some less harsh energy). So w
Mark Pajak
Jan 19
On Art and Healing
The first time I visited a mental health professional, I was highly reluctant and resistant to the process even though some part of me knew it would be wise to attend. It had been eleven months and two weeks since I received my MS diagnosis and twenty days since my last stay in the all-too-familiar medical surroundings of the UC Denver Anschutz hospital. But I was on a new disease modifying treatment for the MS that finally seemed to show promise and my physical and occupatio
Anne Mason
Jan 13
25 and …
To all who peruse this post, I extend to you the thought of the accomplished folk artist Burl Ives who once sang “have a holly, jolly, Christmas, it’s the best time of the year.” OK, well maybe its not the best time of the year but it certainly can bring about much good cheer. Well, Hallelujah! I made it to two years post CAR T procedure. Back in December 2023 (the exact date of receiving my reconfigured T cells was 12/26/23 – day after Christmas) the future and what was to
Mark Pajak
Dec 21, 2025
