Mr Info

June 9-11. It depends on season ticket holder longevity.

Ice cream That's a bit tougher in the summer.

I visited Rick today and have an update. They have set appointments at Johns Hopkins on June 8, Penn State on June 10, and Roswell on June 16. Hopefully, one of them has a protocol/study/trial/experimental therapy that he could qualify for and get admitted. Rick is still due to leave VCU on May 28. Their van has been outfitted for a lift that will raise his wheel chair and place him in the front seat. Here is a picture of him filling out the menu selections for tomorrow. It was great to speak with him today and it is obvious that he is excited to go somewhere else where a treatment may be available. The strength in his hands and arms is rather limited and it is difficult to only assist him when absolutely necessary. But he is working hard to re-acquire his dexterity and strength and even small accomplishments are confidence boosters.

An update: Paul (plenzmd1) and I visited Rick at the VCU hospital on Friday (May 15). He was in good spirits and we had a lively discussion on Bills/Sabres and other Buff stuff. He is due to be released from the hospital on May 28 as long as he is physically able. They do not have any other treatment options for him. He and Brenda are still working with other possible cancer treatment locations (see my previous post) but they are a bit frustrated due to typical administrative functions (sending medical records). Rick is still battling with limited functionality in his upper extremities (arms and hands) but they have discontinued steroids to treat the spinal cord inflammation causing the transverse myelitis. On Sat, I joined some of Rick and Brenda's co-workers to build a ramp at their house for his wheelchair. A picture is below. The person in the pic is one of their friends. The 10' metal ramp (you can see part of it in the lower left of the photo) will be attached to the end of the wooden ramp. The ramp is all pressure treated wood and will be covered with roofing-type material for further protection and anti-skid. Posts and hand rails will also be added.

Yes, it has frequently been in the top places to retire. http://www.forbes.com/sites/jacquelynsmith/2014/01/06/the-15-best-countries-to-retire-to-in-2014/ One of the situations to consider when looking at part-time or full-time retirement places outside the US is whether it is a gated community. That may be the case for the retirement places in Costa Rica.

Thanks, something to consider as well. VA is about middle ground for US retiree taxing http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/retirement/T055-S001-state-by-state-guide-to-taxes-on-retirees/index.php There are 38 states that do not tax SS but typically states that do not have income tax or do not tax SS make up for it by increased personal property taxes or other taxes/fees. We plan to retire somewhere where it is warm. If we keep a place in the US, it would be warm during the season we are there. My wife has a business that can be run anywhere in the world and plan to keep that business running when I retire. Fortunately, my wife is fluent in French and Spanish and my Deutsch is ok so that opens some other countries to us.

Although I had seen Rick a few times since my last update there was not much to report but there is today. They performed a biopsy on one of the tumors and it was identified as T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) which is what he has had all along. He has been treated here for that with chemotherapy and later aggressively with an experimental drug (which they stopped) but resulted in paralysis. VCU is reluctant to recommend further therapy. ALL can become tolerant/resistant to chemotherapy so they are not recommending a return to that nor do they have a targeted immunotherapy trial for ALL. He is now looking at 4 places that may have clinical trials for T-cell ALL or experimental treatments for ALL: Roswell Park, Johns Hopkins, Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philly, or U Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. They have been in contact with all 4 and are getting his records to them. Rick is focused on ALL and addressing transverse myelitis later. Rick looked better and was in better spirits than the last few times I saw him. Part of that is they resumed steroid therapy which resulted in strength returning to his hands and arms. He is bummed that he has to resell his Rush tickets but remains excited about the Bills. He says hi to TBD.

I have lived all around this great big country and have been fortunate to travel a lot around the world for business and pleasure. I grew up in WNY but now live in VA but have no family here and our two boys are in college. I have no idea where they will be in a few years but as soon as I graduated from college, I went where I could find the best job which was not WNY. My wife and I are looking at other countries to retire. Looking at other countries tax benefits, cost of living, etc. We are looking closely at he US VI which is not another country but makes collecting SS, etc. easier. I expect we will keep a small place somewhere in the US (maybe WNY as I still have some family there) and keep my season tix.

As a quick update to this. I visited Rick yesterday and while I was there, Rick's brother Chuck and his parents (who Chuck drove down from Fredonia) along with Brenda stopped by. As Brenda indicated through Paul's message, they are still trying to determine the cause of Rick's fever. They are also investigating other opportunities for Rick such as the Transverse Myelitis Center at Johns Hopkins along with Roswell Park. But Rick has to get healthier before these can be considered.

I was unable to see Rick yesterday because he was too sick but saw him today. He was getting a blood transfusion due to low hemoglobin but was in good spirits. He was able to view this thread and appreciates the support. I met Rick through this board when I relocated to this area and consider myself fortunate to know him. He and his wife, Brenda, and their two sons, Zach (6) and Owen (2) do not have family in the area so if you would like to send a card, send a meal from a local eatery to his family, or bringing a meal over (locals), then send me a PM and I will get you in contact with Brenda, get you their address, etc. I am sending them a meal from Capriccio's tomorrow night as I know the boys like pasta. Thanks to Paul, plenzmd1, for a quick PM to help out. Rick would be pleased by a visit from any local Bills fans. He is at the VCU North Hospital. 1st Floor, Room 42.

This post is a shout out to long-time Bills fan and board member Rick Schibetta aka TheMadCap http://forums.twobillsdrive.com/user/411-themadcap/ . Many of you have interacted with him on threads here and on TSW. Rick is originally from Fredonia and many of his family are still in WNY. Work eventually brought him to the Richmond area and he has been working here professionally for a while. Last year he became ill and was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic lymphoma (ALL) and treated at the VCU/MCV Medical Center. As one might expect, chemotherapy took its toll and weakened him considerably. He went into remission and was able to remain home for a bit with his wife and two young children. However, he slipped while attending a conference at his children’s school and broke his hip. This landed him back in the hospital and tests later revealed ALL had returned earlier this year. He was treated aggressively with a drug in a clinical study that previously had only been used on children. Unfortunately, this drug induced transverse myelitis (spinal cord inflammation) which resulted in paralysis which spread to his chest. The study medicine was stopped and he has been placed on steroids in the hope of reducing the inflammation. Rick is undergoing PT at the University Hospital for his arms and hands and being monitored (MRIs) for inflammation reduction of his spinal cord. Obviously, this has been difficult for him, his wife, and their two young children but I have never heard Rick complain and that tells you a lot about the guy. In spite of everything, he is always positive and we also talk Bills football and he is really excited about the 2015 season. I know that Rick still checks the board periodically and I expect he would appreciate hearing from anyone. He may not reply for a bit until better functionality returns to his arms and hands. Rick is currently in VCU North Hospital, floor 1, room 42.

Primarily filmed in central Virginia.

Two tix=$343 (including all charges, taxes, etc.)

I got seats today through Amex/Ticketmaster in sec 108 row 11. Good seats when looking at RWS Stage layout. https://seatgeek.com/venues/ralph-wilson-stadium/seating-chart/concert-165368/

Congratulations to him and you! PM me in a few years as the R&D branch of the company I work for is always looking for top people with this type of degree.

Thanks, I did not see MtP today. It would seem there should be a more efficient solution to this, perhaps involving technology, than chopping down the cockpit door with an axe.

I want to follow-up and say that I probably would not invest in this idea unless I knew the following were true: The taste of these were comparable or better than similar products The nutritional aspects exceeded similar products A good marketing release was coordinated before/with product release leveraging the unique aspects of the product and the nutritional benefits A nice product package will be used and the product will be placed in the store at appropriate location to enable consumer selection Based on 1 and 2, I would expect a slightly higher price (within reason) than similar products Perhaps this product would do better in some international markets (Asia) than the US.

What is the name of that place? I will look it up when I am in the area.

This is 50's but not the typical music one associates with the 50's. Homer and Jethro "I' Miss My Wife's Cooking Whenever I Can" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64h_MRQkZpc

This is a bit OT so my apologies to the OP. I have tried Starbucks several times (actually, at locations world-wide) but now will only go there if I am unable to locate an alternative. The reasons behind my avoidance are the following: I have been able to find better, more affordable coffee at other coffee shops. Due to Starbucks large # of stores, this affordability may be negated from travel to another coffee shop. Sometimes, I may want something to eat with coffee and Starbucks' food is identical or similar no matter the location. Some (perhaps most) people like this consistency but not me. IMO, I do not find their food flavorful or interesting. I tend to favor independent eateries over chains. It takes a bit more homework on my part to find good, local coffee shops/eating establishments but typically it has been worth the time. I have been able to find places that have creative and/or homemade foods and beverages with local ingredients or with a regional flair to them. Usually, the servers at the independent establishments are more engaged and knowledgeable about their fare than the staff at their corporate competitors.

This is not for the light-hearted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjRdxuByd2g But this is no longer prevalent nor acceptable. I have had the snake blood toast. Not bad but it's cold-blooded (as it's performed right by you) so a little weird. Fortunately, I was already drinking so I was more amenable.

In my experience it depends. When I used the hotel network/wifi or a public/private wifi then no connection to Facebook or Twitter or Google. When I connected under those circumstances then I used Bing for searching. But when I used my mobile provider (ATT and their international partners) then I was able to access those filtered app sites while within China. I cannot explain that since they are all routed through the same firewall in Beijing but did not want to mention it and mess up something that was working. Btw, I will be returning there in Aug/Sep.

I am in Shanghai/Suzhou for a few weeks every year for my company. I am unable to provide any assistance to you on the HK area but I go out on my own a bunch when I am there so I have some general suggestions for you 1.) I have a very abbreviated knowledge of Mandarin so having a translation app on my phone has really helped me out in a few critical situations when by myself 2.) A good GPS app (e.g., Google Map) has also been benefical in a few instances 3.) perhaps I should have listed this #1 but keep a card with you at all times with your hotel address in Mandarin. In the many years I have traveled there, I have yet to encounter a taxi driver that spoke English when I needed to get back to my hotel. Enjoy your time and take advantage of being there.