I got a good report from Duke on my visit Monday. They did the normal bloodwork and the biopsy through the neck. The biopsy was 1A-1R which in the cardiologist's world is no rejection at all. The next biopsy will be March 28th and will be an allomap which is a blood test instead of the hole in the neck. The other tests showed that I have some virus (CMV) which needs to be gotten rid of. It's only about 200 copies compared to 250,000 last spring. Some pills will get rid of it. The only other issue was a slightly overactive thyroid. This is the first time they've done this test. Not sure what exactly we're going to do about it, but we'll see. This not going back until the end of March is a very neat thing. One more thing, I did an interview with AARP magazine that came out last week. I also did an interview back last June on Channel 2 news. Maybe 4 people said they saw the TV thing. Dozens of people have seen and told me about the AARP thing. Most of Jasper and Newton counties past a certain age must get and read that magazine. If you want publicity for something, AARP is the way to go. Hope everyone has a very merry Christmas. John

I've pretty much stopped posting anything because things have, for the most part, been rolling along. I went through 1 year a couple of weeks ago with very good test results. No rejection, no virises, etc. The X-ray showed something, but I had a CAT scan done last week at Newton Hospital and that didn'show anything at all. I'm going to attempt to run the half marathon tomorrow morning in Atlanta. Nicole's running too. She'll finish just fine and I'm really going to be proud of her because she's worked hard at it. I don't really think I'm going to finish since the longest I've run is 8 miles once, but I'm going to try. This time last year we were still in Durham and had just started to take pills for what turns out to be the only incidence of rejection I've had. I couldn't stand up by myself or walk far without my walker. I have an almost infinite number or things and people to be thankful for. I get to get up every morning, come to work, do pretty much anything I want to, go run every day and all of that. I get to be married to the best woman on earth and be around the best 4 kids that have ever lived. Plus the world's only grandson. This list could go on for awhile. Please say a prayer for the donor's family. I hope each and every person who reads this has a very safe and blessed Thanksgiving. John

It's been a while since I've posted anything. Primarily because nothing really changed. Last week I went to Duke for the regular visit and got a good report. The CMV is gone completely so I can stop with the IV virus medicine. Get to take the pic line out and everything. My biopsy showed no rejection and all of the other tests were ok. We don't have to go back to Duke until September. I got to run the Peachtree. The next thing is to run the half marathon in Atlanta on Thanksgiving morning. I need to run faster by quite a bit, but that's a good problem to have. Thanks a lot to everyone who sends us their prayers and wll-wishes. Everything seems to be working ok.

I got a pretty good report from the last trip to Duke on the 19th. However, I seem to have come up with a virus (called a CMV). Apparently most people have this (once you've got it, you've got it) but their immune system keeps it from having any effect. My immune system is compromised by the antirejection drugs so the virus causes problems sometimes. It's like having a stomach bug for a couple of weeks. If it's not treated, it can affect the heart also. So I'm back with a pic line in my arm and I get an antiviral drug twice a day for the next 3 weeks. Takes about an hour each time. I started last Wednesday and it seems to be working some. Either that or I'm getting used to it. Other than that, my rejection number was 0 and all of the other tests were fine. Even got to ditch a couple more pills. Was going to have to do a colonoscopy, but got out of that, too. I think I'd rather do another heart transplant. John

I got a good report from Duke for the visit on Monday. I was a 1A 1R for rejection which is, according to the transplant doctors, almost nothing. We go back at the end of April, then, if everything is still the same, go to having appointments every 2 months. In November we'll probably switch to Emory just because it's 75 miles away instead of 400. We got a letter from my donor's family. We had sent 2 letters, thru Duke, right after the transplant. What they said and the tone of their comments couldn't have been nicer or more thoughtful. They would like to get together sometime, face to face. That sounds good to us. We had said that it must have been a very tough decision to make at the time and circumstances of the donor's death, but the donor's wife said that the decision had been made by both of them years ago and that it wasn't all that hard. All of this makes me realize that my resposibility is to do whatever it takes to make this work out well. Eat right, exercise, take the pills correctly, etc. I've been given an unbelievable gift and it's my job not to mess it up. John

I got a good report from the tests on Wednesday. The biopsy came back as a 1A-1R which is very slight rejection. Nothing to worry about (easy for them to say, but I'll take them at their word). I have to go back the end of March. I also get to cut down on the steroids a little bit which is also good. Start cardiac rehab on Monday.I'm really looking forward to this since I'll be able to prove to Missy that I can ride a bike (stationary) without falling off. Then she promises me I can have the chain back for my bike (non-stationary) and go ride. My work has been very accommodating to changing hours, days, etc. I couldn't dream up better if I tried. The nurse at the cardiac rehab did an interview before I could start. A lot of the questions were about how I feel and outlook on life, etc. Told her that I was disgustingly cheerful, almost to the point of making myself sick.

In response to a bunch of questions, I am absolutely planning on running the Peachtree on July 4th. Actually, I'm planning on running a 5K before that and the Tar Baby race in June in Eatonton. I'm going to do the half marathon on Thanksgiving in Atlanta. Thanks for asking. John