We had to make a little adjustment regarding what kind of Omega's are good for you (see in bold) so I thought we would bump it up...


Hi Everybody,

Well, we are back on the road as of a week ago....and it feels real good! It is so great to be back with my amazingly loving (and fun) band and crew. Everyone in Scout tours is feeling pretty blessed that we get to do what we do for a living and that cancer didn't stop that from continuing.

I can't tell you how much your love, support, prayers, cards, letters, well wishes, and e-mails have meant to me during these last few months. I can safely say my life has changed in every way. I feel keenly aware of how precious and fleeting life is and I hope I will never forget what the experience has taught me....who I am, who I want to be, who I can never be again. It was a hard time but I'd rather have the really hard stuff than to never know what I know now.

I want to tell everyone a little bit about my cancer. I was diagnosed February 20th after a routine mammogram showed some calcifications in both breasts, which is not
unusual for women my age. However, when the mammogram showed signs that the calcifications might be forming a pattern, it was suggested by the radiologist that I come back in 6 months instead of a year. It was my OBGYN, Nancy Goldman, who called and said, "Why wait 6 months. If this is anything, let's get a jump."

All this to say, yes, if I'd waited 6 months, who knows. Perhaps chemo, perhaps worse. We'll never know but why not take the situation into your own hands and begin diligently getting mammograms or ultrasound.

The other aspect to this story is that if you have dense breasts such as mine, it can be virtually impossible to detect anything by a simple self examination. That is why I feel so strongly about encouraging all women 35 and over to get yearly mammograms or if there is a history of cancer on either side of your family, not just breast but any cancer, that starting your yearly mammogram even earlier than
35 is recommended simply to create a baseline. Early detection is the best prevention.

We are very lucky on this tour to have a wonderful chef named Pia cooking for us. She met with my nutritionist, Rachel Bellar, to find out what are some great ways
to fortify the body, at the same time incorporating cancer preventative measures.

My encologist set me up with Rachel shortly after I was diagnosed. Rachel is at the forefront of nutritional studies in the area of disease prevention and overall wellness. Here are some good tips you guys can incorporate into your daily living:

Don't drink water from a bottle that has been sitting in your car. Heated plastic
will bleed toxic substances that can be carcinogenic.

Don't heat or freeze in plastic for the same reason. Heat in glass.

Do NOT cook in olive oil at high heat. This too is carcinogenic. It is fine to saute in olive oil but if you are browning or frying, use canola oil.

Spices that are cancer preventative, particularly prostate and colon cancer, are cinnamon and tumeric.

A high omega-3 diet consisting of fish, colorful vegetables,
high fiber foods have proven to be cancer preventative. In Asian and Eskimo cultures, the rate of breast cancer is shockingly lower.

Whenever you have a choice, go with color...brown rice instead of white, sweet potato instead of regular, sea vegetables like kale, kelp, seaweed are great, beets, spinach, broccoli...all these vegetables that are bright in color are high in fiber, anti-oxidants, and nutritional value.

Fiber is a big topic in overall good health. It is believed that we should have 30-35 grams of fiber a day. If you look at the fiber content of raisin bran, specialk, granola, etc, you'll find they each have 3-4 grams of fiber and they are high
in sugar content. You'd have to eat 10 bowls of raisin bran a day to fulfill the daily requirement of fiber! So, check it out... There are 2 cereals that have high fiber content (15 grams) and no sugar. Ok, they both taste a little like rabbit
food but a couple of bowls and you are set for the day. They are Fiber One and Simply Fiber. Throw in some blueberries, which are high in anti-oxident, a little crunchy granola, a teaspoon of cinnamon and you are set!

Eat organic only! Herbicides and pesticides in meat and veggies mask as estrogen. Not good, particularly if you have estrogen positive cancer like I did. But simply not good period. Organic is easy to find if you live in a city but recently, Walmart has become the biggest carrier of organic foods so no excuses!

These are a few easy practices we've incorporated into our touring life. I will have a link on the website soon to Rachel's site. There is a lot more to know!

Now to switch horses...

Sally, my sweetheart Tennessee walking horse, who was my daily companion after each of my radiation treatments, just gave birth Thursday morning at 4 am to a little black and white pinto filly. She is called Star because she already is an attention getter with her markings but also she has a little white star on her forehead. Her registered name is Sally's Delightful Surprise. Her father is Delightful Town Painter
and he lives outside of Austin, which is where Sally is originally from. We were very surprised to find out she was pregnant so Star was definitely a Delightful Surprise.

We are really looking forward to the late summer tour with John Mayer. He is super nice, uber-talented dude, BUT....can he play ping-pong! We shall see.

I'm looking forward to seeing you guys this summer. Thanks for being the best fans
in the world!

S