Chemo Round 2, treatment 2

I'm officially 1/4th of the way done with my chemo. Lets hope the remaining 3/4ths remain as uneventful as this first 1/4.
The office was all decked out for Christmas today. I was ok in the waiting room while the radio was playing Trans-Siberian Orchestra, but when it switched songs, I felt like my brain was going to explode in a matter of seconds. Probably didn't help that I was sitting right underneath the stereo. Luckily, I had my iPod and was able to drown out the obnoxious music. I'm so thankful they don't play music in the infusion room!
It really wasn't busy at all today. I was in the bigger room with 5 chairs and when I got back there, 3 were open and I got my choice. I took the window seat which was nice because then I have space to put some of my stuff on the window ledge instead of just having the little table next to the chair where they set my IV bags. It's somewhat unnerving to have my bottle of juice sitting on the same tiny table as all that poison.
I had the same nurse as last time. His name is Hilaire and he speaks French. He's a nice guy, but it really hurts when he gives me my neulasta shot. One of the female nurses gave it to me, the only one who as never given it to me before. I now know who is best (the nurse with the long braid) and who is worse (Hilaire), so I'll know who to ask for when I get my shot next time.
When I got my blood drawn yesterday, I had a bit of a battle with one of the nurses about bandaids. I'm allergic to the adhesive on pretty much all band-aids and tapes, so I avoid them as much as possible. The only thing I'll let someone stick on me is paper tape (unless I'm unconsious and I have no say, like during surgery). I usually carry a roll in my bag, but I forgot it Tuesday, so I asked if I could just go without. Hilaire was fine with that. The lady nurse was not. She deemed my paper tape completely unacceptable and was trying to force really sticky giant tape on me. I really had to fight to get out of there with nothing stuck to me. Luckily she seemed to have forgotten the whole thing because today, I handed her the paper tape and she had no problem with it.
My only issue today is that I have finally started experiencing the bad taste that comes along with chemo meds. I think it started at the last treatment, but I hadn't really named it yet. It's just this weird taste/smell sensation that comes from the adriamycin I think. I kept sucking on peppermint candies during my chemo which helped...until the candy dissolved. I've been trying to eat strongly flavored foods since I got home to mask it. I can taste it over bland food, and then I get the slight aversion to that food. I just exude that bad smell for a day or two after I get chemo and it's pretty gross. I think that is what has been causing my queasiness every time I think about the hospital or chemo. Now that I know what it is, I think I might be able to deal with it better.

My haircut party on Saturday was, um, interesting. My friends had a good time giving me a mullet and a mohawk and then letting me cook dinner for them with the silliest hairstyle ever. I made homemade pizza and Ellie got to have her first taste of pizza (she loved it). Josh finished up the buzz after everyone went home. I'm still getting used to it. My big issue is just that's it's cold without a hat and too warm with a hat or too itchy. I am usually trailing a few hats/ scarves at any given time so I can switch them out when my scalp wants a change. Thanks to all my hat suppliers for allowing me to have that option!
Other than that, not much is going on. I worked from home Monday and went in to the lab on Tuesday after my blood draw. I'm working on a fun project right now, so it's keeping me motivated.
Josh and I still don't have 100% concrete plans for Thanksgiving. We have food here to cook (a duck!), but I think we'll be heading to a friend's house for at least part of the day. We'll see what I feel up to. Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!