Cancer is a bitch (470 hits)
Category: NoneRating: -0.77 on 16 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Uberjunkie (View user info) at 2006-08-24 11:06:40 EDT
Ryan's mom got cancer when he was 12. Before the cancer she was the most awesome mom. She bought him every toy and comic book he asked for and cooked big dinners every night. When she got sick she sat him down and told him it was time to grow up and that he would have to take care of her now. Ryan wasn't sure he was ready for this change, but since it was just the two of them, he was willing to do whatever was asked of him.
At first not much changed at all. Ryan's mom continued to take him to school in the mornings, she went to work, and was always there to pick him up at the end of the day. Ryan was encouraged to spend the night at his friend's house on the weekends which was fine with him since his mom was always tired now. One time after school she sort of snapped at him and he wasn't sure why.
As Ryan got older and moved on to high school he had become used to the fact that he was now the head of the household. His mom had stopped working a few years back and Ryan had taken a part-time job at the local ice cream/sandwich shop after school and on Saturdays. After work, Ryan would always make a point to visit with his mother in her room and get her anything she needed. He was incredibly attentive and sensitive to her requests. He began to notice that she wasn't taking her medicine as regularly as before and there were dirty dishes and empty drinking glasses scattered throughout the house.
In the 11th grade Barbara took a turn for the worse. She began self medicating and making outrageous demands. "Ryan, can you go over to that pizza place I love and get me a barbeque chicken pizza and a salad?" "But mom, it's midnight and they're closed." "I DON'T CARE, I WANT THAT PIZZA NOW!" Holy shit, Ryan was scared. He drove all over the city trying to find an open pizza place that night.
Frequently when he went out with friends on the weekends he would call to let his mom know he would be home late. "Why the fuck did you call and wake me up?" And when he didn't call, "Where the hell were you? I was worried sick! You are grounded. No T.V. or going out with friends for a month." As a senior in high school this made it difficult to have a social life. Ryan became angry and by the time he graduated he had moved in with a buddy a few blocks away. The mental abuse continued as Ryan would receive angry phone calls from his mom who was presently freaking out about God knows what. She would often tell him how stupid he was and how he would never amount to anything.
One time Ryan got a call from his mom while she was at the hospital and she wanted a ride home. Ryan refused to let her leave the place since they were trying to help her. She actually got up out of the bed, pulled out any tubes or plugs that had been inserted, and walked out of the hospital and down the street. She was in her goddamn slippers and hospital gown walking down the fucking street. He followed behind her pleading for her to go back and get the medical care that she needed. She was stubborn and likely out of her mind. Her house was miles away but she was determined to go there.
Late one Saturday I got a phone call from Ryan asking me to meet him and his mom at an intersection near my house. Hearing the desperation in his voice I jumped in the car and got over there fast. I drove them to her house and didn't say a word the whole way. It was awkward to say the least. Only after he got her safely inside did Ryan come back to the car and explain what all of this was about.
A few months later Ryan got a call from a family friend who was worried because he hadn't heard from Barb in a few days. Ryan was done with that cunt but agreed to go check on her anyway. The radio was on in the bathroom and he figured she was taking a bath. When she didn't answer he cracked open the door. He saw the bloated body of his mother floating face down in the Jacuzzi tub. He immediately called 911 and the operator asked him to perform CPR until the paramedics got there. He refused. Not because he hated her, but because he could tell immediately there was no way that was going to help.
The paramedics arrived and determined she had been there for three days. A seizure had caused her to drown and then her body flipped over as the air and gasses rose to the top. Her back had marbleized and was all blotchy and purple. Ryan said later that it didn't even look human. Since he was supposed to be her primary caregiver, even though she had been refusing his help, the police were called and Ryan was taken to the local station. They questioned him for hours and then drove him home. Cancer is a bitch.
User Reviews
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2006-08-24 16:21:47 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
IN SOVIET RUSSIA CANCER GETS YOU
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 13:03:43 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:54:12 (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:42:06 (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:29:17 (#)
Ranking: 0
I don't know if this is fiction or non-fiction but I'm going to comment of the story by noting the things I was thinking as I was reading it.
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I don't blame you for not buying it. But thanks for the feedback.
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I said that things didn't sound right to me... I didn't say that I disbelieved any of it because I know that people do fucked up things. Especially terminally ill people.
OK I stand by my 'worth reading' by the skin of it's teeth.
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Okay, fair enough Beano.
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 13:02:36 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by inion_de_trua (user info) at 2006-08-24 12:41:56 (#)
Ranking: -2
that sucks for him and his mother. but the fact he chose to no longer deal with "that cunt" is a pretty good statement to how much he cared. yes, dealing with a sick parent is incredibly taxing on someone. so is dealing with an verbally abusive one with a substance problem. referencing his mother like that is fucked up. if that's you calling her a cunt for being ill, that makes me hope you get cancer.
and i've never heard of cancer drugs causing what looks like manic depression. she might've been nuts before that and it just hadn't surfaced yet.
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No I am not calling her that, he did. You are most likely correct that she was psychologically unsound before the cancer.
Submitted by inion_de_trua (user info) at 2006-08-24 12:41:56 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
that sucks for him and his mother. but the fact he chose to no longer deal with "that cunt" is a pretty good statement to how much he cared. yes, dealing with a sick parent is incredibly taxing on someone. so is dealing with an verbally abusive one with a substance problem. referencing his mother like that is fucked up. if that's you calling her a cunt for being ill, that makes me hope you get cancer.
and i've never heard of cancer drugs causing what looks like manic depression. she might've been nuts before that and it just hadn't surfaced yet.
Submitted by UnderOathMeal (user info) at 2006-08-24 12:20:50 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Poor.
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:54:12 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:42:06 (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:29:17 (#)
Ranking: 0
I don't know if this is fiction or non-fiction but I'm going to comment of the story by noting the things I was thinking as I was reading it.
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I don't blame you for not buying it. But thanks for the feedback.
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I said that things didn't sound right to me... I didn't say that I disbelieved any of it because I know that people do fucked up things. Especially terminally ill people.
OK I stand by my 'worth reading' by the skin of it's teeth.
Submitted by Berty (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:47:29 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I thought it was a fun and enjoyable read.
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:45:55 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Antioxident (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:28:04 (#)
Ranking: -2
This sucked
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It truly did suck for my friend. Sorry you didn't like the read.
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:44:34 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by keskanu (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:40:07 (#)
Ranking: -2
cancer doesn't get you. you get cancer.
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haha
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:43:57 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Shlongy (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:35:12 (#)
Ranking: 0
Cancer's not too bad, compared to, for example, anal rape.
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Word Shlongy.
Submitted by Uberjunkie (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:42:06 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:29:17 (#)
Ranking: 0
I don't know if this is fiction or non-fiction but I'm going to comment of the story by noting the things I was thinking as I was reading it.
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Sorry to say it is all 100% true except my friend's name is changed (I used his middle name). In Los Angeles we don't walk to school and although he was "in charge" my friend never cleaned up or acted very responsible. He still doesn't. Of course the dirty house was his fault, but he's fucked up, ya know? Hasn't had a girlfreind in about 10 years. After the funeral I loaded his dishwasher with dirty dishes and he didn't run it for two years. In the mid-eighties 12 year olds still spent the night at a friend's house, I don't know how it is now, they probably have sex in the school bathroom. The fact that the 911 operator said to go give the mom mouth-to-mouth was absurd and so even when I write it down it seems unbelievable. It also sounds so fucking stupid for this bitch woman to take that bath and all of us were in shock when we heard what happened. Who the hell would do that if they were so sick? That's why I had to write all this down, because it was just so unreal. I don't blame you for not buying it. But thanks for the feedback.
Submitted by keskanu (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:40:07 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
cancer doesn't get you. you get cancer.
Submitted by Shlongy (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:35:12 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
Cancer's not too bad, compared to, for example, anal rape.
Submitted by Beano312003 (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:29:17 EDT (#)
Ranking: 0
I don't know if this is fiction or non-fiction but I'm going to comment of the story by noting the things I was thinking as I was reading it.
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At first not much changed at all. Ryan's mom continued to take him to school in the mornings, she went to work, and was always there to pick him up at the end of the day. Ryan was encouraged to spend the night at his friend's house on the weekends which was fine with him since his mom was always tired now. One time after school she sort of snapped at him and he wasn't sure why.
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Doesn't ring true when you'd identified Ryan as being 12, it reads like the kid was 6 or 7.
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He began to notice that she wasn't taking her medicine as regularly as before and there were dirty dishes and empty drinking glasses scattered throughout the house.
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You identified HIM as head of the household at the beginning of this paragraph. If there were dirty dishes and glasses scattered about the house then it was HIS fault. Rendering the comment above meaningless.
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A few months later Ryan got a call from a family friend who was worried because he hadn't heard from Barb in a few days. Ryan was done with that cunt but agreed to go check on her anyway. The radio was on in the bathroom and he figured she was taking a bath. When she didn't answer he cracked open the door. He saw the bloated body of his mother floating face down in the Jacuzzi tub. He immediately called 911 and the operator asked him to perform CPR until the paramedics got there. He refused. Not because he hated her, but because he could tell immediately there was no way that was going to help.
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This whole paragraph doesn't sound believable. A terminally (possible insane) woman using the Jacuzzi doesn't sound right to me. And also the paramedics asking Ryan to perform CPR until they arrive? Does this happen?
Submitted by Antioxident (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:28:04 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
This sucked
Submitted by Method (user info) at 2006-08-24 11:07:00 EDT (#)
Ranking: -2
Y HALO THAR GERIATRIC BUTTSECKS???