Sunny Ruminations

~ Bitchy After 60

It’s been foggy and rainy here for the past few days, and boy do we need some rain. You never know when some individual, lacking in common sense, will decide it’s a good idea to light a match in the woods in order to cook a hotdog. This is not me being sarcastic, this really happened here along with other dumb things done by individuals lacking in common sense that have started forest fires.

Any way, although I am happy about the much-needed rain, I am thinking of sunshine. To quote the lyrics of the late John Denver, sunshine almost always makes me high.

I am anxious to get back outside because, even though I have been outside every sunny day since early April, I never tire of being outside; and there are still a lot of things to do in our yard. Usually the smaller jobs are done by now but there were a few curve balls that added a couple of big jobs to the list. Of course I will skip housework, piano, jigsaw puzzles and everything else inside to be outside.

The lack of sun has inspired me to think of sunny songs. 

John Denver’s,  Sunshine on my Shoulders

Sunshine on my shoulders makes me happy, 

Sunshine in my eyes can make me cry.

Sunshine on the water looks so lovely,

Sunshine almost always makes me high.

 

The Beatles,  Here Comes the Sun

Here comes the sun, doo-doo-doo-doo

Here comes the sun, and I say

It’s alright

 

Katrina And The Waves, Walking on Sunshine

I’m walking on sunshine, wooah

And don’t it feel good!

 

Lighthouse, Sunny Days

Ain’t nothin’ better in the world you know

Than lyin’ in the sun and listening to rock ‘n’ roll

 

Ask me if I spent too much time in my youth lyin’ in the sun and listening to rock ‘n’ roll? Or laying on an air mattress in the middle of the lake with my friend Deb and getting burn after burn on my ruddy-skinned back. The answer is yes. The damage was done before I was seventeen. Those were the days before sunblock.

 It can take years for skin cancer to develop. I had stopped lying in the sun many, many, many years before 2010 when I got out of the shower and noticed a large black mark on my back. It looked as though someone had smeared me with a brush of black paint. Obviously I rarely looked at my back because this was pretty hard to miss. And my husband, like most husbands, was much more interested in my front because he never noticed it either. To make a long story short, I had a biopsy, which came back positive. 

 When you have a positive biopsy they need to take a large chunk out of your skin. And they need to go deep. If the melanoma is deep, it is fatal as it will spread through your entire body. Luckily mine wasn’t deep and I lived to tell this tale. My dermatologist described my back as a minefield, and I now have a small collection of biopsy scars back there. 

 

Here are some facts about skin cancer. They are US details, the facts are similar in Canada.

1 in 5 Americans will develop skin cancer by the age of 70.

More than 2 people die of skin cancer in the U.S. every hour.

More people are diagnosed with skin cancer each year in the U.S. than all other cancers combined.

Having 5 or more sunburns doubles your risk for melanoma.

When detected early, the 5-year survival rate for melanoma is 99 percent.

 

I can’t help but think of a recent news story about a Tic Tok video spreading fake news and telling people to stop wearing sunscreen. Some people without common sense will watch these videos and believe them to be true and before they know it, the damage will be done. Once it is done, it is done!

After about ten years, my new Dermatologist thought I didn’t need to come for any more checkups because I was long past the 5 year mark. Then last summer happened. The 13 year mark. Another positive biopsy. This time on my leg and another deep chunk of my body was removed. Again I have been spared. Lucky me! 

Not only do I feel lucky to have dodged two bullets. But also lucky that both cases have been in areas where it was easy to go deep. I have seen what happens to a face when it is necessary to remove a deep section. It isn’t pretty. It would scare little kids. I hope I never scare little kids. 

Yet I still love to be outside. I have been wearing sunblock for years. I own several hats with generous brims. I follow the shade around my garden. I own a couple of UV protection shirts and have started kayaking in long sleeves. I will never stop going outside. I will never stop loving the sun. I just love the sun wisely and think of sunny songs. I would love you to recommend your favourite sunny songs for my list.

Thank you for reading. 

Photo: Pixabay

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26 thoughts on “Sunny Ruminations”

  1. Mine is a much-scarred face — inevitable in a fair skinned 84-year-old living in New Zealand. But still today people love to toast their almost bare bodies in sunshine. Those songs suggest that for white people in temperate climates the urge is irresistible. Sigh.

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    1. Here in Nova Scotia, winters are long so everyone loves summer and the many beaches. The stats for skin cancer here are higher than the rest of Canada. So it won’t matter what I say, people here will still get burned without thinking of the consequences.

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  3. I must admit it’s almost unheard of for me to wear any kind of sunscreen in Britain (well, here up North) but it is rarely sunny and the sun really isn’t strong up here at all. I don’t think I’ve had sunburn since I was really little when I had the bright idea of smearing ice cream on it to cool it off. Of course, the fats in the ice cream fried on my skin and my parents had to throw me in the large paddling pool nearby!

    I only really get the sun on my hands and forearms and lower legs anyway and they’re just so used to it they virtually ignore it. I’m naturally very dark though – dark hair etc. I’m generally slightly brown by the end of one of our ‘summers’. I do keep a general eye on my exposed skin for any unusual markings though…

    This is only about our second week of sun this year!

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    1. Even with sunblock, I will get colour on any exposed skin. I just don’t burn. Summers here can occasionally be cold and rainy but mostly are quite nice. Humidity is becoming more of a factor for a couple weeks each year and that’s when I can’t go outside.

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      1. I’m no fan of humidity! I always feel like I can’t breathe – especially if it’s hot as well. I used to love the dry deserts in places like Jordan – stepping outside was like opening the oven door but I loved it! (that and the scenery).

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  4. Marvin Gaye-Sunny

    Sunny yesterday my heart was filled with rain

    Sunny you smiled at me and really eased the pain

    Oh the dark days are gone and the bright days are here

    Mungo Jerry-In the Summertime

    When the weather is high you can stretch right up and touch the sky

    D.Stoddard

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  5. Great info! Being fair, blue-eyed, and freckled and living in Southern California pretty much my whole life has left its mark on me… literally. I can’t leave my every 6-month dermo check-ups without having several spots frozen off somewhere on my body. About 20 years ago I also had a melanoma chuck taken out of my back. I wear sunscreen now, but I imagine much of the damage was done in my stupid sun-worshipping youth.

    I can’t believe that anyone would be so cruel as to spread misinformation like that on TikTok. It seems that that sort of false and dangerous messaging should be illegal and punishable.

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  6. Those are scary stats. Like you we used to lie in the sun all summer long. There was no sunblock, maybe sun tan lotion to help you get darker but offered no protection.

    I saw a dermatologist a few years ago for a base level assessment and thankfully there were no concerns, but I’m planning on going again this year.

    Glad to read your’s have been successfully removed. Maggie

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  7. By the time I thought about the dangers I had already spent many years working outside and if there was any damage, it had already been done. Just one more thing to add to the list of things to tell my younger self if I ever have the chance. 🙂

    I’ve had two biopsies, neither on parts of my body that have ever seen the sun. It’s just the luck of the draw to a certain extent. 🙂

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  9. Yes, being outside on a sunny day improves many people’s moods as long as it’s not unbearably hot. I had not heard of the TikTok video about not wearing sunscreen. That’s crazy. Good picks on your sunny songs. That Katrina and the Waves song always get my toes tapping.

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  10. I didn’t expect the sunshine post to go there, but it did. Scary, but glad you are catching them in time! Little did we know how much damage was done to our bodies. Not only we didn’t use sun screen, I remember smearing coconut oil allover to tan better. My suggestion for your list is “Blister in the Sun” by Violent Femmes followed by”Cover Me in Sunshine” by Pink 🙂

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    1. Baby oil was the go to here. My girlfriend used to use it all the time. I only remember using it once. I didn’t need help to burn.
      Thanks for the new sun songs for me to check out. I haven’t heard them but I am heading to Google right now. 🌞

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  11. I’m all about sunblock and hats and shade. I grew up using baby oil to get *tan* which for me was really just bright red. Now I’m wary of the sun and consider my Dermatologist my bestie.

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  12. Pingback: Sunny Ruminations – @murphy web

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