Inspiration

I have to say that listening to Neil Youngs new "Living with War" has given me hope that there are other people on this earth that feel as strong about peace as i do.....i am not just talking about the current war we are fighting and the wars that were fought throughout the years but all kinds of injustice that we have created in our daily lives.....the "wars" that the days are sometimes filled with.....drivers who don't care about other people on the road..... people who close the doors in your face...... clerks whose customer service skills were learned on the back of a crackerjack box..... rude teller marketers who call at dinner time......the no use lies that are told daily on just about every tv commercial ....this does this....this is the best..this is proven to grow hair (easy now) ...this is proven to grow other things....the wars on the back covers of newspapers just because a ballplayer drops a ball it's big news.......the front pages sensationalized to sell newspapers........i wish that all these "WARS".......would just stop.....peace is really one of the most beautiful words in the english language to me....always will be a part of my vocabulary...i hope it is one of the last words i ever say other than love........my friends i wish you peace in your daily journey........thanks for reading........if i weren't so tired at night i would blog more.......doctors says this too will take time........learning to live with my "new" body parts a little better......man o man what a journey.........one that is having a happy ending.....thanks to everyone in my industry........you all have been fantastic...see you on the road.....i plan on being at wSA>>>>outdoor retailer>>>>>surf expo.......let the games begin..........tOM
.....

AND HE CONTINUED TO bLOG

that poem yesterday really was awesome thanks again bruce....please send any cool stuff to thunderbyd@aol.com if your to shy to comment.....ok today (monday) had a followup visit with my doctor here on long island....we just chatted ....the vampires took blood.....poked here....pushed there....felt this.....said that.....made them laugh.....bitched about whatever.....asked if i could play softball soon.....6 months from surgery i was told....ummmmm let's see that puts us into october.....oh well next year i guess...numbness in groin area...normal.....bloating in stomach...normal....ripped feeling in belly......normal.....149.5 lbs....encouraging......so doc what your telling me that i am doing ok right.....doc says....looks ok to me...see you in september...........well kick up my heels and buy me a slurpie doc says i am doing all-right.......you see your prayers and love have worked.............imagine that............i am doing all-right...............far-out..................neil youngs living with war cd.......**** stars......

Back by popular demand

going back to during the week blogs........thanks for asking for the daily blogs...i will try to make them worthwhile......bruce ( a co worker and good friend) who went through his health problems last year sent me this poem.....it speaks for itself...

This is a poem written by a teenager with cancer.

SLOW DANCE
Have you ever watched kids
On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain
Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?

Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.
Do you run through each day
On the fly?
When you ask How are you?
Do you hear the reply?
When the day is done
!
Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
Running through your head?
You'd better slow down
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.
Ever told your child,
We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste,
Not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time
To call and say,"Hi"
You'd better slow down.
Don't dance so fast.
Time is short.
The music won't last.
When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift....
Thrown away.
Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over................even i needed this this weekend....tom
--------------------

Birth-day

had a good time with some of my wife's closest friends and family..we celebrated a milestone birthday for sue and she was sure suprised
..............................i am sort of stalled in my energy levels and top the scales at 150.5 tonight...now that is exciting..............everyone says i look great (as opposed to looking like crap) before i quess......i mean what are they suppose to say .......i wish for once someone would say....man you look like crap today..............that would be pretty funny........but we hold our tongues ....like when you seee a really ugly baby in a stroller what can you say to the parents.....nice stroller?.............i love this life and the fact i can spew that random stuff out and get a good laugh out of it myself..........rock on my friends.........see ya over the weekend.......tom

Tuesday with tommy

it appears that i touched upon something when i talked about dads that have left us...my thunderbyd mail box and the comments post had some beautiful e-mails thanking me for remembering them .....and then it struck me that the hospital that my dads last words were was the same exact hospital that i was in..... his words will live inside my everyday ( he was a man of few words) so even though they were his last words to me they probably were his first also...hehehhe............................. still dragging my body a little and trying to put in my 8 hours at work which by the way is part time for us in season.....it is a slow process one in which my spirit is willing but the flesh is lagging behind................oh yeah ....every other day blogs for a while...........unless breaking news happens.....like the wifes birthday on thurs or something like that.......weight up to 148........still to skinny and when someone sees me who does not know it is pretty funny to see their face..i just tell them i run marathons now...kidding....no i really do..........ah how can i lie to you guys i tell them i am into drugs these days....man i am i having fun with this .......later.........Tom "super model skinny" Cheffo................p.s bladder is workin fine.......stomach is the organ i need to watch......it seems to be a day behind me all the time...hope it catches up soon..starting to be a pain in the ass well not quite the ass but close.....had to leave a meal with my pals in nyc due to severe stomach distress ,,must have been the pina coloda on fathers day.......sorry adam stewart and marsha..rain date soon........peace../...

FATHERS DAY

i HOPE ALL YOU FATHERS AND FATHERS TO BE (TIMMY & JASON) HAD AS AWESOME A DAY AS I DID...I MEAN I COULD DO NO WRONG....MORE GIFTS ....STEAK DINNER......PINA COLADAS & A NAP IN THE SUN.......DESERT AT A NEIGHBORS.....I AM EXUSTED.....HEHEEH...............................................TO ALL THE FATHERS WHO HAVE LEFT THIS WORLD........WE WILL ALWAYS CARRY YOU IN OUR HEARTS.......YOU MAY BE GONE BUT YOUR TEACHINGS LIVE ON........YOUR LOVE FOR US STILL SHINES EVERYDAY.......TO MY OWN DAD....I THINK I LOVE YOU MORE THAN EVER..I CANNOT BELIEVE IT HAS BEEN 36 YEARS SINCE YOUR LAST WORDS TO ME I AND I REMEBER THEM WELL AS YOU WERE LAYING IN THE HOSPITAL YOU SAID "SON A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE COMPLAINING TO ME THAT YOUR HAIR AND YOUR BROTHERS HAIR IS GETTING TO LONG....BUT REMEMBR IT IS NOT THE LENGTH OF YOUR HAIR THAT IS GOING TO MAKE THE KIND OF MAN YOU WILL BECOME".............CONSIDERING MY DAD WAS BALD THAT WAS A BOLD STATEMENT.............MY DAD PASSED AWAY A FEW DAYS AFTER THAT ..........POP THIS FATHERS DAY IS FOR YOU AND ALL MY FRIENDS AND FAMILIES DADS WHO PASSED ON..........we will always love ya dearly........yOUR SON....TOM

Captains log....Blog #200

i have truly have found a way to express myself all these months and through the power of computers i have made what should have been a dark time in my life full of hope and love...all i can say is that another Miracle has happened when i became cancer free in such a short time........ i wrote this poem when my beautiful daughter casey's medicine called Gleveec started to push her leukemia to sleep in her body......and when the cancer was undected in my wifes body....and now i will use it as my own mantra in lifes wonderful and fulfilling adventure.... let the festivities begin....it has a mention of my dad who passed on in 1970 and my last memories of him and his beloved mets winning the world series just for him

Miracle

Lets start it out in 69
When the New York Mets were the team in town
And my daddys roar always told the score

As life rolled on to a faster pace
It never seemed to slow me down
And the canyon walls rose up and out of sight

Do you believe in Miracles?
Do you believe in help from above?
Do you believe in Miracles?

From the blue eyes of my beautiful wife
To the lives we made with love in our hearts
Told us time we have is all the time we need

As the sunlight shines in the morning dew
And the snow peaked mountains hide the blinding light
And our flowers stretch to reach the crying sky

Do you believe in Miracles?
Do you believe in help from above?
Do you believe in Miracles?

Time and Time and Time again
The Angels came and we said to them
You must me mistaken its not our time to go

So with a touch of love and a little faith
The healing hands of what it takes
We are the eyes and ears of the miracle

Do you believe in Miracles?
Do you believe in help from above?
Do you believe in Miracles?

199

i just received this poem from by cousin ( more like a sister) Barbara and she says the following...........................................................................Tom, You made us all understand how important this is............................Love, Barb
This is the poem: Around the corner I have a friend, In this great city that has no end, Yet the days go by and weeks rush on, And before I know it, a year is gone. And I never see my old friends face, For life is a swift and terrible race, He knows I like him just as well, As in the days when I rang his bell. And he rang mine but we were younger then, And now we are busy, tired men. Tired of playing a foolish game, Tired of trying to make a name. "Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim Just to show that I'm thinking of him." But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes, And distance between us grows and grows. Around the corner, yet miles away, "Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today." And that's what we get and deserve in the end. Around the corner, a vanished friend. Remember to always say what you mean. If you love someone, tell them. Don't be afraid to express yourself. Reach out and tell someone what they mean to you. Because when you decide that it is the right time it might be too late. Seize the day. Never have regrets. And most importantly, stay close to your friends and family, for they have helped make you the person that you are today..............so true on the eve of my 200th blog...it has been the theme of my life.......live long my friends....but live..............tom...........special blog planned for my 200th tomorrow night.............

198

feels real good..............strength coming back......Weight up to 147.5............on the phones at work these days and it's fun to hear peoples reaction when they find out it's me........also anybody who had any form of cancer shares that with me it is a huge club and one that i am proud to be a member......getting it ...dealing with it and getting rid of it that was my motto from the beginning.....
was not always easy but if you know in your heart it had to work out well that's half the battle...i for one have way to much to live for....i mean look how my mets are playing.......come on i would never miss them winning a championship for me this year......................................go usa in the world cup...tough loss today....not out of it just yet..........Tommy "pele" Cheffo

197

tHis is my 197th entry's into this blog.......i again want to thank all of you for sharing the ride.......i plan on a special tribute to the 200th entry later this week.........i will blog on and keep all updated as to life of a cancer survivor...........you know there has not been this great revalations or a spiritual moment ..i did not see a shinning light that guided me through all this.......i did not pray for a cure and if it did happen i would sell my soul to the devil or something like that............i kinda always enjoyed myself before the cancer struck and the people around that made up my world .........(even if some were a-holes i got a kick out of them) not you of course... and i figured that i was a lucky son of a bitch to have what i do have.......... i have to say it feels good though to be on the mend...........my life is good...period..these last 7 months have been pretty freakin amazing i must say....shoe boxes full of cards ..letters.....get well wishers & tons of gifts.........( i mean i am in the shoe biz so i had to use a shoe box)....hundreds of e-mails ( i saved everyone) so i quess you could say the most amazing things that happened through all of this is the un-dying love that all of you extended to me and my family........today while on my daily walk......i noticed a bird in flight.....i marveled at how effortless it seemed to lift himself/herself from her house and just fly.....i mean did i always just take that for granted....ummmmmmmm i quess i did change.....darn it i did not want to get all sappy on ya................146 lbs fat albert move over....

FRIENDSHIP

I went to the city wednesday night to meet some friends at a resturant called patsy's ....great food , but that is not why i went...i needed to see my friends and break bread with them.....some of them have visited me at home when i just got home from the hospital and i needed to reach out to see them....they traveled far to a trade show in nyc that we we doing ......i thought about these 5 friends that mean so much to me and i decide to write a creed about friendship and what it means to me....... a friend is someone who you always feel comfortable being around.....a friend is always going to be there for you through illness and health....a friend will never question your friendship or demand anything more than you are willing to give...a friend is someone when you enter their home you feel at home yourself........a friend is someone when you walk into a room he/she makes sure to smile and welcome you....a friend is someone you could call 24/7 just to say hi if need be.........a friend is someone who when asks you for advice listens to your answer.....i mean really listens to your answer...... a friend is there to make your life easier not harder ...... a friend senses when you need some time alone and respects your wish without question or guilt........ i can only hope that i have lived up to some of these things that i wrote about because all the people that i consider my friends did these things for me.....i have so many good friends..... I KNOW I SAID THIS 100 TIMES AND I WILL SAY IT AGAIN......THERE CAN BE NO GREATER GROUP OF PEOPLE THAT I CALL MY FRIENDS...I WILL SPENT THE REST OF MY LIFE MAKING SURE YOU ALL KNOW WHAT AN HONOR IT IS TO HAVE YOU IN MY LIFE........I WILL NEVER TAKE YOU FOR GRANTED..........please write to me what you think a friend should be like and i will put it all together.......if you can't figure the comments out send it to thunderbyd@aol.com....

I AM THE LUCKIEST MAN ALIVE,,,,

total support from my family, friends and peers........when i answer the phone and my customers find out it is really me and the say.....it is really you.....welcome back buddy, glad your getting over the hump....... one dear friend from crocs footwear was so moved by what happened to me he and his wife are going to set up a foundation to help with hospice care of people so much worst off than me...he asked me to sit on the board of directors...an honor that i will not take lightly.....i am the lucky one you see there are so many who catch this illness to late.......i will never preach anything but i have to say a routine checkup saved my life.......end of statement........ i am now a survivor and a candle was light by jesse mc at work for me at a cancer walk .......one of my first as a survivor from a survivor.......funny thing is i always considered myself a survivor.....now i kinda have the official title............

"Music is our common bond"

after a long work day......some good pizza.......then some good music......kent i played some tunes and even recorded the moment...can be yours for just $14.95 for the cd ..if you want it autographed..$15.95 heehe......even got to watch carolina win the first game of the finals (kent is from carolina so that made it extra special)......keep up the energy level today......smoothies...ensure..two slices of pizza....bananna......chicken..corn on the cob and pasta salad...and still only gained a little weight this week....now at 145.....tired now.....sleep will come easy

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN

it is good to be back at work.....the past 7 weeks ( has it only been 7 weeks ) since my surgery is now just a blur.....all the things i was going to do around the house....books i was going to read ...movies to watch.... was only about half as much as i thought i would do.....i mean just keeping one foot in front of the other was a three week chore.......but ....every day better and better......belly still slow to get in line..but food tastes great again an it is "just a matter of time" before this will be over and done with.......my buddy kent doobrow ( a blog regular) is paying me a visit tomorrow night.....breaking out the guitars for sure......kent is an original ..card carring member of possum...our trade show road weary band........can't wait to root for his hockey team (carolina is in the finals)_ and play some rock n' roll......happy monday.......tom

FAMILY

the wild and crazy cheffo brothers 27 years ago.............john travolta move over...... that's not a man bag i am carring..it's a camera ..i swear........went back to work part time today....loved it and felt great.........one of the reasons i love what i do is that i do not consider it work.....it is a happening every day at yaleet ( yaleet is the name of the company i work for).....we have so much going on that it is not for the meek at heart....you roll up yours sleves and get dirty......multi tasking is a must and time flies by...we are growing fast after a few even years.....looking foward to finishing this year real stong...after all women always need shoes.....and we got em........best part of the day is when my aunts and uncles came all the way from new jersey to visit.......we had a wonderful time together and i love them dearly they read my blog so relatives......... this buds for you...........uncle vinny...always a great story teller and great listener....uncle anthony ..nick named brook...worlds best carpenter and a man i would always take advice from ( and have).......aunt mel...sweet aunt mel...always has the kindest words to say to me and i adore you....aunt marie.....nick named bubbles...i forget why i think she had a bubbles doll growing up she has the most interesting take on things and always seems to know exactly how to deal with any situation......aunt josie.....aunt jo ...i love you so much....when my folks left this planet aunt jo and uncle nick ( who has since left us) were one of the first to offer my brothers and i their home to live...i don't ever think i thanked you enough ..i love all of them so much as a child growing up we had the closest ......most loving family a person could ask for.......thank you aunt jo for the photo you gave me .....,,,,,,,now i gotta rest therse weary bones........but they feel soooooooo good......