Busy Doings

Lately, life has been full of oddments.

Mrs. H fell and broke her collarbone night before last night. She finds her walker annoying so starts to not use it and eventually falls. She's a tiny sparrow, so usually she just bounces. This time she perched on the edge of her chair--as usual but slid off--not as usual. S was with Mrs. C in the bathroom and heard a huge crash. She didn't want to go to the hospital and wait forever, but as she was in excruciating pain, she was up every two hours. Poor S. Mrs. H's son took her to 2 Doctors and so she was gone most of the day.

The lady who comes in at night has simply stopped coming in--no calling or anything--so S is working nights too. This means a bit more work for me, but the real load is on S. It's a combination between doing what needs to be done and not doing what I'd planned to do so I can keep track of everybody.

Mr. L was there for most of the morning but went out to eat for lunch and then the Dr. about the yicky, crusty spots that look like skin cancer (finally). He's had them for a long time but it's hard to get him to the Dr. He HATES to wait. They finally just lulled him into complacency with a trip out to eat and then leapt out of the bushes with a net and a Doctor visit.

That left Mrs. C and L and S went back to bed.

Mrs. C was upset over something. Her brother died last week, and we don't know if she knows on some level--or just knows that something is wrong but doesn't remember what. I think sometimes, emotions linger even when the reasons for them don't. I don't know what her family told her but they all gathered together over the weekend and probably were probably all dressed in black to boot. She refused to speak even more than usual--either looking at S and me with palpable disdain, or outright glaring at us.

L is antsy too, or maybe it's just more confused. She seems to be feeling poorly a lot and her blood sugar is all over the place. I walked around the backyard with her 3x's. phew!

I had looked at the calendar and seen that I hadn't written down my next appt with Dr. B. I was feeling antsy, like it was soon so, I called Dr. B to see when my appt was and it was indeed that day! The car was on empty, empty-empty. Then I discovered I'd left my coat and wallet at Susan's and had to dig out enough change to get 2 gallons of gas so I could go and get my wallet and get more gas. I took Darwin to the park but by that time I could only squeeze out 2x's around.

Today, I had a talk with Mrs H. and she was a tad woozy. She told me about her grandmother taking her to a party when she was 12...or 16....or 8,--she was kinda unclear on that part. She got sick with a headache, dizziness and an upset stomach. They took her to a Chinese Doctor who gave her a tea to drink and she got better. That they didn't have a lot of money for a hospital visit but the Chinese Doctor made her well. She's not sure she trusts American doctors--they just give you a pill and charge you a lot of money--and I think she thinks they don't care.

We planted the seeds in the Incredible Expanding Peat Disks. That took a lot longer than I thought it would. We put in what I had on hand--Bok Choi, Nasturtiums, Zucchini--including ome really old seeds from 2006--Carrots, Potatoes and Edamame. I wonder if any of it will come up. I've discovered that lots of people hold onto their seeds for a couple of years--that they're still good. I thought they wouldn't work. Well, we'll see.

It's True

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A Long Time Bloggin'

Ooof, so long since I last wrote. I went to see my Dad, observed his exercise class, got to visit my Aunt Barbara, facilitated the fixing of his front door, cleaned up a bit, went to Brown County with David and Bill, drove home, got sick and got bitten by a dog at the dog park.

Busy-ness

I got the application for E done--an idea that took far too long from conception to fruition. Hopefully this will result in many happy books for her to listen to and a happy free machine to listen to them on. The helpful woman at the library said that this was really just the first step and was just to get the ball rolling. They will call and talk to her--quizzing her about what she needs and why. Hopefully, she won't go all "unassuming" on me and protest that she doesn't really need a machine.

I also got the info about a snazzy blue placard for S. Theoretically, S could get one for each of the residents which would help when taking everyone on their respective errands. Not that we do much of the running for the others--their families are nearby and take them where they need to go--but we do go out to eat once a month. DIM SUM BABY!

Mr. L refused to color the Chang-e picture I made because it was too complicated and he was worried about coloring it badly or the wrong color. Then he refused to cut the paper to make a lantern because it seemed too easy and wasn't decorated enough. Grrrrrrrrrrrr. Partly this was because L was with her daughter and the chemistry of the group was off. L has come to like decorating things so after awhile of watching her, Mr. L will get interested and join in--or at least start trying to critique L. Mrs. C was and is mostly interested in sleep. THEN, Mr. L started talking about how someone has taken his glasses because the one's in his case don't work. Suddenly things click into place. I think his eyesight has recently gotten much worse (the vessel breakage incident perhaps?)

Took E to the dentist. That was a huge flag waving victory for her. She has much anxiety about the dentist who is her old friend of 30 years--so it's not only being scared/worried about seeing the dentist, it's anxiety about how she'll appear to an old friend. Afterward, we went to IHOP. She likes the break from Chinese food. No matter how good Susan's cooking is--and man, it smelled sooo good as we were leaving--it's not "home cooking" for her. She always eats so much more. Of course it's full of sodium and fat and other badness. Going to all the old places seems to trigger memories for her which can only be good. She's fun to take around.

Got my Rx filled and goofed for awhile. Ran out and got some Mooncakes (on sale) in case mine don't work out) and various asian treats.

Puzzling over Zoe's bday. I knew this was going to be an issue. I couldn't figure out a way to resolve it so I put it on the back burner, and now it's beginning to scorch. She's just going to be so "en transit." I don't want to send it too early or too late. I looked at bakeries around England, but she'll be in Berlin on her birthday. I found a way of making a cake in a canning jar for sending overseas--you basically bake and then can the cake--but my oven is broken. Rob wants to hold back on the gifts because we are spending so much on the trip and she'll just have to bring them back. Me, I'm all about the big birthday bashes. puzzle, puzzle.

Ice Creaminess

We made ice cream today! I brought my Play and Freeze to work today. It's the perfect activity requiring a lot of interactive movement culminating in an icy deliciousness--the perfect reward. I used whole milk instead of the half and half they suggested so it was more of an ice milk and I used Splenda instead of Sugar which gave it a slightly artificial taste. That taste tends to dissipate over time--but it didn't last long enough for that to happen. It needs something to give it a richer taste and I'd like it if I could figure out how to prevent ice crystals.

R used his ATT card so that I could download Obama's speech for E. Took as long to download it as to play it--almost an hour.

Blackberry Birthday

Today I am 49. So I did what every woman in my position would do, I went blackberry picking. Let me just say: HOT! I bought an Enteman's raspberry coffee cake so we could make a fast get away, but then I couldn't find my other shoe so we didn't get out until after 8.

Blackberries were just coming in. Tons of huge berries. Tons of buzzing insects too--flinging themselves kamekaze fashion into our eyes and noses--but we managed. Bees, wasps, grasshoppers. Zoe swears she saw potato bugs, but I don't know what potato bugs look like so I can neither confirm nor deny.

Thornless blackberries are a bland compensation for the potential sunstroke. Thorned varieties have a perfume quality about them--a complexity of flavor that thornless berries lack.

Current obsession is Chinese treats for the residents (I'll blog about my new job later). Current flavor of said obsession is healthful, refreshing jellies made with agar agar and fruits. Agar agar seems better than Knox gelatin because it comes from sea weed, not animal hoofs. It has some iodine (and something else I'm blanking on), LOTS of fiber and swells up in the stomach 3x it's original size so it's filling. It also isn't supposed to melt in the heat the way that gelatin does so it won't turn into soup in the car on the way to work.

I have gotten bedazzled by the glistening variety that's possible.

I pureed some berries, got about 2 cups of juice. Added 1 tsp of lemon zest, 1/2 Cup of Splenda--heated it up. In another, smaller pan, heated up 1/2 cup of water and added 1/2 Tablespoon of agar agar and 1 packet of splenda. Brought the little pot to a boil and wisked it to throughally dissolve it. I was worried about the acidity of the berries plus the lemon interfering with the setting up of the jelly, so I added more of the agar agar than is usual. Looks like they turned out well.

Havin' Fun at the New Job

I have a job! A job I like, feel challenged by and am enjoying! Liz's Mom S has started a residential home for the elderly with various forms of dementia. It's a dream she is pursuing that combines her deep Christian faith with a career. Trouble is, she has been trying to do most of it all by herself and has become a bit burnt out. When she was trying to get them to do activities, they seemed to be really resistant to her suggestions and she became disappointed. feeling unappreciated. So, she offered me a job as an Activities Coordinator/Director, which is a fancy way of saying I get to play games with the residents. A slight problem is that for the most part they speak Cantonese/Toisanese. Heh. I don't. Heh. But, I'm learning!

S has always impressed me. A lot more hard line, fundamentalist-type Christian than I am, she is never the less a unique mix of warm and loving, mixed with prickles and drive. She's not afraid to do the heavy lifting.

She offered me a wage that while is perhaps low to some, is good enough for my first post-degree job, and, as importantly, fits her budget. I run my ideas by her to make sure they will work in the context of the house and with the people and she's given me freedom to do what I like. I only work 3.5 hours a day--which is good for me. I am getting experience working with people in a semi-therapeutic setting--another good.

Right now, it's Mr. L., Mrs. M., Mrs. L and E (I, and everyone else, calls E by her first name). E is the only one who speaks English--and she speaks English only so it's a bit of a challenge for her as well.

Mr. L is 90. He has dementia, but I'm unsure as to what kind. He has Peripheral Vascular Disease, which means his legs don't get enough blood and I wonder if the condition of his veins/arteries is impacting the blood flow to his brain as well. He owned his own dry cleaners for years and likes to be in charge...even when it's not his decision to make. He has a garden in the back yard and is growing tomatoes, beans and zucchini. He is in really good shape as he was really active during his youth and middle age.

Mrs. M is leaving in about a week and I'm sad. She's such a sweet spirit--she really lights up my day, I like her a lot. Her enthusiasm is infectious to the others and helps me to get the others to take part in my activities. Mrs. M speaks Cantonese almost exclusively, but she also has the most patience with teaching me and is the best about communicating exactly what the words are about. She's about 86. She has Parkinson's Disease and some dementia--not sure if it's the result of the Parkinson's (could be) or is a separate issue. She's leaving to go to Hong Kong, I think to see if she can get other treatments. I know there is such a thing as deep brain stimulation, but I don't know if she's up to the hours long surgery that it would entail. If she did have it, she is fairly robust so I think she would live quite a bit longer so it might be worth it. S says that even if she came back to the USA she probably wouldn't come back to the house so, again, I am sad.

Mrs. L has Alzheimer's and is a challenge. I think she must have had to work hard her entire life. She seems to relate everything to work. She seems to default to the belief that she's in a work environment. It's hard to get her to do stuff without her believing that she is at work. Then she looks around at everyone not doing the activity and says they are lazy and she has to do all the work. I've been researching Enbrel as a treatment and am excited about the potential. However, it's bloody expensive--not sure her family could afford it.

E is American and speaks English. She has Macular Degeneration, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and smokes like a chimney. She recently had another stroke and lost about 10 years of memory. I enjoy her a lot as she's charming and fun. It's interesting that she has real difficulty getting stuff into her long term memory, and then getting it out again. However, her core personality is the same. She is E, and despite blindness, pain and memory loss, remains E.