Weekend!

...and a very welcome weekend, it is! Even if this morning is cold and not exactly picturesque. The temperature must have dropped thirty degrees last night, not a common occurrence. Yesterday, spring, today, back to your normally scheduled program.

This is the week that was....it started with a late-afternoon Sunday phone call from Mike's dad, fearful that he'd just had a stroke. Of course, we left for Annville right away. I stayed back with Mike's mom, hoping to keep her calm, but these days, I have no way of reading her. By the time Mike got back with Bob, she may have forgotten why I was sitting there. This may explain her seeming agitation, and be what Bob means when he says that Sharon needs to know where he is and what he's doing all the time; she can't remember, that would make her anxious. Poor Sharon.

Bob did have a TIA, or mini stroke, and we have reason to believe that this is not the first one. He was admitted to the hospital, and at the time, we made the decision to drive Bob's car out there, so that he could drive home when he was discharged. This was Bob's idea, and it seemed like the thing to do at the time, but then he wound up staying for two nights. The staff wanted him to stay longer, but he insisted on getting home to his wife. Okay, they said, but he had to be driven home. So, on Tuesday night, Mike and I went back out to Annville to move the car that never should have been there in the first place. Turns out, the same agency of caretakers they have during the day (and night, if need be) will happily provide them with transportation. You can tell we're new to this.

Honestly, when we saw Bob Tuesday night, I perceived a bit of a change. Was I being objective? I didn't know, until we got back to the hospital's parking lot and he tried to insist that I was walking up to the wrong car. The car I'd consciously parked the way my Mom would: I found a space that allowed me to pull through to the one behind it, so he wouldn't have to back out. Perhaps this threw him, and he was looking for a car butt instead--but no, he was favoring a car that had little in common with his own. Now I'm scared.

Fortunately, Bob has come to the conclusion that he and Sharon cannot stay where they are. He certainly cannot take care of her. If all goes well, Sharon will move out into a very nice looking home nearby, and Bob will not be long on her heels. In the meantime, hopefully, he'll allow his caregivers to help him get around. When I stated that this home was nearby, I meant near to where Bob and Sharon are living right now. Those sweet visions of them living just down the road from us? I need to snap out of it. But this will be a major improvement; as long as Mike's parents are being cared for, we can relax and plan happier visits.

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Mike has finished the first week of his six month contract, I will shortly celebrate ten years working in the same building, and life goes on. And I'm reminded all the time to get out there and enjoy it while I can.


So, welcome Saturday! Let this longer weekend begin...whatchaupto? (If Blogger lets you comment)