The Virginia Visit Caper

.....For the first time in several years, we were treated to a visit by my son, Joel and my daughter-in-law, Barbara.  They stayed only for three days, but it was sufficient for us to enjoy each other's company.  The first night they were here we went out to have dinner at an Italian restaurant.  Unfortunately, it was closed and we wound up at Bonefish.  I don't cotton to fish, so I ordered a filet mignon and a crab cake.  Barbara seemed to enjoy "bang, bang" shrimp.  I tried one and it was very tasty.  Next time I'm in Bonefish, I'll probably order that dish.  The following night we dined at Massimo's.  I had lasagna which was thoroughly filling and enjoyable.  The others appeared to enjoy their own dinners.  Meanwhile we were able to chat and catch up on what each of us were doing.  I could not walk, but I was able to ambulate with my walker.  When we got back to the house we all watched "America Has Talent" which was very nice--only I did not notice any act that had talent.  The three judges appeared to be passing every act on to Las Vegas.  We did the same thing on the following night after we returned from a  Chinese buffet; we did interrupt the viewing for a while discussing what will be left in my will.  I've been collecting coins lo these many years and I gave Joel my entire collection.  I hope he doesn't get a back ache from loading the books on his back.  Now, I don't have much more to leave to him, and I'm trying to think about what I can leave to his siblings.  I'm sure I'll come up with something that they'll treasure as a memento from their father.  It was a sad farewell when they left here last night.  They are a delightful couple, and who knows when they will return?

.....They both had an opportunity to see that in order for me to get around, I need my walker and my scooter.  As a matter of fact, Joel had to drive me to the VA Hospital one day and I did have to take my scooter there where I had some dental work done.  He learned how to drive that scooter himself and how to load it onto the lift on my car.  That was helpful.  Now, I think he may go out and buy his own scooter.  I am still taking hyperbaric oxygen treatments every day, and I'm not convinced that they are doing me any good although the wound care doctor thinks otherwise and prescribed twenty more of those treatments.  Nevertheless, in spite of all the physical problems and pain I am coping with, I have a spark within me that will never burn out.  It will sustain me, as it has so many other times in my life.  So, friends need not be concerned about my giving up; that cannot happen.

"I could be well content to entertain the lag end of my life in quiet hours.." Henry IV

.....Tomorrow should be my last day to be stuffed into a big glass tube that they fill with oxygen. I'm talking about the cyberbarack treatments.  I'm required to be there every day at 11:30 am.  But I'm used to sleep until that hour. Before I get in I feel like an astronaut; they take my blood  pressure, they look in my ears, and for some reason they test my sugar level which is quite low.  Meanwhile I'm lying on a bed just in front of the tube; a bed where they give you pillows and shove a couple under my knees.  When all is ready the bed slides into the tube, and you're there captured for an hour and a half.

The bare facts are these: I'm completely immobile.  I have great pain in my left leg whenever I get into or up from something, be it chair of a car or a car.  We figure maybe the rod that is in my leg from the hip surgery may be rubbing against bone or something else. The doctors give us zip.  We do have an appointment with a pain manager doctor next week,,,I'm 87 year's old; why do I have to deal with this problem at this stage of my life?  Oh well, this too shall pass.  As my aide and I were driving to the hapabaric place, I thought of my father, who died on July 2, and I  didn't get a chance to have fun with fireworks.  My father was completely immobile also.  Like father, like son.

"O I have passed a miserable night." (WS)

.....It''s been awhile since I have written a post to this blog, and I hold myself accountable   for this omission.  I know I have a few loyal readers who like to tune in upon occasion and I would not like to lose them.  The fact is that I am injured and have not been inclined to writing.  In order to cure one of my problems I have been submitted to hyerbarack oxygen treatments every day.  Hopefully it will be successful.  The other day I had a weird dream which resulted in a fall.  I dreamed that I was in the clubhouse ballroom and Iwas locked in and all the lights were turned out.  It was pitch black and no knocking the door was successful.  Still dreaming, for some odd reason, I decided to go to the bathroom, so I picked up my walker and promptly fell because the walker collapsed.  It wasn't a real walker you see! Then the action took place in another part of a room, and I was crawling on the floor to find a way to get home.

.....This was a dream, but in reality I was crawling on my bedroom floor trying to get to my walker.  I was completely unsuccessful.  I spent the night sleeping on the floor and when I woke, there were blood stains all over the carpet.  I was wary that Rhoda--when she returned from New York would turn the lights out when she saw this!  My aide said  we have to call 911, and so we did.  When the rescue guys came they promptly brought me to the hospital where they dressed the wounds I had on my knees and took tests to see if there was any problem as a result of my fall.  I came home the same day.  I was mortified by this dream.  It isn't often that I "walk" in a dream.  While I did sleep on the carpet all night, failing to get to the bathroom, I could have used a pillow and a blanket, but the dream provided no such thing.  In the real world I could have had what I was dreaming about.  Oh hes, my aide cleaned up the bloodstains with peroxide.  Amazing.