Looking back, it was a fun trip. Tammy and I went to the nursing home to visit her mom, Carol. We took Malcolm. He loves to ride, and they encourage bringing pets as part of therapy for the patients. The nursing home, by law and common sense, must maintain a clinical cleanliness. This makes for a very stark living space. It is easy to lose a sense of self there. Northpoint encourages familiar items in the individual rooms. They also do not discourage bringing familiar pets to visit. So .... We took Malcolm along for a visit.
We brought Carol out to see Malcolm and me. His leash was MIA. We sat out in the grassy area in the front. Being the perpetual picnickers that we are, we have those folding chairs in the boot of the truck. Carol sat in one. Tammy sat in the grass. Malcolm and I stood, leaned, and played under the tree.
Carol looks better then she has looked at anytime since coming here in May. That is a great thing. It gives us the ideas that we might be doing the right thing by her. The best thing would be for us to have a huge house and take care of Carol ourselves, but that isn't possible .. Yet. (When the book is published and we are rich .. lol) For now, this is the best case scenario. It still sucks right out loud, but it works.
In keeping with my own advice to see the humor in all of this, Carol had some funny moments today. One of those happened when she was telling us that she wanted to go out with us again on a Tuesday evening. (For the novice reader .. Tuesday night is one of our Karaoke nights.) She commented on our singing. She said, "Pardon my language, but you were GREAT." Pardon my language ? I wanted to snap back, "Carol, stop using the "G" word." She has trouble finding the right words at times for different situations. It is not a tragic thing. It is just part of this tragic disease.
She was telling us about being busy there at Northpoint. When she first arrived there we informed the staff that she has a compulsion for working. It doesn't matter what, as long as she feels useful. They put her to 'work' folding washcloths, picking up and putting away dinner trays, and other various menial tasks. This is her 'job'. She was telling us today they were going to give her other duties because they know she "used to work there". All in all, it was a good visit.
Oh yeah .. Dude is on the shit list again. Well, it is more like the pee list. While getting into bed last night, I discovered the wet spot in the bed. There we were, changing sheets at 2 AM and fussing at the cat. Tammy says it is an act of defiance because we have inundated his environment with multiple creatures. I really do not care why he is doing it. I also do not plan on putting him on the psychiatrists couch to find out, either. Beating him is becoming a clearer choice.
He is trying to make up with Tammy. He climbed up on the couch where she was reading and nudged her hand for his petting. She ignored him. There is no Dude petting for now. OOPS ! .. She just accidentally petted him. There goes a whole morning of intensive ignoring right down the drain. I hate when that happens. We would never make good tyrants. We keep forgetting that we are supposed to be mean and tyrannical. I am thinking that would be a requirement.
We brought Carol out to see Malcolm and me. His leash was MIA. We sat out in the grassy area in the front. Being the perpetual picnickers that we are, we have those folding chairs in the boot of the truck. Carol sat in one. Tammy sat in the grass. Malcolm and I stood, leaned, and played under the tree.
Carol looks better then she has looked at anytime since coming here in May. That is a great thing. It gives us the ideas that we might be doing the right thing by her. The best thing would be for us to have a huge house and take care of Carol ourselves, but that isn't possible .. Yet. (When the book is published and we are rich .. lol) For now, this is the best case scenario. It still sucks right out loud, but it works.
In keeping with my own advice to see the humor in all of this, Carol had some funny moments today. One of those happened when she was telling us that she wanted to go out with us again on a Tuesday evening. (For the novice reader .. Tuesday night is one of our Karaoke nights.) She commented on our singing. She said, "Pardon my language, but you were GREAT." Pardon my language ? I wanted to snap back, "Carol, stop using the "G" word." She has trouble finding the right words at times for different situations. It is not a tragic thing. It is just part of this tragic disease.
She was telling us about being busy there at Northpoint. When she first arrived there we informed the staff that she has a compulsion for working. It doesn't matter what, as long as she feels useful. They put her to 'work' folding washcloths, picking up and putting away dinner trays, and other various menial tasks. This is her 'job'. She was telling us today they were going to give her other duties because they know she "used to work there". All in all, it was a good visit.
Oh yeah .. Dude is on the shit list again. Well, it is more like the pee list. While getting into bed last night, I discovered the wet spot in the bed. There we were, changing sheets at 2 AM and fussing at the cat. Tammy says it is an act of defiance because we have inundated his environment with multiple creatures. I really do not care why he is doing it. I also do not plan on putting him on the psychiatrists couch to find out, either. Beating him is becoming a clearer choice.
He is trying to make up with Tammy. He climbed up on the couch where she was reading and nudged her hand for his petting. She ignored him. There is no Dude petting for now. OOPS ! .. She just accidentally petted him. There goes a whole morning of intensive ignoring right down the drain. I hate when that happens. We would never make good tyrants. We keep forgetting that we are supposed to be mean and tyrannical. I am thinking that would be a requirement.
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