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Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2015 9:52:50 GMT -6
Stick your head inside the freezer for a few minutes.
But wear a hat.
Cuz that's what Moms always tell you to do when you stick your head inside the freezer.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 18, 2015 9:56:46 GMT -6
If I wear a hat will it make me look funny?
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Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2015 10:02:14 GMT -6
Only if it's a funny-looking hat.
Or if you've got an odd-shaped head.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 18, 2015 10:03:49 GMT -6
Are you saying I'm odd?
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Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2015 10:09:38 GMT -6
Hhhmmmm....
Uhm....I can't hear you because the hat on my perfectly shaped head is pulled down over my ears.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 18, 2015 10:12:30 GMT -6
*signing*
Huh....have you had it checked by a phrenologist?
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Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2015 10:17:03 GMT -6
I thought phrenology is just skullduggery.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 18, 2015 10:21:44 GMT -6
Speaking of skullduggery. I learned a new word just now.
Erudition. Erudition - dust shaken out of a book into an empty skull.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 18, 2015 10:32:06 GMT -6
Skullduggery: the act of shaking dust from the skull in order to erudite it.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 18, 2015 10:32:47 GMT -6
LOL...ok you win.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 18, 2015 20:00:10 GMT -6
Mom slipped on the icy frost on her ramp yesterday. This is the second time. She landed on her butt the first time, and all was well. She twisted her leg behind her this time and has to use the walker to get around. The first time she had on an old pair of shoes with slick-worn soles. This time she had on brand new tennis shoes. So I guess something will need to be done to make the ramp non-slip. If that is even possible.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 18, 2015 20:16:41 GMT -6
Okay. A post had me doing drills:
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Post by Phalon on Jan 19, 2015 9:24:19 GMT -6
I'm not sure how, why, or what, but YAY! I won something!
I hope she's ok, Joxie! There are things you can get to go over the bottom of her shoes to help with traction. I've seen them on-line in the past, but before Christmas I was in the sporting goods store, and they had a big display of them. They look pretty neat - kind of like those chains for tires that they had years ago (they might still make snow chains, but they're illegal in Michigan). I'm sure there are also non-skid stick-on tread things for ramps, but I'm guessing it has to be warm enough outside for them to stick.
Hubs slipped on the ice taking out the trash last week. He didn't fall but twisted his back the wrong way, and has been in pain and pretty immobile until yesterday. It's an old injury; he's had a bulging disk since I've known him, and every once in a while he'll move the wrong way and his back will spasm for days. With his smashed fingers, and back spasms, poor guy is a mess. I told him yesterday though, that I wasn't going to feel sorry for him anymore when I saw what he was doing...
...which was chopping the ice build-up at the bottom of the driveway, then shoveling it on top of the already high piles on snow on either side of the driveway, which apparently couldn't wait for the 15 minutes it took to dry my hair after showering when I told him I'd do it. Argh!
I'm betting the real reason is not because the ice couldn't wait to be removed; it's because he wanted to be the first to use the nifty new tool (man-toy) I bought - a long-handled, heavy steel-bladed ice-chopper/scraper thingie. It's like a deadly weapon - the perfect defense against a zombie attack should we ever find ourselves in the middle of a cheesy, low budget horror flick. He, of course, set back the healing of his back using it. I'm just thankful he didn't chop off his foot in the process.
Took my car in this morning. The loaner they gave me is the same make, model, and year of my car. Nice. I know where everything is, and don't have to fumble around trying to find the light switches and such. For someone who resists change this is a good thing.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 19, 2015 18:23:08 GMT -6
I forgot about those. I think you mentioned them last year when I slipped and fell on the icy road walking to Mom's house . . . or back from Mom's house. I had it in mind to get me some before this winter, and it 'slipped' my mind.
I called Mom to tell her about them, in case it 'slipped' my mind again. She said she had twisted around wrong in her living room earlier and fell again. (A friend was with her.) We'd been out already, with a routine visit with the Kidney Clinic, then ate at Cracker Barrel again, and shopped at Wal-Mart.
Sorry to hear that. Are there exercises that will help? I've seen books that deal with exercises for those with back problems. (Usually Yoga or Pilates books.) Though I guess it depends on what/where the problem is? My family is a firm believer in going to the chiropractor. I went when I was a teenager and was having back pain, so I highly recommend seeing one.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 19, 2015 18:32:44 GMT -6
Oops! Got distracted with the shoe 'chains' and forgot. Mom was real sore for about a day. She had a hard time getting around, so she used the walker for a few days. (I have a hard time getting her to use a walker, so I know she had to have been feeling pretty bad.) She didn't use her walker when we when to her appointment and shopping/eating today. She moved a little slower than usual, but seemed otherwise normal.
But then after I got dropped off, and she and her friend were unloading her loot from the grocery store, she twisted around wrong and her leg gave way and she fell. She sounded okay on the phone, and said she was okay. She and her friends have plans for tomorrow, so I guess I'll find out later in the day just how well she's doing from this latest fall.
We've had a couple of other emergencies with her a couple of weeks ago, so I'm starting to wonder if she's trying to do herself in faster.
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Post by stepper on Jan 19, 2015 19:34:12 GMT -6
Or maybe she's paying you back a little for all the worring you caused her?
It sounds like she's recovering okay Joxcee, but let's hope she's feeling all better for tomorrow's adventures.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 19, 2015 22:31:30 GMT -6
Yeah. I guess. But today when they asked her if she wanted to be resuscitated if her heart stopped beating while in their care, she opted for DNR. So they gave her papers to sign and notarize and bring back to them. They are required to ask every so often, and this is the first time she's opted for DNR. Which she can change anytime she wants. And this leads me to wonder how much she hides from us. They also discussed with her about getting a living will so that her wishes will be carried out.
She's even talked about stopping the dialysis. She knew someone who did that years ago. I can't think about her opting for a slow death. I don't think I can watch that. That would be worse than the Winter depression. I can't go there, even now. Especially not this time of year.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 20, 2015 8:25:53 GMT -6
Stepper may have been joking when he said maybe she's paying you back for all the worry you caused her, but it's partly true - parents worry the heck outta their adult children.
With all the recent falls your Mom has had, now it's definitely time to insist she gets one of those Life-Alert type services, or at least has a cell phone with her all the time - not on the kitchen table across the room, but actually on her.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 20, 2015 18:59:57 GMT -6
Her friend is looking into getting a 'life-alert' type device for herself, and I'm hoping it puts it on Mom's mind more. This friend is like a mother hen with my Mom, so I'm sure this is her way of getting Mom to follow suit.
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Post by stepper on Jan 20, 2015 23:02:54 GMT -6
It's odd how that happens and I used to wonder how or when children thought they had grown up enough that they thought it was okay to play parent to a parent. Then mom got frail and sick. It was only the last four months - the stroke (January) caused problems and got her hospitalized. When she wasn't recovering the way we all expected the doctors looked for more and found the cancer - and it had metastasized. The b@stard told her on her 75th birthday that she had cancer and it was way too late to fix. (They could have waited one more day!) That was late March - she died in April. Really, it was stroke, hospital, and home with hospice care. It was during the home with hospice care that she needed us, but I never felt like I was taking over anything. And I'm wandering huh.
I meant to say that unless it's clear that someone requires assistance, then, IMHO, all you should do is offer it. I agree with how you are going about this Joxcee - and wish you luck.
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Post by stepper on Jan 20, 2015 23:23:25 GMT -6
It's winter? Yesterday we were in the mid 70's and today we got up to 82. "Normal" is due to return beginning tomorrow but it's too early for the spring tease isn't it?
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 20, 2015 23:43:18 GMT -6
Thanks, Stepper. The 'Mother Hen' doesn't think my sister and I do right by Mom because we don't treat her like a child and force her to move in with one of us. We let Mom be the parent and tell us how things are going to be. Mom does have her 'Alzheimer' moments, but it's usually because she's tired. I also blame it on the meds. But for the most part she is in her right mind, and she is able to live alone, so I don't feel like my sister and I have the right to dictate how she should spend the rest of her life.
She'll live longer if she's in control of her life. We want her to be independent for as long as she can. 'Mother Hen' does not appreciate that, and would prefer that we take over and tell Mom how she should live. Mom is way too stubborn to let anyone tell her what to do.
'Mother Hen' is the one who tends to kick start my Winter Blues. She's had Mom in the grave pretty much from the get go. Her negativity on how well Mom is doing depresses me to no end. I guess in her way she's trying to force me to face the fact that Mom isn't going to live forever, and that I need to get prepared for her eventual death. Well, I'm never gonna be ready. And all she is doing is sending me down the rabbit hole of deep depression.
One night, after being out with her and Mom for one of Mom's Kidney Clinic visits, I was sitting on the couch watching 'Criminal Minds' and I just started crying my eyes out. I couldn't figure out why, and then I figured out it was because I'd been out with 'MH' and she'd been 'preparing' me for Mom's fast approaching death. Her and a number of people from Church are so negative.
When I'm with Mom, I'm fine. Yes, Mom is not as healthy as she once was, but she isn't at death's door right this second either. Then when I'm away from her and around all these negative people who have her dying any second now, they bring me down, and I stay down until I'm with Mom again and see for myself how wrong they are. Mom should have died years ago, if you go by what they say. And she's still here. And they got me all tore up for nothing. It was time wasted.
Weird how it seems to come around when I'm suffering the Winter Blues. Or maybe it's only when I'm suffering the WBs that I take it all to heart. Thankfully, when the deep depression of WBs hits, it only lasts for one week. I wallow for a week before I kick myself in the rear and force myself out of it. I had gotten good about heading it off at the pass for a few years. And then my parents both went into the hospital in '06, and their health went off kilter. I haven't been able to fight it off so well since then.
Okay. Maybe I've blown off enough steam for now. Getting this off my chest does help me, a lot. January is almost over, and I got a couple of months to go. I'm gonna do some of that smiling in my liver meditation stuff. It really does work.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 20, 2015 23:47:49 GMT -6
Monday, I turned on the A/C for a little bit. It got in the low 60s. I took my coat with me when Mom went to her KC appointment, but it wasn't long before I took it off. I was sweating and had a dry mouth when I checked out at Wal-Mart. My house was 80 degrees when I got home. It didn't get as warm in the house today, because the clouds kept the sun from heating the house up. I'm really going to hate it when the temps drop back down into Winter. I'd rather it stayed cold until Spring.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 21, 2015 8:52:59 GMT -6
This is one of those double-edged swords things. You don't want to do it, but I think sometimes (or at least it was in Mom's case because she was as stubborn as your Mom sounds!), that as an adult child, you have to step in and tell your parent how it's going to be. I wish my brothers and I would have insisted instead of suggested that she get Life Alert, or at least carry the cell phone my brother got her; maybe then she wouldn't have laid for hours on her leg after she fell, which caused a blood clot resulting in amputation.
We (us kids) had a similar situation with one of Mom's long-time friends - similar in that she thought she knew better than us, but quite the opposite in that she thought either of my brothers should have Mom move with them instead of being in the nursing facility. Although she never once visited Mom for the nine months she was there (until a week before Mom died), she'd call her frequently and say things like "I can't understand why Bob or Mike don't let you come live with them; they are both alone and have plenty of space." Then Mom would bring it up to my brothers. I know it made them feel guilty when they had to tell her it wasn't possible - Mom needed 24 hour medical care and they both worked; she was a heavy woman and couldn't transfer herself from the bed to the wheelchair and needed a Hoyer lift to do so, and couldn't transfer herself out of the wheelchair to the toilet, or back into bed and it took a few nurses to help with the transfer - neither of my brothers could do that by themselves.
Although Mom hated not being independent, she was getting the care she needed - care my brothers couldn't provide, and for her friend to suggest to my Mom - and my brothers, and me - otherwise finally pushed me to call and say, "Listen (I'm sure I wanted to insert B!tch, but I didn't)...you need to stop. If you'd visit Mom - just once - you'd understand. And unless you're going to do that, you've got no business telling Mom - or us - what we should do." She did apologize to my brothers after that one visit shortly before Mom died, and she saw Mom's condition.
So Joxie, Mother Hen friend is not involved directly in your Mom's day-to-day care - you are, and it sounds like you are doing a d@mned good job. Don't let the friend's negativity get to you; it's not worth your energy.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 22, 2015 1:05:55 GMT -6
Thanks, Phalon. What 'Mother Hen' doesn't know is that if/when Mom does need a constant eye on her, we'll step in. But Mom is doing well on her own. She'll do better if she gets to stay in her own home for as long as she possibly can. And, my sister and I are just down the road. I can see Mom's house from my front porch when the leaves have fallen. It isn't like we live miles away. (My sister has her a bedroom all set up.) I do try to keep it in her mind to take either the cordless home phone or her cell phone with her when she goes outside, but she doesn't always think of it.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 22, 2015 6:52:28 GMT -6
I'm sure it's a big help for your Mom, and a big relief to you that you and your sister live so close.
It's been really pleasant wintry weather here this week. Temperatures have been hovering in the thirties, with a little bit of snow each day - just enough to have to dust off the car, clear the steps and front walk so no one slips, and shovel the sidewalks because it's required by the city.
I feel a bit bad for the dog, though. With the higher temperatures this past weekend, the snow we had got all melty, then refroze so there's a layer of icy stuff under the fresh snow. The layer is thick enough that she doesn't sink through it, but the layers of fresh snow are thin enough so that she has a hard time walking on it without sliding on the icy layer beneath. To the squirrels though, this presents a double advantage - they can run across the yard instead of hopping through a couple feet of snow, and secondly, the dog can't.
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 22, 2015 17:34:50 GMT -6
Poor baby. And I'm sure the squirrels don't taunt her in any way. (I've got a cartoon going on in my head. )
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Post by stepper on Jan 22, 2015 19:22:27 GMT -6
Yeah! What she said!
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Post by Mini Mia on Jan 22, 2015 22:43:37 GMT -6
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Post by Phalon on Jan 23, 2015 12:01:01 GMT -6
It only took us about 10 years to get here. Who will be the recipient of the highly prestigious, time-honored, first ever Wine-ing into Winter Crystal Icicle Award? (Psst - we can't afford gold, and who the hell wants a golden icicle, anyway?)
Just be poster number 1500.
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