Immediate improvements
Two days after I took the Executive Director on a short tour of the premises, miracles had happened. The coat closet was empty and clean, with just the wooden hangers on the rack and the items of Lost and Found on the shelf. Both the patios I had shown him were clean, and the dirty old rubber mats had been removed. For two days, Peter has been working on the front door, mostly sanding as far as I can see, and there is an appointment date set with the Roofer to look at the leaking gutter. Peter muttered that because they had to do these other, first priority jobs, all his other forty maintenance job orders had been put on the back burner, but he saw the necessity of cleaning up the face of the building.
I arranged the items on the Lost and Found shelf in the coat closet, as before, took pictures, put together a flyer and asked the Life Enrichment Manager (what a title!) to copy and distribute the flyer to all Residents, as before. This morning: immediate results. Three articles had been claimed by their owners and hopefully some more will follow. Unclaimed articles will go to Dorcas next week.
Red wheels
Mike has been walking with a cane for a couple of months, afraid to lose his balance and fall. When that became rather tiring, even with me holding his other hand, he decided he would like to try a rollator. We found a nice one on Amazon, a Nitro, a European brand, which was available with a higher seat and adjustable handle bars for tall guys. Three days a week, he now walks to the Fitness center on the first floor of the Club and back to work out with a Private Trainer. He likes it, because the trainers he works with are mostly women.
There was one problem: with inclement weather to be expected soon, we would be stuck, because I could not lift the Nitro into the trunk of the car. It took two days, searching Amazon and talking to our son, and the problem is solved. I fold the Nitro sideways by lifting a handle in the seat, secure it with a clamp, lift it a few inches off the floor by the frame and slide it into the trunk. The first time it did not work, but then I had a Junior Moment (the opposite of a Senior Moment): I could fold half of the back of the rear seat forward to create more space in the trunk. Yea! But in order to do that I had to take off Lani’s hammock from the head rests. It worked! Yesterday, we drove to the Club, had breakfast in the dining room and Mike had an early haircut appointment afterwards, all with his red wheels at his disposal. It’s wonderful. He is more independent and feels safe.
It is unbelievable how many people here just fall and break a hip. Other than inconvenient and the cause of a lot of pain, it seems to be common practice for hospitals. The fallen have surgery, come home after two days and then need physical therapy for a few weeks. Piece of cake! One of the ladies was back in the garden working with a rake and a broom in no time at all. Yet, I’d rather not go through it.
True, when I want to take Lani in the car for a walk in Wimbledon, I need to push up the back seat and hitch up her hammock, but when the weather is good (and it is still in the seventies now, on October 27), I can still traverse the Divide. The white mushrooms pushing up through dirt, fallen leaves and needles on the forest floor are as large as breakfast plates or my cereal bowls, and then there are smaller ones in various colors, just beautiful. It smells like Fall, and I am so enjoying my walks. So is Lani. I am training her to immediately sit when we walk along the street and a car is approaching. Everybody we pass says what a model dog she is. And she is!
Getting back to normal
Today I’m going to the monthly spelling bee, always fun, even though fewer people attend. And on Friday the monthly Residents’ Meeting will take place again; actually they will hold two meetings, in the dining room. We will have to keep distance, so two people per table and the tables set far apart. Safety first. And so, slowly but surely, things return to normal. We are all hoping that the new normal will soon be here.
It’s a Wonderful Life!
Until next time
Ronny