Carl Chronicles continue

Well the focus of this trip is Uncle and that has consumed my time.  I do want to  have friend visits which have been avoided so far with the time spent at house and the SNF.  So yesterday, Friday,   Uncle Carl   returned to his assisted living home at Logan House and was very happy!  But then he told me  he would have  preferred to go home to eat, so he still has that go home attitude.  We take triumphs and progress along the way.  He ate very little but downed his cottage cheese and ice cream.  I guess he will eat when he wants to.  The other day at the SNF I asked if he was on a hunger strike and he said yes.  His dementia seems to have up and down days but his humor is better.

Yesterday's event was wanting to cut his finger nails which he suddenly noticed as ragged and uneven and they were.  Jerry bought some new nail clippers for him at Walgreens and that was his focus.  He did cut his own nails and evened them out and was quite pleased with himself. at my insistence. 

Carol, who is the beautician/barber at the Logan house fussed with him too trying to get him to eat and he kidded with her, ate two bites of sweet potato but that was all.  He has turned a strange corner from the "chow hound" to looking at his food and saying, "I can't eat all that."  Who knows when or if his appetite will return.  Who knows what we are encountering.  I suspect there is still a lingering  sedative effect from the Airicept which has been discontinued only since Monday Oct. 18 at my insistence.  Carol has a friend who makes she claims the best home made pierogies, which we will get and enjoy Monday.  Meantime today, ST, Johns, the Slavic church hosts their food festival so we will  pick up cabbage rolls and pierogies for him today and see if he is tempted to eat. 

I am disappointed that there is no discount/refund from Logan house for the weeks he was not there in the hospital, SNF.  After all he ate no meals and received no services from them.  I will write this complaint to their  corporate office.  Give me a break.  It cost them nothing to hold his room, they do not have a waiting list for residents. They have assured me they will be able to care for Carl and I will trust that.  Today the home health agency will evaluate him for a wheel chair; he is currently using one from the facility. 

Meantime, God is at work assuring me it is in His Hands.  Last night in response to my  voice mail message Matt, a volunteer fireman at NKFD#1 where Carl was a volunteer and member for over 60 years, called me.  They have been wondering what happened to "Tux" his nickname from early adulthood.  So thank God for  the connection.  He said they would visit him and regretted not knowing he's been there.  Even more, he assured me not a worry on funeral and pallbearers, they will guard the casket and be pallbearers.  Carl used to hang out at the firehall and that was a big part of his life.  Matt told me he could down shots of whiskey with the best of them. It'sa timely convergence of God's plan that I made this connection this trip and I am thankful.  Especially because I know they will visit him and he will be thrilled.  

Indian summer weather here  for several days now, welcome after yesterday's cold air.  Last night's full moon was a "Hunter's Moon" something I'd never heard but Jerry had, he also said it could be called a "Sniper's Moon."  The day before a black cat/kitten showed up outside our motor home and talked to me.  I told it to get lost that it was bad timing for black cats with Halloween around the corner, but here it sat, demanding entrance.  No way!  It was a pretty cat with green eyes, but not here, where we will continue to be animalless.  Cat hopped up onto  step into motor home and wailed, "let me in....let's go for a broom ride" in response to my advice to it to watch out for brooms and witches.  It said it knew I have a broom to ride and it wanted to go along.  Now you know I have  completely turned the corner but these things come to me and I am sharing them here this trip as I catch up on happenings and thoughts. 

I am disappointed I will not get to see Carol, my Ball cousin this trip as they are too busy packing up to return to FL for the winter.  Oh well.

I found the most gorgeous lamb winter coat that had belonged to Aunt Marge, Carl's wife.  Oh I wish I knew someone petite enough to wear it--lovely black curled lamb with a black mink collar.  It won't sell for much when we do have a sale at the house, so if there were someone who'd enjoy it I would give it to them.  It is from Hart's a former upscale department store in the heyday of New Kensington.  I was surprised to find her clothing stored upstairs in the loft.  More stuff to dispose of.  I found a gorgeous black box cocktail ourse which I'm taking home; don't know what I'll do with it but it is very cute and full of  light coral and mint green taffeta yo yo's that Marge cut out.  We will see what I do with that.  More to come....