Nature Songs ~~~~
SEPTEMBER, 2002 ~ continued
September 23, 2002 ~ Whirlwind of a Day ~~ Yeap! Any good ole boy sitting back watching the world pass by would do a double take when he saw me sailing by not once, but twice. Today was one of those, “Let’s take the scenic drive and run up more miles” type of day. As I walked into the school to pick up DynoKid at 1 PM to take him to have his retainers checked by the orthodontist, Mom was walking up the hallway to call and check to see for sure when his appointment was. There was a slight problem with her scheduling of the call. His appointment was supposed to have been at 1 o’clock. She told me she was pretty sure it was to be at 1:40 PM. The office was filled for the afternoon, but the receptionist said if I could have him in the office in the next 15 minutes they would work him in. At least this leg of the journey for the day was with little traffic and nothing along the highway to hold us back and lose time. We walked into the office at 1:17. Rather, DynoKid ran into the office while I parked the car and locked it. When I walked into the waiting room, he was nowhere in sight. That was good. We would not have to make up the visit at another time.
About twenty minutes later, DynoKid sauntered out by himself. Generally one of the technicians come out to talk with the parents, or grandparents, but not today. He commented it only took two minutes to adjust his permanent retainer where it was irritating his gum, but waiting took forever. We made an appointment to return in ten weeks. Making that appointment made me realize how fast this year is flying by. Ten weeks will be in December! December! Wow! That isn’t long until Christmas will roll around again and it leaves a very short time for the remainder of the year 2002.
Normally when I pick up one of the boys to go to a dentist or doctor or whatever and it is near the end of the school day, we head on over to my home until Mom and Dad comes by to pick them up. No so this time. Tbird’s afternoon is closely scheduled and she asked if I would pick up Giggles while in Morganton and bring the two of them back out in the boonies to school. She has a Kindermusik Class and Dad’s schedule doesn’t include picking up Giggles. If I return DynoKid to school and bring Giggles, she can join the music class and afterwards, there will be time to pick up NascarKid after his soccer practice. So I left home, drove over into Burke County to the school, backtracked a bit and drove on to Morganton where I drove across town to pickup Giggles at Daycare. Then it was time to retrace my tracks back into Caldwell County. That was around a hundred miles more or less - I have the promise of a tank of gas, too.
I stopped and visited a short time with Mother on the return trip. She was out of bed again today and talked about some topics we hadn’t covered in awhile. Her mind was much clearer and she was definitely calmer. Much of the withdrawal symptoms was gone and she seemed more like her old self. We have been brainstorming about her and wondering what sort of activities could we do that would help her feel more useful and lead her thoughts outside of the room she stays in most of the time. If only she would agree to meet and talk with some of the other ladies or gents in the center. She is willing to talk, but people have to come into her room to talk with her. She will not leave the safety of her room and meet them halfway. I really think that her biggest problem with going outside her door is not feeling safe since she doesn’t see around her. How does one go about helping someone that can’t see much at all, and who’s hands shake too much to work with them, along with the inability to walk or motivate on her own? Her mind is keen generally; her communication abilities are lacking.
I only stayed with Mother a short time since I had to rush on home for my next appointment. I had promised Allan I would keep Buddy Boy for him. Allan’s therapy session was after five because they didn’t have any earlier for him. Usually, he goes around the middle of the day, and is free to pick up Buddy Boy from his daycare. After he arrived, I called Little Caesar's to order him the $5 Monday Special. They have heaps of pepperoni pizzas ready to hand out to the cars as they drive through the line outside. When a different topping is desired you have to call in to order it and then go inside to pick it up. Our pizza had to be sausage instead of pepperoni, thus, the trip into the building. Master Buddy Boy has become friends with those inside and they recognized him, knowing that he would also want a paper hat and an orange pencil along with the pizza. He also had to hold the money and pay for the pizza. Soon we were back in the car and heading back home to sink our teeth in the tasty aromatic circles of Italian delight. Surprise! Once back home, Buddy Boy wasn’t hungry yet. He wanted to play the Little Bear game on the computer first.
September 29, 2002 ~ Backout
~~
It’s late in the night, and I’m getting some ice cream.
It seemed a good idea to have some with my pills
When the lights blinked a warning before shutting down their magic
My hands are caught in the action of digging out ice cream.
Such a fine time to leave me in the dark!
There I was in total blackness. No nothing to guide me inasmuch as there was not even a moonbeam of moonlight trailing a soft shadow. Have you ever tried to finish what you were doing in total darkness? It gave me a good feel for what Mother is experiencing with her failing sight in the one eye she has to use. The use of fingertips is of utmost importance when spooning out the cold stuff and having it land in the bowl - not on the cabinet or floor. Once I finished putting some in the bowl, it wasn’t hard to feel for the lid to put back on the Bryers box; pivot around and grope for the freezer door. The box went back in the bottom shelf and that could be carried out with no problem..
Problem? I happen to own umpteen million flashlights - or maybe a few less ... In any given emergency of having the lights on the blink, would you be able to find a flashlight? Of course not! There are many Mr. NoBodys that dwell in the walls of this old home. They lurk around the corners waiting to snatch up a flash.light to use for various and sundry projects. I know better than to start the trek through the house to my room without the aid of the wonders of electricity, carrying a bowl of ice cream. Instead, with hands out to act as the white cane, there I am, 1:30 am, making my way through the house to find the one flashlight I think. I know about that still works. It is in the corner of the windowsill close to my bed. I hid it back under the curtain from the grand kids wonderment's. And, yes, I get to it without as much as a single stumble. That’s quite a feat for me to come through the kitchen, den, hallway and across my room in total darkness with out a stumble. What do I do? What every law-abiding person is likely to do. I flick on the switch and the flashlight works! I turn around to head back to the kitchen and retrieve my bowl of cold goodies - and - I stumble, having to catch my balance.
I get the bowl of ice cream back to my bedside and prop the flashlight on end so it will reflect off the white ceiling. (Of course!! I’m one of those boring people that don’t paint the ceiling to match the walls and furniture in a room.) Ah! What a scrumptious reward for all my endeavors! The flashlight begins to dim and I rush to get my meds down so the juice remaining in the flashlight can converge and regenerate for later emergencies. Time passes slowly and the lights refuse to jump back into business until 6:11 am. Now there is the electrical remains of TV, clock and other stuff. It time to enter back into business as usual in this household. Chances are that we will never learn about what happened to make the light disappear. That’s just the way our little city works when it comes to notifying residents about things that happen around the city.
Charlie is upset with the lights out and of all the times to be fed the wrong foods, he has overeaten with all Giggles put out in order for Oreo to have a food when he gets hungry in the middle of the wee morning hours. (OOPS! Time to switch over to the adapter.) Since Charlie is swollen tight and is so uncomfortable, he thinks he has to keep me awake to keep him company. It’s a pity that the grandchildren don’t understand the dangers of feeding him stuff he doesn’t need. It flares up his pancreas every time. I’m left rubbing his tummy and keeping him calm, as well as keeping away food until he improves.
It’s around six in the morning before the flicker and lights come back on. Hooray! No more listening to the beeping of the alarm system letting me know it is not working. Guess I could have gone into it and pushed the cancel button, but frankly, I didn’t think of it. A little later, Wes calls to ask what was going on here. He knew when he got the first alert about my alarm that it was no me needing help because of the code. He continued getting the alerts the same as I got the beeps, I reckon. All’s well with the alarm system, but up in the morning, I realized that the heat pump was not cooling and had to check it out. Sure enough it would not come back on and I had to reset everything before it would begin cooling the house once more. Modern Day Conveniences do happen to have their downsides at times.
September 30, 2002 ~ The Way Things Go
Going eighty miles an hour
When all of a sudden
She heard - BOOM!!
That home began a’swaying
She fought the wheel to save it
As it weaved from side to side
Seems a tire had blown
Soon that RV slowed down
Other traffic scurried on
And safely the rig was stopped
Sure ‘nough that tire was gone
Thank goodness it was a tandem
Another wheel beside that one
They were able to drive along
Parked in a rest area there to wait
For some help to come along.
Now the visit with us is becoming iffy as to when they - or she only - will make an appearance. It’s possible that if they get things fixed and ready to ride, they can continue this way tomorrow. However, they most likely will drive straight to Charlotte for the Basenji Show on Wednesday and be here that night. Hopefully, the tire can be replaced, the hose replaced, and the gray tank can be worked on at a later date. It doesn’t have to be used on this trip. They are also hoping to be able to spend the night in the motor home tonight since they have five of their dogs with them. Quest stayed home since she and one of the Basenji’s are a little hard to handle together in close quarters. If repair work on the RV has to be made, it probably will go back home and Cotton will come down on the train for a visit. Hubby will stay home since he only had five days total to be gone.
Other than Cotton’s calls, things have been quiet around here. I’ve spent much of the day sleeping. Guess my bodyguard got a little concerned about me. Around supper time I open my eyed and there he is with his nose nearly touching mine. He barks some and jumps around as if he is telling me to get out of bed. Both he and Oreo would like to go outside, but I don’t feel like keeping an eye on them. They will have to settle for being outside in their own private yard. They can go exploring another day.
Charlie must have gotten himself in some sort of a corner or problem yesterday while outside. He found the back stormier was not completely shut and nosed his way outside. DynoKid was here and had his printable gun out shooting targets, so I failed to check and see where Charlie was. It had been a good while before I thought about him and looked around only to discover that he was still outdoors. He failed to be at the door where he always waits patiently to get back inside. He always comes when the bell at the backdoor is rung. In fact, I’ve added a longer rope to it so the smaller children can ring the bell to call him
The bell tolled for Charlie to come running home. He was nowhere in sight. I rang the bell again by moving the rope from side to side, allowing a solid tone to form before striking the other side. We were about to come back in the house and wait awhile longer when I was a blur way up in the edge of the field. Looking again, it was moving fast. It disappeared behind the apple trees, and soon was in view again. It was Charlie running as fast as his little short legs would carry him. His head was held down in determination and he was running in a straight streak toward the house. That was one dog in a hurry to get through the door. He slid as he came to a halt, once through the doorway. I know not where he came from. I know not what he got into. I do know that he was in a hurry to get himself home. Maybe the Irish Setter found him again and was trying to play some .
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Lenoir,NC 28645
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©2002 by Stormy Jeanne
