There are many blessings in my life. Being able to walk on the ceiling is not one of them but the others are doing their best to compensate.
Undoubtedly the greatest and most constant is my wife, Mary. Basically my day consists of lying here and asking for things. The staff at The Laurels will do a lot but Mary is the one who will go searching for the obscure item I need from home and then try to make it work for me, all while satisfying her own church and family commitments. She has been adapting her life to mine for a long time. I don’t think I have appreciated it enough.
Today she brought in my truck. (not her favorite vehicle.) The therapist thought I would be able to climb into and out of it more easily than the Prius. Operative word there is climb, which I could not do. Thursday we shall try the Prius. (Edit: We tried it today and I can get into the back seat fairly easily. Getting out is more of a problem but we can work that out.)
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Then there are friends. I honestly haven’t realized how many there are and how willing to help they are. Everyone has offered whatever help they have but several are in home construction and repair and they have stepped forward with a will. There is a ramp in progress to get me in the front door and a bathtub/shower has been removed in preparation for a walk-in shower.
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And then, of course, there are machines. I understand the Japanese are developing robots to serve as babysitters. We haven’t gotten that far but there are a number of motorized assistive devices. In my case, we have ‘the chair’.
I haven’t had the chance to try it yet but am looking forward to it soon. It is intended to receive me from or launch me into my walker without other assistance. That will produce quite a lot of freedom on my part.
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In a more retro mode, does anyone recognize one of these?
My dad always had one of these in the car. Now I sweat like a pig under the best of conditions. For several days here I was just lying in salt water soaked bedding and t-shirt. I asked Mary to get me one from an auto store. No such luck. No one carries them. She finally ordered one from Amazon and, viola’, much improvement.
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One of these has also proven essential.
Only $2 from Harbor Freight, in a world where helpless is defined as ‘something you need is 2 inches farther away than you can reach’, this thing has been a lifesaver. I managed to break it, trying to lift too much, but I had a spare.
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And finally, but certainly not least, pocketses. I suppose most people don’t need to have access to as much stuff as I do but it is REALLY important to me. Eyeglasses, pens, tools, mints, chocolate, etc. If you leave them lying on the bed, they get knocked on the floor. If you put them into a drawer, you can’t get to the drawer to open it. And it doesn’t seem reasonable to keep pushing the nurse call button for minor stuff. This is a carpenter’s apron from Tractor Supply. Works really well.
Tied onto the bedrail with ductape (also an essential).