August 2024 Island Trip – Day 2

The rain kept me from getting going on the house this morning. That’s OK… There are eight more days in which to at least prime the raw wood.

I try to shampoo the carpets in the trailer at least once a year. It’s been two years. I did that after dealing with the great chicken juice debacle of 2024. I know you are asking ‘what is the great chicken juice debacle of 2024?’ 🤣 This is what happens when you put a Costco pack of boneless skinless chicken thighs in your refrigerator to thaw on a middle shelf and the package has a leak. The rest you know… What I learned is to always put said package in a bowl.🙄

I made a dump/recycle run next, and then went to town to find some clever packing material to send a card to friends who are celebrating their 50th anniversary. The card I bought them has instructions that I did not see until I got home. It says to ‘hand-deliver only’… Because we’re unable to attend the party, I have to mail the card. I think my solution will get the card there without it being broken. Because I was in town anyways I went on a stroll, and of course, popped into the bookstore where I picked up ‘Lessons in Chemistry.’ I called Tim and asked him if he was coming to town for his usual late morning coffee.

After we had our coffee/tea he asked if I wanted to join him and his friend for lunch. I thought, why not? I think Tim wanted me to come along to dilute the interaction. Al is a Trumper and likes to hear his own voice. We picked Al up as he doesn’t drive due to diminishing eyesight. I figured out pretty quickly how to distract him from otherwise grating conversation. Caring for people with dementia hones that skill for you. Tim did confess to having a hard time socializing with Al, and yet feeling compelled to to keep him from becoming isolated due to the eye site disability. Tim is a better person than me.

After lunch, Tim drove me up to the truck and asked if I wanted to join him at the yacht club for dinner!  Again, I thought, why not? It was a really enjoyable time! I got to meet Tim’s friend Charles, who is just as wonderful as Tim has been claiming for sometime. There was an engaging group of people who knew how to hold spirited, intelligent, and funny conversation. Dinner was delicious. Everything was a delight until Tim got up, as we were leaving, could not maintain his balance, and fell to the floor. The only thing that was wounded was his pride. Staff helped him to a chair. He sat for about seven minutes, and then we tried to walk toward the exit. That didn’t go so great, and as we were about to the exit, there was his friend Charles sitting by the gas fireplace, who I quietly asked, ‘Can you help me?’ The car, you see, was up a flight up of exterior stairs. By this point, Tim was pretty wonky on his feet again, and the club manager suggested that we sit down with Charles. Tim turned to me and asked, ‘Would you like to do that,? and of course, I said, ‘Oh absolutely!’ After another 20 or 30 minutes, and a glass of water, Tim was better. I don’t mean better-better, but improve. Charles walked with us up to the car, helped Tim into the passenger seat, and I drove us back to his house. I tucked Tim’s doggy bag into his fridge, asked him if he wanted: anything from the fridge, me to turn the light on, had his remote, etc, etc. He assured me everything was fine, and he was going to watch television. I gave him a hug and took my leave.

Tim is blaming the fall on his increasingly incapacitated legs (a true thing), and two glasses of wine (tho he showed zero signs of being mentally affected by the wine, as we age, alcohol has a more profound effect on our physiology). I think the thing that stressed me out the most about this situation, other than Tim’s overall well being, is that after leaving the yacht club, I knew that if Tim fell after I got him back home, I would not be able to get him up off the floor, and therefore would’ve had to call 911. Tim is not a big guy, but I do not have the physical mechanical training to pick somebody up once they’re down. If they weigh, say, less than 50 pounds, not a problem. I can pick that kid up. The one time I tried to help my mom up off a chair in a waiting room, when she couldn’t do it herself, she wasn’t able to take my cues. I didn’t catch on in time, and I’m the one who got injured (this is someone who I used to do swing dance moves with in the kitchen). I know better than to do that again, meaning try to move another person when they can’t move themselves. Seeing Tim like this was really, really distressing. I’ll call him in the morning. I’m struggling with whether to call his son on the mainland, but not tonight. Tim’s son knows what his dad‘s medical situation is… The growing physical limitations. I have to think on that one. Sometimes those answers come to you in the morning. 

Meanwhile, the latest precipitation forecast for our region is going to keep me from painting for a while. A professor of atmospheric sciences at our local state university posted what’s next for our unusual August… The weather ‘model’ map he posted shows 1.75” – 2.5” of rain in the Islands over the next couple of days, much of it tonight. I love the sound of the rain on Stella’s roof.