Hanging On

 

The seven clumps of yellow coneflowers are in full bloom and make my coffee hour in the garden very pleasant these days.

I'm back at my mom's to help get her care in order. She is quickly losing her capacity to prepare meals, tidy up, or deal with the house. The visiting Angels are coming Friday to evaluate her. She will not go to a nursing facility, so in-home care is the option of choice for now. The past week has made clear that three of us sisters are main decision makers and care givers. Two brothers and another sister are pitching in to some extent, and one sister is out of the picture entirely. And she is the one mom longs for. A tad frustrating.

When I was home I managed to take care of my own house - lawn mowing being the biggest job. My lawn mower nearly blew up due to the long grass, but I managed to bring it back to life. My wine buddy Annette heard me scream and stop mowing so she came over to help and we decided to just have a glass of wine and leave the mowing to the next day. Cheers! The mower turned out to be over clogged with grass clippings, so I cleaned it thoroughly and finished the mowing.

I went on a 34 mile bike ride with Ann Marie on a nearly perfect weather day. We stopped for lunch and ice cream so negated any calorie burn from the biking, but the mental health benefits were wonderful. She and another friend went kayaking the next day, but I need to limit my sun exposure and the water just magnifies the rays, so I sat that one out. 

Before I left for Mom's this morning I took a friend to her colonoscopy. I got up at 5 am to get her there by 6:15. She was very entertaining afterwards as we went out to breakfast and she observed the world through a fentanyl haze. I was very tired afterwards and took a 2 hour nap before hitting the highway. I brought my bike to my mom's, but the weather forecast is full of thunderstorms and rain for the next week. I need the stress relief of the physical activity to get me through the next few days, so I also brought the yoga mat to help. I'm learning to deal with the stress and uncertainty in my life and just be as helpful as possible as life unfolds. 


2023 Biking Challenge (1000 miles and 2+ rides per month)

Jan: 1/8 - 18 miles; 1/29 -12 mi

Feb: 2/14/- 14 mi, 2/15 - 16 mi, 2/20 - 21 mi

March: 3/21 - 14 mi, 3/31 - 11.5 mi

April: 4/4 - 20 mi, 4/27 - 15 mi

May: 5/9 - 20 mi, 5/11 - 15.1 mi, 5/14 - 19 mi, 5/21 - 30.1 mi, 5/26 - 7 mi, 5/27 - 8 mi, 5/28 - 20 mi

June: 6/3 - 20.3 mi, 6/6 - 15 mi, 6/8 - 15 mi, 6/9 - 23 mi, 6/14 - 15 mi, 6/15 - 21 mi, 6/16 - 10 mi, 

6/22 - 10 mi

July: 7/8 - 30.25 mi,  7/17 - 11 mi, 7/20 - 20.25 mi, 7/22 - 30 mi, 7/26 - 18.1 mo, 7/28 - 10 mi

August: 8/2 - 16.5 mi, 8/5 - 33.8 mi

Total Distance: 560.9 miles

Comments

  1. MargaretAugust 9, 2023 at 12:46 PM

    That's where my mom was a few months ago but is now doing temporarily better. That time will come for us though and I only have one (working) brother to help. You're fortunate in all your siblings. Is the one estranged from the family? That hurts. I was planning to mow the back lawn today but it's been raining so my mower would get too clogged. Fentanyl! They still use that? I had it for my first colonoscopy 16 years ago and it made me horribly ill. Now my office uses propofol. It is good stuff. :)

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