The house is quiet. I can hear the air-conditioning running. A faint murmur of Jordie and his friends from the Community Justice and Mediation Center committee, talking downstairs.
And I can hear my mom, breathing a bit noisily, sleeping on the living room couch.
She had been in the hospital for a week. They diagnosed microscopic colitis. With an IV, she had begun to look and feel much better. They put her on medication which costs $400/month, but it has been helping with the terrible diarrhea, which is a symptom of that disease.
At the hospital, before she was released Friday, we all had the impression that an Americare nurse would be with her at home all day Saturday. Wrong.
The Americare nurse called at 3 p.m. Saturday. My mom was so upset that she told her not to come that day.
The nurse came this morning, several hours after Mom had been found in the lobby, not totally dressed. And upset and confused. We think that must have been the influence of the sleeping medication she had been given.
She had been without her medication for a full 24 hours, which was enough to start the horrible diarrhea again. And thanks to that very heavy-duty sleeping pill (we think) she fell so hard in the bathroom that she broke the toilet. It wouldn't work. So in desperation, she went down to the lobby to be close to a bathroom.
So, the nurse was helpful this morning, telling us about the medications, etc. And it was a big misunderstanding, I guess, that we thought she would have someone with her in the morning yesterday.
We brought her home with us. She thinks she is going home on Tuesday when we pick up Abby from the airport. But, Jordie says she should stay till her gastrointestinal thing is all better, and I agree. And if this should turn out to be for a longer time, or for good, we are ready for that possibility.
Now that she is at our house, Mom is perfectly coherent and it's good to have her there where we can help her out while she is ill.
Oh, and the Honda minivan chose to overheat just after we left Mom's. So, we left it at her house and brought her car.
And, I'm afraid to turn on the news to even see what has been happening in Israel right now. My heart is full of fear for our family and friends there.
I am sick about what is happening, and I don't have any answers about what is right or wrong. But I'm just worried.
Now, I must go finish cleaning up some stuff out of our bedroom, where Mom is going to sleep. I want to take a nap myself before I go to Vicki's tonight -- there is a prayer service at her house tonight, before she has her mastectomy tomorrow.
I could take a few boring days after this.
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Friday, July 14, 2006
Mellow Shabbat, in spite of everything
Just had a wonderful evening, hanging out with my husband...
In spite of the past week just being one heck of a challenge (Carol, my office-mate, is on vacation; my mom has been in the hospital in southern Indy all week with what turns out to be microscopic colitis and I have been worried and have gone up there most days this week; busy with thinking about Beth Shalom stuff, too; car got fixed; washing machine broken; my foot hurts -- although less than it has; and terribly, terribly worried about what is happening in Israel; and over everything, worrying about my buddy Vicki, who has to have a mastectomy on Monday):
So, Rod was as helpful as he ever could be, volunteering to do the Sunday editorial page and I got out of work by 6 or so...normal for a Friday. So, I met up with Jordie and we went downtown, hoping to start the evening by looking at a peace art exhibit in the Showers Building. However, Showers was all locked up. We proceeded over to the Square, to see Jeremy Bazur's art show at the Wandering Turtle Gallery -- the show and the whole gallery were wonderful! We walked over to Roots, a vegetarian restaurant and had dinner...then over to South Washington Street to listen to a few minutes of music in the park and then to Jen Molica's art show at Boxcar Books. I want to commission her to do a piece for the Miriam collection, but not until the fall, when I can afford it. Catching up on bills this summer!
Now, Jordie is out giving Sadie a walk and I am going to bed soon! Roger Kugler is coming over in the morning to talk about the future fireplace mantle and surround, and I am so excited! He is going to loan me his "tile box" with a tile cutter and a book on how to do it, so we can do the tile for the fireplace in the living room. YAY!
Oh, but first....
This is the red-brick-with-white-frame-(but no mantle!)-fireplace in our living room. In front, on the hearth, you can see the blueish-greenish stone tiles that are going to be on the fireplace! And it will have a light wood mantle and surround. Bellissimo!
Amalia sent me this photo last Sunday when Abby had just arrived in Los Angeles, and they had gone to a movie together...along with leaving me a message that she was feeding our little girl from the three major food groups: Milk Dud, popcorn and nachos!
And the girls sent me this photo while they were trying on sunglasses!
This is a house I had been hunting for. Even last time when Sandy was here, she and I drove around looking. One summer, I was walking down West 14th Street, and I saw a guy named Odie, who I knew. He mentioned that he and his wife Beth needed to find a full-time babysitter for their new baby, Morgan, because Beth wanted to be able to work (she was a chef). So, I ended up babysitting that whole summer for Morgan, a sweet baby boy. I kind of wanted to find out if I could deal with little kids, since I had never really taken care of any. SO, Sandy used to come over there, as she was friends with them, also. And it was frustrating that we could not locate that house where I spent happy summer days with that sweet baby. After all, I was out of college already -- I should be able to remember. So, it was a relief to finally drive by that house and say "That's it!" I emailed the photo to Sandy with a note: "Found it." And I know she will understand!
In spite of the past week just being one heck of a challenge (Carol, my office-mate, is on vacation; my mom has been in the hospital in southern Indy all week with what turns out to be microscopic colitis and I have been worried and have gone up there most days this week; busy with thinking about Beth Shalom stuff, too; car got fixed; washing machine broken; my foot hurts -- although less than it has; and terribly, terribly worried about what is happening in Israel; and over everything, worrying about my buddy Vicki, who has to have a mastectomy on Monday):
So, Rod was as helpful as he ever could be, volunteering to do the Sunday editorial page and I got out of work by 6 or so...normal for a Friday. So, I met up with Jordie and we went downtown, hoping to start the evening by looking at a peace art exhibit in the Showers Building. However, Showers was all locked up. We proceeded over to the Square, to see Jeremy Bazur's art show at the Wandering Turtle Gallery -- the show and the whole gallery were wonderful! We walked over to Roots, a vegetarian restaurant and had dinner...then over to South Washington Street to listen to a few minutes of music in the park and then to Jen Molica's art show at Boxcar Books. I want to commission her to do a piece for the Miriam collection, but not until the fall, when I can afford it. Catching up on bills this summer!
Now, Jordie is out giving Sadie a walk and I am going to bed soon! Roger Kugler is coming over in the morning to talk about the future fireplace mantle and surround, and I am so excited! He is going to loan me his "tile box" with a tile cutter and a book on how to do it, so we can do the tile for the fireplace in the living room. YAY!
Oh, but first....
This is the red-brick-with-white-frame-(but no mantle!)-fireplace in our living room. In front, on the hearth, you can see the blueish-greenish stone tiles that are going to be on the fireplace! And it will have a light wood mantle and surround. Bellissimo!
Amalia sent me this photo last Sunday when Abby had just arrived in Los Angeles, and they had gone to a movie together...along with leaving me a message that she was feeding our little girl from the three major food groups: Milk Dud, popcorn and nachos!
And the girls sent me this photo while they were trying on sunglasses!
This is a house I had been hunting for. Even last time when Sandy was here, she and I drove around looking. One summer, I was walking down West 14th Street, and I saw a guy named Odie, who I knew. He mentioned that he and his wife Beth needed to find a full-time babysitter for their new baby, Morgan, because Beth wanted to be able to work (she was a chef). So, I ended up babysitting that whole summer for Morgan, a sweet baby boy. I kind of wanted to find out if I could deal with little kids, since I had never really taken care of any. SO, Sandy used to come over there, as she was friends with them, also. And it was frustrating that we could not locate that house where I spent happy summer days with that sweet baby. After all, I was out of college already -- I should be able to remember. So, it was a relief to finally drive by that house and say "That's it!" I emailed the photo to Sandy with a note: "Found it." And I know she will understand!
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