Escape from reality

I seem to be defying Murphy’s Law; over the past few weeks, my car, vacuum cleaner, washing machine and television sort of blew and had to be fixed or replaced. Then there were some minor inconveniences, like lamps shedding their light on an intermittent basis, appliances that simply needed new batteries, although I jumped to conclusions…nothing serious but annoying (in an exaggerated way) because it was just one thing after another and my life is so different now. I will have to pay attention to all sorts of ‘home’ details that I never gave a second thought to beforehand. I was dependent on a handyman extraordinaire, but Gilly is no longer able to even express the wealth of information that is trapped inside of him. Today, the sound coming from my furnace was more than just worrisome. Luckily, Daniel drove in with Uncle Butch from Ottawa this morning, and he specializes in heating systems. He was able to diagnose the problem in an instant, and managed to have the repair person show up with detailed information in his pocket so as to solve the problem without delay.

Gilly slept soundly from early last evening to about 1:00 this afternoon. Raquel and I jostled him about for awhile to awaken him so he would take his meds with food, and of course to allow him the chance to enjoy the company who came from afar to see him. He took pleasure in the visit (listened intently to Uncle Butch’s stories) and enjoyed the food. Cathy’s dark chocolate covered meesh meesheem (apricots) were a hit.

Daniel came by and joined the party (Raquel had already made herself at home in a warm, friendly yet respectful way, joining us at the table and helping to serve and clean up). I mentioned how difficult it is to turn Gilly from side to side, especially to the side he doesn’t like to sleep on. This is essential, so that he doesn’t develop bed sores, but back breaking when I have to do it alone. Daniel asked if my son would lie down so tat he could demonstrate, but Yaron was having breakfast (yes, at 2:00!). I turned to my nephew Noam and requested his services. He is quite an actor (and I mean this as a genuine compliment) and took his part seriously. He was able to simply lie there as dead weight. For a 13 year old, he’s extremely tall, so the feat was much more challenging thatn if it were to be Gilly laying there. Daniel demonstrated and then had me try his techniques. Presto! Noam rolled over with ease. I’ll have to try it tonight when it’s the real deal, but I suspect I learned some valuable tricks of the trade today.

Daniel mentioned to me that Josee-Marie would like to send a preposee to remain with Gilly one full night a week to allow me to sleep without the need to get up and turn Gilly. She found me to be too exhausted yesterday and is worried about my health. I found her offer to be sweet and kind, and I accepted gratefully. This ought to start next week; I seem to remember something about the 8th of January, but I’ll have more details on Monday when I see her.

Gilly had his shower and returned to his guests, having fallen fast asleep. We sat and talked the afternoon away next to him in the living room.

Tomorrow it is Cathy’s turn to look in on Gilly (the CLSC nurse), and Isabelle will replace Daniel because he has a five day New Year’s holiday. Raquel is scheduled to be here too, so I may step out in broad daylight for a walk with Randee. Here’s hoping it will pan out.

Yaron and Aaron just dropped by to free me up for a movie. Joey, Susie and Noam will be my dates. I know it seems as if I’m seeing many movies; well, there’s nothing like some good, wholesome escape from reality.