Thursday, March 25, 2004
I have been zoned out since yesterday morning...
...so much so that everything I've been doing in the way of nurturing has been automatic. I've been surprised at my ability to give care on a decent day while, technically, being outside of it, but I'm still in need of "alone" time so I've been stealing some from Mom's up time. Mom was up and down and up and then down again yesterday; in all probably more up than down. She did a lot of reading, a lot of TV watching. I was somewhere else, experiencing a completely different world in my head while performing maintenance nurturing by 'finger memory'. She was on her feet a lot yesterday, insisting on, for instance, throwing away her constantly collecting tissues each time they threatened to overwhelm her TV table. Since I was always peripherally aware of what she was doing I kept an eye on her but she seems to be doing fine around here. This bodes well for the outside world. The truth is, I think she encounters more steps and "rough ground" here than anywhere else. I suggested several supply trips yesterday, the need of which is beginning to crowd us, but I couldn't get her interested. So I went on a mini-errand for eggs and half and half (which I hid so she wouldn't drink down this 12 ouncer) and saved the major supply trip for another day, which I'm hoping wil be tomorrow. It should be today but we're both focused in other directions.
The ups and downs led to a very late retirement time for both of us: Early this morning at 0230 and 0245. TCM had a special on Charlie Chaplin and The Great Dictator which culminated with the movie, which we watched. Mom claims not to have seen it. This may or may not be true. For the most part, although my mother has always loved movies, she has mostly been in circumstances where going to the movies was not an easy recreation. She has, for instance, vivid memories of watching Spencer Tracy/Katherine Hepburn movies but not such other classics as Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Glen Miller Story or even All About Eve or The Women. Anyway, I'd never seen The Great Dictator entirely and Mom, as we watched the movie, relented that she "may have seen" it but could only recall parts of it so we watched it. I am more of a Chaplin fan than Mom. Interestingly, he is too sentimental for her and she considers his physical art too akin to slapstick to appreciate, although she loves his music and considers many of his compositions personal classics. She was very animated during the movie. There was no closed captioning but that didn't seem to bother her. As well, she always enlivens when she is up "into the wee hours". She feels she is participating in whatever she normally has thought, since childhood bedtimes, she is missing.
I was so preoccupied yesterday (and, considering my success at being in two dimensions at once, probably will continue so today) that although she got her medication no blood sugars were taken. I also allowed her somewhat less liquids than normal, although she drank in sips all her waking day including through the movie. She hasn't eaten much over the last few days so I've made sure that what she has eaten is rich in both calories and fiber. The Split Pea and Ham soup turned out to be the best in the universe. Even I loved it. The only seasoning was from simmering two hambones for a couple of hours, one a Honeybaked core bone and using the stock and the meat as the base for the split peas, adding sauteed onion, carrots, celery and smashed garlic. I added about 1 1/2 tsp Sweet Basil and a Bay Leaf although, truthfully, I couldn't tell whether they influenced the flavor. Yesterday she ate a lot of orange/date/nut muffins, cheese products, V-8 juice, lots of coffee (I've switched her to a decaf for which I grind the beans; she likes it better and drinks more coffee, thus more liquids). We had a pretty hefty dinner: Cottage cheese, very spicy buffalo wings and yet another orange/date/nut muffin. Oh, and hot and spicy Cheezits. She's been snacking on those a lot. Because of all the refined starch she's been receiving 850 mg metformin in the morning and the evening and cinnamon in the afternoon for the last two days. She has been taking her glipizide but both doses yesterday were compromised by her all day snacking. That was okay. It was good to see her appetite returning.
Although it appears as though she's sleeping in this morning, she's not. Figure, she's not yet been asleep nine hours. As I check on her I tell is she no where near "The Surface" so I don't expect to hear from her until after noon. Which is fine. If we have another late night, that's great. Late nights become us.
As a reminder, it has seemed, off and on in certain diffident light, that she might be anemic again. I've cut her iron by one tablet but I think I'll begin administering that third one again.
Later.
The ups and downs led to a very late retirement time for both of us: Early this morning at 0230 and 0245. TCM had a special on Charlie Chaplin and The Great Dictator which culminated with the movie, which we watched. Mom claims not to have seen it. This may or may not be true. For the most part, although my mother has always loved movies, she has mostly been in circumstances where going to the movies was not an easy recreation. She has, for instance, vivid memories of watching Spencer Tracy/Katherine Hepburn movies but not such other classics as Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Glen Miller Story or even All About Eve or The Women. Anyway, I'd never seen The Great Dictator entirely and Mom, as we watched the movie, relented that she "may have seen" it but could only recall parts of it so we watched it. I am more of a Chaplin fan than Mom. Interestingly, he is too sentimental for her and she considers his physical art too akin to slapstick to appreciate, although she loves his music and considers many of his compositions personal classics. She was very animated during the movie. There was no closed captioning but that didn't seem to bother her. As well, she always enlivens when she is up "into the wee hours". She feels she is participating in whatever she normally has thought, since childhood bedtimes, she is missing.
I was so preoccupied yesterday (and, considering my success at being in two dimensions at once, probably will continue so today) that although she got her medication no blood sugars were taken. I also allowed her somewhat less liquids than normal, although she drank in sips all her waking day including through the movie. She hasn't eaten much over the last few days so I've made sure that what she has eaten is rich in both calories and fiber. The Split Pea and Ham soup turned out to be the best in the universe. Even I loved it. The only seasoning was from simmering two hambones for a couple of hours, one a Honeybaked core bone and using the stock and the meat as the base for the split peas, adding sauteed onion, carrots, celery and smashed garlic. I added about 1 1/2 tsp Sweet Basil and a Bay Leaf although, truthfully, I couldn't tell whether they influenced the flavor. Yesterday she ate a lot of orange/date/nut muffins, cheese products, V-8 juice, lots of coffee (I've switched her to a decaf for which I grind the beans; she likes it better and drinks more coffee, thus more liquids). We had a pretty hefty dinner: Cottage cheese, very spicy buffalo wings and yet another orange/date/nut muffin. Oh, and hot and spicy Cheezits. She's been snacking on those a lot. Because of all the refined starch she's been receiving 850 mg metformin in the morning and the evening and cinnamon in the afternoon for the last two days. She has been taking her glipizide but both doses yesterday were compromised by her all day snacking. That was okay. It was good to see her appetite returning.
Although it appears as though she's sleeping in this morning, she's not. Figure, she's not yet been asleep nine hours. As I check on her I tell is she no where near "The Surface" so I don't expect to hear from her until after noon. Which is fine. If we have another late night, that's great. Late nights become us.
As a reminder, it has seemed, off and on in certain diffident light, that she might be anemic again. I've cut her iron by one tablet but I think I'll begin administering that third one again.
Later.
