Long thoughts on a rainy day

Hectic day here, with nurse, physical therapist, home health care lady, all arriving on each others' heels all mixed up with my cooking breakfast and lunch and serving same, along with the medications scheduled, etc., to HP.

The physical therapist confirmed what I had suspected: that HP is functionally a quadriplegic and unlikely to get more physical ability than now. and the nurse confirmed that the total incontinence is unlikely to reverse, either. So though these convictions are not a surprise to me, it's still a sad realization that these people are quite often right, having a lot of experience with struggles like those of HP. On the good side, we are doing okay with our what people love to call challenges (!) but I fervently can't help wishing we had some different set of challenges!

My skills in home nursing now encompass operating a Hoyer lift on my own, safely, largely out of fear for my back if I didn't get over my intimidation about the Hoyer, using an external catheter and keeping it working just fine, excellent skin care and general purpose good stuff, including keeping both our spirits up. and remembering to enjoy what we can enjoy -- very good cooking, watching the Yankees, getting Sleuth out of the libe, since neither of us had seen this classic. And dealing with a procession of professionals coming and going as long as Medicare holds out for us. Which will only be weeks, so I'm already exploring the longer term and what might be available.

And the weather, sheets of rain along with high winds, just like a hot July day in north Yorkshire, is a bit annoying, too. But I still took my half hour walk, daringly leaving HP at the table doing the crossword puzzles, and finding him perfectly safe when I got back.

Lovely walk, wet underfoot, but listening to Samuel Barber's violin concerto on my walkman, gosh, that composer just takes you apart! such incisive and wonderful composition, even when it is hard to tolerate. But always good to listen and let it flow over you. So took a couple of reflective, pun intended pictures, to show HP on my return. And to show you, too.