It’s been a very busy and stressful week, and it’s not getting better any time real soon. Mom had several recurrences of her leak. We thought we finally fixed the issue, but the leak came back yesterday. Because it started on the weekend, nothing will happen until tomorrow. Mom is understandably upset. In the mean time, Danita spent a lot of time at Riderwood preparing for Bud’s move. Ed and Lynne helped out a couple of days, and I helped out another. Bud got moved Saturday as planned. The move went well physically, but Bud is confused and upset. I could tell more detailed stories, but it’s the emotional issues that are hardest. By dinner time, we are generally both exhausted.

Danita and I took today off. We went to Church, had a nice breakfast, and spent the day resting. Danita will be back at Riderwood tomorrow, sorting through stuff. Tuesday is a family meeting at Riderwood to discuss what to do with the stuff that wasn’t moved. I’ll be staying close to a phone so I can talk with service people.

I had a humorous happening this week. I went to the audiologist to get fitted for my hearing aids. I was driving home, playing with the GPS, and noticing all the different sounds I was hearing with my hearing aids, when my phone rang. I was in our fancy new car with all its fancy features. I could answer the phone simply by pushing a button on the screen, which I did. The call was routed through the car’s sound system. It was Stew, the guy from the condo association. I wanted his advice on what the building’s responsibilities are. Unfortunately, the car continued to play the GPS instructions while I was on the phone. I couldn’t see how to turn the navigation off. So Stew and I talked, listening to the nav system tell me which way to turn, while I tried find the kill button for the nav, and also think through the implications of what Stew was telling me. And drive the car without hitting anybody. It was quite the technology tangle. It turns out there’s a big circle on the nav screen with an “x” in it. I don’t know why I didn’t see it.

I hope this finds everybody doing well.

I visited Mom in West Palm Beach this week. We ate at restaurants and took care of “stuff”. Our biggest success was selling Mom’s car. Mom hasn’t driven since her accident. She desperately wanted to get rid of the car. This is a 2008 Honda Fit with 35,000 miles, a wrinkled quarter panel, and a wrap-around bumper that was flapping in the breeze. She was going to sell it to Carvana for $3K. She had a higher quote from CarMax, but CarMax is half an hour away. She definitely wasn’t going to drive to CarMax. The Carvana sale came to a halt when they wanted her to Email a picture of her odometer. She doesn’t even have a camera. While in WPB, I got a new quote from CarMax for $5300. I assumed that was an error, but we took the quote to CarMax. They offered us — $5300, flapping bumper and all. We were quite pleasantly surprised.

The other person in the accident is suing Mom. Mom was served a week or so ago. We’ve exchanged forms and information with the lawyer. The lawyer called while I was in WPB. She was very reassuring. She said that Mom was not at fault. She thinks it will take a year for the suit to be settled, due to pandemic delays and backlogs.

Our biggest disappointment was the air conditioner. The AC had condensation water leaking on the floor. Mom had several service people visit without fixing anything. We had a service person visit while I was there. It seemed to be successful. There was no water on the floor for the last 2 days of my visit. Unfortunately, the water returned after I left. This time the service person found a lot of water behind a wall with mold. So Mom is going to have to go through a semi-major repair.

On the home front, Danita, Ed, and Bud looked at two apartments in assisted living. They selected one with more closets and Danita signed the papers. Bud will move on April 24. Assisted living apartments are much smaller. Only a few of Bud’s items will be moved. We’ll be spending time at Riderwood selecting what will be moved and getting it ready. Riderwood generously allows us 60 days to empty the old apartment of all personal items. We’ll continue to be busy after Bud’s move.

I hope this finds everybody doing well.

I had a colonoscopy Wednesday morning, which isn’t exactly great fun. (At least not for me.) But we more than compensated by enjoying a Bob Evans breakfast immediately afterwards. We actually went into the restaurant, sat a table, and had our food served to us. It was such great fun that Thursday we went to Outback Steak House for dinner. Today we had our second visit to Church in over a year followed by a very nice restaurant dinner at First Watch. We had forgotten how nice it is.

I needed new shoes and a few shirts for the summer. I actually went to a store, but didn’t see anything I liked. I couldn’t face up to going to multiple stores to find they didn’t have what I want in stock. I ended up ordering clothes online. Everything has been delivered. I like everything I ordered. Everything fit well. It turns out I didn’t have to wait for Covid to get my clothes.

I also visited an audiologist this week. I learned they can help me with my hearing. After several days of mulling, I contacted them with my hearing aid selection. This is a case where waiting for Covid was helpful. I select a hearing aid that was introduced just 4 months ago. I’m not sure when I will be fitted, but it won’t be before Monday the 19th because this week I’m flying to WPB to spend a few days with Mom. We have a long list of thigs to do, but I’m thinking we might find time for a couple of restaurant meals.

Danita is not joining me in WPB this year because Bud needs more support. Riderwood finally came out and said Bud is no longer safe in independent living and has to get more support. They had their professionals do an assessment last week. It’s an impressive array — PT, OT, speech therapy, and social workers. Danita expects to hear what level of care they recommend for Bud as early as today. For now, the only thing we know is that Bud will be moving to a new apartment. In the mean time, some of Bud’s furniture needs to be replaced. The couch is way too low for him. He needs a lift chair. He can’t take his electric cart. There are lots of decisions to make. Fortunately, the family agrees with what we know so far. Danita spent quite a bit if time looking at furniture.

As you can see there’s lots of activity in our house. It’s quite a change from our pre-immunity year. I hope this finds everybody doing well.

We had a small, quiet Easter dinner at Bud’s today. End and Lynne joined us. We had ham, green beans, potato salad, and a chocolate covered pound cake that looked like a very large egg. It was a nice time.

I had a strange thing happen to my old bike recently. The gear shift cable separated from the shifter. I was forced into high gear. I was a couple of miles from home with no hills, so it was no trouble getting home. The cable itself looked great. I guess every 17,000 miles I should replace all the cables.

Now that we have full immunity to Covid, this week will be doctor week for me. I also want to get a real haircut and buy some clothes. I usually buy Rockport shoes, but I found all the Rockport stores are permanently closed. I’m trying an Amazon alternative. We’ll see how that goes. I can always send them back.

I hope everybody had a great Easter and is doing well.