Life After Windbird, Day 17: A First for Me
Date: Monday, August 29, 2016
Weather: Sunny and Hot, High Temp 89 degrees F
Location: At Home in The Studio #8, Falmouth, MA
Today was a work day around this apartment and one of the things I did was assemble two IKEA bookcases all by myself. That was a first for me. I have watched Mark put together many IKEA pieces for Heather and Jed, most of those when Sam was barely old enough to hold a screwdriver and help. But watching and doing are two very different things. I also had to haul the boxes from the car to the apartment by myself which was no easy feat, but Mark is just not able to lift anything heavy. But he is great coach, giving me tips on the best way to do these things. And believe me, I need a coach. When I was putting the first bookcase together, Mark had to stop me numerous times because my interpretation of the directions was not correct. I know it is harder for him to sit and watch me do these things than it is for me to do them. He has always been the builder and the Mr. Fix-it in this family and I know he would love nothing more than to be able to just do the things himself. But hopefully he doesn’t underrate the need of a good coach.
Another accomplishment today was getting the huge, heavy box with the new toilet in it from the car to the apartment. We were going to wait until Heather and Jed get home to help carry it in, but Mark called the maintenance guy here this morning and he said he would be able to install the toilet tomorrow. So I started figuring out how I could move the box. Actually getting the box out of the car, onto the hand cart, and pulled to the deck was fairly easy. But then I had to open the box and take out the water tank before attempting to carry the box up the four steps to the deck. Removing that one piece made the box light enough for me to handle. So that was another success.
Another job was to take out all the apartment window screens and wash them and the window sills. That’s a job I know how to do but wish I didn’t! I started the job the first day we were in the apartment, but after that day, I’ve never had the time to finish. So today was the day. The Goldstones will return home tomorrow night, or maybe Wednesday morning, but in either case, tomorrow will be my last chance to finish up some of these little work jobs around here before my sister and brother-in-law arrive on Saturday and then Justin and Jo, Ziggy and Coco arrive the following Friday. The next two weeks will be totally dedicated to just having fun with family, so I’ll finish getting ready tomorrow and then have three days of Camp Oma before my sister arrives. I sure hope the Goldpebbles come home from Maine wanting to go to the beach. I have missed the boys and our beach days.
Today was another struggle for Mark. We tried adjusting his pain meds so he was taking less, but that experiment did not work. So he back on the schedule prescribed by his new primary care and we are just going to have to deal with the resulting weakness and unsteadiness on his feet. That alternative is extreme pain, so that’s not an option. The edema in his legs and feet is much better today. Riding in the car yesterday was a disaster because his feet were not elevated. So hopefully now that he is back on the prescribed pain med schedule and can sit in his comfy recliner, he’ll get back on an even keel. When I am not here, he is restricting his walking to the deck, but thankfully it is big enough that doing a few rounds in between resting in the recliner seems to be just the right amount of exercise for now. He didn’t feel like going for a longer walk today, but hopefully we will get back to that soon.
A note to my sister if she is reading this. The hot weather we have had is about to end for a few days. By the time my sister arrives on Saturday the daytime temps will be back down into the 70’s and it will dip into the 50’s at night. That’s perfect Cape weather but it is going to feel downright cold after being hot for so long. Anyway, the message for Patsy and Joe is to pack accordingly.
