Just a Few Days Late!

Another hot day here. Since I wrote my last post, the air conditioner in my vehicle is on the fritz. It happened on Thursday morning when I was going over to a retirement community to check things out. As soon as I started my vehicle, there was no air. I'm taking it in on Wednesday to have it looked at. I sure hope it won't cost a lot to fix it! It doesn't affect my driving but it sure makes the vehicle hot! The vents blow hot air when the A/C is turned on. The fact is if I have the climate control on at all, the vents blow hot air. So I have been driving with the windows open and the climate control off. Very windy and noisy and it only reduces the temperature in the vehicle a modicum.

The visit to Mallard Point went well. Met the rep and had lunch first. It was a good meal. I had baked shrimp with steamed cauliflower and a baked potato. Milk and water and coffee to drink. It was finished off was cherry crisp. Overall, a very good meal. After that, the rep and I went to look at a single bedroom apartment they had available. It was very roomy in both the living room/kitchen and the bedroom. The bathroom was bigger than the one in my house with plenty of features to help the elderly. The bathtub/shower had an area cut out of the side of the tub to make it much easier to get in. There were handrails in both the tub and the rest of the bathroom. The only thing I didn't like was that there was a large (to me) gap between the toilet and the sink cabinet. I depend on being able to use the cabinet top to help me get up from the stool. I would have liked to have seen a handrail attached to the cabinet to help me overcome the distance between the stool and the cabinet. That's my perception, I may be wrong. There's no stove in the kitchenette for safety reasons, but there is room for a cart and microwave between the sink and door. The refrigerator is a dorm sized one, but you will probably only keep drinks and snacks in it. It does have a freezer section in the fridge so you could keep some TV dinners or ice cream in it.

I have to make a special note here that this was a first-floor room with a patio and close to a parking lot. There are rooms upstairs as well, and at least some of them have balconies. I didn't look at the outside of the building much so I don't know if all of them had balconies. There are also cottages on the ground that are available to use. They do have a visitors room available for when friends or family come to visit. There is a cost of $74 per night, but they do have roll-a-way beds available for free. This apartment has plenty of room for at least two of them. Towels and bedding are also available.

You're probably wondering about the cost. There is a $2600 deposit and the room is $2000 a month. You may think that this is a high cost, but there are some things you need to consider. First: this cost includes the room, all meals, and utilities. Cable service is provided, consisting of more than 130 channels. The Internet is wireless and provided in common areas of the facility. It may reach your room, but if you want a good connection in your room you have to pay for it yourself. There nurses and aides available, if you need them, however, there is an additional cost for that service.

In summation, the people there are friendly, the meals are good, and there are plenty of group activities to participate in. There is also laundry equipment for your free use. All in all, this is a great place to live. As soon as I can get my house cleaned out and sold, I would like to move in there. There is a waiting list, so I intend to put my name on it in the next few days.

WTF is Happening

I'm back, again!

WTF is Happening?

Let me put it this way! I've been under a lot of pressure since my wife died, the pressure to meet a lot of other peoples expectations. I can't live up to their expectations, and it has caused a lot of pressure on me, and I can't take it anymore. I'm at the point I can't do anything! I almost had a breakdown yesterday. I normally go to bed at 9 or 10 at night, but I was up to 3 this morning trying to handle what was going on.

With the help of some self-therapy, and some Youtube videos I was able to get things under control. I had to make some hard decisions, culminating in the decision to break ties with one person who is especially putting pressure on me. I also decided to turn a deaf ear to those who are being bossy,  I still need to get done those things they are bullying me about, but I'll do it on my schedule, not theirs!

So basically, I'm breaking the chains of control they've laid on me. I know what I have to do, and I appreciate any physical help they can offer, but I have to be in control. I'm making up lists of what to do when to do it, and what I expect the results to be. There's a lot of things I need physical help with. I'm handicapped, can't walk very well, and have limited strength in my right arm. I've also purchased some aids to help me move heavy things. I'm getting rid of most of my personal property, household goods, and clothing my wife had.

Our Salvation Army Family Store recently closed, but I'm going to see what St. Vincent de Paul can use. They will sometimes come and pick-up items to be donated if there's a quantity of them. I also will be checking with local churches to see if there's anything they want. Goodwill is my last option because I'd have to get my items there because they don't pick-up. And a couple of more places I just thought of: the battered women's shelter and the Salvation Army. I'll call them and see if they are interested in any clothing.

Time to close. I'll post again on Wednesday.