With a certain amount of pride at my successes at coping with domestic life, a brief report on the day’s activities so far (it’s now just after noon, and I’ve had lunch). It’s not clear I’ll have time left for a more substantive posting today, so this might be it.
One project: putting in a grocery order (for Instacart to deliver from the closest Safeway), eventually hefting it from my doorstep to my kitchen, on the table of my walker; unpacking it; and putting it away.
Another project: scrubbing my face and ears and neck thoroughly, rinsing the soap away. And then shampooing my hair. All this in the bathroom sink. For someone as disabled as I am, this takes an astonishing amount of time, including the towel drying and the cleanup of the mess the washing-up procedures produce in the bathroom. Deeply exhausting, so I had to rest in a chair for half an hour or so, doing breathing exercises.
But I can do it.
And then, after my hair was thoroughly dried and I was more or less back in the world, the final project: giving myself the monthly buzzcut, with haircutters I bought for the purpose. (Several weeks later than scheduled, but my life has been very difficult.)
Again, this takes much longer and is much more difficult than it would be for an able-bodied person, because my right hand barely works (because of nerve damage) and both my hands shimmer with the pain of osteoarthritis.
But I can do it.
It is done. The result isn’t perfect, but it’s good enough, and I’m pleased with the way it looks.
And that was my morning.
May 2, 2023 at 2:22 pm |
Sure puts my picayune elder problems in perspective. I respect your fortitude. Keep on keeping on, Arnold. You’re a treasure for all of us reading your wisdom through your pain.
May 5, 2023 at 3:46 pm |
What an incredibly nice (and encouraging) thing for you to say.