My dad ... and his roommate ...

My sister-in-law, Susan, asked my dad if the movie cameras had arrived yet to document his story. He assured her that his name was not on the marquee yet!! But, I think he could write a book on the last week or so ....

He got a new roommate recently. He had known the man before -- his wife is in another part of the nursing home and I'm not really sure why he needed the extra care. I'm sure both Rachel and Joel could give you the low down and the high up and whatever else is inbetween. It has been a real saga and one they would rather not repeat.

This roommate seems to have dementia and signs of being bi-polar. One night, he stood at my dad's bed pulling off my dad's blanket and demanding that my dad get out of his house. His language has been horrible and while Tim and I don't live nearby, he and Susan heard the language and rauccus the man had raised when they were talking to my dad on the phone.

It seemed that things were not going to change -- in fact, a new social worker there at the nursing home alluded to the fact that perhaps my dad was just a 'complainer' and therefore should basically 'get over it' and 'live with it'!! While my dad at 81 does have his comfort zone and does have problems when he has to get out of that, this was stretching it at best. There were numbers of calls to both Rachel and Joel and I think they spent much of their time over the past couple weeks trying to figure out a solution. The rest of us owe them both a huge debt of gratitude and one that we will never be able to fully repay!!

Evidently last night was the worst -- the guy yelled almost all night -- I think it stopped about 4am. If anyone knows my brother, Joel, you will know he is one of those who doesn't get too ruffled by anything. Solid -- dependable -- unchangeable -- but when he has had enough, he has had just that ... enough. So, he headed right into the nursing home today and asked, "When is something going to be done about this?" I guess they had finally figured out that it wasn't my dad's complaining (the family had even come in to thank my dad for being as kind as he had been to this man) and that they planned to move him today. My dad had to go in for his monthly gamma globulin treatment today -- when he returned, his room was minus a roommate. He was ecstatic -- and then he was extremely tired -- the lack of sleep had really caught up with him so I think I will call him tomorrow! Hopefully he will have a non-eventful night !!

Pretty amazing to think what you put up with (or experience) at this stage of your life! Oh, well!!