AN INTRODUCTION
Just wanted to introduce my new on again/off again friend named Hugo. He goes on walks with me and take me out to eat (going to the dining room), all that sort of thing. But he is not pushy, even though I do push him around a lot, he is more always there when I need him.
Now, a bit more on the growing saga of Jon as he ages. I discovered this a.m. as I stood naked in the shower that I have a need for a couple of grab bars. When your balance is all messed up and you are trying to wash your hair and closing your eyes to keep the soap out of them the effects of gravity seem to just get all out of order. I finally realized that I needed to balance against the wall with one hand while shampooig with the other. Thus, the need for additional grab bars. There is one to assist in getting in and out of the shower but it is outside of the shower itself.
Of course there is the option of hiring an aid to assist me with showering and dressing (I don't really need that right now) but unless I could pick the aid I am not interested. And, if I could pick the aid I could end up in court for sexual harrassment. There is that. Maybe another fantasy to indulge myself in.
We live and we learn.
I have a friend who actually has a Hugo. He actually had two strokes in his early 40s, and he's still not good with his balance. And he being a self-conscious person despises the thing. Anytime we go out for happy hour now we're sitting at the bar, he makes the bar manager put it all the way in the back so no one can see it.lmao!!!! Meanwhile if it's a personal assistant you need, I won't worry if you grab my goods I won't sue!!!!! Grab away dear!!!!!
ReplyDeleteToo bad we are so far apart. My reach only goes so far. But if you were to help me shower and dress you would most deffinetly be grabbed.
DeleteMy FIL has a Hugo he refuses to use. Consequently he falls. Sat. was yet another trip to the hospital.... Grab bars in the shower or perhaps a seat - which is what I had put in when we redid the shower.
ReplyDeleteNewver realized how handy they are until I needed them.
DeleteThe grab bars in the shower are a necessity as we age for exactly the reasons you said.
ReplyDeleteI think I'd rather a grab bar than a grab stranger,.
Oh, but the caregiver that got naked and got in the shower with you could catch you when you grab them and hold you close to keep you from falling. A much nicer fantasy. And, he would not be a stranger after the first grab.
DeleteOh, they should have installed those bars in the shower ages ago? I think most facilities/apartments need to fulfill some kind of compliance in most bathrooms. They should do yours without difficulty.
ReplyDeleteAnd like you, I'd have to pick the aid who is going to help me shampoo. Duh.
As for Hugo? It's super handy when you go to theater or movies. People open up like the Red Sea. I know someone who has one and she's a boss with it: gently but surely she kicks the young ones out of her way to get to the head of the line/bar/whatever it is she's doing. She tells me age DOES have to have benefits.
XOXO
Had not thought about taking Hugo out of the building. Afraid he might find the city life too exciting and leave me in the lurch.
DeleteHahahaha
DeleteAnd did I tell you I love the name Hugo? It reminds me of a man me and my friends had a crush on when we were in high school...
XOXO
Back off my friend. This Hugo is mine and mine alone. We are the perfect couple.
DeleteI'll go this way and Hugo that way....
ReplyDeleteI think it is better to have and use whatever tools you need so that you can participate more fully in the activities that add richness to your life experience. How are you going to meet a cuddle buddy isolated in your room? (Send the hunky occupational therapist, I have a few tools that n÷d to be adjusted). I'm also of the opinion that anything that you can do that keeps you out of the medical industrial complex is an effort well spent
I used to tease a friend of mine that with all the tools and assistance devices that she had, she simply could not be in a hurry any more - she had to take each step in the process in order. As a result of this she was able to attend family events, go to the theater, travel, and continue to do many of the things that gave her joy.
I commend you for taking responsibility for getting things in place to avoid a crisis (as the kids nowadays say "Adulting is hard.")
Be well.
Will Jay
Hello Hugo! It is nice to meet you. Jon has said so much about you. Please assist Jon to church and the gay bars so he can find a cuddle buddy.
ReplyDeleteHello Lurkie. Sadly there are no Gay bars in Abilene and his church is 5 miles away so I can't take him for that log a walk. But I do let him push me around this place like a bat out of hell. If he drove the way he pushes me both he and a lot of folks are lucky to be alive. Nice to meet you.
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