Community Bridge in Frederick

Took Jen and Mom to the Community Bridge in Frederick yesterday. John and I had wandered upon this thing earlier this year, and we both knew immediately that Mom would love it. So, I've been looking for the right time to get Mom up there and when yesterday dawned to be magnificent (!), I knew what was on the agenda.

The Community Bridge is in the canal area of downtown Frederick and is an area painted in the trompe d'oilel (spelling might suck) style. In other words, it's a plain old cement bridge painted to look anything than plain old cement! So, that wall behind my loved ones is all painted to look like stone. You can't see the images inbedded as they're faint and, unless you focus the camera directly on them, they disappear.

Anyway, in 1992, an artist had a vision to beautify the area. He asked the community of 17,000 or so what items represented 'community' for them. He got thousands of replies and incorporated these replies in his paintings. He's obviously quite talented as his paintings are a delight to view.

The bridge and surrounding area are painted to look like rock. Inside some of the rocks are the scenes depicting community. There's hands touching, wedding rings resting on each other, dolphins and geese. There's children climbing trees, alphabet blocks, birds and a myriad of other items hidden. There's painted statues that are amazing to view. It really is hard to believe that they're not 3D. In fact, Mom, Jen and I all agreed that there were parts where we got confused about what we were seeing or not seeing. As Jen mentioned, a good artist has the ability to do that.

If you're close by, take the time to go see this thing. It really is totally amazing and worth the trip. Afterwards, Jen treated us to cool drinks at a local coffee house where we sat at a checkerboard table and Jen and I played a rousing game of 'checkers' with dice that she had in her purse (for some reason, the coffee house didn't have any checkers - Imagine that). Anyway, the winner was....well, never mind. That part isn't important.

Came home and made some great spaghetti (Aunt Mildred's sauce recipe can't be beat). A nice evening was spent just talking and catching up on the balcony.

101 things to do with a 91 year old

Once we explained what a Harley was, she was off and running!

Well, John and I both failed miserably in training Gert on the inhaler, but Bobbi (being a mother) made a breakthrough last night. Coman, Bobbi's son, used to have exercise induced asthma so she had to work with him to use an inhaler before he played sports. Bobbi even wrote down instructions for Mom which Mom dutifully took to bed with her so she'd have them in the morning. So, Mom's currently working on technique. I also bought her a saline solution spray which seems to have helped a bit and nasal strips which go across the nose to open the passages wider. So, we're on our way over here!

I was vacuuming the livingroom a while ago and saw her sitting in her chair with her inhaler in her hand. I turned off the vacuum and asked her what she was doing. She looked at me and said that she was waiting for the housekeeper to be done so that the nurse would come on duty. Cracked me up. Now I suppose she's waiting for the cook as it's lunchtime. There is no rest for the weary!

She never inhaled...

Well, spent the better part of the day and most of this evening still trying to get the idea of using an inhaler into Gert. Bobbi, however, might have made the breakthrough and, before she left tonight, she jotted down notes for dear Gert to review before I try to make her inhale yet again. Perhaps Bill Clinton and Gert have something in common....maybe I should call him...oh, wait...he didn't inhale...

The middle of the day was spent at the eye doctor for Gert and then lunch at a small bistro up here in Germantown. Had a nice time before heading home for Gert's nap.

Dropped Gert off and got her settled in her chair and headed out again to the pharmacy for the purchase of a nasal saline spray (much easier to use than an inhaler) along with those nose strip thingees (note to self: small/medium doesn't cut it.). Mom reports that she's breathing easier currently so that's good. Spending a nice relaxed evening watching a movie. Not a bad evening at all.

My first try at a slideshow is above - let's hope this works.

So, we've been pretty busy around here with company for the last month or so. John's parents just went home to Arizona yesterday. Had some great times, nice dinners and relaxed evenings with them here at the Mansion East. Put Sonny to work cutting grass on the tractor - I think he was secretly pleased to be away from all the estrogen!

Sharyn came into town for the week, much to our delight. We really appreciated the visit! Even though we didn't make the RV, we had a week of fun. Sharyn and I did a fair amount of cooking - Gert did a fair amount of eating. Sharyn stayed with Mom a night so I could get away to the Mansion West with John for a nice evening. The next day, Sharyn brought Mom up to the cabin where much merriment was had. Lots of deck sitting, napping ensued.

Bobbi, Sharyn, John and I spent a very nice day on sailing around the Chesapeake and then enjoyed a few hours at the local tiki bar - Jeff looked in on Gert (thanks Jeff!). Gorgeous day on the water - made it back to dock just in time for a summer downpour. Even that didn't dampen the atmosphere (pun intended).

The girls did a great brunch at Blackstone's in Frederick - Belgium beer for the 'youngsters', a bourbon and coke for Gert and we were off and running. Had planned on doing some shopping but ended up 'running' for naps instead. Did the requisite trip(s!) to La Mexicana and propped Mom up at the bar where she's always a big hit.

Sharyn, Jeffie and I went to DC one day to the new Crime Museum (don't bother). LOTS of reading and walking. Nothing special.

Mom's got a new medication - an inhaler to aid in breathing. Now, you wouldn't have thunk it would be as difficult as it's been to get a 91 year old to understand how to use an inhaler. I believe I overdosed on the stuff the first night while trying to demonstrate. I wouldn't have minded so much if the stuff was fun, but the only side effect I got was crystal clear breathing.

Actually, trying to teach Mom to use an inhaler is akin to teaching a duck to drive (I'd bet on the duck). So, we continue the quest for knowledge. John helped out last night with a new perspective which actually may have gotten through. We'll see how that goes.

Niece Jennifer is coming to visit for 10 days from Florida this Thursday. Will head to the cabin next week for a few days with Mom and Jen just to relax. It's really delightful up there.

Mom continues to do very well. A bunch of us went out to dinner the other night and she was the bell 'o the ball, holding court at the head of the table. Amazing, wonderful woman. More later.

Cardiologist Appointment

The doctor ordered an EKG and a nuclear stress test. After making sure that the nuclear stress test was not harmful, we proceeded.

For the nuclear stress test, radioactive dye is injected into the arm. The dye is formulated to target the heart but usually is absorbed by the stomach, pancreas and other assorted innards. The appointment is designed to be 5 hours with a one hour lunch break. The lunch break is necessary as digestion of food rids the dye from everywhere but the heart, thereby leaving a nice pretty picture of the heart to be taken. The dye forces the heart to believe that exercise is occurring so this test is given to those who can't take a standard stress test involving a treadmill.

Over the 4 minutes it takes to inject the dye, 95% of the population suffer side effects including tightness of the chest and/or throat, flushed feeling, headache, etc. These are fully expected and, after making sure that Mom understood she was in no danger, we proceeded, but we prepared for 4 minutes of possible side effects. As the doctor and I questioned Mom about every 45 seconds about side effects, we were all amazed at the fact that the only side effect she reported was a very very slight tightening in her throat. Those of us who know my mama very well know that she belies convention, and this is further proof that she’s just not like everyone else. In this case, we were all grateful.

Lunch time found us at That’s Amore where John walked over from work to meet us. Mom was in fine spirits, having been over the worse part of the test. We laughed and joked through lunch. Now it was just going to be a waiting game as we returned to the cardiologist office.

I watched the Nuclear Technician hook Mom to the cameras and start to take the pictures of the heart. I was absolutely amazed to watch the computer screen display a 3D vision of my mom’s heart beating. It was really fascinating. Even with my little bit of medical knowledge, I could see the valves working beautifully pumping the blood. I could see the aorta and the chambers of the heart. I was in awe.

The technician asked Mom if she wanted anything. Her reply was a 21 year old blond man. The guy laughed and said that he wasn’t 21. Mom looked this middle aged man up and down and up again and said ‘I’ll wait.’ We were rolling. The guy called her his girlfriend, and she was just lit up.

Final prognosis, and I’ll quote the doctor: ‘You have the heart of a 16 year old.’ Even he was amazed at how well her heart is working. She has just a bit of CHF which is to be totally expected at her age but….Amazing. She has some thickening in the top portion of her heart which is why she’s experiencing episodic shortening of breath. The choices are to do further studies (angiograms which are invasive) or just to make an app’t next year to check again. Obviously, the choice was the latter – the doctor allowed us to make the choice and seconded it loudly. Before he left, he asked if he could have a hug and a kiss. I rose to accommodate the request but, alas, it was for dear Gert.

Came home and put Mom to bed at 3. She slept until 7 when she got up for a light dinner. After assuring that she didn’t need anything, I went to bed at 8 pm and slept through to 4 this morning. Nice evening. We all breathed a sigh of relief.

I’ve gone ahead and called off the RV trip though as have to take her to her regular doctor next week for an inhaler – she’ll use this probably daily as prophylaxis against future breathing difficulties. I wouldn’t chance taking her on the road now anyway as we’re both still quite fatigued from the recent excitement. Sharyn (who was going to accompany us on the trip) will still come to us for the week as she wants to be with Gert a while. If Mom’s well, I’ve got some day trips planned – such as tea at the Ritz-Carlton (they’re supposed to have a stupendous tea, and I think it’s just the place for 3 ‘ladies’ to lunch). Sharyn and I will also go to the cabin for a few nights, hopefully, with Mom if she’s up to it. If not, Mom will remain at the Mansion East as we trip off to the Mansion West.

I also realized that, in my quest to give her a fun summer, I’ve been taking her out on days where there is a heat advisory or the air is not good for the elderly. I’ll make more notes in the morning before we schedule our outings. This could result in impromptu cancellations but it’s the best you can do with a 91 year old in tow.

So, all is well again. John’s folks are still in town so they’ll be over for a few nights this week along with some friends for a nice, relaxing grilled dinner.

Oh, I’ve started revamping the Mansion East back yard. It’s amazing looking! For those of you who remember the mud pit, it’s no longer there. I have GRASS, and PLANTS, including the rose bushes I’ve always wanted. John’s Dad planted the roses for me which was very sweet and much appreciated. Pictures follow.

Also, one of my friends asked if she could submit questions for Mom. Absolutely! We're not guaranteeing she'll answer them, but I will certainly ask and document answers. Submit away. Either add a comment to the blog or email me at dogloving1@yahoo.com.

She's perfectly fine BUT...

Well, haven’t had a moment to blog recently as have been extremely busy keeping mom ‘pink.’ Ended up in the hospital Saturday night as Mom had been having problems breathing in the morning for the past 5 days. Decided to call the ambulance Saturday morning when she got up so we didn’t have to sit in the emergency waiting room forever – I don’t recommend this trick unless it’s warranted. In Mom’s case, one of the EMTs told me I should always call the ambulance so we can bypass the waiting room. Felt good to know we weren’t playing wolf.

Anyway, at 9 am, we had 7 big, strapping mens in our kitchen to collect their charge. Of course, when an ambulance is dispatched, you end up with a fire truck too. I've never been clear on why this phenomenon occurs unless they expect patients to spontaneously combust, but that’s what happens. So, with all those mens at our disposal, Mom and I had a brief discussion about maybe getting a poker game going instead. 2 of the 6 mens were game (pun intended). But, since they had to log the call, off we toted to Shady Grove Hospital.

Once we arrived at the emergency room and she got stuck for blood (I volunteered to stick her but the nurse declined my kind offer), we sat, and sat, and sat. Actually, it wasn’t that bad. We were only in the actual emergency room around 5 hours or so and she was in a bed in the back so it was ok. Friend Jeff came up so I could run out to get some waters and supplies at the local Safeway, so that was a nice diversion.

One of the doctors asked if she’d been on a trip recently. Uh oh. ‘Um, yes,’ I answered with trepidation, already not liking the direction of this questioning. I took her to Solomon’s Island the week before and, double uh oh, the symptoms started the next morning! Holy CRAP! Have I damaged my mother??? So, they started looking for a blood clot, suspecting that she might have developed a clot in a leg during the ride which then traveled to her lung. Quite thankfully, this appears not to have been the case. But, man, I was sweating there for a bit. After all, I’m responsible for keeping her pink, not making her blue.

Once they ruled out the blood clot (as I’ve mentioned, much to my relief), the doctors thought that maybe she had a slight heart attack so went off looking for evidence. Then they thought that maybe her CHF (cardiac heart failure) had just exacerbated a bit and caused the event.

Mom had a breathing treatment which appeared to help the symptoms and we figured that she’d be released shortly. Well…

We were both a bit dismayed (and more than a little surprised) to find out that a hospital admission was in our future. I was particularly dismayed as my strong memory of spending the night in a hospital chair has not faded a bit. Ugh.

So, our address for the night was Shady Grove Hospital, Room 407, Bed 2. A nurse came in to do a full medical history and suggested that I (along with Mom's input) answer her rather involved questions. So, she started in with her history form. Does she have: glaucoma (no), diabetes (no), dementia (I hesitated and Mom filled in with a loud 'No.'), last menstrual period (Mom pointed to me). We laughed through most of the form. At one point, the nurse apologized to me in advance and said that Mom had to answer the next question by herself. Ok, no problem, what was the question?

'Are you now or have you recently been in any kind of physical harm at the hand of another person? Are you scared of anyone?'

Jeff and I exchanged an anxious sideways glance as this was not the time for Mom to crack a joke. She obviously caught the seriousness of the question and answered 'No' at which time I let out a large breath of air. We all totally cracked up, including the nurse. She knew from the previous questions that we were wiseasses, and she was relieved too.

Sophia came up to relieve Jeff and me around dinner time so Jeff and I tottled off to get some dinner and a drink at a local restaurant. Did I mention that Mom and I have the best friends ever?

Nightfall found me, as expected, fighting the naugahyde beasts in the form of a green ‘lounge’ chair. I'm certain a lot of naugas died to produce this montrosity of a chair. I was certainly cussing the green little bastards. This chair is totally dastardly and is beyond torture. We faced off quite a few times. Every time I got up to help Mom, the chair scored a point in tripping me. Mom, on the other hand, slept fairly well – as well as can be expected if you consider that hospital personnel evidently want to keep you up all night. I guess they figure that, if they have to be up, you're going to be up too. So, every 4 hours, blood was drawn and vital signs collected. It was a very long night.

Sunday morning, Bobbi appeared toting the daily papers and a pretty cactus for Mom. We were talking with Mom, and I mentioned that the cardiologist hadn’t come in yesterday when Mom turned to me and said ‘yes he did.’ Now, this was news to me as I had waited all day for the visit. Turns out that the one time I went downstairs and left the room without a proxy (well, I had to have a cup of coffee), he magically appeared – this is the exact reason that you should never leave an elderly person in the hospital without someone at their side at every single moment (lesson learned). Anyway, the cardiologist must have been waiting for me to leave as his timing couldn’t have been more impecable to avoid my probing questions. And, of course, Mom failed to mention his visit to me. Geez…Now, the woman didn’t miss an opportunity to relate to me the fact that everyone who saw her complimented her on her nails and toes (having recently had a mani/pedi treatment) but, when it comes to important stuff like, well, a doctor visit, these minor details appear to slip her memory. Thanks, Gert.

Anyway, the cardiologist appeared Sunday and did a brief looksie before proclaiming that the following findings were evident from all of the tests done:

No blood clots (whew!)
No heart attack
No evidence of exacerbation of CHF

In fact, he proclaimed that she was the healthiest 91 year old he’d ever seen and couldn’t quite figure out what caused the episodic shortness of breath. He directed us to get an app’t this week at his office for an EKG and a chemical stress test. This brings me to our 5 hour app’t yesterday…

Victoria's for the weekend

Well, the weekend was ‘busy’ in its own way. We took Victoria up on her kind offer of lending us here house on the water down in Lusby, Maryland (right up from Solomon’s Island). John loaded up his visiting parents (Sonny and Rose), I loaded up Gert and off we went. Mom and I beat John et al down to Vic’s so Mom and I took on the rather arduous task of getting her up the steps. Many rests later, we made it to the top where she was rewarded with the cold beer I’d been dangling in front of her. Threw some hors d’euvres in the oven, popped a few more beers and we were already close to naps by the time John got there.

First thing we did once John arrived was to set the crab traps up – well, we thought we set the crab traps up until the next morning when we noticed that the door to let the crabs out of the traps were not closed! Whoops. We only caught one very stupid crab who, even with an easy egress couldn’t figure his way out! We swore ourselves to secrecy about this slight blunder until his dad came down and I blurted out the issue – whoops again! His dad was too funny though when he said that he’d noticed the doors were open when we dropped the traps in the water but, being unfamiliar with crabs, thought that they kind of came in the trap, ate, went out, came back in, ate, went out – sort of like a little house. Of course, gawfaws ensued all around. We basically stuck to string and chicken parts from thereon out.

Made a nice dinner and crashed early. Favorite line of the day.

Sonny (John’s Dad) came out about 9:30 to tell Mom and me that he was going to bed. ‘Sorry, but I can’t keep up with you youngsters.’

Mom looked at him and replied ‘Well, tomorrow, I’ll show you how it’s done.’

Cracked us all up.

Friday brought a great breakfast of bacon/egg/bagel sandwiches and some rock gut coffee which sent me off to Starbuck’s in the new shopping center for my fix. Now, I can generally drink any coffee but this stuff was just TOO gooey. Ugh.

John took Sonny and Rose off to a nice lunch in Solomon’s while I stayed in the house and napped with Mom. Vic’s house feels like the cabin to Mom and me and we react accordingly – by sleeping! Had a nice afternoon though just snoozing away.

John’s folks really got into crabbing – with a bit of practice, they both became experts by the second day. Dinner Friday was a success basically due to their diligence. We had close to 2 dozen very nice keepers. Mom, of course, gathered most of the claws and left the work to us. I think John’s folks left the table hungry as most beginner pickers do.

Pretty nice weekend though – although I have to go back down there today as we forgot Mom’s bag which has her sleeping pills and her little hand thingee she wears for her arthritis at night. Oh well, should be a nice ride in the ragtop! Might take a dog or two along for the spin.