We had a wild and crazy weekend – not exactly the unofficial start to summer we were looking for. Saturday morning, some sort of animal got into a tussle with our dogs in our backyard. Our two didn’t fare very well, as you can see from the pictures.
Of course, it took us 24 hours at the emergency vet office and $1,200 to get to this point – and yes, they are feeling just as pitiful as they look in the pictures. We don’t know if they tangled with a raccoon, groundhog or possum, but whatever it was scratched them up pretty well.
Since we weren’t home when it happened, we were concerned that they had been fighting with each other, which would have SHOCKED me, but the wounds aren’t consistent with a dog fight. So now it’s 10-14 days of antibiotics and pain meds, and the staples and cones can be removed in about 10 days.
Ugh.
I took Friday off from work (in addition to having Monday off) and I did something I wasn’t exactly proud of. I took M to the Memory Care daycare on Friday morning, just like it was a regular work day and I enjoyed an entire day ALL BY MYSELF!
Years ago, when our kids were little, a friend/co-worker of mine would take her kids to daycare on days that she would have off work, but the daycare was still open. At the time, I thought that was TERRIBLE!! I could never imagine doing such a thing! If I had a day off, I kept the kids home and we had a day off together.
But last Friday, I decided to let M go in and enjoy some time to myself. It was GREAT!! I went out to lunch, saw some friends, got some things accomplished around the house – all in all, a fantastic day!
When I picked M up, the staff let me know that there is a new participant at the center, a man who is older and much more frail than some of the other people there. Friday was the first time M had seen the man and he had been very upset by him. Evidently, M had gone to the director’s office crying several times on Friday because he was so upset over the man and the condition he’s in.
The staff was concerned that perhaps M looks at the man and sees what his future is going to be.
I was able to assure them that no – that’s not it.
M doesn’t think there is anything wrong with him. He’s heard the diagnosis from the doctor. He knows all about his test results. His response? “But I feel fine.” And therefore, he believes he is fine.
No, M gets upset seeing frail, elderly people – especially men – because they remind him of his parents. Which is ironic, because his parents were active, vital people until the last six months (or so) of their lives. But something about it makes him think of his parents and that’s what triggers an emotional response for him.
He and I talked this morning about what he could do to be helpful to the man, rather than getting upset. Will it work? Will he remember? We’ll see.
I’m so glad you had a day to yourself.