Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Out My Window

Hi friends,

How is your week going?

I hope all of you are doing okay with the weather in your area wherever you may live.  I see there is an awful lot of flooding in southern England and still a great deal of snow hitting various parts of the USA. In the wee hours of Tuesday morning I caught glimpses of the news about snowstorm in the Chicago area.

In my neck of the woods, we have had two storms over the weekend. One on Saturday evening and one on Sunday evening. I did go out to run errands in my neighbourhood on Saturday evening and the rain was coming down very heavily. It didn't take too long for my "rain" jacket to get soaked. Fortunately I did not have to go too far.

This was my sky on Tuesday February 18, 2014 after a weekend of heavy rain.


Sky overhead on Wednesday, February 19, 2014.
Others in my city had much bigger problems. Apparently downed trees knocked out power for awhile to about 20,000 homes. Huge, old growth trees, came out by the roots in many neighbourhoods to fall on houses and damage cars. The winds I heard rattling through my fireplace over the weekend were so powerful as to uproot humungous trees. I think the storm hit Vancouver Island much harder. Other parts of Canada were also hit hard as the storm that hit the United States travelled north and closed part of the Trans-Canada Highway.



 I was sitting snug in my home.


View out my window late Wednesday, February 19, 2014.


Since mom moved in to the new facility I have been busy responding to emails and phone calls from the new facility about her care. Her wheelchair suddenly stopped working the 2nd night of her stay there and the technician wasn't able to get there for another 48 hours. Fortunately he worked late on Valentine's Day no less and had it ready for her on Saturday morning.  This was a huge relief as the chair is brand new and we weren't sure what the problem was (we do know it wasn't from lack of charging).

A few visitors have been by to see mom.  Last night she was supposed to have a visit from her grandson but he couldn't go up the mountain highway due to road closure.  The highway is still closed today and he is faced with a hefty towing fee for flagging a tow truck to get him out of the snow.  At least he is safe.

I've managed to deal with one of mom's health issues that has been causing me concern for some time.  That is how to get affordable dental care for mom. J Abbott commented on the previous post that it would be good if mom could avail the services of a mobile dental unit. I could not agree more but for the most part such services don't exist in Canada.  I was able to find someone who will see mom and no t charge more than the insurance will pay.  I know mom will need many more appointments with the dentist as well as various specialists.  I am glad this process is finally underway and I hope the dentist works out to be a good one.

Joanne and Kay also commented on my previous post about mom possibly benefiting from having a roommate. This could well be true. We will have to wait and see. Let's put it this way, I don't want to move her again any time soon.  If she gets along with the room mate (and the new ones that will fill the room), then that would be great.  Mom's current room mate seems to spend a lot of time in bed and doesn't talk much, though she can talk.

Other than dealing with mom's needs, I am slowly getting back to normal; resting, lots of laundry, cooking and reading.  Sometimes when I have too much to do and can't focus to get things done, I turn to cooking or baking.  The ham and scalloped potatoes I made the other day were delicious.  Tuesday we enjoyed pea soup with the left over ham. A perfect dish for this kind of weather.

I'm reading two crafting books: one on crochet and one on quilting. I recommend both to anyone interested in these timeless crafts.


I'm also nearing the finish of  Long Walk to Freedom:  The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela.  I've enjoyed it immensely. It is a great backgrounder for anyone wanting an inside look at the history and development of South Africa and the role of one hugely influential man, Nelson Mandela.  May he RIP.


I'm still feeling very tired but will go out this evening to try and make progress on another long book (The Fall of Giants, by Ken Follett). I've renewed this book several times as I keep getting distracted. It is good but as it is yet another book that deals in part with WW1, I'm afraid I haven't made much progress.  Since I will soon be finished with the book on Nelson Mandela I will be able to focus on the The Fall of Giants. I am half way through this very long book it so it doesn't seem so daunting.

6 comments:

Joy said...

Yes there certainly has been an abundance of bad weather all over the place - glad to hear you have missed some of the worst of it Joyful. We are going through summer in our area but up the top end of Australia is where they can expect cyclones and all sorts of climatic difficulties around this time and I'm so glad we don't live there!
It must be a relief for you to know that your Mum is being well taken care of now and I wish her all the best with the dental work - not a pleasant experience at the best of times, is it!!!!
So now I hope that you can have some quiet relaxing time and enjoy your reading and whatever else grabs your interest - you've done a hugs job in re-settling your Mum and I wish you happy days and blessings!
Hugs to you, Joy xo

Ceil said...

Hi Joyful! You have hit on two things that I just love. Pea soup and Ken Follett.

I LOVE that Follett trilogy. I'm sorry you are having trouble sticking with it...I could hardly put it down. And pea soup is my absolute favorite, even though my family can't stand it. Oh well.

I'm so glad that your Mom's wheelchair got fixed. That's a load off your mind. And you are really focusing in on her dental care, and I hope that works out. I'm glad you were not affected by power outages, and could stay safe and warm in your house!
Have a good Thursday my friend :)
Ceil

Joanne Noragon said...

Yum, pea soup!
My grandma spent the last ten years of her life in a nursing home. She had several roommates in varying degrees of health. They always were amicable, although that does not have to be the case. I remember one, my grandma would say She doesn't talk much, but her granddaughter came today, and her granddaughter said..., and the roommate would smile and nod and relive the episode.

Lonicera said...

Hi Penny - I'm catching up with your posts, and realise what an exhausting time you've had. Do hope you're giving yourself a break and resting properly. Your Mum is so lucky to have you.
Caroline

KT said...

Rob made pea soup after Christmas with the left over ham...a few container are left in the freezer. As for the weather, we had RAIN today instead of snow in Chicago...but, that is causing a lot of flooding issues...ugh! It is hard to believe right now that some parts of the world don't have enough water.

Denise said...

Love you my friend.

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