 |
| Rose |
My sincere apologies for the delay in offering my condolences to you all. It was only today when I was cleaning out my car that I discovered the unmailed sympathy card from September. It had fallen inbetween the console and the seat. And now, few hours later I have discovered upon cleaning up files on my computer that I never did complete my email to you either! The original came back as you had changed your email address and I tucked it in the "drafts" awaiting current news about Aunty Mary and now it is October. I am so sorry about all of this. A death at any time is never good but thankfully you were back from holidays. I am sure your mother was grateful and relieved as well. She certainly did look like Mother Theresa.
I have found that AM's memory this past year is starting to fail her but
she is still stubborn and is clearly a challenge for my brother who
pops in to visit once a day and sort out her pills. In
august I noticed that she had trouble remembering which of her
pills should be taken and when. By 2pm on some days all of her pills
for that day have been consumed including 3 iron pills! Ron
painstakingly puts her pills into a pill dosset but this clearly was
presenting some problems. He would have masking tape holding
down the various compartments and still she would manage to screw
things up. It was quite comical in a way. Now she has home care for
1hr per day to check on her pills and do some light house keeping and
the odd sandwich making. She did have home care back
in June but she dismissed them when they told her they were not allowed
to move furniture to vacuum underneath! In august I also arranged for
Meals on Wheels to come with food 2 days per week but she also has
dismissed them citing that the food wasn't to
her liking. She would benefit from a nursing home so much whereby she
would have 3 square meals a day, meds on a regular basis and most
importantly someone to talk to. However she is too cheap to spend
a penny on herself. So sad.
Aunty Mary had belonged to the Ukrainian orchestra for most of her life and even though the organization no longer exists in thunder Bay the surviving members get together about twice a year. This year they gave her a surprise 99th birthday party and had an article about her life submitted to the National Ukrainian newspaper. Unfortunately I was back in Kingston at the time of her party and Ron was away. Cousins Diane and her sister Chris, their husbands and cousin Helen Slobodian(nee Charban) all attended. aunty Mary was tickled pink when she read the article last month in the newspaper.
My Michael is not doing very well. He is still living at the homeless shelter in Toronto but is now on the infirmary ward. He must wear a helmet 24/7 as he is either seizuring or losing his balance. In late august he was treated for meningitis. He is also confined to a wheel chair. I sometimes take the bus from here just to go and visit with him and always drop in both to and from TBay. He is so depressed that stopping drinking is just not in the cards for him. I was just so devastated last month to see him in this condition that I had no other choice but to discuss funeral plans with him. He clearly does not want to be on this earth. I have a very good friend battling a rare forme of leukemia who wants to live but has been told no more treatments and then I have Michael. Life truly is not fair at times.
Shanna and her husband Cory are a great support to me and I am so thankful that I have them near by. Last year they bought themselves 100 acres of land only 20 minutes from my home with the intent to build in a few years time. This year Cory decided to try farming on a small scale. This meant 20 chickens and 2 cows. Ken and I helped to pluck the chickens last weekend while Shanna slept having come off midnights and crying most of the day over their demise. The cows are to meet their fate in a few weeks time and I certainly will not be around that day. Raising animals have certainly proved challenging for them. The cow was in heat and escaped 3 times in 1 day resulting in additional electric fencing that had to be quickly purchased while both Cory and Shanna were 4 hrs late in reporting to work that evening. A few chicks almost died from exposure due to a sudden change in June temperature and a 200 ft extension chord for electricity to heat the coup had to be run from the neighbour over the hay field to the hen house. I don't think either of them knew just how time consuming farming is when you have a city job and a house that takes precedence.
Hi Simone!
Lovely to hear from you but please don't think that you need to apologize. I did wonder about the email as there seemed to be some problem with message being undeliverable but I did receive some of the text. Anyway, I am truly sorry that Michael is in such a desperate condition. Our hearts go out to you as you struggle with this more than difficult situation. Truly, I honestly do not know how you can cope and have been doing so for a very long time. As you say, Shanna and Cory must be a godsend to you through this emotional nightmare. Once again, we are thinking of you.
As if you didn't quite have enough on your family plate, I admire you for your care and concern of Aunt Mary. Again, it must be so, so difficult to deal with such a complicated situation, especially from afar. Please give her our love and tell her, from me, that I believe she should go into a nursing home, not only for her sake, but for the psychological health of those around her who must constantly worry about her. At first Mom resisted but soon came to see it was the best solution given the amount of care she required. I know this argument may not work but I do feel she is probably not able to make the right decision at this point in her life. If she is suffering from colon cancer it is far better that she move while she is still able to do so, reasonably easily, until waiting until she needs to be hospitalized. Perhaps if you tell her that she will have to leave me the money she saves on a nursing home, she might rather spend it on herself! Good Luck with a thankless, almost impossible task.
Then, Revolution, Canada, the "true-life adventure Rob Stewart", a documentary from the coral reefs of Papua New Guinea and deforestation in Madagascar to the Tar Sands of Alberta, an overwhelming and frightening documentary about the very nature of our survival. See it if you can as it really is an important film. Literally, a "Must See" for everyone. I had wanted to see, Rebelle, Quebec, in which, somewhere in sub-Saharan Africa, a young woman, Komona, is forced by rebels to slay her parents. Eventually she becomes the "war witch" of the leader of all the rebels but, plagued by the ghosts of her parents, she undertakes the journey back to her village. I decided upon Revolution and am very pleased that I did so. Nevertheless, I hope I can see Rebelle when it is shown after the Festival is over. Many of the more popular films are brought back and I believe this one is already on that list.
Cora Lee and Chloë went to Fifth Avenue Cinema at 4:00pm this afternoon to see Looper:In the futuristic action thriller Looper, time travel will be invented -- but it will be illegal and only available on the black market. When the mob wants to get rid of someone, they will send their target 30 years into the past, where a "looper" -- a hired gun, like Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) -- is waiting to mop up. Joe is getting rich and life is good... until the day the mob decides to "close the loop," sending back Joe's future self (Bruce Willis) for assassination.
Our Thanksgiving turkey is in the oven, (I just basted it again!), and we will mash potatoes and do Brussels Sprouts with maple syrup, in the frying pan, once they are back. Will heat squash in the oven once we've taken turkey out to "rest"! Corinne baked it last night so it just needs to be reheated. Chloë made a wonderful cornbread stuffing that will take the place of "the bird" as she is still a vegetarian. She can eat everything else so she's quite happy. We decided to have our dinner today as I have another shift at VIFF tomorrow.
Well, Simone, thanks again for your sympathy and condolences. I have attached the program for Mom's Memorial. The insert is not quite the way it will be but it will give you some idea of the order of service. Much love to you and Aunt Mary. Cheers, Patrizzio!
PS: Let me know if you have difficulty opening or seeing any of the files.
Delivery has failed to these recipients or groups:
This message is larger than the size limit for messages. Please make it smaller and try sending it again.
I sent this message a few minutes ago bit it was too large. The files for the outside and inside of the program are very large. I'll try to send them separately but if that doesn't work, I'll mail you a copy once I've had them printed. Cheers, Patrizzio!
THE TRUCKIE
A truckie who has been out on the road for three weeks stops off at a brothel outside Kalgoorlie ..
He walks straight up to the Madam, drops down $500 and says, I want your ugliest woman and a burnt chop.!!
The Madam is astonished. 'But sir, for that kind of money you could have one of my finest ladies and a lovely three-course meal.
The truckie replies, 'I'm not horny . . . . ... I'm homesick!
No comments:
Post a Comment