Tuesday, October 9

Pam's visit
Thanks for stopping by Pam

Today I went uptown a little early and spend some time with David in his Occupational Therapy session with Yvette.  Soon after this was done, Pam arrived and spent about an hour with David.  It was great to see her, and we heard about what she is up to, and it was just great to see her.  I also brought up a package that was sent by Susan Hearn for David, and here are a few photos of the contents and a picture with Pam.

Thanks Susan!
Socks from Susan Hearn and family

Later in the day, we had a terrific visit from Jane who brought one of her poems for David.  Always inspiring, but as Jane said, not as inspiring as David’s progress.

High class reading material
Thanks Susan and family

 

 

 

 

 

Monday, October 8

Olivia and David
Oliva Truland visiting David

Another good day.  I arrived earlier than usual, because I knew that lunch would be unpalatable for David, so I brought some of the chicken parmesan with me.  I got there in time to catch some of his speech therapy, and it is always interesting and often entertaining.  Siobhan said that earlier, she gave David the opportunity to use one of his favorite words – bacon – but when it came time to use it, he couldn’t.  Today, it was a word that sounds like bacon – bake.  She has started some work with phrases and rhythm and tone, and we talked about music and singing and the effect it has on speech.  She says that while it certainly isn’t harmful to sing and use music, there is very little proof that it helps improve spontaneous speech.  The method she is using is similar to what Liat did with tapping out the rhythm of words, and adding a little tone.  Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.  I have to say, the speech therapy is what I find most fascinating.  Why do some words come back, and other don’t, and why are there some words that he will repeat over and over again on one day, and not be able to use when called on?

Oliva Truland visiting DavidAnyway, I ordered a new sling for David’s arm that will be better for keeping his shoulder in place when he is out of the wheelchair.  He hates the slings that the Jewish Home provides, and I think he will not like this one either, but it is important to keep his shoulder from separating from his arm.

We had a terrific visit from Burke Alum, Olivia Truland who gave some great chocolates and macaroon from Godiva.  A terrific visit, thanks Olivia!


Sunday, October 7

Today, one of the themes for the day was three.  Three weeks until David comes home, which is at once, exciting and terrifying.  I guess now I know how it must feel to bring a baby home and have to take care of him – only my baby is 178 lbs!  Not to mention the fact that my baby has his own very particular opinions of how things should be.

I have talked about David’s speech issues, which are daunting, but today he was able to count to ten with very little modeling or prompting.  I just got him started, and he ran with it!  I also felt that his trying to speak was much better today.  He had PT before I got up to 106th Street this morning, and the therapist gave him a new brace for his right knee.  it is the same one that I used when I had tendonitis in my knee, and he said he loved it and that under no circumstances was I to let anyone take it away.  From what I gather, he could walk much better with it, but I think that Minet may not like it too much, because it will slow the increase in strength with his right knee.  We will see what happens this week, but I have written his name in the brace, and I will make it “disappear” if I need to.  Basically, it immobilizes the knee.

We had a nice visit from Judith and Ron, and talked about UNIS stuff, which also reminds me to thank Michelle for her visit earlier in the day, the alumni newsletter and the blanket!  We used the blanket tonight, which came in handy.  Judith filled us in on the goings on at UNIS, as I am sure Michelle did this morning.  David is very interested in UNIS and how things are progressing with the search for a new ED and the day to day happenings at UNIS.

So, as I left 106th Street tonight, I will share that I was very down, but as I walked my way to the subway (there was no way I was going to walk in this drizzle) and then made my way across town from Penn Station, I got myself into a more positive frame of mind, and when I got home, I began making chicken parmesan for a meal for me, and to bring to David for tomorrow’s lunch – they are having some sort of awful fish dish, and he needs to be spared that!

Thanks for reading!

Saturday, October 6

I feel bad that I skipped a day, but I think I was so nervous about David’s visit at home today, that I just forgot.  David was also a bit nervous, and couldn’t make it to the dinner with Jane and Henry Berliss. I think he was just a little overwhelmed by the idea of being home for the day today.

The day started early for me, and I did some last minute cleaning and prep work.  Then I hopped on the subway to get uptown in time to accompany David down to the apartment.  There was a lot going on in the neighborhood, because I think it was the Korean Day Parade, and 32nd Street was closed between Fifth and Sixth Aves, with lots of stalls set up.  When I got to 106th Street, David was dressed and ready to go!  We went to the lobby and waited for the ride.  At 10am, a van pulled up, but the driver stayed in the van, so I thought it wasn’t ours, but after a few minutes, I called the company the arrangements were made through to get an ETA.  They said the dispatcher spoke to the driver and he was five minutes away.  About ten minutes later, I called again, and while I was on the phone with the representative, the driver of the van came in, and he was David’s driver.  I guess he had a few important calls to make.  At this point, I knew that I was going to ride back uptown with David at the end of the night.

We got home, and David’s first word was “Why?”.  I finally figured out that what he meant was, “Why do I have to go back?’  I explained about the therapy, and while he got the concept, he didn’t like the idea.  I get that.  A little after noon we got our first visitor – Lynda, and we were soon joined by Luba and Tamara, and while they were here, we had our weekly video chat with Alex, Claire and Theo.  All looking terrific!  Then Sheila stopped by, and we had some interesting conversation about the debate, and what we think the Obama Campaign’s strategies are.  After they left, we had a few minutes before Monica came and then we were joined by Julie.  As always, there were plenty of funny stories to be told by all!  Finally, Joy stopped by, and I ordered sushi from this terrific place around the corner.
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Then Joy walked us downstairs, and we waited for the van again.  I called this time, and they said that he was about fifteen minutes away, so we went back up to the apartment and sat for a while.  They called at about 9:30pm and David was back in bed at about 10:15pm.  I kissed him good-night, and walked most of the way back downtown.

It was a great day, and we had lots of fun, but I am exhausted.  Mostly physically, because David wanted to sit in a chair, not the wheelchair, and each transfer was difficult – mostly because the chair and toilets are lower at home than on 106th Street.  It was a very good dry run, and I have a better idea of what the issues are going to be.  Mostly, David will need to be able to walk with a cane to get from the bed to the bathroom because the bathrooms are a little tight – doable, but difficult to manuever.

Thursday, October 4

OK, I know – last night I posted well after midnight, and here it is almost 9am!  Things are all fine, and dandy.  They have been tweaking the therapy schedule, which is making David nervous.  As many of you know, David likes his schedules to be clear and easy, and the occupational therapist saying we will start between 9am and 9:30am just doesn’t cut it.  Why not just pick a time?  My concern was, if yoiu pick the 9am tim, and show up at 9:15am you are in trouble.  Much better to say 9:30 and sometimes start a little earlier.

The transportation is all arranged for the Saturday outing.  I think I am pretty well prepared at home and David is very excited about the day and looking forward to a small taste of normalcy.
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It was a quiet day for visitors – just me – but that was fine, and both lunch and dinner were good for him.  I went out with Jackie after leaving, and we had a great meal at Porcena on E 7th Street.  A little Italian place a few doors from McSorley’s.  I was a little late, because I mistakenly thought that 21 E 7th Street would be the first block off of Fifth Ave, but as I discovered (and probably knew once upon a time) 7th Street never makes it across to Fifth.  As I am walking over I thought to myself, yes, it must be on the same block as McSorley’s, and there it was!  Anyway, great meal and conversation.  Thanks Jackie!

Wednesday, October 3

OK, well, technically it is Thursday, October 4, but I stayed late with David and we watched the debate.  Despite what the pundits are saying, David snapped his fingers a lot for the President, and I think he did a great job of staying above the fray and not getting into any mudslinging (even though, there were plenty of opportunities to  call Romney on his lies, and half truths).  My particular favorite was Romney’s line about how medicare will stay the same for folks who are retired or near retirement, which means me and anyone younger are screwed if Romney every became President – I can’t even consider that.  Make a donation today!!  I did – again for the ??th time (I have lost count)

Anyway, back to David.  He did well and is building up more strength with his legs, but his speech really concerns me.  I don’t see any real progress.  He has new words every day, but usually at the expense of words that he doesn’t say any longer.  His writing is getting better, and hopefully that will mean his reading will come along as well, but the speech is the hard part.
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We had a visit from Lynda Crawford, and we sang a little, which was fun.  He can sing some songs, but he usually still needs to have visual cues – someone has to be singing with him so he can see you mouth making the words.  We’ll keep trying and pushing this along.  Needless to say, the speech is the most frustrating thing for both of us.

Tuesday, October 2

First, I want to let folks know that we will be home on Saturday, October 5th for the day, and would love folks to come and visit between Noon and 4pm.  325 Fifth Ave, 35E – let me know if you are coming by responding here

Time I will stop by(required)

 or emailing me.

Anyway, today was good, but I was a bit down, which David sensed immediately.  I did stay later than usual tonight, and we watched a few old episodes of “Law & Order: SVU”.  Tomorrow, I am staying even later to watch the debate with David.

It is amazing that David doesn’t believe how well he is doing no matter who tells him.  Julie Halston stopped by today, and we had a fabulous visit.  We laughed and carried on, and at one moment when the nurse came to give David his med’s, Julie thought that they came to ask us to keep it down!  Good times.  Good night, and think good thoughts for our hero and President – Barack Obama!

Monday, October 1

The word for the day was “Chicken”.  I prefer bacon.

Another good day.  I arrived at the end of speech therapy, and just in time for lunch.  I had on my calendar that today was one of the days when the lunch was not so great, so I picked up some VietNamese sandwiches at the corner, which were yummy.  Certainly better than the dried up chicken that was served up.  PT was delayed again today, but we got to do some walking and standing with Minet and during the PT we had a visit from Stephane who had a box of Macaron in hand, which I used as incentive for a few more steps!  It worked!  Had a nice update from Stephane on goings on at UNIS.  We went back to the room and were soon joined by Betsy Landis-Tipton who was in town for a wedding.  A very nice visit from this UNIS grad, and talked about living on the west coast.  She has been in LA.

These are the certified and licensed clinical therapists with real ability and preferred by patients. viagra for sale The supporting star casts are Patricia Clarkson, buying that viagra super Stanley Tucci, etc. The greater part order viagra from canada of individuals in the world. It is available in the form of CDG discs or download to your computer by easy steps. cialis online pill We then went outside for a bit and got some fresh air, but it was a little chilly, so came in pretty quickly.  Then dinner, and off to bed for David, and I hit the road.  I succumbed and took the subway home, but I did walk up to 106th St today, so I don’t feel like a complete slacker!  David insisted that I post this picture he took of me today, reclining on his bed.  I couldn’t not post it, but it is pretty awful!

Reclining Scott
Reclining Scott

Sunday, September 30

One month from today is David’s estimated homecoming day!  A little late for Homecoming, but I’ll take it.  When I arrived today, Gene, Liz, Electa and Quinn were there and had some ice cream for David to eat before lunch, and I had chicken for him that I made last night.  After they left, we decided to take a little adventure and went for a walk to Central Park.  Unfortunately, I decided to take him to the Great Hill, and while the trip up the hill winded me, coming down with the wheelchair was almost  worse!

It is times like this that I wish I could pick up a phone and call David!  When we got back to the room, we caught a UNIS visitor just before she left.  I wish I could call David, because, I can’t for the life of me remember her name!  She is the librarian, and I do know her name, and will put it in here tomorrow when it comes to me, but. . . it’s late.  I left after this visit, and went to Home Goods and got a blanket for David’s bed.  Now that it is getting cooler, he needs an better blanket than the ones the Jewish Home provides.  A little later, Phyllis stopped by for a short visit, which was very nice too.  Then dinner came, and off to bed, and I walked home.

Vivian!  Sorry Vivian and thanks for coming by!

Saturday, September 29

It was a good day, but when I arrived, David was a little hesitant about the dinner out. He was worried about access to a bathroom. I told him that we would try to go before we left, and that he should be able to make it through without an accident. We did some work with the letters and then some leg work, which was good. We also had a visit from Pat Doyle and Geoff Van Kirk. Geoff shared a very nice slideshow with photos of teachers, staff and students at UNIS. Thanks for sharing it, it was great to see.

We sat in the garden for a little while, and then got ready for our dinner out. I took a quick reconnaissance run to make sure that the restaurant would be accessible, and after looking, I came back and David and I decided that we would go to a little Italian restaurant on Amsterdam. As we were getting ready to leave, we ran into Lynn and Richard Kutner, who walked us to the restaurant, and helped us get settled. Nice to see you and I hope you had a good night, and glad we ran into you! We were joined for a little while by Joy Rizzo who was on her way to a reunion in the Village. A very nice visit.

We were back at the Jewish home within two hours, and David went to bed. He told me that I should not post any of the pictures from the restaurant (still vain), but that I could post this little video of him practicing his dinner conversation. He is still very funny and extremely charming!
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Friday, September 28

The 1:30 meeting went very well. We met with the Social Working and David’s three therapists. They are hoping to keep David working at the Jewish Home until October 30th, which sound right to me and David. More important than this – we are going out for dinner tomorrow night. David is able to take off site trips as long as he is back by midnight, so tomorrow we are going out to dinner, a week from tonight we are going to a dinner party around the corner from the home and I am making arrangements for him to come home during the day next Saturday. All great stuff, and I think it will make David much happier to begin doing more normal things.

After the meeting, we had PT where David walked without the brace, and his right knee is getting stronger all the time. Yvette also said he has more feeling in his right arm. Progress all around. Siobhan also tried to convince David that he was speaking better today than he was on Monday, but he doesn’t seem to believe any of us.

Tonight, I had a great dinner with Gene and Liz (thanks guys!), and came home to measure the height of the bed and the tub to get ready for the end of October. More progress, and more to come! I will post some pictures tomorrow of our dinner out.

Thursday, September 27

Another quiet day on 106th Street.  The only visitor was my friend Anthony, who talked about his own recovery from the effects of having a tumor removed six months ago.  He is still going to Physical Therapy once a week and said that because of his balance and other issues, it is sometimes very hard for him to come up with words at times.  I think that each time David hears about someone else’s struggles, it helps put his own challenges in a context.

Tomorrow we have the meeting with the social worker at 1:30pm, and I will update the blog as soon as I can after that.  In the afternoon we were visited by a woman representing an at home care company who announced that she was visiting to get some information because David was being released soon.  Now, soon is relative, but I was a little shocked and surprised that this would be how the topic would be brought up, and she didn’t have any details or further information.  I guess we will find out tomorrow.  I hope they don’t tell me at 1:30pm that David would be home by 3pm!  Maybe 5pm would be better!!

Wednesday, September 26

Today was the two month anniversary of the stroke, and it was a very quiet day.  I got to 106th Street later than usual because I needed to get my hair cut, and finally found a moment to do it.  David approved of the cut.  When I got to the room, he was working with Siobhan and she said it went really well.  David just rolled his eyes.  He doesn’t believe it when we tell him how well he is doing.  He wants more.  I don’t blame him.

We sat and talked for a while, then off to Physical Therapy.  Minet is off today, so we had a substitute, who was good.  David did some walking and standing, and worked on stamina for standing.

We didn’t have any visitors and didn’t go outside because the weather was threatening, but worked on the letters, and pictures.  Then, I walked home.  Down Central Park West.  There is some event happening on the 29th, or so the signs say.  Anyway, and early night and on to tomorrow.

Tuesday, September 25

Daniel's Hippo hugging Theo's Hippo!
Daniel’s Hippo hugging Theo’s Hippo.

Another quiet day at the Jewish Home. The word for the day was “bacon”. When presented with the letter “R”, David’s response was “Bacon?” And on many other requests, it was the same, “bacon”. A few days ago, it was “baseball”. Maybe it is the “B”?

Our meeting with the social working is at 1:30pm on Friday, so I will have lots of news (I hope) to give on Friday night. When I got to David this morning, he was working with Yvette on OT, and Chrissie McHenry was with him. She brought my favorite book, “Go, Dog, Go”, for Theo and an adorable hippo (the same one that her son Daniel chewed on) that we are to keep with us for when he can visit, or we can bring it to him on our first visit. Thanks Chrissie!

Chrissie left to go to Queens for work, and David worked with Siobhan on speech, and it went well. and then we waited for Minet and Physical Therapy, which was supposed to happen earlier than usual, but didn’t start until later than it normally did. After PT, we went out to the garden, and did some work on the letters, etc. We then had a bit of an argument about which comedy scene best offered a view of what David would sound like when the tried to talk – the episode of Ellen when she was interpreting a deaf production of “Romeo and Juliet” or Steve Carrel in “Bruce Almighty” when he is doing the newscast, and is having gibberish fed to him. Both are very funny and we watched, but need some help deciding. I will put the links below and encourage you to watch both and give me your input!

Ellen:

“Bruce Almighty”

We had a good time watching them again and laughing, and I remember when we watched both of these the first time and laughed almost to tears.

Monday, September 24

I hitched a ride with Liza this morning, and we got up to 106th Street after fight some mid-town traffic due to the UN opening and all the rigamarole associated with it!  The city has been quite the zoo for the past few days.  The other night, when I was walking home (I walked again tonight, which may become my M.O. for this uptown stay) down Madison Avenue (it is far less crowded than Fifth Ave), I saw three men in dark suits approaching who shooed me to the side of the side walk, along with other folks, around a single couple who were window shopping.  I didn’t look too close at who they were, but it was one of those classic New York moments.  Really?  I can’t walk down the sidewalk because someone who is more important would like to do some window shopping? Really?

Anyway, I digress.  We got uptown, and had a nice visit with David and then off to Occupational Therapy.  Yvette did some work with the sonogram to get the muscles in his elbow stimulated, which was fine, and then did some weight bearing on his right elbow.  We then bade Liza farewell.  Then Speech Therapy with Siobhan, and eating for an audience with Melinda.  During the speech session, I headed out and was hoping to get some pad thai, but their kitchen didn’t open until noon, so got some sandwiches from a VietNamese place that was quite good.

After eating, we found out that PT would be a half hour late, so we went to the garden.  It was a little cooler today, so we had to go into the sunlight.  We stayed out for about 3/4 hour, and then headed up to meet Minet for PT.  Did some walking and some work on the strengthening his right knee and leg extension.  He did well, but still needs to be able to extend his right let and not let it buckle.

Then it was back to the room.  David insisted I try to grab a few ZZZZ’s in his bed, which I did for about 20 minutes.  he also insisted I tell you all about the noises that we hear in the hall.  Like the lady down the hall who was screaming as we were going to the garden, who was bellowing “Help!!! Tell someone that I am supposed to be on the fourth floor!!!!” over and over and over again.   We are on the fourth floor, but I didn’t want to burst her bubble.  And the lady next door, who is so belligerent with the aides, that I begin to understand why some of them are surly and rude.  She keeps screaming at the top of her lungs “MISS!!! … MISS!!! MISS!!! … MISS!!! MISS!!! … MISS!!! MISS!!! … MISS!!! MISS!!! … MISS!!! MISS!!! … MISS!!! Is this my pill for my nerves???!!!”  My reply is, “where is the pill for my nerves??!!”  I think that people as they get older don’t really change, they just become more intensely who they have always been, and it is sad, but nobody, except the neighbor’s  irritating daughter comes to visit her.  There are all these very interesting people in the “HOME”, and many of them are very pleasant and inspiring, but the few bad lemons (as I was once described by my typing teacher in HS) seem to make the most profound impression.  There is also the old man who has his leg amputated, who always has a smile, and has the most delightful disposition and his wife is there almost every day, and she also has a very positive attitude.

This brings me to David, who has kept his sense of humor, love of life, and ability to make me feel loved and appreciated throughout the most difficult situations.  It keeps me going every day, and makes every moment worthwhile.

Finally, we had a visit from Pamela Kahn which was great, even in spite of David’s last minute railing at the fact that Pam and Dave didn’t make it to the wedding.  I have tried to explain to him that if he was given the obstacles to getting to someone’s out of town wedding, he would have done the same thing, but he didn’t agree.  Sorry Pam and David, he made me promise I would put this in the blog!  Also, we got a delivery of four folding chairs for the room, but don’t know who sent them.  Please, whoever sent these well needed gifts, let me know so I can thank you!  They will make visits on 106th Street much easier, but also come in handy when David is at home and having visitors!

Sunday, September 23

Ok, Ok, for those of you who caught it, I made a mistake yesterday and jumped the gun.  Today is our anniversary, but as many of you didn’t read my post until this morning – no harm, no foul, right?

Today was a great day.  I arrived at about 11 and David went to Occupational Therapy right away.  He did a lot of core work on balancing and reaching and putting some weight on his right arm.  All good stuff!  We were done just in time to get ready for our FaceTime call with Alex, Claire and Theo.  It was great to see the baby and to chat with Alex and Claire.  After the call, we had lunch and then went to the garden.  It was a beautiful day, and looks like the rest of the week will be an ideal fall in NYC!

When we went back upstairs we were joined by Liza Himmelman from Washington, and she stayed through the day, which was terrific.  As always, she told lots of stories of her life in DC.  We were also joined by Chris Fairchild, Jackie Jenkins and Elke (Science Teacher from UNIS).  Gene, Liz and Quinn visited and brought some terrific croissants.  We didn’t have any physical therapy, which was not great, but David did get a much wanted and appreciated shower, and was in a great frame of mind afterwards.  We then had some dinner, and substituted the sushi that Jackie had brought earlier for the dried out fish that was delivered!  I left after getting David into bed, and walked home.   Walking through Central Park at sunset and twilight is a magical experience, and I would suggest it to everyone!

Well, tomorrow is Monday and it is back to the old grind of all the therapies and arranging things.  Hopefully we will have a meeting with the social worker, therapists and doctors early in the week, and I will post the results!

The happy grooms

Saturday, September 22

Today I made lunch for David before heading uptown. Chicken stuffed with spinach and feta with olives. It was a new recipe and David found it a little dry, so it needs some tweaking, I think. When I arrived, Susan Enzer was with David, and hopefully there will be a bunch coming from UNIS this week after school. David had lunch, and then Joy stopped by, and we went out to the garden where we did some work with the letters. We had some good laughs about some of the interesting things that David says, but also, his reaction to some of the things we would say. It is often hard to distinguish between his not being able to say a letter or word and his mental capacity, so once in a while Joy or I would say something, or explain a word that on reflection was idiotic. For example, he can’t say “well” so you say, you know, where water comes from. His eyes say “Whatta ya think, I’m dumb or somtin’?” He does well with making words from the letters that we give him, but not with pronouncing them or getting the letters right.

After Joy left, we went back upstairs, and talked for a while and listened to music, and sang a little bit. Then he got back in bed, and we did some leg exercises and some work on his arm, then dinner, and I left for home. I walked most of the way home again, which was very nice, but this city is so crowded!

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Friday, September 21

Well, I just came back from Dinner with Gene and Liz, and after I showed this to them, they said, this was really all I needed to post for the evening. Nothing short of miraculous.

 

More progress tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day!

We had visits from Kathleen, who headed back to DC just before the video, and then from Jane and Henry Berliss.
Good Night, and it was a Great Day!

Thursday, September 20

Today I arrived and David was between OT and ST, and I had a moment to talk to his Physiologist who told me that a meeting would be arranged next week for all the therapists and the doctors to talk about his progress, and what we are looking at for going home, etc.  During the down time, we did some work with the letters again, which was great.  I found it oddly funny that when I put the “S” in front of him, he looked at me funny, and turned it right side up.  Now some of you may be thinking, is there really such a thing as an upside down “S”?  There is, and David found this discomforting.  When the speech therapist came, I mentioned this, and she said he did the same thing with her, and she thought it was funny too, but, you know, that is just David.  We also had some funny moments when she was working on a “finish the sentence” exercise.  For reasons that should be clear if you have been reading the blog (and more on that later) he had a particular word on his mind, and was using to the finish many sentences.  My personal favorite was “God bless ________”.  You or I might have said, America or you, but David said toilet.  I am sorry to say, David was irritated by my laughing at that one so much, but I couldn’t help myself.

Then it was lunchtime, followed by PT where he walked again with the bars and a new knee brace and foot support.  He did quite well, and one of the other caregivers mentioned to me on the elevator that he was doing very well.  I asked how his wife was doing, and the story was not so promising.  At the end of the day, it really doesn’t make you feel better to know that there are other folks much worse off than you are.  After PT, Kathleen Stevenson came by again, and we went with David for his afternoon of beauty!  He finally got his hair cut again as well as getting it washed, and he looked great, and I think it made him feel better too.  We then went out the garden, and played some more word games – this time, I gave David tiles with letters and he was to rearrange them into words, and he did quite well.  Then, when asked to pronounce the words, he had more trouble, but practice, practice, practice.  Soon, we were joined by Mary Hall Surface who was in town to see a play.  It was great to see her and hear about how INTERSECTIONS is coming together.

Then we went inside, and during dinner, Susan and Barry Dratel came by.  Susan worked with David at Fieldston, and Barry had a stroke about 13 years ago, and their stories and insights were at once inspiring and daunting.  It is great to see folks who have survived and done well, but also difficult to hear their stories of struggle and work, and see what the lingering effects are.  Barry’s stroke was on the right side of his brain – the opposite of David’s – so his difficulties were very different.  He didn’t lose his speech, for instance, but lost the ability to put inflection in his speech.  Currently, he is able to walk, but has no use of his left arm.  Even with that, last year he got his degree from college.  Bravo!

I will end with just a brief update on the nurses aide situation.  It seems that the same nurses aide was on again last night, and still was not helpful.  I have spoken to them again, and if she is working again tonight, I will hit the roof tomorrow.

Wednesday, September 19

Happy Birthday Alex!

Today was a pretty good day.  When I arrived, David was busy working on his OT, and then we moved on to Speech, and Siobhan is working with him, which made him very happy.  She has a good rapport with him, and I think is very interested in David’s particular problems with speech, so is working extra hard.  He did more of the alphabet with him, and I ran off to arrange for a day of beauty for him – his hair is getting a little long.  He had more PT with Minet in the afternoon, and did well there as well.  Kathleen Stevenson arrived just before the PT and we both sat in on his session.  After his session, we went down to the garden for a little sitting, and Kathleen brought some great gifts – Pom Pom’s for me to cheer David with, some delicious madeleines, some ginger cake and a bottle of grapefruit cologne from Jo Malone – one of David’s favorites!

When we got upstairs, one of the nursing supervisors wanted another statement and kept asking David to tell her, in his own words what happened.  It amazes me that these folks don’t check before coming in to see what the patients status is, and she doesn’t know that he can’t speak.  She then asked me to write my version of what happened, from my point of view, and when I was done, her only concern was, “did I say that he didn’t soil himself?”  I simply added a PS that he didn’t soil himself, but it doesn’t change the fact that he was not taken to the bathroom when he asked to be, and this was not acceptable.  I am hoping that tomorrow I will not hear that this aide was on duty again.