Poor Sam, she had a hard time last week. It all started when we arrived at the school and she dicovered that her shoes and socks were not in the car..... disaster when you are 11 years old! I phoned the aftercare teacher and asked her to help Sam find a pair in lost property etc. So Sam crept in to the office (in tears and in my old blue stokies) and they took her to find some shoes. Unfortunately they could only find one that fit her - so she put it on and limped out with her other foot in the slipper - telling everyone that her other foot had been stung by a bee!
Whilst having tea with Elsie on Saturday afternoon - Sam came in and announced that she had been stung on the foot by a bee - we laughed and teased her about little white lies coming back to get her! But then... she started going dark red, throat started constricting and she was covered in weals - she had developed an allergic reaction! Luckily Elsie had some anti histamines so we gave her one and phoned our local Dr - he said get her to the emergency pharmacy at Mulbarton Clinic quickly. Well - I pushed my power button in the car - put on my hazards and zoomed along - past other traffic, through red robots and keeping an eye on Sam all the time. Very dramatic. We got to the pharmacy and they took one look and said get her into casualty immediately - onto a bed, connected to a drip and injected! Wow! Now she has to have an injection with her at all time - apparently the more times you get stung the worse the reaction is. At least now we know but it is a worry - there are lots of bees around in Spring!
Friday, October 31, 2008
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Phew - busy week!
Wow - last week went by in a blur and it looks as though this week will be the same!
Sunday - went for the first ride on my new horse Zorro - touted as the most wonderful quiet horse, good for giving you confidence etc - well he hopped, skipped and jumped and trotted like a maniac and would not stop - not quite what I had envisaged. Have cut down on his concentrates to see if that makes a difference - will wait and see!
On Monday night - I went on my first neighbourhood watch patrol - I had forgotten about it until someone ding-donged at the gate to deliver the equipment - bullet proof vests, batons, lights etc. Boy those vests are heavy - once I had one on and was behind the wheel it would have needed a crane to move me! It is not very stimulating I must say. driving around in the dark - Paula and I chatted but there is a limit to how much one can say. Glad when it was 11 and time for the handover. The next session is from 2-5 in the morning so not looking forward to that!
On Thursday It was Elizes matric dance - and we loaded up the carriage and horsebox and drove to Vereeniging - luckily it didn't rain unrtil we were back at the box - having dropped her off at the red carpet! Wow, there were jags, limo's, a model T-ford and us! Womble was a bit hesitant about walking into the crowd of popping flashbulbs and people so Johan led him the last bit. At least Womble is sensible - doesn't leap around and run away - just stands and says " I'm not sure about this.... do I really have to walk on? " Sam dressed to match me and we looked very smart!
Then the next morning it was up with the larks and off to Graaf Reinet for the Alpaca Society AGM. What a really great weekend! Met others at the guesthouse and we all went out to dinner together - very nice place in the Chocolate art gallery - some really lovely pictures that I would have loved to have bought - and lovely food too!
The AGM took up the whole of the Saturday and we had 3 gueast speakers first - bit of a hitch when we could not find a screen but we got one in the end! Then the AGM went smoothly and we finished at 5.30 - a very long day! Lovely to see everybody again and the catering was good.
And then another lovely lovely dinner with fantastic food (and company) at the Kliphuis - highly recommended! A late night!
Sunday - we wento to visit a farm to watch alpacas herding sheep - unfortunately they were more interested in us rather than doing their job but it was interesting to see them anyway - the farms here are enormous - 5000 and 8000 hectares! Then off to see other alpacas on a historical farmstead and I fell in love with a little lamb. As we went into the field all these little bottlefed lambs rushed over to us and when you picked them up they just nestled under your chin and settled down - so sweet.... finally left at 1.30 - a long drive back and home at about 11.30 - but what a wonderful, full, friendly weekend it had been - I am so lucky to meet such people.
Then back to work this week - Lass looks at though she is about to foal at any minute so that is keeping me on my toes. I have my patrol on Thursday (actually Friday) from 2-5 and then Sam is going trick or treating on Friday night - we are a stop off point so we need to decorate the gate as well! Now what happened to that plastic skeleton with the light in its head.....
Look what I found - notes on Eygpt trip - day 1
Time to catch up on Egypt I think even though it seems like a dream now even though it was only 9 days ago! (written when I was in the UK and then lost memory stick)
It was very hard to work on that Thursday – who could concentrate when you were going to be going to Cairo! Off to the airport in 2 kombis, ours went via the back routes to avoid Gilooly’s but we all arrived at the same time. The others had a very interesting driver – he had umpteen wives – one of which was a deflowered nun!
Luckily there were no long queues at the airport so we were very quick through to the other side – apart from Buti – he had too many creams and lotions and potions in his hand luggage so they made him go back and check it in.
Over to our normal spot in the News Café – not the greatest place and the service is AWFUL but there really isn’t much choice, and then we all drifted around doing our final bits of shopping until we boarded the plane. Luckily it was not completely full so Brenda and I had 4 seats between the two of us so were able to get some sleep.
Day 1 : Friday 30th April 2008-06-12
Arrived in Cairo and there was a chap waiting to escort us through immigration and out through the airport – he wasn’t very good as he lost half of us along the way but we all ended up at the right place in the end. Then we met our guide Hashim who escorted us onto the bus, loaded the baggage through the window and then off we ventured into Egyptian traffic. No traffic lights and no lines on the road but because they are not aggressive and give way to each other there are very few accidents. Sounded like Louis Botha – beep beeping all the time from everyone.
We arrived at the Hilton Ramses which unfortunately we could not check into immediately so we sat in the foyer for a while and then went to have breakfast in the Terrace dining room – most amazing chef who could flip omlettes and eggs in a most spectacular fashion!
Then still had time to waste so off we went for a walk along the Nile – necessitated crossing some roads – a frightening task that required nerves of steel and must have given Hashim some worrying moments about his little flock! Then we walked up the road – could not believe where we were!
The buildings in Egypt are quite unique – mostly unpainted and incomplete – apparently if they are complete and painted then they have to pay tax so…. a city full of unfinished buildings (predominantly cement square frames and brick fill).
Hashim was able to get rooms for us at 10:30 and due to people arriving back in the foyer LATE we no longer had time to go to the Mosque and Citadel (due to it being Friday things closed earlier than usual) so all plans changed and we were off to Siddara and Memphis (no Elvis only Ramses II!).
Siddara is one of the oldest pyramids – a step pyramid with a well excavated surrounding, must have been fantastic when it was complete. Very hot and the sand is quite rocky and whitish.
As you can see from my rosy cheeks – it was hot and look at the sandy shoes – originally brown.
The cobras are for security – always shown on the headdresses of the Pharaohs so that they could strike and kill any enemies.
From Siddara one could look across and see the Giza pyramids in the distance, really magical and we saw our first camel.
What was also remarkable was the sudden transition from the date palms to the desert – just a complete cutoff from one to the other.
The we were on the way to Memphis, via a small village which specialised in carpets. Aha, time for me to suss out camel blankets! First of all we watched young girls knot the rugs (I had a go and didn’t do too badly!) and then looked at large looms – beautiful complicated pictures being woven) then upstairs for s complimentary glass of hibiscus tea and we all had to sit and listen to the sales spiel with beautiful silk carpets flashing before our eyes. There was a glorious large silken carpet – only $75 000!
Then it my time for the camel blankets – asking price 3000 EP – I offered 500 – came down to 2000 – still too much so no sale!
Off to Memphis which had an enormous statue of Ramses II, a smaller one, some lionesses and other statues. How on earth did they carve such large perfect statues!
We were all starting to flag a bit by then and so back to the bus and off to lunch – a lovely outdoor restaurant called Andrea’s – beautiful fluffy pitas that we saw being cooked in an outside oven and lots of lovely hummus, tahina and great roasted chicken – also seen on spits outside. Our guide (name) sat with us but did not eat – she has patches on her head – supposed to help her diet a la acupuncture! She is incredibly knowledgeable about Eygptian history.
(And I’m off to the hospital restaurant – tomato soup, roll and an apple – the Executive Athlete team should be proud of me!) Thankfully my debit card allowed me to draw money – was in rather a twizz about it as my credit card was declined at Avis at the airport and I would have been stuck – had to borrow £10 from Dorothy over the road this morning to buy milk!
After lunch – off to a Papyrus factory … a demo of how it was made and then of course the sales talk starts… and of course I fell for it – but only at 200 EP less than they first asked! Will look lovely above our bed.
Back to the hotel for a quick shower and change and Brenda and I went for a quick walk along the bridge – there was a film shoot and we sot involved so some Eygptian TV show will have us strolling along!
Lovely – no crime and no bothersome people – in fact the opposite – all very friendly and welcoming.
Then back to the hotel and up to the 36th floor which has a restaurant with fabulous views of the city.
Then at 6.30 - off to the Sound & Light show at the Pyramids – heralded in by an Eygptian band playing….. bagpipes!
Absolutely magical!
And still not time for bed – off to dinner sailing the Nile in a felucca!
And then it was the end of Day 1 – Wow! We dropped like stones when we finally got to bed – and had an early start planned for the next day!
Day 2 – Alexandria
Up early for a quick breakfast – next casualty – Abraham has a funny tummy – oops! Sonia had been the first and so she now had all the medication as well as Geraldine so we dosed him up and off we went – 200 odd kms off to Alexandria.
Its quite developed along the road – first a techno park and then farming estates – need a lot of money to do that because it takes a lot of time and water before the desert becomes established. Lots of dovecotes and an arab stud – very interesting.
And now I'll have to scratch my brain for the rest of it!
It was very hard to work on that Thursday – who could concentrate when you were going to be going to Cairo! Off to the airport in 2 kombis, ours went via the back routes to avoid Gilooly’s but we all arrived at the same time. The others had a very interesting driver – he had umpteen wives – one of which was a deflowered nun!
Luckily there were no long queues at the airport so we were very quick through to the other side – apart from Buti – he had too many creams and lotions and potions in his hand luggage so they made him go back and check it in.
Over to our normal spot in the News Café – not the greatest place and the service is AWFUL but there really isn’t much choice, and then we all drifted around doing our final bits of shopping until we boarded the plane. Luckily it was not completely full so Brenda and I had 4 seats between the two of us so were able to get some sleep.
Day 1 : Friday 30th April 2008-06-12
Arrived in Cairo and there was a chap waiting to escort us through immigration and out through the airport – he wasn’t very good as he lost half of us along the way but we all ended up at the right place in the end. Then we met our guide Hashim who escorted us onto the bus, loaded the baggage through the window and then off we ventured into Egyptian traffic. No traffic lights and no lines on the road but because they are not aggressive and give way to each other there are very few accidents. Sounded like Louis Botha – beep beeping all the time from everyone.
We arrived at the Hilton Ramses which unfortunately we could not check into immediately so we sat in the foyer for a while and then went to have breakfast in the Terrace dining room – most amazing chef who could flip omlettes and eggs in a most spectacular fashion!
Then still had time to waste so off we went for a walk along the Nile – necessitated crossing some roads – a frightening task that required nerves of steel and must have given Hashim some worrying moments about his little flock! Then we walked up the road – could not believe where we were!
The buildings in Egypt are quite unique – mostly unpainted and incomplete – apparently if they are complete and painted then they have to pay tax so…. a city full of unfinished buildings (predominantly cement square frames and brick fill).
Hashim was able to get rooms for us at 10:30 and due to people arriving back in the foyer LATE we no longer had time to go to the Mosque and Citadel (due to it being Friday things closed earlier than usual) so all plans changed and we were off to Siddara and Memphis (no Elvis only Ramses II!).
Siddara is one of the oldest pyramids – a step pyramid with a well excavated surrounding, must have been fantastic when it was complete. Very hot and the sand is quite rocky and whitish.
As you can see from my rosy cheeks – it was hot and look at the sandy shoes – originally brown.
The cobras are for security – always shown on the headdresses of the Pharaohs so that they could strike and kill any enemies.
From Siddara one could look across and see the Giza pyramids in the distance, really magical and we saw our first camel.
What was also remarkable was the sudden transition from the date palms to the desert – just a complete cutoff from one to the other.
The we were on the way to Memphis, via a small village which specialised in carpets. Aha, time for me to suss out camel blankets! First of all we watched young girls knot the rugs (I had a go and didn’t do too badly!) and then looked at large looms – beautiful complicated pictures being woven) then upstairs for s complimentary glass of hibiscus tea and we all had to sit and listen to the sales spiel with beautiful silk carpets flashing before our eyes. There was a glorious large silken carpet – only $75 000!
Then it my time for the camel blankets – asking price 3000 EP – I offered 500 – came down to 2000 – still too much so no sale!
Off to Memphis which had an enormous statue of Ramses II, a smaller one, some lionesses and other statues. How on earth did they carve such large perfect statues!
We were all starting to flag a bit by then and so back to the bus and off to lunch – a lovely outdoor restaurant called Andrea’s – beautiful fluffy pitas that we saw being cooked in an outside oven and lots of lovely hummus, tahina and great roasted chicken – also seen on spits outside. Our guide (name) sat with us but did not eat – she has patches on her head – supposed to help her diet a la acupuncture! She is incredibly knowledgeable about Eygptian history.
(And I’m off to the hospital restaurant – tomato soup, roll and an apple – the Executive Athlete team should be proud of me!) Thankfully my debit card allowed me to draw money – was in rather a twizz about it as my credit card was declined at Avis at the airport and I would have been stuck – had to borrow £10 from Dorothy over the road this morning to buy milk!
After lunch – off to a Papyrus factory … a demo of how it was made and then of course the sales talk starts… and of course I fell for it – but only at 200 EP less than they first asked! Will look lovely above our bed.
Back to the hotel for a quick shower and change and Brenda and I went for a quick walk along the bridge – there was a film shoot and we sot involved so some Eygptian TV show will have us strolling along!
Lovely – no crime and no bothersome people – in fact the opposite – all very friendly and welcoming.
Then back to the hotel and up to the 36th floor which has a restaurant with fabulous views of the city.
Then at 6.30 - off to the Sound & Light show at the Pyramids – heralded in by an Eygptian band playing….. bagpipes!
Absolutely magical!
And still not time for bed – off to dinner sailing the Nile in a felucca!
And then it was the end of Day 1 – Wow! We dropped like stones when we finally got to bed – and had an early start planned for the next day!
Day 2 – Alexandria
Up early for a quick breakfast – next casualty – Abraham has a funny tummy – oops! Sonia had been the first and so she now had all the medication as well as Geraldine so we dosed him up and off we went – 200 odd kms off to Alexandria.
Its quite developed along the road – first a techno park and then farming estates – need a lot of money to do that because it takes a lot of time and water before the desert becomes established. Lots of dovecotes and an arab stud – very interesting.
And now I'll have to scratch my brain for the rest of it!
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Living rough!
My cousin Julia, in the UK is buying a remote cottage in Scotland - and they are going up there for a weekend:
We are off to Scotland next weekend,Alans brothers(3 of them) are coming also as "working party" to help us cut the grass etc.They wont be doing that much as they have all decided they are going fishing on the Sunday(no stamina these men!) I will be chief cook,that should be interesting as there is only a sink in the kitchen, we are taking a fold up table, microwave and gas burner, should be fun. There is only a coal fire, no central heating so thermal undies required. I am not really one for roughing it so the whole thing sounds a nightmare to me.
We are going to take Mums bed with us on the trailer,if Alan can get it up and running for then- it was a "bargain" but Im not so sure as we have spent loads on new suspension, wheels and various other bits and pieces.
This house buying lark is very stressfull isnt it? the seller in your case
sounds charming. We didnt have to worry about fixtures etc as there werent
any!!
This made me think of our honeymoon!
We went to a cottage on a very remote bit of the Wild Coast - no electricity and an outside loo - had to fish for our food - and boil water to sit in a tin bath - but it was lovely.
Then we went to visit our bestman who had a cottage in Kei Mouth.
Unfortunately he had let it out, so he had a room in the house and we were sleeping in the kombi on thefront lawn. Well, one night we came back having caught a lo vely big brass bream -which Deon announced to the woman of the house and her family that Di would cook and they were invited to dinner.
Having said that he and Johan disappeared to the pub!
Well, this poor womoan kept making helpful suggestions as I nervously slaved away - cursing under my breath, the cherry on the top came when I switiched on the stove forgetting it was gas and then lit it with a tremendous whoosh that took off my eyebrows! Everybody made polite comments about how good the dinner was but I was fuming! (And it really wasn't half as good as it should have been!)
Then we went to the kombi to find that the dogs had been sick all over the bed, we tried to wake Deon by throwing stones at his window and climbing the drain pipe but with no success so had to sleep on the front lawn!
Not the most comfortable and indulgent of honeymoons!
We are off to Scotland next weekend,Alans brothers(3 of them) are coming also as "working party" to help us cut the grass etc.They wont be doing that much as they have all decided they are going fishing on the Sunday(no stamina these men!) I will be chief cook,that should be interesting as there is only a sink in the kitchen, we are taking a fold up table, microwave and gas burner, should be fun. There is only a coal fire, no central heating so thermal undies required. I am not really one for roughing it so the whole thing sounds a nightmare to me.
We are going to take Mums bed with us on the trailer,if Alan can get it up and running for then- it was a "bargain" but Im not so sure as we have spent loads on new suspension, wheels and various other bits and pieces.
This house buying lark is very stressfull isnt it? the seller in your case
sounds charming. We didnt have to worry about fixtures etc as there werent
any!!
This made me think of our honeymoon!
We went to a cottage on a very remote bit of the Wild Coast - no electricity and an outside loo - had to fish for our food - and boil water to sit in a tin bath - but it was lovely.
Then we went to visit our bestman who had a cottage in Kei Mouth.
Unfortunately he had let it out, so he had a room in the house and we were sleeping in the kombi on thefront lawn. Well, one night we came back having caught a lo vely big brass bream -which Deon announced to the woman of the house and her family that Di would cook and they were invited to dinner.
Having said that he and Johan disappeared to the pub!
Well, this poor womoan kept making helpful suggestions as I nervously slaved away - cursing under my breath, the cherry on the top came when I switiched on the stove forgetting it was gas and then lit it with a tremendous whoosh that took off my eyebrows! Everybody made polite comments about how good the dinner was but I was fuming! (And it really wasn't half as good as it should have been!)
Then we went to the kombi to find that the dogs had been sick all over the bed, we tried to wake Deon by throwing stones at his window and climbing the drain pipe but with no success so had to sleep on the front lawn!
Not the most comfortable and indulgent of honeymoons!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Spring is here!
Our first batch of ducklings were hatched on Sunday morning so Spring is definitely here!
Now, to carry on from my last posting - sounds morbid but please plan your funerals and make sure everybody knows what you want them to do with you once you are gone! Cremated, buried? Hymns to be sung, readings to be read? It would really help if we all had a funeral plan as well as a will! having said which I have not done one yet either!
Well, the funeral was 10 days after Mums death, Johan and the kids arrived late on Saturday and the funeral was the following Monday. Funerals in England are a lot more solemn and serious than they are here. Curtains are closed for the entire morning until the hearse arrives and parks outside the house so that the neighbours can show their respect - their curtains are sometimes closed too. As the funeral cortege moves to the church people bow their heads as you pass and old men doff their cap - it all makes it very very sad and respectful. At the church the family were instructed to walk in behind the coffin - that set me off, I cried and sobbed the whole way through thinking of my little mum in that box - it was horrible. David gave a short speech about how we loved out mum and then we went outside to view the flowers. Both mum and dad had had their ashes scattered at Walton Lea which has beautiful gardens.
After the funeral we all went to have tea at the church hall in Great Budworth - Mum used to liove there when she was a child. Well, the caterers did us proud - there was so much food and it was so good it was amazing! The only potential problem was the cousins that hate each others guts (they are sisters) - however they each sat at a different end of the hall and behaved themselves and I made a point of sitting for a while with each. BUT little did I know that Johan and the kids spent more time with one than the other and I was taken to task about this in later days!
After that, it was a matter of putting the house on the market, selling the furniture, packing the clothes in bags for Oxfam etc. In between times we had day trips with the kids - Alton Towers theme park, Artley Hall Spring festival, Blackpool etc so we tried to make it as holidayish as possible - plus we had lots of people to see.
A very special occassion for me was going out to lunch with 3 of Mums friends, they had been friends since they were about 17 and they are all active bright ladies and I got on so well with them - it really brought home to me how horrible and debilitating diabetes is, if it wasn't for that my mum would have had such a better quality of life!
Now, to carry on from my last posting - sounds morbid but please plan your funerals and make sure everybody knows what you want them to do with you once you are gone! Cremated, buried? Hymns to be sung, readings to be read? It would really help if we all had a funeral plan as well as a will! having said which I have not done one yet either!
Well, the funeral was 10 days after Mums death, Johan and the kids arrived late on Saturday and the funeral was the following Monday. Funerals in England are a lot more solemn and serious than they are here. Curtains are closed for the entire morning until the hearse arrives and parks outside the house so that the neighbours can show their respect - their curtains are sometimes closed too. As the funeral cortege moves to the church people bow their heads as you pass and old men doff their cap - it all makes it very very sad and respectful. At the church the family were instructed to walk in behind the coffin - that set me off, I cried and sobbed the whole way through thinking of my little mum in that box - it was horrible. David gave a short speech about how we loved out mum and then we went outside to view the flowers. Both mum and dad had had their ashes scattered at Walton Lea which has beautiful gardens.
After the funeral we all went to have tea at the church hall in Great Budworth - Mum used to liove there when she was a child. Well, the caterers did us proud - there was so much food and it was so good it was amazing! The only potential problem was the cousins that hate each others guts (they are sisters) - however they each sat at a different end of the hall and behaved themselves and I made a point of sitting for a while with each. BUT little did I know that Johan and the kids spent more time with one than the other and I was taken to task about this in later days!
After that, it was a matter of putting the house on the market, selling the furniture, packing the clothes in bags for Oxfam etc. In between times we had day trips with the kids - Alton Towers theme park, Artley Hall Spring festival, Blackpool etc so we tried to make it as holidayish as possible - plus we had lots of people to see.
A very special occassion for me was going out to lunch with 3 of Mums friends, they had been friends since they were about 17 and they are all active bright ladies and I got on so well with them - it really brought home to me how horrible and debilitating diabetes is, if it wasn't for that my mum would have had such a better quality of life!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
The end
Back at the hospital, I thought Mum was asleep so sat next to her and worked on my laptop for a while, also getting to know all the other ladies in the ward – Alice, (x2) Beatrice, Nora and Mavis – a lovely chatty bunch.
I went to speak to one of the doctors to ask whether I could take Mum home – he was an absolute sod, had no interest in the matter, kept flipping though the file which had had aboviously not read and asked what would happen when I went home in 5 weeks time – totally useless and off hand – very unlike the other doctors I had spoken to on previous visists. Anyway – went back and sat at the bedside – the nrsing staff were great – Ian (Mr Ice cream man), and all the others made sure I had lots of tea etc. Mums breathing became heavier and raspy and she still didn’t wake. At lunch time my cousin Linda came in and we went for lunch in the canteen and then she sat with us a while – she had been a tower of strength in all these visits and such a help. She mentioned that on the day her father (my Unclue Eric) had died his breathing had also been very laboured. Sat there a while longer, talking to mum and the other ladies and then at about 6 pm the nurses called me aside to say it was time for the “final pathway” – this meant that all drips etc would be removed, no more medication would be given and death would be imminent. The curtains were drawn around the bed and I sat there holding her hand. At about 8 I had put my head down on the bed and was crying when John Grundy came in and touched me on the shoulder. He had come to see if I wanted a break – he would sit with mum while I went home for a bath – but I said no thanks, I’d stay but we went for some tea together and then he sat with me for at least an hour – such a loving kind person. As he said, nothing can prepare you for this,
.
While we sat there behind the curtains the other ladies prepared to sleep – lots of “night nights” “sleep tight” etc. Then little Alice in the bed next to mum said “why is there a naked man under the radiogram?” the others all chirped up, never mind Alice, we’re here Alice, sleep tight Alice everything is alright” ands she just kept asking why there was a naked man under the radiogram! John and I had a giggle about that! He left at about 11 and I sat there – the night nurse was a lovely person called Sarah who kept popping in to check on me – ask if I’d like tea etc. She was really great and very supportive. At about 3.25 in the morning Mum died, there was the death rattle and after another few minutes her breathing stopped. I sat there and then went to find the nurses to confirm it. After checking and then “laying her out” I sat there for about another hour and then said good night to everyone and went home Mavis in the bed opposite looked so scared when I came out of the curtains – it makes one realise ones mortality and the fragility of life – it was very hard. All the things you wanted to say and hadn’t all the questions you had – now too late. I miss my mum so much and it was so very hard and terrible to sit there.
After a short sleep I started to phone people and let them know, phone the funeral directors, the solicitors, the vicar etc and arrange everyting. Then I drove back to the hospital to collect mums things and say goodbye to all the ladies in the ward and thank the nurses. The horrible doctor was sitting at the desk and did not even look up, say anything to me at all – what a pig!
I went to speak to one of the doctors to ask whether I could take Mum home – he was an absolute sod, had no interest in the matter, kept flipping though the file which had had aboviously not read and asked what would happen when I went home in 5 weeks time – totally useless and off hand – very unlike the other doctors I had spoken to on previous visists. Anyway – went back and sat at the bedside – the nrsing staff were great – Ian (Mr Ice cream man), and all the others made sure I had lots of tea etc. Mums breathing became heavier and raspy and she still didn’t wake. At lunch time my cousin Linda came in and we went for lunch in the canteen and then she sat with us a while – she had been a tower of strength in all these visits and such a help. She mentioned that on the day her father (my Unclue Eric) had died his breathing had also been very laboured. Sat there a while longer, talking to mum and the other ladies and then at about 6 pm the nurses called me aside to say it was time for the “final pathway” – this meant that all drips etc would be removed, no more medication would be given and death would be imminent. The curtains were drawn around the bed and I sat there holding her hand. At about 8 I had put my head down on the bed and was crying when John Grundy came in and touched me on the shoulder. He had come to see if I wanted a break – he would sit with mum while I went home for a bath – but I said no thanks, I’d stay but we went for some tea together and then he sat with me for at least an hour – such a loving kind person. As he said, nothing can prepare you for this,
.
While we sat there behind the curtains the other ladies prepared to sleep – lots of “night nights” “sleep tight” etc. Then little Alice in the bed next to mum said “why is there a naked man under the radiogram?” the others all chirped up, never mind Alice, we’re here Alice, sleep tight Alice everything is alright” ands she just kept asking why there was a naked man under the radiogram! John and I had a giggle about that! He left at about 11 and I sat there – the night nurse was a lovely person called Sarah who kept popping in to check on me – ask if I’d like tea etc. She was really great and very supportive. At about 3.25 in the morning Mum died, there was the death rattle and after another few minutes her breathing stopped. I sat there and then went to find the nurses to confirm it. After checking and then “laying her out” I sat there for about another hour and then said good night to everyone and went home Mavis in the bed opposite looked so scared when I came out of the curtains – it makes one realise ones mortality and the fragility of life – it was very hard. All the things you wanted to say and hadn’t all the questions you had – now too late. I miss my mum so much and it was so very hard and terrible to sit there.
After a short sleep I started to phone people and let them know, phone the funeral directors, the solicitors, the vicar etc and arrange everyting. Then I drove back to the hospital to collect mums things and say goodbye to all the ladies in the ward and thank the nurses. The horrible doctor was sitting at the desk and did not even look up, say anything to me at all – what a pig!
Friday, August 29, 2008
England
Right - I need to start catching up on everything!
As I may or may not have said before, we were planning to go to the UK for the July school holidays and we were planning to take my mum to the james herriot MUseum etc. However, after my previous trip to find a nursing home, Mum just kind of gave up on life. She didn't want to eat and just wouldn't (she had always had an extremely small appetite anyhow) - as a result this threw her diabetes into disorder to nothing was going well and her physical condition was going from bad to worse. On Tuesday 10th June the hospital phoned me to say that she was deteriorating fast. Now I had previously tried to bring my trip a bit forward but the travel agent in the UK assured me that there was no way to change my ticket. So I phoned Flight Connections and asked them to check it out for me. Of course there was no such restriction - I would just have to pay an adjustment fee - they had phoned the agent in the UK who refused to deal with them. So... I phoned her and she told me that she knew more about the conditions of my ticket than I did and it could not be changed. Well, I blew a fuse and all of a sudden, after consulting her manager and the carrier, it could miraculously be changed! However, all the faffing around took time so I had only a couple of hours to rush home, get the kids sorted and pack for myself - no tiem to take Sam to a friend that would be able to take her to school - so she got a couple of days off! Then off I went, dropped my car at Lee's and then off to the airport. Shades of 2005 when dad died and I took the night flight the same day. It is very distressing.
I wandered around Dubai and sat in my favourite spot in the hotel and had a massage and then off to Manchester. Panic when I got there - my credit card payment for the car would not go through! Sorted it out eventually and then off to Leighton Hospital and arrived there at 9 in the evening. Mun looked dreadful, the last time I had seen her she was skinny, but now shes was skeletal and she could not speak legibly but at least she recognised that I was there and tried to communicate with me. Very unsettling was the fact that she could not blink. I sat there until after midnight and then went home to sleep.
The next morning I waited for Bruce to come around as he wanted to speak to me and then off to Leighton again. (will carry on later)
As I may or may not have said before, we were planning to go to the UK for the July school holidays and we were planning to take my mum to the james herriot MUseum etc. However, after my previous trip to find a nursing home, Mum just kind of gave up on life. She didn't want to eat and just wouldn't (she had always had an extremely small appetite anyhow) - as a result this threw her diabetes into disorder to nothing was going well and her physical condition was going from bad to worse. On Tuesday 10th June the hospital phoned me to say that she was deteriorating fast. Now I had previously tried to bring my trip a bit forward but the travel agent in the UK assured me that there was no way to change my ticket. So I phoned Flight Connections and asked them to check it out for me. Of course there was no such restriction - I would just have to pay an adjustment fee - they had phoned the agent in the UK who refused to deal with them. So... I phoned her and she told me that she knew more about the conditions of my ticket than I did and it could not be changed. Well, I blew a fuse and all of a sudden, after consulting her manager and the carrier, it could miraculously be changed! However, all the faffing around took time so I had only a couple of hours to rush home, get the kids sorted and pack for myself - no tiem to take Sam to a friend that would be able to take her to school - so she got a couple of days off! Then off I went, dropped my car at Lee's and then off to the airport. Shades of 2005 when dad died and I took the night flight the same day. It is very distressing.
I wandered around Dubai and sat in my favourite spot in the hotel and had a massage and then off to Manchester. Panic when I got there - my credit card payment for the car would not go through! Sorted it out eventually and then off to Leighton Hospital and arrived there at 9 in the evening. Mun looked dreadful, the last time I had seen her she was skinny, but now shes was skeletal and she could not speak legibly but at least she recognised that I was there and tried to communicate with me. Very unsettling was the fact that she could not blink. I sat there until after midnight and then went home to sleep.
The next morning I waited for Bruce to come around as he wanted to speak to me and then off to Leighton again. (will carry on later)
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