I love Dona's suggestion. Here is is:
"Ok Ladydr, a small suggestion to give Bill a chance to have a few more days to finish and recover. He does a lot to listen to us whine/complain and takes the time to respond to each of us. So, what about if all of us posters sign in again with who we are, where we are from, how we know Bill...etc? Maybe give some Lurkers/newbies a chance to say hello and give us all a chance to welcome them?
Just a thought.
I am mostly out of ideas at the moment, which is why I can't seem to come up with a post on my own blog! :)"
Who wants to go first?
About Me
- William J.
- First, I think the birth sign is wrong. 6-21, some papers say Gemini, some Cancer. Guess that means I have so many personalities that I can do group therapy alone. For those that don't know how to read Google profiles I have put what I really mean in ( ). Hot (Good looking enough to be in movies(if I buy at ticket). A body like a God (Buddha). Romantic (Thinks begging is foreplay.) Physically fit (Heart trouble. Put 911 on speed dial before we get initmate.) Good Provider (has good life insurance in case you forget to put 911 on speed dial.) Loyal (has reference letters from Mom and parole officer.) Intelligent (scored 1600 on his SATS but you have to total the scores of the four times that I took the test.) Looking for someone compatible (Be between 30 & 99 and not inflatable.)
12 comments:
Oh, okay, I'll jump in. I live in Burbank, CA. I'm now almost 8 years retired from being a film and tv music editor. Over the years, I cut everything -- picture, sound, even negative, but for the last 20 years, it was mostly music.
It's hard to believe I've been retired for so long. The time has flown by, taken up more than anything by my now 103 year-old mother. She is currently living in a small facility less than a mile from my house, so I visit daily. She was in hospice for a while, but got kicked out because she clearly doesn't plan on dying anytime soon. Currently, she's doing well, though she can no longer walk and is suffering from dementia. She's generally calm and responsive to attention and seems as contented as one with no memory can be. The chef there tells me she's his "best eater".
Other than mom things, I run one book group and attend another. I volunteer at the library's used bookstore and take excursions with friends around the area to see new art shows and various things of interest. This week, I'm working on a local election for City Council, my one attempt to be civic-minded.
I met Bill oh-so-many years ago in an online discussion group on Compuserve. We've met in person a time or two when that group had "Netstock" get-togethers, and I consider Bill one of my best friends, however geographically challenged we may be.
I met Bill in the same Compuserve group that Pat did and thoroughly enjoyed the face-to-face times we've spent (especially a group dinner with the best creme brulee in Portland).
As for me, my husband and I live in Davis, CA (near Sacramento). I am retired from regular work, but I'm a part-time theatre critic and write articles on theatre stuff for the local paper.
We raised five kids here in Davis and now finally have a grandchild, Brianna Lee, who was born a year and a couple of weeks ago and is, of course, the most beautiful baby in the world.
I also foster dogs for the SPCA, especially puppies who need bottle feeding. Right now we have six dogs here, our own two, a 3 month old Shepherd mix who will eventually end up with our daughter & her husband in Boston, and the 3 "Royal puppies" -- Princess, William and Harry -- who used to be hairless, but who are now finally cured of their skin condition and are starting to be fuzzy.
My mother is 90 and having some health issues, so I have been spending more time with her lately. I also have lots of cousins, but 2 of them and I have invented "Cousins Day" where we get together with my mother for "sleep-overs" once a month.
Well Gee, I'll bite.
Hello I am Dona, I came to Bill's blog by way of a blog called SymplyAmused. I Curiously Lurked for a while as the "caring for elderly parents" part in Bill's title, intrigued me as I am and have been doing just that for a few years now.
I have found a few folks here I feel as I can call "friends", as I have felt all alone for years now because of entering into the life of caregiver. I find here that I am not alone.
I find that being a middle child comes with all sorts of issues and by being a part of this blog I have found I am not alone.
I find that I can come here and whine/complain/joke and gripe about my siblings not involving themselves and just tell things the way they are and not be judged. After caring for and living through the death of my mother and now trying to deal with all sorts of silly issues with my dad I needed just that. Somewhere to say things that I feel while dealing with life as best I can as a caregiver.
I honestly never knew that I was not alone until I found this blog.
Next... Like Pat and Bev, I met Bill years ago in a Compuserve forum and met him face-to-face in CO, when we shared a ride from the airport. I can attest that rumors about him being an ax murderer are highly exaggerated. We've corresponded ever since and when he started his blog for caregivers, I was delighted to find, as Dona says, I wasn't alone in my frustrations.
I live on the back side of Paris Mtn, just outside Greenville SC, have a freelance editorial business I've run for twenty years, teach water aerobics twice a week at Furman University's Ollie program and do a line dance class once a week, which saves my sanity. Love to garden, although that's been sadly neglected the last few years.
Mom will be 90 next month. She moved down here five years ago and within six weeks we discovered she had 5 heart blockages and she went in for heart surgery. Been a bit of a roller coaster every since, with one health issue after another, from diabetic complications to macular degeneration going wet in both eyes and her eyesight failing at the same time her mobility has become marginal, due to her not having knee replacements done ten years ago, when recommended, combined with arthritis. My husband is an absolute saint, dealing with Mom and with all the time I spend with her. When Bill told me he'd started this blog, it was such a blessing to find others dealing with the same or similar issues, frustrations and the need to vent about everything from time for oneself to distanced (sometimes directive-without-information) siblings to trying to cope with a bit of role reversal and all the bits and pieces of caring for an elder parent who is equally frustrated by their inabilities and at the same time unwilling to do things that would make life better. It appears I *may* be passing the torch to youngest sister, who's widowed and doesn't like living alone, but when, how and to what extent this may happen remains a case of much waffling and vascillation at the moment. When I remember to apply the mantra of "observe, accept, don't judge, don't force," life is much easier. I don't always remember, as folks here are well aware (wry s).
I live in Chattanooga, TN. I retired in 1986 when we moved here - I worked as office manager and secretary for a group of orthopedic surgeons. Then I went back to college (after originally starting in 1953) and got two degrees - BA in Art and BFA in Painting.
In the meantime, we raised four daughters, who married (one divorce), and produced 6 grandchildren. We now have a granddaughter-in-law, and lots of grand-pets.
John (my husband of 53 years) and I travel every chance we get, read, computer, take photographs, work word puzzles. I paint in watercolor and acrylic and write a blog.
I think I got to Bill's blog on a reference from Bev Sykes' blog, which I found from the now-defunct SeniorNet. It's all been fun - and we meet such neat people!
Hi,
I'm the SymplyAmused who intriqued Dona into reading this blog. I'll be 47 in a little less than two weeks and not so sure I want to be.
As a few might know, I have a 21 year old mentally challenged daughter and a brand new Grandbaby (girl) named Caylee Stella. The Kidlet, as I call the 21 year old, keeps me busy and I constantly have sitter issues. Fortunately, I found a new sitter today and we will see how it goes (again).
I am also attending online classes for my Bachelor of Business which leaves me no free time anymore. I rarely get to post to my blog or visit online friends on AOL.
Oh, I forgot to mention I live in Texas, a state that I love very much. That's my life in a nutshell... Hiya, Bill!!!
What fun, folks posting a recap of who they are and what they're doing. Great idea, Dona! C'mon, the rest of you.
Bill and Mary ... I know it's not quite five o'clock there, but I sincerely hope you're breathing a huge sigh of relief by the time you read this and planning for a couple of days to decompress. You've certainly earned it!
I live in Singapore with my husband and two dogs, and I found my way here through Bev Sykes at funnytheworld.com (and I found Bev through a friend on my dog e-list).
I guess I kept coming back because of the common theme of caring for elderly parents and also the tremendous support here.
My dad has ongoing problems with his heart (he had a double bypass two years ago and a pacemaker inserted) and Parkinson's (which has affected his ability to swallow, and hence can only handle nectar consistency diet). Last month, he fell and had to have a hip replacement. So it has been a constant stream of dealing with one problem after another.
While I don't live with my parents, it has been a bit exacting on me as I'm an only child.
That's why I've been so grateful for the moral support and positive vibes here.
You guys are the nicest folk I've never met.
Hello Everyone
It has been a real treat reading about all of you. Thank you for watching over my blog while I've been gone. You all are a treasure. I've always said what makes a blog isn't the host, it is the posters. That is why the blog has grown from no hits a day to an average of 40 and on some days over a 100. It has grown because of the posters and what they write not because of me and what I write.
My name is Bill and I live in Sherwood, Oregon. I started this blog after caring for my dad who dad dementia. Within a month after dad died mom had her second of four heart attacks and the caregiving never stopped. Within six months mom had a heart surgery where they implanted six stents, which was a record for a woman her age. I've now been caring for an elderly parent in some fashion since 2001 with the only support from my sister and her husband.
I started the blog mainly because I found no support for caregivers where you could just vent if you wanted to. I also started a blog to go out of my comfort zone, that of being a private person with both my thoughts and my life. It was a huge step for me. Thank you all for being so accepting.
As to me I am a CPA, a published author, a brother, a son, a friend, an award winner for donating time to help a variety of charities, a wannabe comedian, and a wannabe husband if I could just find a breathing woman that would have me.
As to how I connected with everyone that posts her and I certainly hope I don't forget anyone:
Pat, DR, Bev, Mary, Sian, and Ellen I met in the Women's Issue's Section of a forum on CompuServe. I've met them all in person. Pat is well known for U-Turns, Mary for Boxes of Wine, DR for braving the elements and getting in the car with a suspected axe-murder, Bev for being a mentor to all of us bloggers and for to many things to list here, and Sian is known for all around good humor about living on a small island, Ellen is noted for cuting to the chase and giving advise when it is needed.
In a chat room on AOL I trusted Symply with telling her I had a blog and that lead to a new friendship with Dona which brought Kim to the blog. Symply was definitely a great person to trust!
Dona I refer to as Dona Delightful and Kim while our politics may be different has been one of the most supportive on the blog. She was the first one to encourage me to take comedy classes.
Lisa that posts here once a while with her wicked humor I met on The Dancing With Stars Message Board and was honored to spend an afternoon with her when her travels brought her to Portland.
I was floored when I checked my site meter and there was a visit regularly from Singapore. That really intrigued me. I was so pleased when Snug introduced herself. Now we won't let her leave.
Mary Z was one of the first ones not from CompuServe that posted on my blog, she came through Bev's blog. Very artistic and another cut to the chase person that I adore.
I don't know how Red Whistle found the blog but she is roughly from the same area that I live in and loves movies! Boy can I relate! I was pleased when she just started posting again.
If I forgot someone I sincerely apologize in advance. Thank you all for being there for me.
Bill
I forgot one of my favorite people in the world and my mentor on several things.
Kaye hasn't posted for a while. She takes care of her Mom, has a full time job, and a jewelry business.
I met her on a chat room on AOL and we have swapped stories for years!
Bill
I am posting late, because like Bill, I do taxes. I am sitting here tonight in my recliner, exhausted, with huge black circles under my eyes. Seriously, I don't think I've ever looked so bad. I have worked 70 hours in the last five days, and that counts Easter with only six hours.
I am married to a very patient man, live north of Seattle, have three children ranging from 11 to 19, a house, four younger brothers and love to travel. My parents are 83 and 76, but I am so fortunate that they are still healthy and self sufficient. Not so lucky that they refuse to even consider downsizing from their 3000 square foot home and 1/2 acre lot while they can still make their own choices.
I think I met Bill on Compuserve back around 1993, and consider myself so lucky to know him.
Hi Mary
CONGRATULATION FOR SURVIVING!!!
Bill
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