Day 157 of Sheltering In

Monday. Regarding where my daughter lives...there is oversight..OIG (Office of the Inspector General.) My daughter has seen 3 housemates file complaints and it appears nothing happened after OIG staff met with them. My daughter is all set to move into the new apartment complex about 2 miles from my home, we are just awaiting the final work to be done and the building inspector to approve the complex for habitation. I can’t have that screwed with. That is something that takes a long time to earn and a long time to actually get into an apartment. There are waitlists and my daughter is at the top of the list and has been assured multiple times that she will get one of the new apartments. She actually reached the top of the list last year, but had she taken a different apartment she could not transfer to one of the newly built apartments. As was recommended to her by the Director and Asst Director, she should wait for the new apartments to be built and finished, and she will get one.

I have and will continue to advocate for my daughter with the Director and Asst Director when my daughter’s attempts to advocate for herself don’t work out as they should. When my daughter recently had a medical issue, she called me from the back of a paramedic vehicle moments before I was going to call. Staff jerked her around even though she had called her insurance 24 hour nurse hotline who told her she needed to go to the ER. I also won’t hesitate to call the police if any member of my family is attacked by Nutjob.

In 💩 news, Nutjob has to stay at the group home during the day because she may have the coronavirus. She was tested today. She’s coughing. That doesn’t mean she has it. I cough all the time because I have allergies and post nasal drip. I doubt she has it, but I told my daughter any time she leaves her bedroom she has to wear a mask. 

I took my car to the body shop recommended by my insurance. I don’t like them. I took my Pilot there for a 2nd opinion after repairs were supposedly done and they told me I needed a new tailgate, even though the tailgate had already been replaced. So you can understand my trepidation at having them repair the paint on my Buick. I got the emailed estimate and I don’t for a minute believe it. First of all, it appears many of the scratches from the keying Friday were not listed on the estimate. Second of all, the estimate is for $130.00 (2.6 hours labor to buff out the scratches). The guy told me if they buff it out and accidentally go through the clear coat it will be more money. Ummm, you make a mistake you pay for it, not me. Also, we pointed out other scratches not from Friday’s incident, like my stupid side swiping the cement posts at a gas station less than a month after I bought it. (I thought I had taken care of that but they have reappeared. Obviously I don’t know what I’m doing.) And there were other scratches. If it’s under the $500 deductible and we told you about those scratches and you took photos of those scratches, then include them in the darn estimate! If I have to pay for this and it’s all just buffing and polishing, then do every darn scratch on the Buick. Just take care of them all! It’s on me anyway. Call it punishment for being a dumbash for not just leaving Walmart, leaving J Town and shopping somewhere somewhat safer. I got some payments refunded because I qualify for a special program, so I can just throw that money at it. I plan on keeping the Buick at least as long as the Pilot (15 years and counting), so I want to take good care of it. Until I win the lottery, that’s my plan.😉

PT was today. M was my physical therapist. She is just always brutal! A bunch of new exercises. Some pretty heavy strength building. Which is good for my L shoulder, but I’m not anywhere near ready for the R shoulder. I can feel the burn in my forearms. M told me next visit they will add working on my R knee again. I can’t wait! 

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2020

Day 156 of Sheltering In

Sunday. Since I’m going to complain about my daughter’s group home, I noticed I left something out of day 155. They got no morning medications at all. NONE. That is the second time this month that Saturday morning medications were not given to the clients. Tonight Nutjob reported to my daughter that she didn’t feel right and wanted to walk to the hospital. Not really walking distance and staff ignored her distress, so my daughter got her to calm down, they got their night medications 1/2 hour early, and Nutjob went to bed. It’s no wonder her housemate wasn’t feeling right. A person cannot skip their psychiatric medications. This is not good. I’m so glad my daughter had a lock put on her bedroom door. (She requested it from the Director close to a year ago.) That doesn’t stop the screaming, but headphones help with that.

Today the staff person sat in her car from 10am until a short time before we arrived at 1pm. So that would be 2-3 hours in her car not doing her job. We hadn’t planned the visit, but since there was no one answering at on call or the supervisor over team leads and house staff, we decided to pay a surprise visit, hoping to catch the staff person still in the car so we could snap a photo, and hoping that our mere presence would get her out of her car and into the house to do the job she is paid for. We ended up having a short visit with my daughter. It was just too hot out to stay very long. (We are required to have masked, socially distanced visits outside only.) I also dropped off the worksheets my daughter had me print for her.

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2020

Sunday Stealing-What’s to Eat?

Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. (Past hosts include: Our first - Judd Corizan, Mr. L, Kwizgiver and Bud) Cheers to all of us thieves!  

Stolen from Mantelligence

1. How old is the oldest expired thing in your refrigerator?

I have no idea.

2. What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever done on a date?
Hurried home so I could go out on a second date with someone else, then hurried home so I could go on a third date with someone else. Not kidding. I didn’t have much time for myself when my kids were young, so when their dad took them for the weekend I crammed in a lot of living those 2 days. It also helped me quickly weed out the crazies. And there were crazies! I once met a woman at a coffee shop. After the coffee and her chat were done I went to make my exit. The woman said ‘you don’t want to go on another date with me, do you?’ Then she burst into tears. She talked about her ex the entire time. I couldn’t get a word in. Sooo many other crazies

3. What animal most closely resembles your eating style?

I don’t know that I have an eating style.

4. Have you ever sent someone a text you didn’t mean to?

Yes. I don’t recall anything particularly embarrassing. Just awkward.

5. If you could learn any language fluently, which would it be?
Spanish and American Sign Language.

6. Would you rather be bald or covered head to toe with hair?
Bald. I keep my hair quite short, so bald would be no big deal. When I had radiation treatment I was convinced I was going to lose my hair and got a super short cut. I told myself if it started to fall out I was just going to shave it all off the minute I noticed my hair was falling out.

7. Do you think you’re brave?
I’m sure other people might think I am. I’ve gone through a lot.

8. What horror fiction character scares you the most?
I used to watch horror movies in my late teens, early twenties. “Nightmare on Elm Street”, “Halloween”. I haven’t watched them since. I don’t care for that genre. I don’t like “Chuckie”. Too creepy. Surprisingly I did watch “Santa Clarita Diet”, but I think Drew Barrymore helped get me through that.

9. What food do you crave more than any other?
Chocolate. Since the pandemic...carbs. Any kind of carbs. 

10. Which holiday would you erase from the calendars, if you could?
I dunno. I kind of like them all. They were a nice break when I was working.

11. What’s the most clever word you know?
I can’t think of one right now. I’ll come back and edit this if I come up with one, because I’m sure I know at least one.

12. Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?
Pass. 

13. What do you collect that nobody knows about?
I can’t think of anything. When my daughter was little I collected small bear figurines. 

14. Have you ever eaten only candy for dinner?
I probably have. Probably when I first moved to Chicago, in my own apartment for the first time, I’m sure I’ve done it. Can’t get away with that now. My son eats all the candy.

15. Have you ever taken anything illegally across a border?
Not that I am aware of.

16. Have you ever blown your nose in anything other than a tissue?
A fast food napkin, or an actual handkerchief. Remember those? My Mom used to iron my Dad’s handkerchiefs.

17. Are you a good time manager?
Not lately. The day just gets away from me and next thing I know it’s 4pm, or 5 pm.

18. Has life been hard on you?
More than I care to say.

19. What is the absolute worst song in the world?
You had to ask...

20. What is your culinary specialty?
My specialty is cooking restaurant food at home. Dishes I’ve eaten at a variety of restaurants. Indian, Mexican, Italian, Greek, Puerto Rican, and more. This week I made Italian...Baked Eggplant Parmesan Lasagna, and Indian...Chicken Tikka Masala and Aloo Gobi. Last month I made Chinese...Shrimp Egg Foo Young, Crab Rangoon, Kung Pao Chicken. I haven’t made Char Siu Pork in awhile, so I think that will be coming up. I also make sushi rolls (nothing raw...smoked salmon or smoked whitefish, and a variety of maki’s and veggie rolls.) If we have a taste for something we normally would dine out for, I find a recipe on Pinterest and make it at home. It used to be to save money, but since the pandemic it’s so we have a variety of meals because we can’t eat out.

Lola’s Diner cc   2008-2020

 

Day 155 of Sheltering In

Saturday. I never left the house. I accomplished 2 things.

1.) I printed off the worksheets my daughter wanted for use while she is continuing to shelter in place and not go to day program because of her asthma and other underlying conditions. I have a few other surprises for her, I just need to finish researching on Amazon and pull the trigger on buying either a book or DVD’s for beginner guitar lessons. I thought now would be the perfect time (until she gets her apartment in the community), for her to learn how to play the guitar she wanted a couple years ago. It’s stowed away safely in my attic. During the day she is the only one at the group home, except for some staff that come and go on the first floor. She can be on the 2nd floor and won’t be bothering her housemates because they will be at day program. If she follows through, this will also be bonus points for day program. 

If anyone can recommend a book or DVD’s for learning acoustic guitar, please leave the details in the comments. TIA!

2.) I made another batch of Aloo Gobi since my wife cooked the remainder of the chicken in the tikka masala sauce.

That’s it. I did nothing else. I can’t even bring myself to go outside to see my Buick in the driveway all scratched up. I can’t. Why can’t I have anything nice? I’m a good person. I’m always doing nice things for my daughter’s housemates, for my kids, for my wife. I’m just so very angry with myself for not just leaving Walmart and going to a different store for the few groceries I was picking up. Had I got in my Buick and left, instead of parking on the total opposite end of the parking lot, my Buick’s paint wouldn’t be all jacked up.😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰😰

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2020

Day 154 of Sheltering In

Friday. Doctor visit was good. No mention of pandemic weight gain. It was 4.4 pounds. My a1c was down 1.1. I get to stop one of my diabetes medications. I have no idea how this all happened. I’ve been craving carbs the entire pandemic and eating them. My son rocked it! He lost 19 pounds. But he does have to alter his diet because his uric acid was high. 

My son and I did a porch drop at my daughter’s group home. We packed up 2 servings of the Baked Eggplant Lasagna I made. We’re bad! We had a plastic Burger King bag. We put the container in the bag. The entire time she talked to us she kept asking what was in the bag. We wouldn’t say, we wanted it to be a surprise when she got upstairs to have lunch. She called us after she heated a portion. Much better mood. My son and I talked...what if we would have said we had BK last night and got extra sandwiches?

That’s where the good day ends. I am sick. My Buick has been keyed over 1/2 the car. I had moved it and parked by a light pole with a sign that said “CAMERAS IN USE”, but I doubt the J town PD has time to review video at Walmart. Even if they were to track down the woman that did this she won’t have the money for repairs. As the policeman said, ‘oh, it was a hooptie van”. Yup, minivan with dents and rust all over where she alleged I whipped my door open. I did NOT! For cripes sake why would I whip the car door open on my pristine Buick? She was trying to get cash out of me cuz I drove a nice car. She was sitting in her minivan probably waiting for some dumb schlub like me. I moved my car to the opposite end of the parking lot and parked where it was posted there were cameras. Apparently she drove around and found my car and keyed it up. This is just one of the sections:

(The orange spot is not rust, in fact it’s not on the car. It must have been a weird shadow because the sun was  causing shadows in other spots.)

I reported it to the police, my insurance and have an appointment Tuesday at a body shop. I know this shop, they are going to give a ridiculously high estimate, claiming all the scratches are deep and the area is extensive. The policeman said he thinks all of the scratches can be buffed out and polished. I can’t do stuff like that anymore. I need to find a guy who does good work and would do this on the side for cash. We’ll call or drive over to our mechanic and talk to him. We haven’t been by since we picked up the minivan. He probably misses us. 😉

I’m staying out of J town. On the way home a dog ran across the main street, about 4 car lengths in front of me. I slowed down and stopped because the dog was just wandering. The white Jeep in the lane next to me was driving over the speed limit and not slowing down. I kept honking my horn until the Jeep slowed down and stopped. Several people in both directions got out of their cars to try to get the dog. The probable owner had a leash and was having a hard time getting him. They finally got the dog and vehicles resumed driving.

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2020

Day 149-153 of Sheltering In

Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. Monday was my first PT day since last Monday. Medicare denials for PT kept me from my Wednesday appointment. I walked into PT and I just about got a round of applause. “M” couldn’t believe I got the denial reversed. She kept asking me what I did. I just called my insurance, it had already been reversed 🤷🏻‍♀️. “J” had returned from vacation the previous week but it was his first day back at the location I go to. He showed me a glorious photo he took of the sunset in the Rocky Mountains. He cracks me up. He told me that he’s making it his goal to get both my shoulders range of motion and strength so improved that I can do the YMCA dance with him...with the arm movements making the letters! I was sure my gaydar was working when he told me before his vacation the “outfit” he bought for his trip. A flag patterned bib overall shorts. White, with Stars and Stripes. Now when he mentioned the song, that just made the odds higher that I was right. He’s a young man, early 20’s, so I’m thinking most guys his age don’t know the Village People song or the movements. Doesn’t matter, whether he is or isn’t, he’s funny as hell and I’m really going to be sad when my time at PT is done. But I can’t wait for the day my arms are strong enough to make those letters! 

Tuesday my son and I grocery shopped for the 2 meals I have been wanting to make. I made one Tuesday and the other Wednesday. Both with leftovers for another night each. First was Baked Eggplant Parmesan Lasagna. It was so good. I even had a bottle of Lambrusco, so I had🍷 with dinner. I haven’t had it in forever, delicious.

Wednesday night I made Chicken Tikka Masala and Aloo Gobi. It’s been too long since we’ve had Indian food. It was delicious. Enough to have dinner Friday.

Thursday was PT. “N” was back and he was making funny and torturing me in new ways. 4 new exercises. We also talked Netflix movies we’ve watched. He talked more about his younger brother on the autism spectrum, who works part time at McD’s. “M” was still carrying on about my getting approved so far out for PT. I swear she’s going to keep trying to get it out of me what magic I worked, yet I have no idea! 🤷🏻‍♀️We had leftover Eggplant Parmesan Lasagna for dinner and had enough to pack up a surprise dinner for my daughter. Thursday was the first day of day program. My daughter has a doctor note that excuses her until 09/30, due to her underlying conditions. She will be doing the worksheets they send home, and I’ve been finding things for her to do. We will make a surprise porch drop on Friday. My wife wants her to come on a home visit. She thinks that will improve my son’s behavior. (I don’t think it’s that bad, it’s certainly been a lot worse. This is just the longest they have ever been apart and it shows in both of their mental health.) It just kills me inside when one of them breaks down and cries. I want to also, but I can’t. I have to be the parent and get them back on track. The visit would have to be for 2 weeks, then a negative Covid-19 test before she can go back to her group home. I want her to get her work LOA extension taken care of before any home visit. When that’s taken care of I am going to surprise her by making all of the arrangements.

Friday my son and I have appointments with our PCP to go over blood work we had Tuesday. Neither one of us are looking forward to it. We each snuck on the scale after our blood work. I gained a couple of pounds since my last visit, but I’m supposed to be losing weight. I think if I pass off my wallet, phone, keys, and remove my sneakers it may just show I maintained the same weight, or lost a pound. Lol! I only weigh at my PCP and I always empty my pockets and take off me shoes. My wife gained 15 pounds over the pandemic and has some kind of kidney issues. She’s going back for blood work next week. She’s supposed to be eating veggies and beans high in magnesium, I bought several, but she ate them once. The quit smoking bag of supplies is still stapled shut and she’s talking about going to the tobacco store tomorrow. That’s not a battle I’m picking. As I think I mentioned before, this is the 3rd round of quit smoking supplies. I don’t like it, but 🤷🏻‍♀️. There’s just too much chaos going on without the quit smoking fight.

Lola’s Diner cc.  2008-2020

Sunday Stealing-From Friday Five

August 16, 2020

Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. (Past hosts include: Our first - Judd Corizan, Mr. L, Kwizgiver and Bud) Cheers to all of us thieves!

 

Stolen from Friday Five

 

 

 

1. What makes it easy to talk to someone?
Sometimes it’s just circumstances. Obviously if you’re in a hurry someone else is going to have a hard time talking to you and vice versa.  

2. Have you ever had a great conversation with a complete stranger?
I don’t know that I’ve had a great conversation. Most are quite boring. Sometimes they are very interesting. It’s amazing the intimate details people divulge when waiting in line for an hour. Once in Black Friday in line at Target an hour before they opened I learned all about the woman in front of me and her family. I learned her son was going to propose to his girlfriend. Never saw this woman before or after that day. I guess she just needed to brag on the fact that her son was proposing.

3. Do you like to argue?
I don’t like to argue. However, if it has anything to do with either of my adult special needs kids, I will argue like a professional.

4. Some people like to talk about things, and some people like to do things. Which are you?
I think with our current situation, the pandemic, it’s much easier and safer to talk about things rather than do things. Also, if one doesn’t have the money to do the things, sometimes talking about them is the next best thing.

5. Who is easier to talk to – men or women?
I rarely have the opportunity to talk to a man who isn’t an in-law, or my mechanic. Lol! Gay men are super easy to talk to, but having moved out of Chicago, and lack of social life (even before the pandemic) it’s hard to run into gay men, or lesbians. The only lesbians I run into are my wife, and my ex and her wife (she’s still involved in my kid’s lives and I tolerate the bs because their dad is an a$$hat. She was a co-parent for almost 8 years, and is a much better human than he is.)

6. What is your favorite place?
Key West, FL. I’ve only been there twice, but I really liked it.

7. What is your favorite place in your home?
Probably my living room on the comfy couch.

8. Would you most want to live in a city, a suburb or the country?
When I was single the city was the place to be. Now I prefer the suburbs, however, I’m really tired of the ladies who lunch. Especially the Karens. I never thought I would dislike living in an expensive suburb. The residents are just like you see them portrayed on tv. Snobs. 

9. What is special about the town you live in?
I have no idea.

10. How much time do you spend in nature?
None, unless you count checking on my raised garden bed.

11. Do you make up a dinner plan for the coming week?
I would like to, but I usually end up planning 2-3 nights.

12. Do you make up a grocery shopping list and stick to it when shopping?
I was doing my list on my phone using the grocery store’s app and my Notes app, but I’m back to paper lists due to not wanting to touch things, then touch my phone, then touch things. I generally stick to the list, unless I see something I missed in the weekly ad, or clearance items. 

13. What is one thing that you always buy, but never write down on a list?
Milk? I don’t necessarily always buy it. 

14. Is there anything that you always think you are out of and come home with it to discover you already have a year’s supply on hand?
For awhile it was eggs. I guess during the holidays, football season, awards season, I tend to make deviled eggs a lot. Now, I’d say refried beans. I’ve switched to taco dip. Lol!

15. Do you get your groceries delivered?
No. I don’t like a stranger picking out my food. I also can’t justify the added expense. My son comes with me and helps me grocery shop.

Lola’s Diner cc   2008-2020