Jack and Marianne Dine Out with Friends

Got another call from "the home," as my parents call their assisted living community. I call it Geezer Palace because it's such a genuinely splendid place for a bunch of crabby old folks to reside. And thankfully there are several very nice people too - Helen, Milt, Charlene, Hank, Lee and Betty, to name a few. The staff is awesome - friendly, funny and extremely caring, which one doesn't always find at these patience-taxing geriatric resorts. The residents need some assistance in their daily living routine, but haven't reached the need for skilled nursing.

This time a staffer called to let me know that Mom and Jack went out to dinner with another couple the other night. This is a couple that still drives, and they were kind enough to invite Mom and Jack to join them for Mexican food. I don't know who ratted on my parents, but somehow the news got to the staff that they shouldn't be leaving the property without a caregiver or a family member to help them get around. Apparently they were a handful for the other couple.

When I asked Mom about this, she told me that she had already received a scolding from the medical services staff and didn't want to hear another one from me. She preferred to discuss the so-so Mexican food and magaritas that couldn't come close in quality to her favorite restaurant, Mi Casa, in Costa Mesa. Then she told me that she had a huge, painful bump on the back of her head from "falling backwards into the car" that night. Oh, and she forgot her cane and had to hang onto the gentleman who drove them, who was also trying to hold onto his girlfriend and my dad. I had to giggle, because then Mom said, "I'm not letting these people tell me where I can and can't go, but I'll be damned if I ever take a ride in a dinky little Lexus again." Sounds like she has come up with a dignified way to accept not leaving the property without me or Norma (our saintly caregiver) or another family member. Bravo.

And because I'm drunk with power (as opposed to a margarita) now that I've discovered how to put photos on this blog, I'll include a picture of Jack and Marianne during a recent visit to the one and only Mi Casa with Gary and me. Hasta la vista.