I'm okay!

It's kind of interesting living in a senior housing project. We have ages that are sort of young early 60s for those that are like in their '80s and '90s. There's also the gamut of disabilities to be considered people with significant disabilities such as mine partial quadriplegia to Like My Neighbor Next Door who is a stroke survivor and lives by herself. Just this summer I think for the first time she's started using Home Health  support which I totally appreciate. She's ambulatory she does that lurching walk of one leg with a severe disability being drug after she walks a step with the good leg over and over again looking like an extra for Night of the Living Dead. But I appreciate where she's at cuz really I'm not far behind.

I bring up my neighbor primarily because she has gotten upset with everybody knocking on her door to see if she's okay. She stays in her apartment a lot it seems but at the same time daily she goes over across the driveway to the senior center. So it's hard to tell how she's doing. Many of us don't see her walking over to the center and assume that she's still in her apartment. I guess there are some time last year she actually fell in her apartment and laid there for about a day and a half before somebody found her which really raised everyone's concern. So when we don't see her for a week or two at a time we tend to get a little concerned and then we'll knock on your door to see if she's all right. Well couple weeks ago she pretty much it had enough of that and she went out of her way and developed this annotation system to paste on the front of her door that she dates every morning after she gets up let people know that she's alive and doing well. I don't know how upset she was she was okay by the time we had all gathered around her door when she was putting up her document but there really must have been some concern there. But it's a reality for seniors and folks like myself with severe limited Mobility that if something should happen we need to figure out a way to let people know we're okay or that we need assistance. I tried to keep a phone close by whenever I'm transferring in and out of bed- - which I think are the most dangerous times I deal with where I might have an issue if I should fall. I hate having to think like this but it's true and that's the way it is for folks at this stage of life.

I was kind of surprised to get a phone call this morning from the individual who facilitates our volunteer group at assist every Tuesday, Andreas. I of course didn't pick up the call cuz I was in the middle of the shower and called him back and he informed me that there will be no meeting tomorrow because it's the Utah Housing coalition's annual conference. That's cool for me it's like a mini vacation. Certainly got me thinking though I used to be part of that coalition years ago and I kind of missed the guys even though I doubt any of the old folks that served with me are still around. I looked at the fancy Dancy website they have now and that's some of the new members and Leadership and such and I don't know anybody. Wouldn't mind getting involved again. I may do so because without a wheelchair person there I don't think these guys even think of disability issues that didn't when I was there and that's why I was there they've had a reprieve now for 27 years someone needs to get back into the saddle who knows?