grandparent news

[chanaleh]

My grandmother is in the hospital, in California. They apparently aren't certain what's going on, but think she might have had another stroke on Saturday. (She had one about 13 years ago which left her in a wheelchair ever since with various impairments -- all physical, none mental, thank G-d. OTOH she's also gotten progressively more deaf and blind as the years have worn on.) Her blood pressure when they brought her in was something insane like 240/120.

She'll be 91 next Tuesday, April 10. At this point, they're not sure whether she will make it. :-/ She's certainly said for years already that she's perfectly ready to go, and most of us will concur that it's not really "too soon" in any sense. But I hate to know it's going on, my mom and my aunts having to cope, and I'm so far away.

GoogleMaps says Somerville, MA > Lodi, CA = 3,043 miles = about 45 hours' drive. Hmm.... (Yes, I could probably get a plane ticket, but it'd be nice to have my car at the other end. And I've always WANTED to drive cross-country...! I could do it in 3 days going out and take a little longer coming back; if I left Saturday morning, I could get there by Monday night, and I wouldn't technically have to get back any sooner than, like, April 20. Heh.)

Meanwhile, my dad is in Florida dealing with possible logistics for moving his parents out of their little retirement complex and into some kind of assisted living. A tough week all around.

... Otherwise, things more locally are reasonably good as Day 2 of Passover draws to an end. But more on that shortly.

Comments

[meranthi.livejournal.com]

*HUG*

Driving cross country is tiring. I drove every year from here to CO for the summer. Unless you are very good at staying awake when you're tired, I wouldn't recommend driving for 3 days straight. I drove from Cincinatti to here in 36 hours and was just about dead at the end of that.

(Feel free to ignore this advice if you don't want to hear it right now.)

My grandma died when my parents were both here. My dad was on the first flight out and still didn't make it in time... Go while you can, if it looks bad.

[msmidge.livejournal.com]

Ditto. Plus, why do something you've always wanted to do at a time when you're bound to feel sad and stressed out at least some of the time? Maybe you'd have more fun on the drive if you saved it for a happier time.

Strength and comfort to all of your family.