I am back in the apartment and Elvon is in “Sonoma Post-Acute Care”, formerly “Santa Rosa Convalescent”. He has been there for a week, now. He still cannot transfer to a wheelchair, without a lift, and is not very responsive in general. He will be there for at least a month.
His place at the Terraces is now assured. Someone just gave 30 days notice. I know the wife. She lives in here, and will be moving down to Carmel, where they have family. I think he’s the one who got the place in “The Cottages of Carmel”, while our doctor was taking a holiday after the fire. Life is like that.
I am very happy to be home. It is so great to be back with our Lodge family. Everyone is so nice, and we all have fire stories, to liven the conversations, once we have hugged, long and warmly. The food is better than ever and, if you don’t drive towards 128 to Napa, you don’t see much to depress you. I have not. I can’t face it yet. The apartment looks pretty good, except for a four-inch scratch on our new leather chair, and a couple of missing pillows.
One of these days, I’ll go have a look, but I am not ready for the extreme devastation. I am still in a type of mourning, moving slowly, feeling down, and making mistakes. I just managed to lock all three sets of car keys in the trunk of the car. I had taken the second set with me, just in case. The third key lives in my wallet. I was taking some stuff, from my car, to Pat Gustafson’s apartment, on my way out. When I put the empty bag back in the trunk, I did it without opening the car proper. That was when I noticed the second red purse there and saw that the second set of keys were in it. I had just made a mental note to bring that back upstairs, when I came back, when I closed the trunk on the whole shooting match. I am waiting for AAA, now.
And while I am ‘fessing up to dizziness, one sharp reader caught this beaut:
I had dinner at Monterey’s Fish House, where I sat at the bar. The guy on my right had had an Alzheimer’s mother-in-law, and was very sympathetic. The gal on my right ordered what I did, and we agreed we should have just ordered one and shared it.
And sent it back with this pithy comment “So…you sat next to a hermaphrodite on your right? Did the guy half order something different?”
Helen Megan 
I am happy to learn you are safe and back home. I’m not surprised you locked your keys in the car with so much on your mind. Best wishes to you & Elvon. I think about you both often … such and interesting and charming couple.
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Glad to hear you are home. I suggest not venturing toward the devastation for a good month or so. Give yourself time to adjust to your new living arrangements and shoring up energy, physically and mentally. As for your ´dizziness’, sorry to say kid (you are 2 months younger than I), it is part of living. Take care, be well! Love, Diann
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Happy to hear that you are home, and enjoying. And that Elvon will be going to the right place in about a month.
Marlene
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Hi Helen
I am so glad you are home. You have had such an ordeal!! It will take some time to adjust to Elvon not living with you, but it is for the best for both of you!
Take care.
Love,
Mariann
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Helen, Read all and it made me sad, so much happened in this month,or 5 weeks… Goodness me, what an ordeal have you encountered, and you have been very brave and mastered many difficult situations. And – Elvon will be taken well care of, that is a good feeling as well. A relief, I guess. Send you love, Helen, enjoy your home and feel good, Love, Ulla
Say Hi to our friends, I miss you all. Am glad to be here, it is safe and far away from the war zone and sad areas. But I also am away from friends, who maybe I could sit and cry with… It is what it is – be well and take many hugs, I send you one too.
Ulla’s IPad
>
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I’m printing this to give to Karynne Duncan at 3.30 today to keep her up to date on you both. Quixotic is not the mot juste for your adventures and misadventures but it will have to do for now. Life here at 170 Milliken Creek Drive, Creekside, is severely moderated when I pass 8 destroyed landsites just to get to Westgate. Then, turning left to get to Atlas Peak there is so much more of the devastation. We were evacuated in three minutes fortunate to be bypassed by the millions of firefly embers. I’ve done a TV show for NAPATV with a rep from Signorello and another from Stony Hill on the other side of the Valley. Will do another one with Clay Gregory head of NAPA TOURISM when he gets back from India on some boondoggle foray . Patricia is hosting bridge today with Mimi white as one of the players. She lucked out having a brick home only licked by flames…. One BFFC for Elvon.
Ultreia, as Camino pilgrims would say.
Tony
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And, just yesterday, I canceled Elvon’s appointment with Karynne Duncan. He’ll never get there now. It was a replacement appointment for one in September, when we had to dress him hastily and flee her building in St. Helena, whose AC unit on the roof caught fire. More Quixotic, still.
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Glad you are home Helen. Take your time wandering around Santa Rosa.
We had Thanksgiving Day st Oakmont on Thursday and I couldn’t bring myself to drive any further west.
Somethings are best taken in over time when we are ready or have the energy and time to grieve. Enjoy your comfort of familiar and home for a bit.
We did enjoy the beautiful sky with lovely clouds and the deer on the golf course. Focused on the nature we could find gratitude and beauty in.
Of course keeping communicate away from my Aunt and Uncle’s escape of the fire storm with dog and clothes on their back. It’s all a lot of change.
Living single is plenty of change to cope with this week. Take in the gravity of new realities in little doses. You have plenty of time to take the other changes…
You are remarkably strong but give yourself a little time to be human, not always superhuman.
Glad to hear that you are back! 🌹
Thank goodness for AAA when we need them.
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