Saturday, November 22, 2008

Wonders Unceasing

I would have never thought of requesting hospice care for Mom if a friend hadn't suggested it. At 5 AM on Wednesday morning, I impulsively contacted Capital Hospice on line. Shortly after 9 AM, a hospice rep called and set up a next-day appointment for a nurse to visit and make an assessment. The nurse spent two hours talking with me. She also had a brief chat with Mom. By Thursday evening, the hospice had contacted Mom's doctor, who certified her need for in-home hospice care. From now on, someone will be walking beside us, holding our hands, as we take this last journey together.

We can't afford to have our dryer go all funny on us at a time like this. Two weeks ago, the dryer refused to start. The repairman replaced a couple of cracked knobs for $120:

1) knobs, $10 each;
2) "customer education", $100.

This week, with norovirus raging through the household and all, the dryer quit again. Sometimes it would start, but sometimes it would refuse, emitting an ominous "znnnnnk". Another repairman, same company. No, it wasn't a faulty starter. The motor was cutting off. He took the dryer apart and vacuumed out half a bucketful of lint. Eleven years' worth. He thought we'd probably need a new dryer within a year. (The super-long venting duct, the make-do we had to resort to when we built Mom's addition, has shortened the dryer's life.) He returned our shop-vac to its shelf, reassembled the dryer, and said, "Nah, I'm not going to charge you for this. Now you enjoy your weekend and have a happy Thanksgiving."

1 comment:

  1. I am so happy that you will have help with your mother now. What a relief it must be to you and your family. Your friend gave you such valuable advice.

    That repair man was amazing. You don't hear of that kind of kindness coming from a repairman these days.

    Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

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