Um...

Sorry. 
Almost forgot I HAD a blog here....bad blogger.

Life ongoing. No big (interesting) dramas. Just the weeks are rolling by and suddenly I realize I've forgotten my oldest friend's birthday this year AND that I haven't blogged since 3 weeks ago.

Okaasan all good.
Days of strange actions and comments, then days of clarity and surprising awareness.

Take the grapes. Recently we've had a lot of grapes on the kitchen table.

I was surprised that Okaasan asked DS about how they could be "seedless" grapes as a fruit of a plant. It is good cos it shows she is capable of that kind of interest and reasoning.

Two days later she peered across at my plate: "don't you eat the seeds? Look, I ate the seeds!"????????????
Japanese people may be the only grape-eaters who in the 21st century peel their grapes. I'm pretty sure nobody in Japan eats the seeds though :-)
And she had eaten the seeds, was very curious why I hadn't done the same thing...

Another day: do I eat the skin of the grapes? (Repeated 3 times in about 3 minutes)

Anyway. She loves the grapes and stuffs them down. I hide some of them so they won't all disappear in one day.

The food she loves she will eat and eat, and eat. One day I hope to be the same with chocolate and hope some carer will say: "ahh well, she IS 85 years old...let's let her eat chocolate all day!"

Apart from that?
Family drive to a supermarket complex and a soba noodle lunch in the food court. Okaasan ate her way thru a huge bowl of stuff. She was more passive in the shopping afterwards. Just followed us round and round the shop - only chose a pack of expensive dry seaweed - and didn't notice at all when I sneaked it OUT of the cart a few minutes later and back on the shelf.

I cleaned her room another time - major throw out of rubbish. Found the nail clippers under a mountain. Her nails are long, she HAS clippers...but is really getting beyond noticing a personal care thing and taking steps to address it...hair brushing, nail clipping, tooth brushing.

One day the newspaper delivery man came and Okaasan wanted to cancel the newspaper delivery from December. Fine, of course. Until she  forgets this decision and wonders why her delivery isn't coming......maybe we could just give her old newspapers to read...or would she notice the date on the top of the page?

Anyway. Still here. Not very interesting or articulate - THIS writer is much more so! Reader L recommended this story by a person who lived with a man who has dementia. SO many things in this story resonated with me. It's a great piece. Enjoy :-)

Hope is the Enemy