Hubbie here.
Pauline just called to see how things are going here. She and her girl friends are sitting on the balcony of a condo in Nashville watching the river flow by. My response was “Why are you calling? Go back to your party!” I wanted her to have a real break; to get away as long as she could. Right after I said that the phone went dead and I felt like a low life scum. I called her back. It was a good thing because she thought I had hung up on her. I assured her everything was fine and they were, at least in Lewy terms.
Pauline told you of her hectic day yesterday. She seems to always have that kind of day before an event and I’m pretty sure a pajama party with 50-something year old girl friends qualifies as an event. When I got home yesterday she had loaded up the cooler and some bags full of the stuff (Booze and such) she had volunteered to supply. The girl friend with the giant van picked her up and they were on their way to PARTY!! I was glad. The girl needs a break. 24/7 Daddy Duty is a really tough job; especially when it’s your Daddy.
My evening with Lewy was pretty uneventful. I had a drink. Lewy had a drink. I watched the hockey game. He watched the fan. Both, it seems, were going fine for the observer. It’s odd that even though he thinks I keep a notebook of everything he consumes, Lewy seems to take food better from me than from Pauline. He resists her but with me he always finishes the serving. Whatever the reason he consumed a cup of Lewy food Pauline had stored in the fridge and had a full container of key lime yogurt for desert. I fed myself a hamburger and we settled in for the night.
Pauline has told you that I am a very sound sleeper. She seems to think this is a bad thing but in my mind whatever will not kill me I may as well sleep through. I decided that I had best sleep in the recliner in the room with Lewy just in case. I wanted Pauline to come home relaxed and be able to stay that way for at least a little while; not come home to me having fouled something up. (I believe most of our readers are women and wives and I can just see you nodding your heads. – Right Ms. P?)
Anyway sleeping in the recliner seemed like a good idea and it was, until about 3:30 AM when I woke up with a major crick in my neck (strained muscle for those of you not from the south). Lewy seemed to be resting soundly so I decided to get in the bed for a while. Tell me, how is it that someone who at times seems almost stone deaf and be disturbed by the sound of bare feet on a wood floor? Yes Lewy awakened and wanted to know what I had planned.
“I’m planning on going to bed for a while. You holler if you need anything,”
“OK”
3:45 AM. “Umm…GMM..NDD!”
Rising I come to Lewy’s side as ask what he needs. “These covers are sliding off.” He had pushed the blanket off to one side so I covered him, patted his head and went back to bed.
4:07 AM. “HEY HUBBIE!!” Clear as bell and loud enough to be heard outside.
“What is it Lewy?”.
“Get this cat out of my bed.”
“What cat?”
“This kitten here.” Motioning to his hip, Lewy shows me where the kitten is.
“OK Lewy the kitten is gone. I’m going back to bed. OK?”
“Yeah.”
4:30 AM. “PAULINE!.” Not so clear this time but plenty loud.
Stumbling back into the room I said, “She’s not back yet Lewy. What do you need?”
“Have you seen Mama?”
“Your Mama”
“Yeah.”
Lewy’s mother has been dead for many years but this did not seem like the time to point that out so I said I had not seen her.
“Up there.” Pointing to the ceiling fan.
“No she’s not there Lewy.”
“Well she is supposed to come by to see about some work. It umnd dayr gummel.”
“OK.”
I finally determine that he wants to know when she will be there so that he can go to work with her. I can’t bring myself to tell him she won’t be coming so I opt for a dose of anti-anxiety medicine. Just to be safe I move back from the bed to the recliner and after a few more issues with sliding covers, Lewy relaxes and I fall soundly asleep. Right in the interesting part of a really weird dream a voice from outside the dream calls. It’s
8:30 and Lewy’s feet are cold. I cover him with another blanket and go to make coffee.
A while later I am preoccupied in the tiny room of the house when the phone rings. It is the call from Pauline.
Like most houses we don’t have a phone in the tiny room so it took a moment for me to get to the phone. In the latter part of that moment Lewy announces, “Better hurry up. There ain’t no backstop on that thing.” I make a mental note to have a backstop installed on the phone in the new place and then have the afore mentioned conversation with Pauline.
I have my coffee and Lewy has a good breakfast of Ensure and left over beans and polish sausage, pureed of course. After breakfast he informs me that he must get up and get dressed for work. We have the first of a least a dozen conversations about how he can’t get up until we get the wound pump taken off of his foot. I don’t think he has ever grasped the concept of the pump on his foot. There is, however, one concept upon which Lewy still has firm grasp.
I believe it was wound pump conversation number six. Lewy had asked again if I would help get him out of bed. I again explained that he could not get up until they pump was off his foot. I noted that Nurse Goodbody would be coming by next week and she would look at it.
“You remember Nurse Goodbody don’t you Lewy?”
He is looking directly into my eyes.
“You know the one you like to hug. The one with the big………”goodbodies”?”
Lewy’s eyes focus and his cheeks began to move. In the next instant his face became involved in a great large smile and he began to chuckle.
“Yeah. I remember her. I like to hug her.”
I smiled at Lewy and pulled the covers over his shoulders. Lewy relaxed and rested for a while. If he dreamed I have an idea about who some of the characters were in the dream.
Lewy slept for a while and I came in to write this story. A little while ago he woke up and called. When I tell Lewy to “Holler if he needs something”, I mean it so I went to see what was up. He was looking over at the glass doors that lead to the back porch.
“Do you see her?”
“No Lewy I can’t see anybody.”
“She is leaning against the door.”
“What does she look like.”
“All I can see is her back.”
What does it look like?”
“It’s black.”
I figured the lady’s back was black because she was in silhouette against the glass door, but a bit later Lewy called me back into the room and now I’m not so sure.
“She’s gone.”
“Who’s gone?”
“The lady over there.”
“You mean the lady with the black behind?”
“Yeah. You don’t reckon she got offended do you?”
“No, I don’t think so Lewy.”
“Good. I know she worked hard in the war. I wanted to show her respect.”
Some day the folks at Harvard are going to study Lewy’ brain. I hope they learn a great deal from it but they will never know the wonderful things that came from it.
Since this is the Hubbie portion of the Lewy Chronicles I’d like to end on a less somber note and a good friend just helped me toward that end. Mr. W called to she; if Pauline had returned. Mr. W is one of my (our) oldest and dearest friends and as such we typically greet each other with such phrases as “How are you Mr. *@%$*%*&*#@!” I informed my friend that Pauline had not yet returned. Mr. W inquired as to how my day with Lewy was going.
“Well, if you must know, at the moment I am changing a catheter bag.”
Silence.
“Don’t have a comeback for that one do you?”
2 comments:
Ms Pearose said...
I can honestly say, Hubbie, that I've never considered you to be one of those guys that foul things up. Seriously. But, I have always given Pauline credit. Hey, I gotta stand with the girls! :)
Making people laugh is more your style, unless of course your wicked humor is directed my way - then I RUN (even though I laugh later)! You've put a smile on my face too many times to not recognize that gift of yours.
Pauline sounded like a new woman yesterday, so her short time away did wonders for her. Given your description of Lewy's face as he broke into a smile, it was a good day for all. You're a good man.
Stella said...
Hubbie, you could give diamonds. You could give her rubies. Roses. lingerie. All on a silver platter. None would be a more wonderful gift to show your love than the gift of yourself to her father.