It was unplanned but long overdue -- a couple of hours with my mother. She had a doctor's appointment yesterday, and while her facility provides transport to and from, they don't have anyone to sit with the patient.
My sister, retired and working part-time, usually meets Mom at the doctor's office. She was working. My oldest niece, a mother with two sons, often fills in. She was busy.
So I got the call. I was working downtown and the office is on the far north side, right up by the county line. The work location I call the "north campus" is up that way, too, and I had some work to do there, so I cleared it with my boss and headed toward the medical center with plenty of time.
Or so I thought. After following (at a distance) a dump truck full of gravel, I had a couple of miles of open road. Then a city bus that took a squealing left onto the road in front of me in the last seconds of a yellow light, and turned onto an street that angled away a few miles on. There was still time, if I avoided school zones-- At the next four-way stop, a trash truck lumbered onto the road and crawled along for another couple of miles before taking the turnoff to a country club.
Somehow I made it to the parking garage with five minutes to spare, got in the right elevator, and picked, on hope, the proper floor--
The waiting room was huge and there were no familiar faces. Then, light a ray of light through clouds, I saw her! Mom's chair was rolled to the end of a row. She was surprised to see me; there hadn't been time to tell her who would meet her at the office. We had a nice chat and I went back to the exam room with her.
Mom is doing well. She had a number of interesting recent events and memories to share, and is looking forward to Christmas.
Time well spent.
Glad to hear you got some face to face time to visit with your Mom, I'm sure she appreciated it. It is funny how when you are limited on time, snafu traffic seems to get in the way. Stresses me out when that happens.
ReplyDeleteI also am glad to hear it worked out; being at the medico's by yourself is not fun for any of us.
ReplyDeleteHope you and Tam have a nice holiday season, without too many Mondays or work call outs.
RE your post about the Alabama senate election, I participated in democracy this morning. I was faced with a choice between a Wallace machine legacy, and a clown that has been thrown out of office twice for refusing to perform the duties of the office he was elected to. I could have written in someone else, I suppose, but I pulled the lever for the democrat instead. I don't like him, but at least he's never been thrown out of office.
Anon, it does always seem that way!
ReplyDeleteMatthew, thank you, and I don't envy your choices -- personally, I am unsure there is a right one and I won't fault anyone's choice of less-wrong. From the outside, I only knew anything about one of them and I don;t much like him -- but however the vote comes out, it'll come out and Alabama and the Senate can go on to the next phases, whatever they are. I'd think to think the winner and loser will both be a bit chastened or at least made thoughtful by the controversy, but I doubt it.
I remember swinging by the facility to visit Mom and she was at lunch. No problem, I know where the chow hall was.
ReplyDeleteImagine a fairly large dining room filled with senior citizens with almost the exact same white to white bluish hair.
A few seconds later the part of my brain that is in charge of stupid ideas suggests, "Just call out Mom." Luckily the part of my brain that cancels most of the really stupid ideas took over before I opened my mouth.