Volunteering :Coming To A End

This is where we spend our time when we are on call. Check residents off as they come in to eat. If they haven't called that they aren't coming we call to see if they are ok.

This is the first thing you do when you come into the kitchen, then go get an apron.

Here is Joe (he is a paid worker) washing pots and pans. He also has a side job cutting hair. Great for the residents, there is a place in the Care Center building for a cutting chair and hair washing basin. I told him he gave me one of the best hair cuts I've ever had and he said he wanted it to be the best. First time he cut my hair, just as a conversation starter, I asked if he use to cut hair. He said " No, I just took it up a couple of years ago." My stomach did a flip as he said, "Does that make you nervous". But by that time I realized he knew he was doing. Come to find out he was a barber for 48 years and taught. Wonderful razor cuts.

We will be leaving the July 1 and we are ready. A month is about long enough as you are on the go most of the time. We have enjoyed it very much ..... the residents and the other workers. We will do it again .

We looking forward to being on the road again. We are going to NW Arkansas for 4 days and then head for Iowa to a rally. The rally site is untouched by the floods, but the rally people decided our charity giving would be for the surrounding area. After the rally we will head for MI.
We wish everyone a safe and wonderful fourth of July!

BIRTHDAYS

There is a milestone coming up this month. On the 20th our daughter turns 45!! As I told her it seems as if her dad and I should be that age, and she should be in her 20's. You know looking at that picture of John, he really hasn't changed a bit. He is exactly 20 years and 2 days older than her. Yes the month of June if pretty full. Father's Day - John's birthday - and then (everyone is always tired of them by the time we get to me) it is my birthday. By the way, that is Dave with what is left of his quilt, you can just barely see it. It started out about the size of a crib quilt. By this time it had been burned, washed about a million times and drug all over country. His birthday was in Jan on the 20th of 1962.

Notice the socks, other wise it doesn't look too pitiful. I always think how pitiful I look in the old pictures, I say pitiful, because I always think I was in style. Trice was a BIG baby, almost 9 lbs.

I've always loved this picture, it is so sweet (she will probably kill me). It was about Sept. or Oct when this was taken.
I'm writing this on Saturday evening as we have on call. That is staying the day room all day by the phone so if someone needs help, we are just a phone call away. I dislike this duty .... give me dishes to wash, or laundry to do any day. There just isn't enough to do. We are either very busy or very idle. The head of volunteers is still tweaking the schedule. We are gradually learning everyones name, by the time we get it down it will be time to leave.
There is a resident here that has Alzimers and she was working a puzzle one day. Finally she refused to do any more, said she was not getting paid to do it! She and her husband (he's ok) are retired Air Force Majors. As one volunteer said, you never know when you will be like them.
So on that note, I quit.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TRICE ..... WE LOVE YOU, mom and dad

VOLUNTEER WORK

Here is John doing what we do 90 percent of the time. Either washing trays or cleaning up pots and pans that have been used in cooking lunch or dinner. They have a big meal at lunch and smaller meal at dinner time.

John and I are getting ready to dump a pan that the corned beef had been cooked in. The meal was cabbage, corn beef, boiled potatoes, salad, angel food cake w/strawberries and cool whip topping. You can't really eat all meals here as you would be so big, couldn't get in the door! Especially since no pickleball playing available, not even a tennis court.





This is the cook on the left Terry is her name, then Doris a volunteer who lives here all the time. Terry is a great person who loves all the residents. She is so good and patient w/them.







There is a resident here that is in a motorized chair. He can't go in the building anymore since he used to run into the other residents all the time. We also can't open the front doors any earlier than 7:20 because of him. So you see him every morning at 7 waiting for the doors to open. Also the automatic door can't be turned on until then because he used to make it bang against the lock for several minutes by breaking the automatic line ..... all because he wanted in. I could see how that would be aggrivating, but really all I see is a lonely old man who has no family and would like some attention and that is the only way to get it is to annoy everyone.
I have done fairly well about getting into trouble myself, I mean to say haven't gotten into trouble. The worst thing I did (so far) was give the cooks lunch away. A lady came up late after we had finished serving and wanted to know if we had her to go box lunch ready. I looked around and saw one sitting on the cabinet and gave it to her. Later as I was doing trays I heard the cook say what happened to my lunch box! She was looking everywhere for it, so I told her what I had done and she said that was MINE. Anyway she wasn't angry for long as the lady I gave it to: she and her husband are having a lot of physical problems.

Tomorrow is laundry for me. They still haven't hired anyone to do it. One man applied for the job, but said he had to have hip surgery in 2 weeks and then he could. Now why on earth would anyone apply for a job where you have to bend, lift and stand on your feet for 4 hours and getting ready to have surgery? Suppose to interview 2 this week.
Probably won't publish much more for awhile unless I do something really disastrous. The weather is just like we like it. Hot and Humid. 95 today with 65% humidity and a nice breeze.

ESCAPEES CARE CENTER

Monday June 2 - 08

This is a really nice building for the residents of Care. In the background you can see the rigs where people stay in their rigs while being taken care of at the center. We got here Thursday, the directer said park your rig (temporarily), take it easy etc. So we did that, then wandered over about 4 to observe how things were done. We didn't get home until about 9 and have been "observeing" ever since. Two of the volenteers are sick, the man we talked to before coming, resigned (no we haven't been long enough to cause that), so has been a mild form of chaos. Yesterday was suppose to our day off, John went over to get some sheets for info and I didn't seen him for 2 hours. I finally went over to see what was going on and he was making salad. Said someone didn't show up and only 2 people in the kitchen and he was helping. We didn't get home until 8:30.

I seen another rig has driven up (hopefully another set of volunteers) headed for the volunteer sites. The sites are at the back of the building.
So far we have met a couple of real characters. Will describe them more later. So far we have mostly been washing trays (me) and John does the pots and pans. I enjoy doing that, in fact being in the kitchen is a little foreign to me if I don't have a menu and directions on when to do each thing. Oh yes I forgot, John did get to mop last night.
Really we are enjoying it, and will enjoy it more (on Johns part) when it is more organized.