Bill\’s Thoughts and Comments

Some evenings Paul had school meetings on till 6.30 and then came over for a half hour, and off to the children’s break up party.  But he washed and cleaned up and served me tasty little things for my tea. 

For the last week of his holidays, John flew down from Brisbane and stayed with me and looked after me and took me out, so we have had a good time.  He took me to our shopping town and we got a scooter for me to ride round on.  One day he took me with him to visit friends of his down on the coast.  He went out with his friend on his boat, while I had a nice sleep. 

I am now feeling better, but my legs seem to be very tight and don’t like to do too much work.  We have a Masseur who comes to the village on Wednesdays and I am going to him and finding that helpful.  I will have to keep up the walking. 

So Paul came every day after school.  He had arranged with Salford Park that they would provide me with a hot meal for the first two weeks.  They were delicious, and the Nurse drove round in the village car, and delivered it piping hot each midday.  Then he got onto our Local Council, and had their assessment.  Paul and Di were here for that as it was School Holidays, and I had my Pride Bubble duly pricked!  I said my memory was fine, Paul reminds us that I write down the things I want to talk to him about at night! 

I am to have my cleaning lady given another 15 minutes to her hour to change my sheets and make my bed every fortnight, and hang out the washing.  I’m a ‘rut-ualist’ so I will have to change my ways.  I also was put on the list for getting ‘meals on wheels’ 5  days a week, and they are very nice, and so well cooked, and I only have to put them into the Microwave for 3 minutes, and have a lovely hot dinner.  So this is going to save a lot buying in food and cooking.  Paul felt I was not doing what I should have been doing in  having good meals, I guess I had a lot of mince things as that was easy! 

So Monday midday I went into one of our smaller hospitals here in the East, but a very good hospital that has had a lot of upgrading of late.  I was on the trolley for 24 hours, as our bed shortage is rather great.  But as they had let me keep my trousers and underwear on I did not freeze, and I found the trolley quite comfortable, and was very impressed with how hard the nurses work.  I  had just got into a bed on Tuesday when our care coordinator from Church called to see me, and was pleased to see that I was in a bed.  She said they had been praying for me that I would get a bed. 

On the 4^th of Sept. I went to see the Doctor and he said I had a viral chest infection, but he would not give me antibiotics, as he said they would not help.  But I was not coughing up anything, and by the weekend I was into pneumonia. 

Paul has been just so kind and helpful, he started right away coming each evening after work.  He tried to persuade me to call the ambulance and go to hospital but I kept putting it off, Saturday and Sunday.  Joy was calling on the phone and I told her I was not feeling too well, not realizing that I had now started pneumonia.  So Monday she called a very good Nurse friend here in Melbourne, to come and see me, but she was on Canteen, but said call the ambulance, and give them the heavy and get him to hospital, so she called Paul and he told the ambulance people that I was ‘confused’.  It may not have been the right word, but I was making bad decisions.

John now has gone home after a week’s visit which was very much appreciated. He hired a car and we went down to the coast and had a very happy time with friends of his.

He has been trying to protect me from damaging myself. So we moved the dressing table and other bits of furniture.

He took me shopping at the Knox shopping complex and we were able to borrow a scooter that I drove round. It certainly saved my legs which weren’t up to it and we had a great time.

My car lost its brake fluid so John was driving by slowing down and pulling on the hand brake! Its going in to be fixed on Friday.

Paul took him to the alternate airport at Avalon, which is quite a long way away. I really enjoyed his visit.

 John with his first granddaughter – Ava.

John arrives Tuesday to spend a week with me to give Paul a bit of a spell as I’ve just had pneumonia. It will be good to see him as I’m on the mend now.