At the residence is a nearly-monthly Town Hall and at this, The Town Hall March 26-12, monthly meeting, there was a goodly crowd of twenty residents talking to the Chief and the Executive chef. I am promoting the use of a TYY phone for one severely impaired, (read DEAF), person who cannot use a telephone and is constantly calling for repairs, You would think he would know by now that he cannot hear telephonic communications. Our staff seemed never to have heard about TYY, but I hope one will call the telephone company and inquire. Hearing loss is a great problem for most of us.
And then there are the men who are shirtless: one new fellow wears only an undershirt, and he is really out of place in the community. His table-mate wears the same dark t-shirt and jeans, day in and day out. I had become accustomed to one old lady who wears an overcoat to hide her nightgown. She does not eat with us in the one, large dining room, but wanders through to pick up something to drink at the drink station. But one eccentric is enough. Residents at the drink station make our executive chef crazy. Fluids get spilled and he does not want us in there. The table service can be slow, so that some (myself included) don't have patience to wait.
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Culinary Arts March 21 12
Sorry to miss the Wednesday lunch but I went to the Palm Court at the Netherland Hilton Hotel with the
other group for lunch, and missed this afternoon at the church.
Our seniors had buffet lunch in the Grille where the kitchens have 40 cooks working every day, under the
Culinary Arts Institute of America 2011 First Prize winner, Todd Kelley, and it shows! Yum.
Mr Kelley was kind enough to introduce himself at our table and that was a thrill.
We were sick at Amber Park and on that icy Saturday in January, when the help could not get to work so our Executive Chef shut the dining room down.
Food was delivered to our rooms three times a day and the aides wore gloves and masks. It was scary-
Finally we were out after two weeks.
Now daughter and I are wobbly from the Meniers brought on by allergies in this wild srping! I take
Meclazine and drive her to the head doctors Friday. She is having a really hard time with it and
has to keep working (except this Friday). Hope to see you April 18, but that conflicts with a trip to the Art Museum. Think of a solution, please
other group for lunch, and missed this afternoon at the church.
Our seniors had buffet lunch in the Grille where the kitchens have 40 cooks working every day, under the
Culinary Arts Institute of America 2011 First Prize winner, Todd Kelley, and it shows! Yum.
Mr Kelley was kind enough to introduce himself at our table and that was a thrill.
We were sick at Amber Park and on that icy Saturday in January, when the help could not get to work so our Executive Chef shut the dining room down.
Food was delivered to our rooms three times a day and the aides wore gloves and masks. It was scary-
Finally we were out after two weeks.
Now daughter and I are wobbly from the Meniers brought on by allergies in this wild srping! I take
Meclazine and drive her to the head doctors Friday. She is having a really hard time with it and
has to keep working (except this Friday). Hope to see you April 18, but that conflicts with a trip to the Art Museum. Think of a solution, please
Our Fashion Show
March 23, 2012. This afternoon ten of us residents of the Independent Living facility went to the chapel to dress for a "fashion show". A rack of borrowed formal wear was brought in for us to wear, or we could wear our own items. Ms. Rice, down the hall, let me borrow two of her beaded sweaters for which we gave her credit and won a prize. The other prizes went to a tall striking blond and another from third floor who wore a black bathing suit with black hose under her fur coat. It was the biggest hit, as she danced in it like a soubrette! These two, plus me won the most applause. Next year I shall paint on cups "Most Appreciated" so that all the volunteers can receive a trophy. I spent some time writing up the script for three costumes. I gave the scripts to the coordinator but she did not present them to the announcer. Expecting that, I carried extra scripts to present to the announcer as I entered. I hope this was a help to the audience, too. For my new suit I wrote:
The fashion galleries on the third floor Ha Ha!!
present the newest style which zips and buttons faultlessly (I hope).
This is a REPLACEMENT item, that is to say, is intended to
REPLACE my favorite blue evening suit that I could NOT zip or button!. It is bright blue rayon satin worn in the cooler evenings with a mink vest. ( Vest comes off) The vest was made from a mink stole dating 1966. The buttons are classic filigree. (show buttons)
This costume was created from a Burda pattern by SEW MUCH salon on Benson Street in Reading. The Burda family actually bought, in Germany, an ancestral home of my Dad's family, which they renovated into a weekend company retreat!
To make the suit presentable for daytime wear, a nice fluted scarf (show) is wrapped around the neck and covers the buttons.
For daytime, instead of gold or glass ear rings, enameled blue earrings are worn. Purse, hat or gloves may be co-coordinated perhaps repeating the colors in the scarf. EXIT
The project could have used help with hair, make-up and selection in the dressing-room. A mirror would help, too. Our coordinator did a great job doing all of that and taking movies, too. At the end, she had hurting feet and was padding around in house slippers. The event was moved to afternoons to eliminate parking problems, but then few relatives were here to help. pictures later!
The fashion galleries on the third floor Ha Ha!!
present the newest style which zips and buttons faultlessly (I hope).
This is a REPLACEMENT item, that is to say, is intended to
REPLACE my favorite blue evening suit that I could NOT zip or button!. It is bright blue rayon satin worn in the cooler evenings with a mink vest. ( Vest comes off) The vest was made from a mink stole dating 1966. The buttons are classic filigree. (show buttons)
This costume was created from a Burda pattern by SEW MUCH salon on Benson Street in Reading. The Burda family actually bought, in Germany, an ancestral home of my Dad's family, which they renovated into a weekend company retreat!
To make the suit presentable for daytime wear, a nice fluted scarf (show) is wrapped around the neck and covers the buttons.
For daytime, instead of gold or glass ear rings, enameled blue earrings are worn. Purse, hat or gloves may be co-coordinated perhaps repeating the colors in the scarf. EXIT
The project could have used help with hair, make-up and selection in the dressing-room. A mirror would help, too. Our coordinator did a great job doing all of that and taking movies, too. At the end, she had hurting feet and was padding around in house slippers. The event was moved to afternoons to eliminate parking problems, but then few relatives were here to help. pictures later!
Saturday, March 17, 2012
How do I Like The Senior Residence March 17 2012
We have recovered from our sale to a different company in September 2011.
There is now an activities director who, alas, puts ice in beer, and the food service has almost reached its prior excellence so we are back to a B+ grade
I like my room which allows me to sleep in peace 97% of the time (exceptions being loud caretakers with loud radios which wake me between 10P and 7A, or neighbors who think Breakfast is served at 4.00 AM, or more noisy attendants working with doors open when I should be asleep). But it is not as constant as the barking dogs I suffered in previous home. I have transportation when I cannot or should not drive. And this is my old neighborhood, so I feel at home. Make an appointment to bring your friend for lunch anytime and have the staff show you through. The first floor laundry is usually a catch-all and the library needs care but the impression is generally good. There is one large dining room for all sorts of residents, and one generally has to carefully choose people with whom it is pleasant to dine.
I am still smarting for being castigated by staff, nurses, and the bookkeeper when I was caught sunbathing in my underwear on a sunny undisclosed, hidden balcony! You would have thought I was promoting Spring Break on the floor! But that's group living. vitamin D is not important?
There is now an activities director who, alas, puts ice in beer, and the food service has almost reached its prior excellence so we are back to a B+ grade
I like my room which allows me to sleep in peace 97% of the time (exceptions being loud caretakers with loud radios which wake me between 10P and 7A, or neighbors who think Breakfast is served at 4.00 AM, or more noisy attendants working with doors open when I should be asleep). But it is not as constant as the barking dogs I suffered in previous home. I have transportation when I cannot or should not drive. And this is my old neighborhood, so I feel at home. Make an appointment to bring your friend for lunch anytime and have the staff show you through. The first floor laundry is usually a catch-all and the library needs care but the impression is generally good. There is one large dining room for all sorts of residents, and one generally has to carefully choose people with whom it is pleasant to dine.
I am still smarting for being castigated by staff, nurses, and the bookkeeper when I was caught sunbathing in my underwear on a sunny undisclosed, hidden balcony! You would have thought I was promoting Spring Break on the floor! But that's group living. vitamin D is not important?
Monday, March 12, 2012
Sleepless on the floor
I am waging a war to promote quiet hours between
10 PM and 7 A M.
Usually the aides walk by my door in the middle of the night listening to their radios and talking, but quickly.
This week Wednesday night the chatter went on and on and on. I got up to investigate. There were two care takers across the hall consulting loudly at 1.30 AM and I asked them to close the door. I finally closed their door and went back to bed. I have two neighbors who don't seem to know much. Nice ladies and all that. Monday they woke me up chatting from their opposite rooms. Same aide as Wednesday had one resident loudly conversing with her door wide open. I reminded them "Quiet time from 10 until 7 please", and closed their door for them. I hope repetition will convince my neighbors and their helpers to be quiet between
10 and 7. At least the distractions and wake ups are less frequent than they used to be with neighbors' dogs by my house!
10 PM and 7 A M.
Usually the aides walk by my door in the middle of the night listening to their radios and talking, but quickly.
This week Wednesday night the chatter went on and on and on. I got up to investigate. There were two care takers across the hall consulting loudly at 1.30 AM and I asked them to close the door. I finally closed their door and went back to bed. I have two neighbors who don't seem to know much. Nice ladies and all that. Monday they woke me up chatting from their opposite rooms. Same aide as Wednesday had one resident loudly conversing with her door wide open. I reminded them "Quiet time from 10 until 7 please", and closed their door for them. I hope repetition will convince my neighbors and their helpers to be quiet between
10 and 7. At least the distractions and wake ups are less frequent than they used to be with neighbors' dogs by my house!
Monday, March 5, 2012
Rake's Progress March 18 2012
Mirable Dictu! The New Activities Director has scheduled the bus to take us downtown for a Vocal Arts Ensemble and orchestra performance of "The Rake's Progress"! I saw Stravinsky on stage in Boston 1952, rehearing one of his works. This outing will be a debut serious-music item for our residents.
I am also negotiating for a "bridge lamp" to set in the card-corner near our post office. It is an agreeable little nook with card table, but without good lighting. Jane is not here today, maybe I see her later, and we can haul in a good lamp.
After four years! Today I decided to use my microphone ( which has been useless) on the CONVERSATIONS part of my Berltiz Premier Learning System (July 03, 2011), And it worked. I can replay my voice within the dialog in the program! Hurrah!
The BIG DAY, March 18: Three of us were to be driven in the company car to the opera today, but
the schedule was changed because "the brakes went out and the car will be in the garage all week-end." I worried when I heard who our driver was going to be: she is not this sort of music-lover needed for this event. Last year when she was to take a busload to Metamora, she wouldn't let the seniors off the bus there. It didn't mean anything to her! We had to proceed to an all-you-can-eat buffet which was a visitation to a Quentin Blake (Illustrator of Fantastic Mr Fox) venue in Indiana. O je,
I am also negotiating for a "bridge lamp" to set in the card-corner near our post office. It is an agreeable little nook with card table, but without good lighting. Jane is not here today, maybe I see her later, and we can haul in a good lamp.
After four years! Today I decided to use my microphone ( which has been useless) on the CONVERSATIONS part of my Berltiz Premier Learning System (July 03, 2011), And it worked. I can replay my voice within the dialog in the program! Hurrah!
The BIG DAY, March 18: Three of us were to be driven in the company car to the opera today, but
the schedule was changed because "the brakes went out and the car will be in the garage all week-end." I worried when I heard who our driver was going to be: she is not this sort of music-lover needed for this event. Last year when she was to take a busload to Metamora, she wouldn't let the seniors off the bus there. It didn't mean anything to her! We had to proceed to an all-you-can-eat buffet which was a visitation to a Quentin Blake (Illustrator of Fantastic Mr Fox) venue in Indiana. O je,
Friday, March 2, 2012
New recreation person March 2012
We have in our senior residence a new full-time recreation director! And there is a concert scheduled for the bus to take us downtown to hear Stravinsky's "Rake's Progress"! This is a great change for us, to have classical music scheduled, and I was the first to sign up for the program. "Jane" was also in attendance at the "town hall" meeting this week, where she took written notes. This is good because Mr. Brown is so hard of hearing he will not attend meetings, but he could READ the meeting minutes. And minutes would be accommodation for the hearing-handicapped, of which help for the handicapped is generally slow to happen.
I offered to make buttonholes on the sleeves of Mr. Brown's blue shirt if he will get big buttons. He had trouble with tiny shirt-sleeve buttons. I had had practice making cuff link button holes in a blouse last year, but the blouse and more clothes were accidentally washed with an ink pen during my trip to Florida last year, and I lost a lot of clothes. Oh je.
I offered to make buttonholes on the sleeves of Mr. Brown's blue shirt if he will get big buttons. He had trouble with tiny shirt-sleeve buttons. I had had practice making cuff link button holes in a blouse last year, but the blouse and more clothes were accidentally washed with an ink pen during my trip to Florida last year, and I lost a lot of clothes. Oh je.
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