Living Lodge

After an exhausting year of traveling, we needed some R&R, a couple of months of relaxation before we hit the road again in Mid-November.
So we checked into a rest home.

We have spent the last month convalescing with our soon to be 90 year old mother/mother- in-law at her luxurious retirement lodge.  
Our day begins leisurely,  aware that the mail would not arrive until the late afternoon.  We fill our days watching the TV on high volume, going to tend to her garden plot aka garden space (it’s preferred we don’t use the word “plot” but that’s what it is).  

Pool is an option either swimming or billiard.

We could play ping pong, read books in the library or newspapers in the "Bistro"  area- where coffee, tea, fruit, infused water and Otis Spunkmeyer cookies are always available.   

By now it is 11 am and the mail is only hours away.

We are sharing her food plan with monthly points, so strategic planning of meals is required.   The weekly specials are posted beginning on Sunday so  plenty of time to formulate our approach.  Regardless, the food is plentiful and generally tasty with just enough borderline items allowing for hours of post-prandial analysis ("veal scallopini ? more like leather scallopini).

We can stop in at the tavern for a drink (using  free drink coupons won at the twice a month Tuesday Bingo games).  

A different movie is shown (twice) daily, in addition to crafts, we can join into mahjong games, cards/poker, storytelling, puzzles, board games, and drum circles.  

The on-premises bank is available, but we just use it to pilfer the free cookies.

3 minutes later

A large chicken coop provides free eggs.  

Chickens are all named after famous lesbians. This morning visited by wild turkeys.

A haircut in the beauty salon, or a massage can be scheduled as the mail is still hours from arriving.

You have to check both the cubbies AND mail box

Seemingly, almost daily Doctors’ appointments fill our social calendar, otherwise we discuss with our neighbors our chronic aches and our new pains.   Of course, each day is special but some days more so than others. 


Flower arranging on Saturday mornings, which essentially is picking up free flowers in the activities room which are donated by Trader Joes (they were going to toss them but gifted them instead).

The housekeeper comes on Mondays at 1pm sometimes 2 pm, close to the time people start to gather around the mailboxes in anticipation of the mail arriving anywhere between 3-6 pm.  
Hopefully, mail arrives by 4:30 so that we can get to the dining hall for a late dinner.

 

kids came by for a visit

After the mail finally arrives (just junk, as usual) it’s more loud TV, or more recently the gym to exercise to Star Trek reruns (where we ponder deep universal questions like- Is evil present in all galaxies?  Why is Captain Kirk always the only one without a shirt on?  Why do most planets where no man has gone before always look like Chatsworth in the San Fernando Valley?)

The day winds up with a call in to Germany for the daily performance of Grandparent Theater:

Tonight's guest stars: Gma, Bert & Ernie

"The Papou and Yaya Show"

Last week: On the Road live from Minneapolis with guest star Simona

And then we fall asleep listening to the coyotes howling, hooting owls and Wacky Warren next door.   Tomorrow is Wine Wednesday, and per Wild Bill from the second floor we will all wine and whine.