I got very little done this week, but this time my reasons were legit: I was off visiting my Mum again.
I should still have gotten more done than I did on Monday and Tuesday (and I’d hoped to catch a movie or two for the time-travel book Sunday) but from Wednesday through my return today, I was offline (not literally, of course. Mobile hotspots are a wonderful thing). Working in Mum’s tiny apartment with the large TV on is too distracting.
Mum had some health problems hit her over Thanksgiving and she only recently returned to her apartment. We had a couple of catch-up doctor appointments this week and some paperwork her caregivers needed to sign—depending how long she needs them, they may qualify as household employees, so I had to get I9s (the Are You Legal to Work in This Country? form) from both of them (and yes, they are). And I’m supposed to do that in person—no faxed copies or taking their word for it (technically Mum’s the employer, but my sister and I handle this kind of thing).
Mum was doing better than I anticipated, though weaker than when I last saw her in August. Part of that is definitely that she sleeps poorly: she had a rare good night of sleep and it was amazing how much stronger she was the next day.
The doctors seemed to think she was in good shape. I was annoyed, though, that neither office had apparently made any attempt to collect Mum’s hospital/nursing home records despite my calling more than a week in advance. Fortunately my sister recorded a detailed synopsis of events and diagnoses, but still, that shouldn’t be something we need to provide.
Another annoyance: the county has a “Call ‘n Ride” that allows senior residents to use a local taxi for trips while only paying part of the regular fare (the county pays the rest). Due to some technical glitch, three out of four trips the card didn’t clear—so I had to put the trips on my credit card. About $75 total, and that hurts! There’s a process for reimbursement when that happens but it requires the drivers fill out a receipt confirming I tried to use the system. I didn’t know to ask, and none of them felt the urge to tell me. Yeah, I know nobody wants to fill out paperwork, but I’m pissed.
Another problem on the trip was my own fault. I’d remembered very clearly that Dulles was the DC airport with the direct Metro link, Reagan did not. Only when I checked after booking my trip … I doubt I’ll make that error again.
Fortunately there’s a bus between the airport and the Metro. When I was waiting at the Dulles stop after disembarking from the plane, a bus pulled up and I, not being an idiot asked “Is this the bus to L’enfant Plaza metro station?” The driver apparently was an idiot because clearly the only word he heard was “metro” and he said yes. I wound up going to the very end stop on one of the lines which easily added a half-hour to my trip to Mum.
Then on the ride home this morning, I carefully planned my trip on the Metro so that I’d reach the bus stop well before the 9:30 bus, thereby ensuring I would arrive at Dulles well in advance of my flight. A good plan … except that when I left the metro stop and found the bus, it was a freezing cold morning, as in double-digit temperatures, maybe single-digit with windchill. And I was on the street (there was nowhere convenient open that I could see) for 40 minutes. Very, very uncomfortable, though it made me glad I’d brought a scarf for the trip (first time I’d worn it).
It’s good to see Mum, and I’m glad to have done my duty (The money? Not so glad about). But it’s so very, very nice to be home with TYG and our adorable puppies.
