Friday, October 01, 2004

Guyville

Well, the husband kept his job, for now. He's got a good resume and a newly-minted masters' degree (MSW), so as long as he stays employed and thus insured until November, when the baby's due, we should be okay.

However, about twenty minutes after he was supposed to go to the meeting that would determine his continued employment, my phone rang. My heart froze--a 20-minute meeting means fired.

Wasn't him--but my heart didn't unfreeze. It was my dad, my beloved dad, telling me he had had an accident the other night. He's fallen on the steps, been badly hurt, and could have died since he didn't call an ambulance, just tried to stop the bleeding himself. Finally his neighbors found all the blood and came by the next day, and took him straight to the hospital.

Item: we live maybe 15 minutes away.

I love my dad so much, and the thought of him almost bleeding to death alone in hs apartment just kills me. My husband loves him too, seriously, they are such great buddies it just warms my heart. Why he wouldn't think to call an ambulance, or call us, to get help hurts me. He andmy mom are separated (there's a blog post someday) but amicable and he could have called her as well. She's worried about him too.

Going out of town this weekend and Paul's going to be spending some time with my dad. Hopefully he can get some insight into what's going on.

When I am my dad's age, Maggie will be 25. When she's the age I am now, I'll be 68. So the poor thing's not going to be spared this worry over an aging, and stubborn, parent. Paul's mom and dad are in their 70s and often we'll find out after the fact that one of them is in the hospital, and oh yeah Paul's dad hasn't eaten the whole time his mom's been in. God forbid they ask for help. I don't want to be a clinging vine on my adult daughter, but I do think parents, by trying to keep us from worrying about them, make us worry more when we do discover what's happening to them. If I have a health problem, Maggie (and any future kids) will hear about it, simply, directly and immediately. And if there is something they can do, I will ask them to do it. Sheesh.

Well, they say thing come in threes, and we've had property repairs, (plumbing, house painted, car) and family stuff (Paul's job, my dad, and an ill cousin) this week, so let's hope this is it and things improve for bit. Kerry won the debate, so I am going to take that as a sign things are already looking up.



1 comment:

Julie said...

Amy, I hope your dad's okay. Did you get a better sense of what's going on?