Friday, February 18, 2005
That was an experience!
We watched The Dirty Dozen last night [as well as The Bells of St. Mary's (which Mom remembered seeing) and she made it through the first 45 minutes of Oklahoma! (I watched it all)]. No, it's not one we'll be adding to our collection. Truth is, before a few days ago when I saw an ad preview for it I could have told you it was some kind of male conflict movie, but not whether it was western or war and would not have been able to name the cast. I probably would have gotten it mixed up with The Magnificent Seven, about which I also know next to nothing: Based on The Seven Samurai; bonding movie for regular Cheers crowd; that's it.
The preview that caught my eye featured a particular character, the description of which played a multi-layered chord in my life involving part of the character's name. Anyway, the description of the character intrigued me so I had to watch the movie.
Mom was game. She admitted she doesn't "particularly care for" war movies but found what Robert Osborne had to say interesting and leaned into the TV when the movie started.
Funny thing about war movies...their character and focus is determined by which war they're about. This particular movie brought that home to me. The military on which this movie is built is the military of those wild, rugged, individualistic small town men of the period. It is a military of strategy over rules and fierce pride in "doing the job". It's the military of my mother. I wish I could remember what particular scene it was that provoked my mother to laugh out loud. All I remember is that it was in the first third of the movie when the strategy was being hatched and it was a piece of military rigmarole designed to allow the broadest possible means to an end, the end being a highly moralistic value. Although, having been cued by Osborne that there is a hint of The War Debate in this film, nested in the implication that war is best fought by the unbalanced and the criminals in society, the film is clearly a "pat us on the back" movie not a "what were we doing" movie, as all the Vietnam war movies have been, in one way or another. Even We Were Soldiers is a caution-in-arrears tale, despite seeing itself as a showcase for bravery.
As can be expected, during certain portions of the movie she "looked for something", never really pulling her attention away from the movie long enough to realize she was looking for cigarettes. All things considered, I was surprised how few times cigarettes were smoked in the movie.
I'm letting Mom determine her own waking time today. She's been doing very well on her own the last more than a couple days. Yesterday she had a pretty much uninterrupted 12 hours (her naps were miserly affairs) ending at midnight.
A Piece of Family History - I: Probably uninteresting to anyone but members of the family, and then only a select few. Not a story, no point, just a piece of history. My grandfather created a speech 'short cut' (I use apostrophes because, at least in the example I'm about to use, it is not a short cut). Instead of saying a word, such as "up", twice to exclaim for people to do one's bidding, one says, instead, for example: "Double up", as in the phrase of which my mother was reminded which prompted her to tell me this piece of history, "Double up, Lucy..."
I asked her about the "Lucy", as I recall she had a cousin named "Lucille" who played, with talent, the violin, contracted a "brain fever" as a child in India when her parents were on mission there (not LDS, Methodist), developed a variety of strange behaviors as a result of her bout with the disease, one of which was laughing uncontrollably. But, no, Lucille was not invoked, although apparently the above was a line in a short poem my grandfather would spurt every time someone said, specifically, "Up, up...". However, he also used "double" to 'shorten' other doubled words.
So, I took a break, back there. She arose at a little before noon, almost exactly 12 hours, of her own accord. Was eating by 1300. Is, now, as I write, napping through a ferocious rainstorm while I'm backing Almond Cranberry Yeast Bread in the bread machine. I happened to notice that the yeast "expired" Sept 2004, and, anyway, I usually buy fresh yeast in very small amounts when I use it. But it had been in the refrigerator, barely opened, so I used it, then remembered I had a packet of yeast in the cupboard which was much fresher. I hope the bread turns out. If not we have enough ingredients and it is a simple enough process that I will repeat it with the fresh yeast.
With the cooperation of the yeast, the bread should be rich (egg) and slightly sweet with a distinct almond aroma, loaded with dried cranberries. White flour all the way. I might puree some cranberry-honey butter (oooh, if I do remind me to publish the recipe...this stuff is divine) spread.
I am, frankly, glad Mom is observing a low key day in order to keep from having to look out at the rain. According to the revised forecast, which only barely indicated rain today, we are now in for six days of rain and a seventh of snow. I, of course, am internally ecstatic. My mother has dismissed this information as though it will be only a bad dream. For her benefit I will keep the house warm and bright and I'll bake a lot; maybe put up a variety of pot pies. If any of the stuff turns out well, I'll dash off the recipe at the companion food journal and mention it over here.
I was thinking we'd go down to Mesa for an interim check-up appointment next week but I don't now think it's necessary. If she continues to remain UTI free I think we'll wait until after the next labs; see how she looks. I talked to MCS today about how Mom seems to be going through another revival [perhaps it would be more 'medically' accurate to say 'a remission of old age syndrome']. She agrees with me that Mom's "Chronic Renal Failure" sounds like it's in the early stages and, good as her heart is and improving as her pulmonary system is, it's anybody's guess what might take the woman out. It might take an Act of God to get this woman to leave her bed behind. Sometimes I wonder if my mother's idea of heaven is the ability to sleep and dream whenever one wishes.
A Piece of Family History - II: More Peelings off the Family Stick: It seems that one of my father's ancestors in North Carolina fought for the Union during the Civil War. He died two years into the war; not sure if he died on the battlefield. I mention this in case any family are reading. This is the "bastard" (in quotes because my father's side of the family includes much bastardry and inbreeding) of whom MCS has previously spoken, the one named after a mysterious, disappeared Hudson and birthed by a mysterious woman who was so inordinately proud of her bastard son's sire in an age when such pride was considered foolish that she gave her son his father's last name. Unfortunately we don't know after which Hudson sire the ill-fated William (he died at age 32) was named. On this side of the family it is more than likely his father was married...to someone other than his mother.
Mmmm. The smell of baking bread...
...later.
The preview that caught my eye featured a particular character, the description of which played a multi-layered chord in my life involving part of the character's name. Anyway, the description of the character intrigued me so I had to watch the movie.
Mom was game. She admitted she doesn't "particularly care for" war movies but found what Robert Osborne had to say interesting and leaned into the TV when the movie started.
Funny thing about war movies...their character and focus is determined by which war they're about. This particular movie brought that home to me. The military on which this movie is built is the military of those wild, rugged, individualistic small town men of the period. It is a military of strategy over rules and fierce pride in "doing the job". It's the military of my mother. I wish I could remember what particular scene it was that provoked my mother to laugh out loud. All I remember is that it was in the first third of the movie when the strategy was being hatched and it was a piece of military rigmarole designed to allow the broadest possible means to an end, the end being a highly moralistic value. Although, having been cued by Osborne that there is a hint of The War Debate in this film, nested in the implication that war is best fought by the unbalanced and the criminals in society, the film is clearly a "pat us on the back" movie not a "what were we doing" movie, as all the Vietnam war movies have been, in one way or another. Even We Were Soldiers is a caution-in-arrears tale, despite seeing itself as a showcase for bravery.
As can be expected, during certain portions of the movie she "looked for something", never really pulling her attention away from the movie long enough to realize she was looking for cigarettes. All things considered, I was surprised how few times cigarettes were smoked in the movie.
I'm letting Mom determine her own waking time today. She's been doing very well on her own the last more than a couple days. Yesterday she had a pretty much uninterrupted 12 hours (her naps were miserly affairs) ending at midnight.
A Piece of Family History - I: Probably uninteresting to anyone but members of the family, and then only a select few. Not a story, no point, just a piece of history. My grandfather created a speech 'short cut' (I use apostrophes because, at least in the example I'm about to use, it is not a short cut). Instead of saying a word, such as "up", twice to exclaim for people to do one's bidding, one says, instead, for example: "Double up", as in the phrase of which my mother was reminded which prompted her to tell me this piece of history, "Double up, Lucy..."
I asked her about the "Lucy", as I recall she had a cousin named "Lucille" who played, with talent, the violin, contracted a "brain fever" as a child in India when her parents were on mission there (not LDS, Methodist), developed a variety of strange behaviors as a result of her bout with the disease, one of which was laughing uncontrollably. But, no, Lucille was not invoked, although apparently the above was a line in a short poem my grandfather would spurt every time someone said, specifically, "Up, up...". However, he also used "double" to 'shorten' other doubled words.
So, I took a break, back there. She arose at a little before noon, almost exactly 12 hours, of her own accord. Was eating by 1300. Is, now, as I write, napping through a ferocious rainstorm while I'm backing Almond Cranberry Yeast Bread in the bread machine. I happened to notice that the yeast "expired" Sept 2004, and, anyway, I usually buy fresh yeast in very small amounts when I use it. But it had been in the refrigerator, barely opened, so I used it, then remembered I had a packet of yeast in the cupboard which was much fresher. I hope the bread turns out. If not we have enough ingredients and it is a simple enough process that I will repeat it with the fresh yeast.
With the cooperation of the yeast, the bread should be rich (egg) and slightly sweet with a distinct almond aroma, loaded with dried cranberries. White flour all the way. I might puree some cranberry-honey butter (oooh, if I do remind me to publish the recipe...this stuff is divine) spread.
I am, frankly, glad Mom is observing a low key day in order to keep from having to look out at the rain. According to the revised forecast, which only barely indicated rain today, we are now in for six days of rain and a seventh of snow. I, of course, am internally ecstatic. My mother has dismissed this information as though it will be only a bad dream. For her benefit I will keep the house warm and bright and I'll bake a lot; maybe put up a variety of pot pies. If any of the stuff turns out well, I'll dash off the recipe at the companion food journal and mention it over here.
I was thinking we'd go down to Mesa for an interim check-up appointment next week but I don't now think it's necessary. If she continues to remain UTI free I think we'll wait until after the next labs; see how she looks. I talked to MCS today about how Mom seems to be going through another revival [perhaps it would be more 'medically' accurate to say 'a remission of old age syndrome']. She agrees with me that Mom's "Chronic Renal Failure" sounds like it's in the early stages and, good as her heart is and improving as her pulmonary system is, it's anybody's guess what might take the woman out. It might take an Act of God to get this woman to leave her bed behind. Sometimes I wonder if my mother's idea of heaven is the ability to sleep and dream whenever one wishes.
A Piece of Family History - II: More Peelings off the Family Stick: It seems that one of my father's ancestors in North Carolina fought for the Union during the Civil War. He died two years into the war; not sure if he died on the battlefield. I mention this in case any family are reading. This is the "bastard" (in quotes because my father's side of the family includes much bastardry and inbreeding) of whom MCS has previously spoken, the one named after a mysterious, disappeared Hudson and birthed by a mysterious woman who was so inordinately proud of her bastard son's sire in an age when such pride was considered foolish that she gave her son his father's last name. Unfortunately we don't know after which Hudson sire the ill-fated William (he died at age 32) was named. On this side of the family it is more than likely his father was married...to someone other than his mother.
Mmmm. The smell of baking bread...
...later.
