AUSTIN, Texas, Apr. 23, 2005 — I realized something today. While Dad's needs had really occupied me when he needed doctor visits, shopping trips, waiting on, supervising through a hospital stay, they are now less so. He has enlisted neighbors to help with getting in the paper. He can generally take care of himself although there are chores and cooking that is a bit much for him. I should probably look in on him once a day. I'll have to get him to some appointments over the next few weeks. And maybe some outings when he is up to it. And I really need to look in once a day to help keep things tidy.

So...I'll be having time of my own to waste again. Not that I didn't before but I was having to sort of devote a workday of hours at least to him, a lot of days.

I don't know how real caregiveers do it. Dad says, "I have lots of experience taking care of others and so I can do a lot taking care of myself." He can, too. He has figured out just what he needed to be as independent as possible. I've been the gofer for medical assistance items and pull-on pants and the like.

FFP and I got up and we were going to put on the 'donut' tire ourselves. We went so far as to get out the jack and tools and then we decided to call a service. It was a mistake, though. I didn't really need to hang around until the guy came but I just goofed off and FFP did, too, and that was fine but the guy couldn't fix it because it was a screw that went in the tread and out the sidewall. So all he did was put the donut on, albeit quickly and easily. FFP had to go to the tire dealer and get a new tire. Fortunately he had that road hazard insurance and he got a new one for a small replacement cost (to insure the new one).

When FFP heads out to the tire store, it is close to noon. I call Dad and tell him I'm coming. His neighbor has gotten in his paper, he says, and he has called a couple of my friends to thank them for their help. He's made his coffee, had a banana. He's fine.

When I get over there, he says he wants an over easy egg and some little sausages. But his preacher is coming over so I wait to cook it. I go across the street and give one of the neighbors a key to the house. They sleep late. She's still in her robe. She is nice, though, and offers to do anything at all for Dad. Other than get up early on the weekends. But another neighbor got the paper in and he gave the guy's son a dollar for doing it so the nine-year-old will probably be fighting to get the paper in. The preacher comes and we all visit. When he leaves I cook the egg and sausage and slice an apple for him. He shows me he can walk with the walker. I clean up the kitchen, his French press coffee maker, put away the dishes I washed in the dishwasher yesterday. He says he'll be fine. I leave.

I go to the club and do a long recumbent bike ride and about eight sets of weight stuff and some lower back and ab things.

I go home and stuff myself with a bunch of salad with cheese and cold leftover salmon and bleu cheese dressing.

I decide to goof off until our evening event which is a musical at Zach Scott about Hank Williams.

Lately I've been goofing off with learning things online. Other people play games, surf for news, chat. Some people trade stocks or do their banking. Lots of people send e-mails. I do, too, but I never forward jokes or pictures of cats doing odd things. But I find sites where you can learn things and good off testing myself or improving my knowledge about things like vocabulary, geography, history, art . It's amazing the stuff you can learn. Most is free. I bought one on-line programming course for Visual Basic but my other things are just for fun. It's like watching game shows on TV only more participation. In fact, you can play game shows yourself...Who Wants to be A Millionaire or Jeopardy. I prefer things like this free geography quiz and a site that offers vocabulary quizes and test reviews free if you sign up. I can really waste time with this stuff.

I also like goofing off seeing who finds their way to our WEB space an how. Like someone in Springfield, MO was searching in Google for 'drink in Dallas.' Or someone who found their way to my September 8, 2001 entry which reminesces about 1975 while searching for Armadillo World Headquarters. So I goof off looking at pictures and entries on my own site that I'd forgotten about, somewhat anyway. People dipping into my site by searching for 'sorting possesions when someone dies' or 'tater tots.' (The latter being April's most frequent entree to my WEB space.

This kind of goofing off keeps me from the watching TV programs and DVDs and the reading books and newspapers.

I could never be bored in my house, though, with my computer, the Internet and the cable, DVR, DVD player and Netflix. I might get cabin fever but I'd never be bored.

So I goof off and only start trying to read the papers at about 5:30. I'm trying to finish watching The Conversation on DVD, rented from Netflix. I get a shower, get groomed and we go out to the show. Hank Williams: Lost Highway with this amazing kid Kenneth Brian as Hank. In fact, the whole cast is good. There seems to be a few production jitters at first (except from Janis Stinson who is incredible as a street singer who influenced Hank and his mother). But once the thing starts to swing, it is incredible. If you like that bluesy, country swing, gospel stuff that is Hank Williams, go see it. If you don't, this might convince you.

We come home and watch a little TV, snack a little, read a little. Then bed.