Old Is the New New

I finally figured it was time to get a MySpace page.

Epiblogue: I mean, how else can you induce celebrity musicians to be your friend?

Congratulations Nicky and Mark on the safe arrival of Leila Rose.

Epiblogue: I’ve been a little tardy with email and blogging lately so I only just heard.

Mum is home and feeling a lot better than she has in a long time.

The only blot on the horizon is a small, inoperable slow-growing tumour on her pancreas, but she coped well with that news.  The doctors reckon, all being well, it will be years before it becomes a problem.

Mum was a little worried about how John and I will cope with her eventual demise but I assured her this is the least of her problems. Anyway, we’re currently doing powers of attorney etc just so she knows we can take over her affairs without too much hassle.

Epiblogue: Mum’s quite pleased her stay in hospital and improvement (reduction) in her medication has helped her lose a few kilos – body image is obviously still important when you’re 85.

I was feeling rather shabby and wretched last Sunday morning so I went outside for a smoke with my coffee.

Suddenly, all the birds in the neighbourhood started going apeshit and, when I looked up to see what all the fuss was about, a Wedge-Tailed Eagle flew overhead. I gather there are a small number nesting a bit south of us in Lysterfield.

It was just a small event, but it helped.

Epiblogue: And yeah, I know I’m supposed to have given up the fags – it was just a small setback.

Mum’s always been a much better hypochondriac than me so when she called the ambulance a few weeks ago because of chest pains I didn’t worry too much.

Turns out there was something going on with her heart but the doctors didn’t seem to me to be quite working it out.

Three hospital trips later Mum’s electrolyte levels and blood pressure are really low and her heart is apparently not pumping as well as it should.  She’s not at all enjoying being restricted to 500ml of fluid per day and feels pretty lousy. I’d go in to visit but I figure she’s better off not catching my cold.

Epiblogue:  Mum’s mum died a couple of days shy of her 99th birthday so all this time I’ve been wrongly assuming Mum is fairly bullet proof.