Life in general

[moominmuppet]

The most concerning thing going on at the moment is that we've found out that my paternal grandfather's health is declining very rapidly, and he can no longer manage to live alone. The family (well, this mostly means Dad) is working on figuring out how to handle this, due to all the complexities of the situation (Gramps in CA, Mom and Dad in AL, both Gramps and Mom in need of lots of medical care that pretty much requires they continue to live in their present state of residence, and Dad wasn't due to take his retirement 'til next year). I hate that Dad's getting socked by life yet again (yes, he just buried his cousin last month). I wish there was more I could do. As is, it just lives as a background worry in my brain.

Some more cheery items:

A heartening story about a gender-egalitarian commune in Ethiopia
An Alan Moore tribute by Neil Gaiman
Fimo tarantulas (the same person made some great Fimo octopuses, too)

Comments

[ajollypyruvate]

I don't know anything about the financial situation but there are some good Assisted Living homes in Northern California. I'm not sure that's the best option but some of them do encourage spouses/partners/family members to live on premises.

[url="http://www.villa-marin.com/tour2.html"]This is one example.[/url] I can vouch for this one, at any rate, as I worked there as a temp. The staff put a lot of thought and energy into patient/resident care. However, it's very, very expensive. Still, it gives you an idea of what might be workable for your family. My grandmother lives in one such place, albeit much less expenseive, in Arizona. Hers is affiliated with her church, so she has her social group right there (an important point that is often overlooked.)

Regardless, I hope everything works out for them.

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I appreciate that.

Unfortunately, finances aren't great, especially with the collapse of the housing bubble, since my understanding is that the value of the house is all he has, and my folks are already struggling a great deal financially. Dad's on his way out this week to get a sense of options, though.

[ajollypyruvate]

*mutters angrily to self about stupid html vs. vb coding*

Hmmm. Equity from houses, in California, is usually fairly high. I think. nea852 would likely know more about the housing market, what with being a home owner and all.

Of course, one then has to take into account the higher cost of living and the increasing costs of medical care. Ugh.

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

It's definitely much higher out there, and I know that's true of his area (Rancho Palos Verdes, outside LA) as well, although the value's really plummeted from its high, unfortunately. I don't know figures, just that it's limited what me might be able to get in terms of signing over the house to cover his care. At this point I do think assisted living is the best option; he's in his late 80s, iirc, and his memory and balance are going very badly -- he's no longer safe without pretty constant attention. His wife died about 15 years ago, and he's never been interested in dating since, so at least we won't be fighting that uphill battle, in terms of co-housing.