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| My husband and my grandmother in 2012. |
And the day before I was to drive north with all my furniture and my cat, my sister called me in a panic to report that our grandmother was in the hospital after having heart surgery. “Don’t you check your messages?!” she exclaimed in a 5 a.m. phone call.
Since my sister was living in Phoenix and I was only about two hours away in Benicia, I drove down to Santa Cruz while the boyfriend I broke up said he and his friend would continuing loading the U-Haul truck for me, a truck they were already planning to drive to Seattle for me! (Long story short: His kindness and respect for me during my move and the following year proved what an incredibly decent person he was, and we eventually reunited and got married after he moved to Seattle a year later.)
But back to my grandmother, who never shared with me her health problems until she was already in the hospital, though she was struggling with pains and sleeplessness when I came down to spend the day with her after announcing I was moving two states away.
It’s a visit I remember vividly, especially us sitting on a bench at one my favorite places, Capitola Village, and enjoying some ice cream together. And how she graciously told me “I am glad you are spreading your wings,” even though she could not have been happy I was moving so far away.
The journal entries below are from the tiny notebooks my grandmother recorded all of her days in. See those notebooks and learn more about her incredibly full life in this video:
Thursday, June 1, 2000
Awake 6, stiff. French Open at 7.
Andre vs. Karol Kucera. (Wears 1 black, 1 white sock.)
Agassi blister on toe, won first set.
Got ready for mattress.
To Longs, got canned apricots. To fruit stand, home.
Swept a bit, ate snack.
Mattress arrived 1:30 p.m.
To show, “Mission Impossible 2.” Tom Cruise very athletic? Showed emotion, face expression.
Home 4:30. News, JAG, Lehrer.
First night new bed. (Took them 2 minutes.)
Friday, June 2, 2000
Awake 5:30, stiff. Fog. Used heating pad.
Up 7, breakfast usual. Strawberries!
8:30 to Goodyear, left car. To McDonald’s for coffee.
To Longs, line at cholesterol. Walked home.
Talked to mechanics about slit in seat cover, gave me 10% off 447 to 403. Wrote check.
To longs, food. Home, news.
TV: JAG, Lehrer.
Bed, fitful sleep til 3, then 4 hours. Pillow under leg helped!
Heat both arms, leg. Face.
Wrote Mina, sent booklet on Lewis & Clark.
Saturday, June 3, 2000
Awake 7. Stiff, but got up. Exercise helped.
Breakfast usual, chores. Added to Mina's letter.
Put green t-shirt on my seat in car.
To Longs, mailed letter to Mina. Had cholesterol/diabetes test. A+
To library, email from Justine and Andra. Replied to both. Got info on West Nile Virus.
To fruit stand, home. Tennis.
Got video, “Three Kings.”
Sunday, June 4, 2000
Bad sleep again. Pillow some help.
Rested til 9:30, ate breakfast with CNN Headline News.
Wrote letter to Carla.
Tennis: Venus won, Pierce won.
To Hollywood Video, returned Three Kings.
To KFC for pie.
Home, ate. Slept, read paper.
TV: News, Ebert.
Bed, read. Hardly any sleep! Woke cold.
Monday, June 5, 2000
Up 5-6-7. Took Motrin, better. Rested til 8:30.
Breakfast same, out 10:30.
To Outdoor World, got thermal top and bottom.
Mervyn’s new mattress pad.
Home. Lunch, papers, crossword, etc.
TV: L & Order, Lehrer, MSW, hockey.
Mail: JC Penny bill, letter from Mina. Put tabby to death, bad teeth. Could be cause of liver?
Watched TV late, miserable night. No sleep.
Tried couch, not good. New mattress cover helps.
Tuesday, June 6, 2000
Awake 8:30, up 9. Breakfast same.
Took Tylenol late, 10:30.
To Longs, BP, got TV Guide and visor.
Home. Hot today!
Lunch, salad.
TV: JAG (2), bed, crossword.
Slept 12 -1:30 couch, bed 1:30 to 3:30.
Wednesday, June 7, 2000
Tennis 6 a.m. Magnus Norman vs. Safin. Norman had blisters, Safin broke 3 racquets.
Took 600 mg Motrin.
To Longs, got Motrin, apricots.
To KFC, sandwich.
Home, reviewed for when legs started, in case go to doctor.
Some TV: Lehrer, MSW, news, Bio Vivien Leigh. Sad.
Took 200 mg Motrin.
Thursday, June 8, 2000
Tennis 5 a.m. Conchita over Sanchez, Pierce over Hingis.
Rested til 10, to library.
Checked email, message from Andra. She got job! Responded re tennis results.
Home. Ate lunch, read papers.
Mail: ads.
Legs relatively quiet.
TV: JAG
Bed, slept 10-12-2-4-7.
Took Motrin, 200 mg. Feel like having hot flashes.
Decided to check with Doctors On Duty.
Friday, June 9, 2000
Gas meter to be changed. Smith to re-light pilots.
11:30, plumber left.
To bank for balance, Drug Emporium for BP, paper.
To Doctors on Duty, Osteo-arthritis. Paid $53.
To fruit stand.
Home, lunch. Ate tamale, lettuce.
Watched tennis in a.m., Norma won.
Slept good.
Saturday, June 10, 2000
Up 6 a.m. Legs stiff, hurt. Took aspirin.
Chores, Sat! crossword.
Tennis 12 p.m. Mary P vs. C. Martinez, 2 hours, 25 mins.
Ellie called, gas not right at her placed. Called Margaret.
To Kmart, gasoline $13.92!
Ate pie, ice cream. Plus salad to take home.
Mary won, $500,000. Good.
Took Celebrex at 11.
Woke stiff, sore.
Sunday, June 11, 2000
Up 8 a.m., watched a bit of men’s tennis.
Hingis in stand, clapping for Magnus Norman. Last game long, 7 deuces.
Norman lost, speech credited opponent. Hingis should listen.
To show, “Up at the Villa.” Good. Talked to man there for Hamlet.
Home. Salad, crossword, Ebert. Read Murdoch.
Monday, June 12, 2000
Up 5 a.m., took Celebrex. Makes drowsy.
Did money stocks, talked to Ellie.
To Trader Joe’s, food. Got paper, coffee.
Home 11:30 a.m. Sleepy.
Threw away three stuffed animals: Elephant (France), Dolphin (?) and Scottie (Greece?).
Worked on thermal pants.
Mail: Letter from Carla.
TV: Old JAG.
Terrible night, no sleep til 2 a.m.
Tuesday, June 13, 2000
Up 8:30. No wheat.
Chores, made bed, etc.
Got paper.
Sister Grace arrived. Was in Chicago. Sister 95, brother 91.
Haircut. To 1.5 inch.
To library, checked book on arthritis, books on drugs. Vague info! Got 2 books.
No email.
TV: Lehrer, JAG, news.
Bed, aspirin 1:30 a.m.
Wednesday, June 14, 2000
Up 9:30 after breakfast. No soybean milk! Skim.
Walked a bit, hot on East Cliff.
Kmart, ate. Patio 100, 10:30 a.m.
Home 12:30. Rested, read paper, some of book.
TV: Lehrer. Cable TV out of sync: 23 USA is 42, no 22. 21 is OK.
Justine called. Moving to Seattle, by 30th.
Back to cliff, cooler.
To Trader Joe’s, got sorbet.
Thursday, June 15, 2000
Up 6 a.m., part of time on couch.
6:30, took Tylenol.
Breakfast. Fog blew in, cooled off.
To Drug Emporium, got paper, TV Guide, diuretics, cold liver oil pills.
Stopped at bank, McDonald’s for coffee.
Home, lunch. Tuna, lettuce
Called Cable Co, check 19 for new. No! Nothing at 2, but 5.
TV: Lehrer, some news.
Took aspirin and Melatonin at 9, nothing.
Friday, June 16, 2000
12 to 2:30 on couch. Slept, exercised, back to bed.
Woke 6? Rested til 7. Stiff, took Tylenol. Out 11:25.
To Longs, got paper, BP, 155, Xerox.
To Aptos library, looked for Bev adds, not found. Talked to Erin, chef. Gave him Andra’s website.
Ate Kmart. Veggies, chicken, roll.
Home, ate soup, toast. Watched Murder She Says.
Justine called, be here tomorrow.
Took pain relief + melatonin, moved to couch, 11 to 4 a.m. Slept.
Saturday, June 17, 2000
Awake 7:20. Chores, breakfast same.
Cold, foggy.
Justine arrived 11-12? Called from town, came and got me.
To Logo's, sold 5 RLS books, $4.88! No Iris Murdoch.
Ate Erik’s Deli.
Ordered book at Santa Cruz Book Shop. $14.94, about 4 days.
To Lighthouse, sat on bench. Lovely day.
To Capitola, got ice cream.
Home, checked CDs. Washed legs. Helped? No.
Took melatonin, also drops. Up 3 a.m. Slept 2 hours.
Sunday, June 18, 2000
Up 7:30, aspirin: 11:30, 3:30, 7:30, 11:30, 3:30.
Started on clothes, box under bed.
Worked in yard.
Watched golf, relaxed some time in afternoon, then after Tiger won Pebble Beach.
Slept 5:30 to 7:15, up. Some pain, not much!! Had REM sleep.
Crossword, 10 news, 11 news.
Slept on couch 12-2, then bed. Slept OK til 6:30.
Monday, June 19, 2000
1 aspirin 6:30, 2 8:00
Walked around 6:30, not bad stiffness.
Ready 10:30, to Trader Joe’s. Got Fiber cereal, also papaya enzymes!
Mailed Penney's bill, got paper.
To fruit stand, Goodyear. Can’t do anything re wheel.
To Burger King, got big fish.
Home 11:30 read papers (2), crossword.
TV: Lehrer, news. Got clothes ready for laundromat.
Bad night. Took two melatonin. Sleep deep.
Tuesday, June 20, 2000
Up 7, breakfast same.
To laundromat 8:30-9. Ate Burger King.
Home, left clothes in car. Rested.
Ate soup, fruit.
Took Motrin 6-10-2-8. 6 p.m., pains low.
Wear pink long leg warmers.
Called hospital re support group/dr for fibromyalgia.
Mail: Master & fone.
TV: JAG (2), news.
Wednesday, June 21, 2000
Take back book, get new menu for Cable.
Check email, also pull up for fibromyalgia.
Up 8 a.m., ironed clothes for Goodwill.
Out 12:30, first Drug Emporium: BP, TV Guide, Excedrin.
To Cable, got menu.
To library, got diet book. Can’t get email.
Ankles are swelling.
Call from Santa Cruz bookstore.
Coughed up blood.
Pain in chest, no sleep. BP: 150-78
Thursday, June 22, 2000
Get book. Took aspirin 2 & 6.
No sleep in night, maybe 6 to 7.
Tea, breakfast same. Shower, hair.
To Santa Cruz Book store, cashier said her mom, aunt had fibromyalgia.
To Drug Emporium, BP only 118-55.
To KFC for dinner. Heavy, hungry.
Tried sleep, no go. But later did.
1 aspirin 2-6-10.
Worse night.
Friday, June 23, 2000 (1st day in hospital)
Called carol 10:10. Asked her to take me to doctor.
Her grandkids are with her, Britney came.
To Urgent Care, EKG, blood tests, X-Ray chest. Took long time.
Carole came back, taking girls to swimming pool.
BP 110-50. Decision to take me to hospital in ambulance.
Rick driver. Did not like Dr. V’s IV set-up, replaced it with one Dr. F did not like.
Another EKG at hospital (Dominican), blood tests. Nurse nice, young man from Hawaii.
Did not eat much today. BP 131?
Ate ice cream, Jell-O. Slept good.
Saturday, June 24, 2000 (2nd day hospital)
Awake 5, BP good. EKG showed electrical discharge same.
Watched videos of heart operations.
Carole called. Went to parade on Seabright.
Daughter came down, took girls for a time. Carole has cold.
BP 124, then 98. Got cold.
Soft tissue pain, back. legs, arms.
Watched Panetta interview, Jesse Ventura.
Sunday June 25, 2000 (3rd day)
Awake 1 a.m. Lorne, young man. More blood tests. BP 106.
Had prune juice. B.M., worked good.
Breakfast Cream of Wheat, decaf. Good.
Carole may go by home, see if Justine left phone number.
Tried to call Prudy, not correct calling card #
Make out check for Justine, $1,000. [She gave me this to help with my move. It was incredibly helpful and I was incredibly grateful.]
Dr. G: Do new invasive test tomorrow to determine heart attack.
Woman at desk said she had to notify social services tomorrow.
Took medicine to slow heart.
Monday, June 26, 2000 (4th day)
Call social services.
Tests at 5 a.m. EKG, blood, vital signs, etc.
BP 108-80.
CArole to Monterey with girls. No dinner.
Dr. G stopped by. Canceled test, for stress!
He here at tray time, told nurse I did not have to eat.
Imodium. Started diarrhea?
Keep off oxygen, get rid of water.
Slept without pain, 10-12:30. Pill til 4:30.
Tuesday, June 27, 2000 (5th day)
5:25 a.m. Tea, 138 pounds.
BP 106/64, earlier 112?
Took shower, felt good.
Called Carole: Mail, nectarines, messages.
Gave directive to nurse for no intrusive injury.
BP 96/46.
“Case Management.” Call every day first week.
Wednesday, June 28, 2000 (6th day)
Early again. Dr. G decided on anagram, then open heart surgery.
Triple bypass, out about five hours.
3 small veins, out of it late Wednesday.
Thursday, June 29, 2000 (7th day)
Better today, sat up in chair.
Justine came by from Benicia, went to house and got change of clothes. Returned at 6.
H called her at 5 a.m. or so. I had put note on Justine’s machine.
Justine heading to Washington, drove down, arrived 3 p.m.
Friday, June 30, 2000 (8th day)
Problem with Dan, night man. No pills.
Christy said she’d order, but forgot?
Not good day.
Wrote checks, walked.
Ate, later bile up chuck.
