tribute to Kathleen Gudgel

 Kay went to a Rest Home today.  A sad day.  But I expect to go soon too.  Unfortunately not the same one. We have different problems.  She has dementia,  Me just old age. Fortunately I will be able to visit her frequently.  My plan is to post some pictures of us or something pertinent.  

• I first met Kay in Ballard Highschool.  She had a locker with my sister.   As all teenagers I was looking for friends.  She was an incredibally innocent girl.  Her upbringing was incredibally innocent and devoid of the usual contacts many young people have.  Especially those without proper supervision or perhaps growing up on a farm.  In my case by the time I was 16 I had been subjected to a type of person that today would be sent to jail for years if what they had done these things to a child today.  By the time I had met Kay  I had experienced pedophiles and accosted by homosexuals. Neither one did I like.  I also had  had the experience of being a hobo on the rails to California. A sure place to meet a homosexual.  I was not even 16 years old then. But I had experienced all this by the time I met Kay. Besides I was an ordinary kid with the normal desires of a teenager. Powerful stuff.

• Kay took this picture outside Ballard.  That is Ballard in the background.   You can see she was not pleased with the picture many years later.  I don't remember the girls name. 
• Fortunately I have a poor memory so you will not be subjected to a lot of our early experiences.  
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• But somehow I thought Kay was worthy to pursue resulting in the present situation after 72 years of marriage.  
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• Wednesday June 26, 2013
• Yesterday Hilary took me to see Kay and I took a TV for the Maintenance guy to install.  With a DVD player that we can play old home movies on.   I forgot to take any movies although there may be one in the player.  I wanted to get something to her ASAP because the previous night she kept the staff up all night getting up trying to get out and go home.  They kept putting her back in her room. by the time Tom and I got there it was late in the morning and we knew nothing about  her grying to go home yet.  She was not in her room so we took a walk down the hall and found her around the corner  probably looking for a way out.  We took her back to the room and she was obviously completely exausted from being up all night and morning. When we found her she was no doubt lost and unable to find her way back to her room.  All the doors look the same and no doubt she could not find her way back.  We lay her on the bed and her eyes immediatly began to close.  It was sad to think how exausted she probably was down the hall unable to find her room again.  This inpacted me so much I wanted to get a TV in her room that would also play DVD's of home ad family.  Almost all the patients on that floor will go to the community room and sit.  I want to say watch TV but it really seems just to get out of their rooms as from the couple rooms I saw into I saw no TV's.  When  I went to the community room it was full with no empty chairs but no one seemed to be watching TV,  If you have been in a place like this with people in this condition they are mostly unable to initiate some action on their own.  They might be able to respond to a simple questio but they can not initiate any action by their own efforts.   The place does have activities for the patients but I think I will find that that still eaves a large amount of time unfilled with anything but sitting in the community room with the TV in it.  I hope to give Kay something to do besides sit like a zombie in a TV room.  I also hope to make it possible for her (and others) to find a way to use internet live video to communicate with their relatives and friends on the outside.  this will take more doing but I think it possible under certain conditions.  Cascade Park Gardens, the place where she stays, seems to be very happy for me to bring in the TV so I think they will welcome any idea that brings something for the patients there to do.  I hope to talk to them tomorrow about it.  It appears they do a better job than alot of institrutions does but it still needs more done.  Anyone who has been in a place that takes care of people with memory problems know what I am talking about.  I hope this idea of using internet video for patients to keep in contact is viable.  I don't know of it done anywhere.  I do not want a skype connection as there are numerous other video systems to do it with.  The time I signed up with Skype I had a big signup procedure to go through. They are mainly interested in separating you from some money.  Google has a video system, and I see where Firefox as several kinds of live video to consider.  I could make things a lot easier by finding someone who is an expert in these matters. aTomorrow I will know a lot more I hope.  I also hope to see Kay