dad's waning independence

[tied]

dad is grabbing ahold of what remains of his independence.

in about a week he plans to jump in the car and drive from california to texas. he has probably not told his doctor so she probably will not get a chance to talk him out of it. he won't listen to his kids and refuses to make use of the nonrefundable plane ticket BIL bought him.

this is not really new, he keeps on doing things like this. i just have to hope he makes it all right. on his last trip from texas to california he fell asleep at the wheel several times but did not crash. it seems he will not learn from his mistakes nor even remember them sometimes.

in a late breaking development, he is sharing the driving with my alcoholic cousin, who dad has never seen unless he is holding a beer.

[Lara]

:eek:
Hi tied,
You must be very concerned.

This might sound weird but I guess it's something I could see myself wanting to do in years to come. Not that I'd actually do it but I'd probably "like" to do it, but not if I was a danger to myself or other people on the road. It's a bit like role-reversal where instead of waiting up all night for the children to get home safely or wondering what they're up to, you're worrying about whether your father will arrive safely.

[SandyC]

:hug: No words of advice, just know we're here. My mom doesn't drive but thinks she can. She keeps making comments about getting a car when she is seizure free for 8 months. That's fine, people do it all the time right? Not in this case, she can't even remember what happened yesterday. :thud:

[tied]

bil talked dad into using the ticket (the nonrefundable one) that he already bought for him. dad made it safely. we are settling into life together. lots of arguments, i think he just likes to argue.

i am so tired. been unpacking boxes steadily. dad packed up a lot of stuff himself, then he didn't know where anything was when it got here. forging through it. the mover was nominated for sainthood.