Equipment showing up...

Sara's hospital bed was delivered and setup yesterday. The day before we got feeding supplies and a traech kit. Still the day before that we got a wheelchair, oxygen concentrators, oxygen bottles and a patient lift and some care supplies. The list is really starting to come together now.

There are still a few things left for the doctors to order - like caregiver training for one! LOL

They are also going to order up some pads and a pulse oximeter/heart rate monitor for her at night, so that she can sleep undisturbed but we can still monitor her. I'm also going to pick up an infrared camera for her room so we can physically look in on her, while allowing her to continue resting. She is looking so forward to being able to sleep with the door closed and without interruption. The monitor and camera were my trade-off with her for safety.

Michael did a great job of removing the molding caulk and grout from the bathroom. We found still more - A LOT MORE. Apparently, the dorks that put the tile into the bathroom were really stucco guys and took that approach. They put a paper membrane over the drywall, then chicken wire, then stapled it to the drywall with 1/4" staples. Barely enough to hold the wire and paper itself. To that they applied concrete and let it dry, then troweled mastic onto it and hand set tiles without spacers, so the gaps were all too close for grout. To secure the tiles on, they over grouted the the joints to give the appearance of a real grout joint.

So, when we went to saw out the molding grout and replace with mold/mildew resistent, we hit tile edges and then exposed gaps that could not be filled with grout. Long story short, I made an executive decision that since I was going to have to replace tile now anyway, I would just do the bathroom the way that worked best for Sara and replace it later if the landlord has a fit. He won't, mind you, as I am real good at tile and he'll end up with a better bathroom in the end. And we'll end up with a better place to clean and care for Sara. So, that is in progress.

Its a good thing, too, because i noticed before that the shower walls seemed to move ever so slightly when you ended up against them. That is not supposed to happen, but I figured it was me imagining it. Well, after pulling a few tiles off and then seeing the backer actually sag...well, I knew we were dealing with a crappy job. Michael pulled an edge back to see how it was attached to the wall and the entire thing came down on him. He wasn't hurt, but it easily could have happened to someone else over time.

What we found was lots of mold, spores, water damage, staining, and spiders. Yes, the gap was big enough in some places that spidey had made a home. There is also no plastic backing the drywall, and the joints aren't taped or mudded, so even there you have openings for water to travel. And it did...

The top edge of the shower had cracks all along the grout line (from the wall sagging down and breaking the joint which was the only thing holding the edge...again, no tape, no mud, no screws... I just wonder how people get away with such shoddy work. So, water had gotten behind everything and into the walls as well. I have to pull the drywall to see if there's rot back there, but am guessing there is. I really don't want to have to replace framing, but will if needed. At very least I'm going to open it up and put a heater in the bathroom until the moisture content ofthe wood goes back down towhere itshould be, then spray it with a mold inhibitor before building the wall back and building the shower. I do like construction, but really don't have time for this right now. But, hey, whatchagoingtado?

When I get the walls opened up and have wait time with them I'm going to get started on laying out the ramp. I'm going to try and tie it into the basic architecture of the house, so it looks like it really belongs. At the same time, I am adjusting the planting beds out front (because I need the clearance) and getting rid of weeds and unkept plantings. I'm not going to focus on the planting beds at all this summer. I'll just build out my landscaping plan, with the first focus making the backyard accessible for Sara and getting rid of the rocks everywhere. (and pulling down the trees that have been pruned (butchered) into unhealthy growth and shape. and getting rid of the blackberries...)

Plenty to keep me busy when I am not taking care of Sara or working. The good part is that I really enjoy putzing and fixing the house. It is relaxing to me to step away from the computer, pick up a rake and move stuff around, or go stick my hands in dirt and grow something. It is how I counter the complexity of technology with the simplicity and comfort of home.