JOAN’S BLOG – MONDAY/TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22/23, 2007 – SAN FRANCISCO BOUND

I am very excited about this trip – we are leaving tomorrow (10/23/) for San Francisco to visit our son and daughter-in-law. We have not seen them since their January wedding .

I am taking my own advice in Traveling With an AD Spouse, by organizing and carrying all of the travel documents, warning Sid ahead of time if I see a situation that may cause him potential problems, and being ready to run interference if a problem does occur. Due to his diabetic foot, which hinders his walking and balance, we always order a wheelchair for the airport. We are escorted by the wheelchair attendant from check-in to the plane door, so there is no need for me to worry about losing him in the crowds and confusion of the airport.

This will be the first time in 8 years of visiting SF that we will not be renting a car. I refuse to let Sid drive in that city anymore, and I don’t have the nerves of steel it takes to drive those hills in all of that traffic congestion. As you can imagine, he is not one bit happy with this decision.

Between cabs  and the cars of my daughter-in-law’s family members who are also coming to visit, I am sure we will get around just fine. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the lack of a car to drive does not result in pouting and tantrums. It should be an interesting week. 

We have taken all of the bus tours that appealed to us, except the tour to the Muir Woods, so we will do that this time around. (Well, the Muir Woods appeals to me. Sid says he doesn’t want to see a bunch of trees, but if the choice is to see the trees or sit in the hotel room, I think he’ll come with me to see the trees.)

And the “ladies” – the moms, sisters, and daughters – are going to spend an afternoon at Lovejoy’s Tea Room, an absolutely delightful San Francisco experience.

I hope the sea lions are out in force at the wharf, because I love spending time just watching their antics.

Joel will be teaching me more web design technology , and we will be putting our heads together to plan better features for the website.  If anyone has any suggestions for topics or website features, this would be a good time to let me know.

Check in each day for Blogs from The City by the Bay, and keep writing on the Message Boards.

Feedback to joan@thealzheimerspouse.com