Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Parenting Parents Introduction

At a young age, I find myself saddled with an invalid divorcee of a mother. "Parenting Parents" will be a regular post series to share my humble insights on taking care of her and to vent my frustrations. Hopefully, like my doughnut post the other day it can be somewhat educational and entertaining.

After a lot of hemming and hawing and guilt, I decided not to abandon my job, grad school, and friends to move home to care for my mother when my father left her in May 2007. She could be self-sufficient - and basically is - but needs frequent medical care for her Transverse Myelitis as well as emotional and financial advice. LOTS. Like every day. I'm like Laura Linney's character in Love Actually but a lot less patient. Most of the time I'm able to laugh off her shaninagans, but walking into my childhood home this evening, I was overwhelmed by her extravagant purchases. I hadn't been 'home' since Christmas and apparently my mother decided to go on a shopping spree before the divorce was finalized this year. Walking around the house, I found two brand new flat panel tvs, various unnecessary chotzkies, and the cout de ta...an Ab Lounger. What on earth is my mother with excruciating leg pain going to do with an Ab Lounger!? Sigh.

1 comment:

benzta said...

Ugh, tell me about it. My Mom and Dad ALWAYS eat out and spend WAY more than they should, even though they have hardly any retirement savings and my Dad's knee is going to go any day now and he'll be unable to work... They buy a lot of other unnecessarily expensive crap, too, but the eating out thing gets on my nerves the most...

Oh, btw-- might you mean "coup d'état" instead of "cout de ta?" :)