Joy is fine. We are settling in. There hasn't been much of note to write about in the way of changes in Joy's condition. Sadly, I'm now of the opinion that Joy has hit a kind of flat line in her recovery. It became apparent around Christmas time when I was comparing older posts on this blog to the newer ones. Joy had a spurt of improvement when she got home two years ago on April 29th and it seemed to continue for nearly a year, but the past year has not seen much improvement, although her physical health has improved and we are not now experiencing any problems. The "flat line" doesn't change anything, but I owe it to all of Joy's friends and family to speak the truth: it appears to me that Joy will never recover sufficiently to be able to take care of herself. She doesn't have the capacity to develop those skills and retain them. That fact will not change anything in the way we live. I will always care for her and love her to the best of my ability.
But I've been forced to petition a judge to make a legal change in our relationship. Because we never formally signed or had notarized a document giving each other power of attorney even though we had the documents in our possession, I have been advised by an attorney that I need to file legal papers to give me the power of a conservatorship over Joy and her affairs. The attorney said that until we do that we will never be able to sell our home, since Joy is incapable of signing documents and we are joint owners. The necessity for this legal action became even more apparent last week while I was arranging for our switch to Medicare and learned that Joy cannot get supplemental insurance for Medicare until I get the conservatorship to allow me to sign for her. It should take about three months for the conservatorship to be awarded by the judge. She is covered by Medicare Part A and B now, but if there is another catastrophic health crisis, we could end up paying 20% of the bill.
There are also financial matters that need to be attended to. Joy had some IRAs and a 401k that need to be managed and she also has a pension coming when she turns 65. The people who manage these accounts cannot legally talk to me and make changes that will benefit Joy and I until I get the conservatorship. It simply is something I must do for our future.
The lesson that everyone should learn from this is that if you are married, make sure you and your spouse have power of attorney over each other's affairs should something similar to what happened to Joy and me happen to you.
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We've had a beautiful spring again around here. The bluebirds are nesting in front and the house wrens in the back bridhouse behind the pool. The ash-throated fly catchers are intently watching and waiting for one of the occupied bird houses to open up. We've seen king snakes on several occasions. Here's a picture of one taken with my iphone:
These snakes are wonderful. They kill rattlesnakes by constricting them. They are immune to rattlesnake venom. I chanced upon a king snake who was about to kill a rattler one day in the middle of our gravel road. I went back to the house in my car and got my camera. When I came back I must have gotten too close with the car and it scared the king snake away. The picture below is of the king snake moving away with the rattler still in the middle of the road.
And here's a bluebird picture:
and his mate:
I'd like here to mention the passing of my uncle, MacDonald Eaton who died after a long illness in March. Uncle Don was a talented artist and designer who never stopped creating throughout his life. I have several works of his in my possession and I treasure them. Here is a link to his obituary in a local newspaper in Central New Jersey:
MacDonald Eaton
He will be sorely missed.
Joy and I wish you all a happy spring and a restful, vacation-filled summer.
Love to you all,
Doug
