It's been a week...

It's been a week and a day since Nana passed away.  The house is quiet.  Feeling is slowly starting to creep back in, but time still feels like it's standing still.  We're trying to plan Nana's memorial service, and things just seem to take too long to do.  Things that should take a few minutes drag into hours.  Everyone has been so gracious and understanding during this time.  I'm truly amazed.  We're in a valley right now, but we'll get out of it.

Since Nana didn't want a funeral, just what they call a "direct burial," that should be happening sometime today.  I hope they'll let us know when, but I kind of doubt it as the burial is at their convenience.  Her memorial will be June 4th at 2pm at our church.  More info later...

Thursday...

A representative from Forest Lawn called later in the day on Wednesday and wanted Laura and I to come up on Thursday and make Nana's final arrangements.  Nana had requested no viewing, no funeral, no graveside ceremony...just a simple burial.

We made the long drive from our home to Cypress to meet with them, and they were the very model of professional.  The person we worked with was efficient, very cordial and respectful, and answered all of our questions.  Laura was doing pretty good until it got to the part where he wanted us to go with him upstairs to select a casket.

I told him "That's where I come in..."  He then turned to me, and I'd mentioned that I'd found a casket on Costco, and could they match the price.  He said they couldn't, and that many people go that route.  I went in completely expecting a scrap over the casket, and they're fine with it.

We finished our business with them, and paid for everything.  We then went and visited Papa's grave, and Laura's grandparents' grave.  We made note of how things were engraved on Papa's memorial plate so we could make sure that Nana's will match.  After visiting for a little bit, we made our way back to my truck and started on the long drive home in heavy traffic.  It was a very tiring and draining day.

One thing that was very interesting happened.  When the representative came into the little meeting room, he produced some sort of hand filled out document from his leather dayrunner.  I couldn't see it clearly, but it had all sorts of information written on it.  My guess was that it was the document that the people from Forest Lawn brought out the day before when they collected Nana's body.  Boy, was I wrong.  It was the original information sheet that Nana filled out in June of 1966 when she and Papa had bought their plot!  As we were wrapping up, the representative said that we could keep the information sheet.  I was (and still am) amazed by their document and filing system that can make a nearly 45 year old document look and feel like it was filled out just the day before.

Just the day before...

These last few days seem like they've all been merged together into one long blur.  Here's some more on what happened Wednesday.

Nana managed to poke herself in her left eye last week, and Laura had fitted her with an eye patch the day before.  Nana was saying "Arrr" like a good pirate while wearing that eyepatch.  Just the day before.

The hospice nurse got here very quickly on Wednesday.  She was very shocked about Nana, as she had just been out to check on her.  Just the day before.  The hospice nurse was so very helpful on Wednesday.  She had to check Nana's body, then repositioned her in her bed and covered her.  Then she started making phone calls.  Laura and I were in no real shape to do more than just call people and inform them.  Nana seemed to be doing so well just the day before.

It seemed to take a long time for the people from Forest Lawn to come to collect Nana.  I suspect the underestimated the traffic on the freeways, as the mortuary is quite a ways away.  The gentlemen who came were consummate professionals--very understanding, polite, gracious and did their work quickly and efficiently.

Hospice came later in the day to pick up their bed, the oxygen enricher, and some other stuff.  This left us with a nearly empty room and silence.  We'd gotten used to the hum and puff of the oxygen enricher running.  It was a normal noise in the house, and now it's just so quiet in the house.

After the equipment left, our cat was wandering around downstairs making these strange, sad little meows.  Nana's rooms seem so empty, even though they sill contain her stuff.  Quite a change from just the day before.

The start of the 12-day stay

Nana was admitted to the hospital because of fluid retention and breathing difficulties again.  She was in a hospital about a mile and a half from our house.  She was scheduled to be transferred to a hospital in Orange County (about 60 miles away) to have her heart examined via catheter and camera on Friday, March 4, and schedule a valve replacement.

Dr C, Nana's kidney doctor, came by to tell her that it's almost a sure thing that if she has this valve replacement surgery, she will need to go on dialysis. She only has 1 kidney working, and it's at about 40%. He wants Nana to drink more to help her kidney. Of course Dr M doesn't agree and still wants Nana on the fluid restriction. Wouldn't it be great if doctors could agree on a course of treatment?

On March 3, they performed an electrical cardioversion (shock treatment) on Nana's heart to try to correct her a-fib (atrial fibrillation) heart rhythm.  She came through this procedure with flying colors.  The problem with this was that her heart returned to it's a-fib rhythm within a few days...