about two people, may they rest in peace
For the last seven years, I've been dealing with my father's poor health. It began with a stroke in 2007, which was scary at first because he was initially reverting back to being a toddler. A very big (6'4", at the time about 350 lb) toddler who wouldn't stay in his hospital bed. He recovered from that to the point where he could have possibly worked for about four hours a day but never found anything like the full-time job he had. In 2009, he was hospitalized and had to have two toes amputated on his right foot. He went through rehab to get to the point where he could walk with a cane and get back behind the wheel. While initially okay, the circulation to that foot was still horrible - eventually needing to have half the foot taken off. From there, he was in rehabilition facilities - my mother had her own issues so couldn't care for him and my job keeps me from being home enough to be helpful). He was still in good spirits, talking about getting back behind the wheel of his car and pleased he was down to around 230 lbs, around his high school weight. He was in the wheelchair but he could take that thing apart to get it in the trunk of my car for a day outing or even learning how to get around with the public bus .
Then this year was pancreatic cancer. Maybe, after the other issues, you just end up in denial about how serious that illness can be. But it'd been impossible to ignore how much weight he'd been losing or how he was too weak to even go around in the wheelchair. Or how the foods he used to love (or even just a simple chicken breast) would now make him sick.
He did love his movies. He had a fondness for John Wayne films (basically inherited from my grandfather) but loved comedies. He'd seen Young Frankenstein so many times he'd lost count but we agreed on two comedians: Weird Al Yankovic and Robin Williams. I'd let him know about Weird Al having amazing success this summer with his first #1 album and he'd heard about the rumored Mrs. Doubtfire 2 with great excitement. His VHS copy of the first movie was shot so I needed to transfer a DVD version to tape.
My father passed away last week. The day before, he'd been released from the hospital back to the nursing home, still in good spirits and asking me to bring an iced coffee when I came to see him tomorrow. I walked into his home that morning and I knew all was not well from the moment he reluctantly turned the coffee down. I had a suspicion the next time I saw him would not be good, even going to see my mother on my way to work that day. It was only a few hours later when I found out they were unsuccessful in trying to revive him.
My grandfather died watching a John Wayne marathon so I know that my father would watch his movies and have both fond and sad memories in these viewings. (In this context, The Shootist is especially tough).
I found out at my father's wake about the suicide of Robin Williams. For anyone else, he's just a great comedian or a talented actor. For me, he's likely the entertainer I would have turned to for a laugh in this trying time. Whether it was the Mork suspenders, racing around the stage, or just a smile hidden by his beard, I could always be put in a better mood when that crazy uncle showed up. Or maybe it's a day when you're at M.I.T. and being the mere community college guy helping out. I always thought of Robin Williams the person as a Beautiful Mind, a brain that was functioning in a way most in the world simply could not understand, so the way he died wasn't a shock as much as the timing. After all, you don't get involved in movies like Death to Smoochy and World's Greatest Dad unless you're a bit twisted (I recommend both of these hidden gems).
Oh well. At least my father is being entertained.
Then this year was pancreatic cancer. Maybe, after the other issues, you just end up in denial about how serious that illness can be. But it'd been impossible to ignore how much weight he'd been losing or how he was too weak to even go around in the wheelchair. Or how the foods he used to love (or even just a simple chicken breast) would now make him sick.
He did love his movies. He had a fondness for John Wayne films (basically inherited from my grandfather) but loved comedies. He'd seen Young Frankenstein so many times he'd lost count but we agreed on two comedians: Weird Al Yankovic and Robin Williams. I'd let him know about Weird Al having amazing success this summer with his first #1 album and he'd heard about the rumored Mrs. Doubtfire 2 with great excitement. His VHS copy of the first movie was shot so I needed to transfer a DVD version to tape.
My father passed away last week. The day before, he'd been released from the hospital back to the nursing home, still in good spirits and asking me to bring an iced coffee when I came to see him tomorrow. I walked into his home that morning and I knew all was not well from the moment he reluctantly turned the coffee down. I had a suspicion the next time I saw him would not be good, even going to see my mother on my way to work that day. It was only a few hours later when I found out they were unsuccessful in trying to revive him.
My grandfather died watching a John Wayne marathon so I know that my father would watch his movies and have both fond and sad memories in these viewings. (In this context, The Shootist is especially tough).
I found out at my father's wake about the suicide of Robin Williams. For anyone else, he's just a great comedian or a talented actor. For me, he's likely the entertainer I would have turned to for a laugh in this trying time. Whether it was the Mork suspenders, racing around the stage, or just a smile hidden by his beard, I could always be put in a better mood when that crazy uncle showed up. Or maybe it's a day when you're at M.I.T. and being the mere community college guy helping out. I always thought of Robin Williams the person as a Beautiful Mind, a brain that was functioning in a way most in the world simply could not understand, so the way he died wasn't a shock as much as the timing. After all, you don't get involved in movies like Death to Smoochy and World's Greatest Dad unless you're a bit twisted (I recommend both of these hidden gems).
Oh well. At least my father is being entertained.