DECEMBER 1st.........Decluttering A Chaotic Life

It's going to be difficult in knowing how to play it this Christmas. It seems that for

the last 3 years something always gets in the way. And I certainly didn't run around

Town grabbing lots of festive photos for the blog last year, something I do most years,

and it's what I'd like to get back to now that December is here, what I call the true

festive period, not November. Perhaps it'll be a welcome distraction from this new end

of year dilemma.

You see, just 4 weeks ago my oldest and longest friend had a bad fall while out shopping.

So he was rushed to the local Paddington Hospital, where by the following day he had

emergency hip repair surgery.

Since 2022 I've noticed a decline in his memory and he's clearly suffering now from

Mild Cognitive Impairment and regularly gets confused while still in Hospital, where

he keeps questioning why he's even there. And so over the last 4 weeks I've been regularly

making the long journeys to see him. Where he's always thrilled to see me. And

everything suddenly makes sense when I turn up.

But the hardest part of this past month was a four week campaign to declutter his

chaotic Flat, starting with the bedroom, the Living Room, the impassable staircase

and finally the Kitchen (below) where plates, cutlery and cups were beyond cleaning

so I threw them all out and replaced them.  

 

The sad thing is that after all my hard work I sent lots of photos of the partially decluttered

Flat to the Hospital Social Worker and the Occupational Therapist, who were pleased with

the results, but I don't think they would like to see him return there too soon, to a Flat with no

working boiler, hence no hot water or heating, and they see the staircase as a danger hotspot

where he could easily have another fall.

And I was quite shocked when the Social Worker told me that there was a huge rent debt

owed of several thousand Pounds as well as an unpaid Landline phone bill.

I did pay a £1,300 gas bill last week for fear of the gas getting cut off. But it's clear that he's

not getting on top of things regarding all the Utility Bills.

And so after 4 weeks of taking up an NHS Hospital bed, they're looking at moving him to

a holding place. So I asked where. They said possibly an NHS Nursing Home. I'd hate to be the

one to tell him this. He just wants to be back in his familiar home environment where I can

visit him each day but the Social Worker claims that I need to be with him 24 hrs a day, either

at his place or my place if he's to go back into the community.

I've nagged the Social Services to get his Boiler working again through the Local Council,

but they've done nothing so far. It's almost as if they're using the broken boiler as

ammunition for him not to move back into his home. And I even told his Medical Team 

in a staff meeting last week that 4 weeks ago before his fall he was fine in getting 

about, making cups of tea and boiling up veggy dinners which they claim he isn't able

to do now.

Since he underwent General Anesthesia and has been administered various drugs daily

for his hip surgery, all I'm seeing is a definite decline in his mental health.

But when I visit him he perks up and is as happy as a bunny.

So now that we're into December, the real month of Christmas, it's time to bring indoors

my potted Christmas tree which has been sitting outside the front of the house all year.