The Quintessential Gentleman’s Guide to Assisted Living: Part 5
The overloaded boxes and leaning piles of sorted doohickeys
were losing their grip on our identity, no longer a burden on our present and future. The items we once treasured eventually found their new scene, whether in a display case or anticipating an online bidding war to end. They will be enjoyed and have purpose, and we are at peace.
Jostled Into Comfort
Who knew big shake ups and life disruptions could bring about positive change? I admit, I’d forgotten how important it was to venture outside the norms, daily rituals, and haunts. That’s how we discover, grow, and improve. And boy do I feel like we’ve improved in many areas.
Our move propelled us to be better, live better, be happier, and healthier.
While at our previous home, or any previous home for that matter, we weren’t blessed with the luxury of having someone to lean on, without the underlying feeling of guilt.
Sure, good friends are great to have around to help with the smaller things, but not for day-to-day nuances. There’s a biting sense of burden that you just don’t want to place on them. Our new home comes with an understanding, a daily handshake sort of thing, that we aren’t a burden and do require some life maintenance.
It didn’t take long at all to be comfortable, a tad longer to wholly set free the worry and stress we’d kept near that nook by our eyes. The spot you subconsciously look to when a wincey thought comes to mind, sometimes accompanied by a slight head tilt and tiny massage.
It hit us one day, though it was at our fingertips from day one, just how much life was available.
Our social responsibilities grew tremendously. Now we want to socialize, dive into our hobbies and interests.
It’s like having your favorite vacation spot in your backyard. We do more living now, free to navigate the day without the fears of what bad thing might happen. There’s people maintenance available as schedule or on a whim. This may mean daily assistance at times, and more infrequent during others.
The Science of Dining
The orchard of pots and pans bursting through the cabinet doors, clanging out a dismal 2nd grade rendition of Greensleeves, isn’t missed. Executive dining as it’s named here, I call it really good food, rescues me from smoking up our home and staring at a mess of dishes to be talked down to. My approach to feeding us used to look like I was tinkering around with a chemistry set, foaming beakers and explosions included. Now we have options, specials, entertainment on some evenings, and all the wonderful round-the-table banter we want.
Meals, dining, the whole routine, is different, fresh, and vintage at the same time. Without the involved preparation of hosting and stressing over properly prepared food,
we have reclaimed valuable time to talk with friends and neighbors at leisure, while dining on delicious food.
I mentioned earlier that you should have lunch or dinner at the communities you’re interested in, I will amend that statement by saying you must have lunch or dinner, preferably with some of the residents, your future neighbors.
