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Never too old!


Musicus
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Happy New Year, my friends at Cruisecritic! May 2013 be good to you, keep you in good health and happy, and afford you nothing but smooth sailing -er- crusing! Many have sent Christmas Cards and good wishes, which did a lot to my Christmas spirit, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I am indebted to Terri Sanders, Fran Gawron, Brenda (Ottawa), Kathy Dayka, Roberta (Marlborough MA), Shauna Mahony, Barbara Elliott, Jo-Anne Herbeck (bless her, she sent 2 Cards!), Joyce Barden, Douglas Partridge, Burm, Gail, Arlene and my drearest friend Patty Roos, who instigated at all!

I am looking forward to this year with mixed feeling. You know already I have bladder cancer, but in view of my age (I'll be 96 in a month) I don't see any value in having chemo or massive doses of radiation. So I have the intention to opt for a Cystoscopy every 5 month or so.

The other thing is my lack of speech - sure it has improved but forget it if you want intelligent conversation. I also hope that my memory loss in music will be better - I sometimes can no longer remember the beginning, or the end or the middle of it - though I doubt that many people notice, I am pretty good at faking! Over Christmas I had a Sing-Along. They have a digital grand piano here, which is also a keyboard and has an excellent organ voice. This is made by Susuki. Isn't it funny that ths company and Yamaha are equally famous for the motorcars and their musical instruments? I play each night after Dinner for 20 minutes and people love it

But, it could be worse. Apart from a persistent backache I have no pain. I am comfortable of where I live, and have a loving son who with his friend Joyce look after me. And most of all, I have FRIENDS, not only from cruisecritic but a lot more from my 1½ years cruising.

All good wishes,

Egon

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Egon must get quite a lot of e mail everyday because he forwards me a lot of the good ones. Right now I haven't had a chance to read them, or anything else much because on 12/27 we got a call at 5:30 am to say that we should come to the hospital that they had a lung to transplant into my husband.

So, since then I have been at the hospital quite a lot and going through the ups and downs of the major surgery. Right now my husband is having complications. The new lung is doing well, but his heart is acting up with some other things going wrong and he is rather depressed. The doctors all say he is doing fine, but he doesn't feel fine. It's just going to take a lot of time.

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Egon must get quite a lot of e mail everyday because he forwards me a lot of the good ones. Right now I haven't had a chance to read them, or anything else much because on 12/27 we got a call at 5:30 am to say that we should come to the hospital that they had a lung to transplant into my husband.

 

So, since then I have been at the hospital quite a lot and going through the ups and downs of the major surgery. Right now my husband is having complications. The new lung is doing well, but his heart is acting up with some other things going wrong and he is rather depressed. The doctors all say he is doing fine, but he doesn't feel fine. It's just going to take a lot of time.

My oh my! I sure hope your husband is doing much better today and on the road to a recovery. So sorry to hear this setback. Will be praying for him and you! The depression is a bummer.

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Egon must get quite a lot of e mail everyday because he forwards me a lot of the good ones. Right now I haven't had a chance to read them, or anything else much because on 12/27 we got a call at 5:30 am to say that we should come to the hospital that they had a lung to transplant into my husband.

 

So, since then I have been at the hospital quite a lot and going through the ups and downs of the major surgery. Right now my husband is having complications. The new lung is doing well, but his heart is acting up with some other things going wrong and he is rather depressed. The doctors all say he is doing fine, but he doesn't feel fine. It's just going to take a lot of time.

Carol>> I sure hope your hubby is feeling better today!:)

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Today I did walk into Kent's room and I got to see him looking better and he said he was able to walk down the hall quite far. But, I only could stay from 11- 1:00 because the hospital( INOVA in Fairfax, VA) is restricting all visiting because of the flu epidemic, and visiting is limited to family members, no more than two and only during these hours.

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Today I did walk into Kent's room and I got to see him looking better and he said he was able to walk down the hall quite far. But, I only could stay from 11- 1:00 because the hospital( INOVA in Fairfax, VA) is restricting all visiting because of the flu epidemic, and visiting is limited to family members, no more than two and only during these hours.

Glad to hear that he is slowly coming along. This flu has raised havoc for a lot of people, but glad to hear that the hospital has precautions in place. Keep us updated on his progress and best wishes.

Pat

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Hi everyone--just to confirm the amazing-ness of Egon's journey, I found this thread (in 2013) and am only one-fourth of the way through ... however, I fast-forwarded so that I could post a response.

 

You are all equally amazing for supporting Egon these past three years ... what an adoring cruise community! I love these ninety-plus-year olds, and promised my mom - who will be 97 - that we'll take her on her third Alaska cruise this year. She can't write with Egon's clarity and beauty, but she does share his urge to travel ... and she still plays a mean game of mah jong.

 

Forever old, forever young ... never too late to cruise. Wishing Egon and everyone a great year!

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Good for you Pat. The pups should keep you busy. What have you named them?

I have named them Benny Benny (the little one) and Gussy Gus (the bigger one). After our initial meet, I couldn't get them out of my mind and decided to go forward with the adoption. Last night went very well for the first night. It will take time to get acquainted with my yorkies, but I feel it will all come together. This was meant to be. They were in the shelter for 2 whole weeks after being abandoned in a parking lot in the city, went through neutering, teeth extractions, shots, etc. and still sweet, sweet dogs. They say they are 12 years old, but I think they are younger, but it really doesn't matter. I'm the lucky one here! :D I should have named them "Royal" and "Carnival"...lol...because that is what I'm giving up for now!

Edited by yellowbird23
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  • 2 weeks later...

For those contemplating assisted living!

The building of 82 independent living full service suites and 40 independent living apartments is roughly of a half moon shape, facing West and the Lake Nipissing noted for it's spectacular sunsets on clear days. In front of the building a large parking lot, for residents, staff and visitors. Next comes a rail line (freight only) and then the Memorial Highway which runs along the lake.

I have a one bedroom apartment on the 4th floor with a "Million Dollar" View, with ample living and dining space, a full kitchen with an island counter and a balcony. Breakfast and Lunch I prepare myself, and dinners I have at the restaurant, except once weekly when I have something else. Mondays two cleaning ladies come and they do a pretty thorough job. Further down the corridor is the recycling\garbage room and the laundry room, with soap and drying sheets supplied.

There is a large Flagpole with the Canadian Flag. When a person dies, it flies a half mast three days in a row. This happened two times in last ten days and, together with the temperature outside of -27C (-17F) did nothing to bolster my spirits.

They had a fifth anniversary party the other day, with fancy foods, followed by a few speeches (during which I was honored for my entertaining), followed by a dance. There are quite few activities scheduled, from therapeutic exercises, Fitness Classes, Balance Classes, to Art Classes, Bridge, Euchre, and Bingo to name a few, but I have so far not participated with any of them, mainly due to lack of interest but also lack of speech. Several times a week they have movies, but with my hearing problem (I get a lot of echo) I had to give it up. On the other hand, I have taken to playing the piano from 20 minutes each day after dinner and have quite a appreciative crowd waiting for me. Thank God, they are not critical or for the most part not familiar with the music I am playing, for I have to improvise a lot, be it that I don't remember the beginning, the middle or the end of a tune. That together with the echo in my ears bothers me a lot, and I can only hope that this improves together with communication. I have put a notice to find someone to play Scrabble with, one woman answered and after we played a few times and she lost by a wide margin, I guess she was discouraged. I guess that there are more "Bingo" people than "Scrabble".

As you would expect, there are lots of walkers around as well as a few motorized chairs. I have not used my Scooter since November when the weather was nice and I checked out the neighborhood.

The dining room ist cheerful and the food is generally good. Of course there is repetition, and after a while you are able to predict how every dish tastes. Just about the experience I had on the ship. Sundays they serve wine ($3 glass but you can bring your own bottle anytime for which there is a corking charge of $5). The Sunday dinners, for which I always invite Steve and Joyce, alternate between Ham and Roast Beef, which turns out to be a Pot Roast even though it has a passable Yorkshire Pudding with it. During the week a sit with two fellows, one without teeth, the the other which I discovered is the one to consult whenever a notable event transpired. His is diabetic and does a daily walk through the long corridors of 3 stories. His interests seems to be Dominoes and Bingo.

Looking around I can always see someone much worse off than I am, but understandably I concentrate on the "live ones"!

The staff is dedicated, helpful and friendly, and this goes also with the kitchen and serving staff. And since all of them are young (compared), they are a refreshing sight.

I do not know how long I am staying here. Naturally, I yearn to be able to recapture my recent past, but that is dependent on many things.

So, in order to be optimistic and prepared, I am aiming at Ft. Lauderdale for "Poesia" on April 20, which passes by at New York where I would like to see my good friends Lea and Bill, on to Dover, where I would like to be at the B&B in Southampton, to see Sylvia, Olivia, ken and Max; take a plane direct to Bern for a "Last Visit" and then return to Canada. Could it be?

--

 

http://home.cablerocket.com/~egon/index.htm

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Thanks Joyce! Yes, they are precious. They have made my two old yorkies come back to life (and me as well..lol).:)

 

That is a good thing on both accounts.

 

BTW.....going to get Egon birthday card today and will put it in the mail. Thanks for the reminder (a few posts back) that his bday is coming up

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That is a good thing on both accounts.

 

BTW.....going to get Egon birthday card today and will put it in the mail. Thanks for the reminder (a few posts back) that his bday is coming up

His spirits are high all the time. He is one remarkable man and if I can help make his days brighter then I have done my job. Thanks Joyce!

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So, in order to be optimistic and prepared, I am aiming at Ft. Lauderdale for "Poesia" on April 20, which passes by at New York where I would like to see my good friends Lea and Bill, on to Dover, where I would like to be at the B&B in Southampton, to see Sylvia, Olivia, ken and Max; take a plane direct to Bern for a "Last Visit" and then return to Canada. Could it be?

 

http://home.cablerocket.com/~egon/index.htm

 

I sure hope Egon can somehow manage to take the trip he described.

 

Pat - Your new pups are incredibly cute.

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A million thanks, Pat, for sharing Egon's note ... I hope his readership is still going strong. Would you mind posting his address again for those of us who would like to send him a birthday card? He continues to amaze, and I so cherish this thread.

Thank you OceanPatter.

Egon's birthday is 2/9 and address is:

Mr. Egon Landsberg

Marina Point

225 Oak Street W.

North Bay ON P1B 0A9

Canada

 

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