08/22/2025 – Finally Friday – Whew!

This post contains more than just a brief mention on the topic of aging while suffering an uncurable disease. We won’t take it personally if you choose not to stay and read, or to go visit elsewhere.

There’s been a lot of change at Colehaus in the past month. We lost Pia Poof and we gave our ratty, overly cat-loved pleather couch and loveseat away. Quint’s a bright boy, and yes, he misses the ratty couch and loveseat (all his favorite smells!), and he knows more changes are coming. The good thing is he’s really going to like most of those changes.

We’ve mentioned we’re moving Dad Cole downstairs due to his advanced Multiple Sclerosis. Readers of Colehaus wondered why we weren’t getting a Stair Lift so he can get upstairs. The problem isn’t so much getting up and down the stairs as it is him standing and walking. Sure, the Stairlift would get him up or down the stairs but then, he wouldn’t be able to get out of the Lift chair to get anywhere. He’s also too tall and big for the device, standing at 6 foot 6 inches and nearly 300 pounds, and especially since we don’t have a straight staircase, the expensive device (upwards of $18,000 in our area not including regular maintenance fees), would be pointless. This cost is not covered by any medical insurance.*

Another suggestion was a home elevator. We looked into it. A home elevator starts at $40,000 and rapidly races up to $80,000 for the remodeling and structural, under the house in-ground pilings required. And the yearly maintenance costs, yikes!

The changes we’re able to make now mean we’re converting our livingroom into a luxurious bedroom for Dad. We say luxurious because it has its own fireplace (maintenance and repairs coming soon) and a great view outside to our backyard fountain. It also has the big TV (big meaning 43 inches – we don’t like giant TVs) and the kitchen is just a few steps, or scooches on knees, away.

Problem: He will need to still get upstairs once daily to shower and for now, that’s still do-able. Our dinky downstairs bathroom is a sink and toilet only. Obviously, we’ll have to come up with a downstairs shower setup at some point. A neighbor has a similar situation with an elderly relative in a very similar house layout and according to engineers, his estimated costs for plans and remodeling comes in around $80,000. Needless to say, we don’t ever expect to have that kind of money. Nor are we willing to sell this home for another. Not at these home prices. Those won’t be affordable again in our lifetimes.

What Quint is really going to enjoy is Dad’s new bed. We have the platform frame and headboard that Dad put together in late June. He’ll get his mattress and bedding at the end of next month. Quint used to sleep all night with Dad, snuggled against him under the comforter and draped over his arm, cheek to pillow. It was adorable!

Early last year, we had to stop allowing the cats to sleep in our bedroom because barfing and pooping had become a nightly occurrence,, mostly from Pia. Dad already has a mattress protector and waterproof top covers and is prepared. Sure, there’ll be accidents. We’re talking older, sometimes seasonally barfy cats here. We’ll be ready. Dad is ready. We know Quint is beyond ready. We need to get through this month and a few more paychecks to bring it all together.

In the meantime, Quint waits and when he’s not napping on a fleecy blanket draped over Dad’s new bed frame, he paces between the upstairs Cat Den and downstairs where many snuggly nights will return soon.

*At 59 years old as of today (Happy Birthday Dad!) and having a serious concern over keeping his job after briefly mentioning his worsening MS 2 years ago with his unsympathetic employer, Dad has not applied for Social Security Disability or declared himself disabled in any government or job paperwork. Given the current political climate and the horror stories we’ve researched and read surrounding pre-retirement age SSD applicants, low income requirements plus standard years of lawyer “help” toward approval, not to mention a probable medical divorce necessity to protect assets, he’s not comfortable addressing any of this as of yet.

Unfortunately, he did not and has not financially prepared for any of this, as Mom discovered a few years ago. Our current low-wage jobs make this impossible now. And spurred on for years by his less-than-tactful relatives, he truly believed he’d never make it past age 40. “Problem solved and all.” Mom shakes her head and says, “Um, yeah. And here we are.”

We know we’re looking at a bad situation in a few, short years. Mom can’t force or nag him to do anything he doesn’t want to do. He knows that if he doesn’t make a decision soon, life will decide for him with less than pretty results. All Mom can do is hope she doesn’t get too splashed with poor choices and poorer results. We’ll make it through this and Mom’s determined to find workable, unique ways to do so.

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A Colehaus Cats flashback:

2024 – No post
2023 – No post
2022 – One of those Weekends
2021 – No post
2020 – No post
2019 – No post
2018 – Around Colehaus
2017 – No post
2016 – MultiCat Monday
2015 – No post
2014 – Farewell to a Legend
2013 – No post
2012 – Pia’s Spay Day!