Category: Caregiving
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The Place We Put Our People
It is the remarkable uniformity – the sameness – that slaps me in the face. Pleasant. Clean. Spacious. Orderly. Middle class. Nice. A place you walk into and believe that your dad, mom or grandpa will be safe and taken care of, that everything will be okay, that you’re doing The Right Thing. These buildings, like clusters… Read more
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Welcome to Quintland
UPDATE: August 5, 2018: Annette visited her birth house in North Bay today. Cecile was supposed to join her but cancelled due to health reasons. The story is here. UPDATE: As of November 19th, 2017, the birth house and museum of the Dionne Quintuplets has been moved to the North Bay waterfront, installed on Oak… Read more
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King Lear, Dementia, Filial Piety and the Profound Vulnerability of Aging
The 30-second summary of Shakespeare‘s King Lear is this: An elderly and increasingly demented King seeks to divide his kingdom in three, according to the degree of publicly pious devotion declared by his three daughters. The two eldest favour him with flattery but the youngest, his favourite, refuses to participate in the tawdry spectacle. He banishes her… Read more
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You Can Go Home Again (Hint: Try Knocking on the Front Door)
Note: this entry was written in mid-February but posted today. For the past two weeks I’ve been back in Vancouver for my annual journey “home.” But this year was different. I returned to find permanent lodging and care for my father, whose Alzheimers has taken a significant turn for the worse. I simultaneously advocated… Read more
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Living in the Shelter of Robots
It’s kind of like a mirror we hold up to ourselves. Whatever robots turn out to be, will largely be a function of us and the decisions we make. – Mark Rowlands, D.Phil. Professor of Philosophy, University of Miami from Honda’s Living With Robots Part of the fascination of robots is just that. It’s just… Read more