For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for March 25, 2021

the sniffer of Mrs. Richards must be turned off

If I recall correctly, Elly was 39 when she was pregnant with April. Now she is nearing 1, she should be around 40 and she is the older child of two. That puts her parents in the 60-70s age range. If her mom’s in the earlier part of the 60s, it’s kind of early for declining memory. I don’t recall her as having had dementia, though. Perhaps howtheduck can kindly drop a non-spoiler line.

When Elly tells you that she would get supper on, what is the appropriate response?:

1. Heck no! I have eaten your cooking before and it is not fit for man or beast.

2. Are you going to make one of those two dishes you do well — pick up or delivery?

3. That smell is either burning potholder or your cooking.

4. The last time you cooked, it took your father almost a week to recover. I may forget things, but I didn’t forget that.

5. I’m fine, dear.

Too proud to admit her limitations, eh?

My family won’t have to worry about me in this regard. I use Sous Vide for cooking most meat, the microwave for vegetables, and the oven only gets used for cakes, bread & cookies which require close attention by comparison. If I get overly forgetful, I will stick with microwaving most everything. :P

As someone with moderate to severe ADHD, I can relate. I once started heating up some oil in a pot to make popcorn with, checked on something quick in another room, and then forgot the oil was heating up. Long story short, the pot was ruined, the room had to be repainted, and I now only ever make popcorn in an air popper.

Mom had that problem when they moved to a condo and had a new electric stove instead of gas. The burners would lose their red ‘heat color’ before they were actually cool, so if you put a potholder down thinking the burners were off, you ended up with charred pot holder. Took all of us a while to get used to it.

Anosmia (partial or total loss of sense of smell) is common in the elderly. My mother started losing her sense of smell as she got older and by the time she was 85, she couldn’t smell a thing.

Ohh… yikes…. Yes, Elly, things are worse than you think they are…

Went through exactly this with my mother – heartbreaking…

Mom’s in an independent living home. This is why I unplugged the stove in her apartment.

In assisted living each room has a stove taking up room that does not work. They store their sweaters in them

Did you check that your pot holder was not on the pot? Also if not then agree with your daughter that you forget thinks.

A kitchen fire when you’re in your 30’s is an accident. When you’re in your 60’s is an indication. In your 70’s its a reason to worry. In your 80’s it’s a danger. The trouble is, it’s always an ACCIDENT.

I have a real bad habit of getting distracted while making dinner. It doesn’t help that my stove is “hot” – even on the lowest temperature. Result – burned pots.

This is why the fire truck is at the senior housing in town, at least once everyday.

This moment came for me when I walked into my mother’s kitchen to see her on the phone with an unnoticed FLAMING frying pan on the stove behind her. That was the first sign of the long, heartbreaking, two years to come.

More sad than funny

They could hire a domestic, such as a Caribbean immigrant. Then again, they would be back to square one. Smoking ganja is not much different than burning a pot holder.

The jar of Mayo reminds me of cleaning out my mom’s pantry with her in preparation for her move to an Adult Living Facility. Before giving away the food, I checked each expiration date and tossed old stuff. The Mayo was unopened and expired 10 years earlier so I tossed it. Looked again and it was on the shelf, tossed and explained to Mom. Again on the shelf over and over until I put it in the trash outside. Long day.

Poor woman, getting old is not fun, it happens to us all, so respect the elderly you will be one soon eough.

It’s sad and tough when they get in that way. It’s just the beginning of a long journey to keep them happy and independent and in the end they may end up in a nursing home whatever you do.

No, just a little nervous!

Disconcerting on so many levels.

Why doesn’t the Grandpa do the cooking? He seemed healthier than his wife.

This strip suggests that she is in danger of burning the house down. But if that is a real danger, I wonder why it didn’t happen before they had visitors.

My wife and I are both mid-70’s. When the kitchen smoke alarm starts up, I know supper is close to being done.

After Elly finds out how bad, when the time to make changes as down size?

Makes you want to laugh AND cry…

I remember these days :(

Been there…done that!

The holder’s broiling nicely, thank you..

Find out why OAP rhymes with dope!

Such truly heartbreaking stories from commenters today. My family went through that with a grandfather with dementia. Also when my mother was injured in a car accident, but that was more straightforward. It was just heartrending to visit her at the nursing home and hear her cry that “nobody can take in their poor old mother”. (She was paralyzed – she required 24-hour nursing care. She eventually understood that, but in the meantime…) Anyway, because of these sad and trying experiences with my family and the families of friends, I made sure to get all paperwork done regarding my will, Living Will, Advance Directives, funeral plan, etc. And when my chronic vertigo started worsening, I gave up my driver’s license voluntarily and sold my car so that my siblings wouldn’t have to go through the “take away the keys” misery. (Had gone through that with MIL). I’m not patting myself on the back, but to anyone who wants to make things as easy as possible for their loved ones, please take a little time to help them out by having WRITTEN instructions as to your wishes (not just if you die, but if you become incapacitated). It will make you feel good to do so, and will be a relief to those who love you! (Okay, off my soapbox now, lol).