Is Dementia Contagious?

I cooked today. Chicken fried rice. Mom always says that I use an incredible number of ingredients when I cook.

1. Olive Oil
2. Butter
3. Onion
4. Garlic
5. Basmati Rice
6. Bacon
7. Eggs
8. Baby Bellas
9. Red, Yellow, Orange and Green Bell Pepper
10. Onion
11. Cashews
12. Trader Joe's General Tsao Stir Fry Sauce (yummers)
13. Chicken

Hmm. She may be right. The rice was delicious.

The Mallaney Family Reunion is next Saturday. I'm wondering if I should send out a warning e-mail to the cousins, in case Dad hits on one of them? I'm mulling that over. And I'm taking extra beer.

I guess in my prior post I shouldn't have said that church is annoying, I guess it is the dementia that is annoying. I guess. If going to mass would shut Dad up and satisfy him I'd take him to every mass I could (or find someone to do that! lol), but most of the time he can't even remember being at mass 10 minutes after he gets home. I guess he tried to walk to mass today. Now there is an alarm on the door. The back gates are chained so he can't get out back there unless he goes over. Problem is when you lock someone with dementia in, you lock yourself in too.

I kind of think of my father now as two different people. Is he "Dad" or "Bernie"? Bernie is kind of a stranger, he is Dad before I knew him. Honestly, sometimes I can't believe Mom married him! Dad is still in there sometimes. He kind of comes and goes. Or maybe that is just wishful thinking on my part. I'm too tired to think about that right now.

I did a blog search for "Dementia Dad" and came across a caregiver's blog about caring for her dad. Her dad was doing the same things as mine, wanting to go home, alternately cute/ornery, etc. She doesn't know how much longer she can do it. I feel for her.

I thought to myself that poor Mom looks so old and tired today, and shit, I kind of glanced up while I was bent over the sink, brushing my teeth (not a good look for Kay Kay!), so do I! And I forgot about the fat part! Eating doesn't really help with dementia I guess. And I have a big old swollen gland, sore as heck. Grrrrr. When it rains it pours I guess. Life's a pisser sometimes for sure.

At least we are getting a break from the heat, might get down into the 50's tonight! Nice sleeping weather, I hope!

Kay