The Angry Sound of Silence

As I write this, I am listening to Disturbed's version of 'The Sound of Silence' on repeat.  Fitting for this week, and the latest with my hoarding mother.  You can listen to this for yourself here.  

It has been a bit since I last posted, so a bit of catch up.  My burgeoning relationship ended, not with a bang, but a whimper.  And I am not sad... Just sad at the perception of the loss of something.  All I will say is when someone states that they are a covert narcissist, believe them and run, do not walk, away.  Which I did, and I am probably all-to-good at doing.  I am not going to be treated as someone's toy whatever that they have on a shelf until they are ready to take me down and interact with me.  I deserve so much more than that.  And if someone is not able to swim a moat and fight a few alligators to earn my trust, than so be it.  I, again, realize that I am very complete and happy on my own.

Healthwise I have a new appointment at the clinic, and this is now for early January.  This is not great, since the original auto immune issue first raised its head in early November of last year, but I am closer than I have ever been.  It is what it is.  If this is Crohns, I am in a full blown flare right now.  It has been wretched, and it appears I may have had a mild case of the flu or a really bad cold last week.  I am on the mend, and I ran my first 5K since last December.  My time was respectable for me, and it was a HILLY course.  Today was supposed to be my first marathon, but I will continue training and plan for the spring.  I realize I must get a grasp on what is happening with my health before I really can push how I need to in order to do this.  Goal deferred, not denied.  I will do it before I am 50.  There is no 'try', there is only 'do'.  For me, what the mind plans, the body follows.  

One of the most divisive and ugly Presidential elections occurred this month.  And I have been in a walking state of disbelief and grief over the increase in hate acts and negativity.  

Work has been stressful, with me working way too much, and socializing, sleeping, and spending time with my precious cats way too little.  A 12 hour day is the norm.  

This all sets the stage for my mother.  In 2010 she was bitten by one of her pet cats and ended up in emergency surgery to save her hand and her life.  That was the last time I was in her home.  She later revised the story to she was digging in the garden, but who knows what the truth is.  And it was a truly horrible experience for yours truly.  One I will not repeat.  Well... She did.  Allegedly, last Thursday she did what appears to be an almost exact replay.  On Saturday afternoon while I am on a run I get a call from a nearby town to my hoarding mother, and I (correctly) guessed it was from her. I called her Friday afternoon and she was telling me how she did not know if she would survive a situation she found herself in, the whole high drama thing. The upshot is, she was screwing around in old wood, etc. that has been piled outside her hell-hole for 10 years or better late Thursday night (because this is what every immune suppressed, frail, walks-with-a-cane hoarder of nearly 80 years old does, DUH!) and said something stuck her finger, and she bled profusely. She went in, cleaned it out with H2O2 and used a leftover antibiotic cream, it got worse in a hurry, She disregarded the advice of the AARP tele-nurse she called to go to the emergency care unit, and instead waited until the next day to go to a local urgent care walk in clinic, where, of course, she did not tell them the entire story and was woefully undertreated. She was complaining of the 'worst pain in her life' and other types of drama. I suspected a spider bite, or a snake bite. She immediately poo-poohed that, and we ended the call.

Back to the call today. I headed out for a mid-range to longer run and my phone rings. Through deductive reasoning, I was correct she was in the ECU and was being kept for treatment. Of course, she kept hanging up on me, then got pissed when I could not take her number as I was on a run and was about 3 miles from home in cornfields. After about 10 calls for a duration of a minute, all I know is she is being kept, and she does not want me to come. Good thing, because I am not. It was 2 1/2 hours later, before I heard anything other than she gave me a direct number to call her back, and it was not a good number.  She stated her cell phone was out of battery power and she did not have a charger, and I had to call back on the cell and she did give me a room number so I could call the main number and be connected.  She will not ask for the direct number.  

I was bad and went out to dinner with a friend and she called multiple times, and kept complaining.  I told her I would call her later when I returned home.  I did so, and she was angry that she had been in the room for blah-blah time and had not seen anyone, and the upshot was, everyone was supposed to drop everything at this hospital and attend to her.  She was threatening to leave and drive herself to hospitals 45 and 60 minutes away and going over the ridiculous top as she does.  She also was freaking out about stupid things, and some legitimate things, but all were a 'CAPITAL-E-EMERGENCY'.  Things like:

• She had not eaten since Thursday night.
• The 5 cats were in the bathroom and would have no food for however long, but do have water.
• Her outdoor cats would not be fed.
• No outside lights are on, so the neighbor hood thieves will break in, and she left her credit card on the counter! Horrors!  (In the stage 5 hoard... cough cough)
• The paper will be delivered, further advertising she is not there!
• Her car is in the Emergency Room lot.

And the list goes on.  My heart is with her cats, but she refuses any option to get someone in the house.  One cat takes heart meds and glaucoma meds.  

I am PISSED. She knows I am flying to FL to see friends for Thanksgiving, and that work has been killing me, I have a health issue I am trying to get to the bottom of (likelihood of Crohn's plus a large amount of fluid in my pelvis).

I am just fed up. And feeling less than empathetic. And I know in my home area in Appalachia, I am going to be the asshole no matter what, so let me be it.  Late last night she called and stated that she was having surgery this morning, but again gave me no ability to call in.  I waited until 12:30 pm and called her room, and she was back and furious.  They had not put her out but had done a nerve block, her arm was still 'dead', she had not eaten, and she was throwing a fit on multiple levels and doing nothing to be part of her solution.  Worse, she kept saying 'someone has come in, call me back in 2 minutes or so' and after about 4 times of this, I did not call her back.

I did try to check on her at 8pm, but she did not answer.  I will try again in the morning, but I am truly close to the end of my endurance.  She has not made any plans for her, her safety, her cats, their well being, and although I am sure her phone was not intentional (unless she is not telling the truth about the charge level, which is possible) she does everything to get in her own way.

Sorry for the long rant.  I am so beaten down by this.  It is just a matter of time before she starts ravaging me, and I predict if and when she does, it will be for the last time.  I simply am done.  And this is not going to end well.  And the other piece?  I have grants due TOMORROW that I have not worked on due to the constant interruptions and the low level of focus and bandwidth I have.

Thank goodness for my precious kitties, and my friends.  This too will pass, but my patience is wearing thin.  As I have said... Her trauma history is not her fault.  Her mental illness, not her fault.  Her intentional cruelty and manipulation, her refusal to be part of her own solution, even part way, THAT is what I hold her accountable for.

Good night all.  Onward and upward.  I hope.