Ocean

Wheel of Fortune
Pat Sajak
Oceanside
I love this picture!

Today was a great day! Any day putting my feet in the sand and ocean, a cool breeze in the air, the marine layer hovering above, with my friend of 45 years by my side, is a beautiful experience. 

Everything that happened yesterday that made it a very tough day, was long forgotten and never spoken about. 

We headed to Oceanside and walked in the sand and watched the surfers claim the perfect waves for their ride. We headed south on Pacific Coast Highway to Carlsbad, went into a few shops and had a delicious lunch at a restaurant that’s been there as long as I can remember. 

I then continued driving south through Leucadia and stopped in Encinitas at Moonlight Beach for a few minutes. We would have stayed awhile but the beach was quite crowded and so we turned north on I-5. 

I asked Alene if she wanted to drop a few nickels in a slot machine and she said yes. I took her to Casino Pauma, one of the smallest Indian gaming casinos in SOCAL.  She gave me a scare right off the bat. I dropped her off out front and she said she’d wait for me in one of the chairs outside.  I parked and walked to the front of the casino and she wasn’t in a chair. I thought, okay, it’s hot, she’ll be right inside. She wasn’t. I searched the slot areas on both the right and left sides of the front doors and didn’t see her. Three Pauma security guards were lingering and it crossed my mind to ask them to help me find my friend who has dementia. I paused, went outside and checked the chairs again to no avail. I was getting very nervous and dreading the call to Abbey. My last option before involving security was to check the bathrooms. I walked in and there are 10-12 stalls, so I asked, probably a little too loudly, “Alene, are you in here?”  There was a faint “Yes” coming from a stall and my heart began to beat again. 

Anyway, she played a Wheel of Fortune machine and had a bit of luck. She loves Wheel of Fortune and Pat Sajak. She may be devastated when Ryan Seacrest shows his face on the show this fall. Other slots she played, she lost money and didn’t understand the games. Of course, neither did I. She wanted to play a poker machine and she didn’t get it. We both lost $20-30 dollars and drove home. 

Jeanne stayed home with DanaRiley and did our laundry. Oh sweet Jeanne. She’d mentioned she was craving tacos from Taco Bell, so that was dinner. Quick and easy. 

There were moments today that Alene was completely lucid and seemed very normal. Then there were moments I felt like the person sitting next to me was 5-6 years old. She struggled with money, a credit card transaction at a store that doesn’t take cash and empty stares when she doesn’t understand something. Her  joy and wonderment with the flora and fauna and the repeated questions and comments reminded me of a child who always asks Why?

I won’t complain though, her mood was fantastic all day and I’m so very grateful for our time together. 



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