Monday, July 27, 2020

Public service announcement - Estate planning

I have taken too long to thank Dad for very practical help that he gave me to deal with his stroke and what followed: planning. Many years ago, he executed a durable power of attorney, naming me his attorney-in-fact. He also gave me a list of institutions where he had financial accounts, insurance policies, etc. These tools, especially the POA, have been immeasurably helpful. Of course it has been a challenge to drop into his affairs and get up to speed on the bills, accounts, and all, but if I hadn't known where to look and then had the legal authority to take action, it would have been so very much harder.

The other key tool has been his email account. I lucked into access to this one: I saw him entering his code to unlock his phone at the hospital, and I used the phone to get into the email.*

Which is to say, if you are an adult, please take the time to make some emergency plans. Find that person you can count on and make sure that they have the legal authority and key information to help you out if things go sideways in a hurry.

* In fairness to Dad, he also provided me a vast list of account passwords, including his email. Unfortunately, the code that he used to disguise the passwords, while perfectly transparent to him, has stumped me. So when you do give that information to a trusted someone, make sure that you aren't _too_ much cleverer than they are.

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Life at the new house

I haven’t posted about Dad since his move to the residential care home. It’s not a very good excuse, but it is a case of no news being good news. He seems to be quite comfortable. The caregivers are very nice. He is eating well. He was receiving physical, speech, and occupational therapy for a few weeks; OT has now stopped. He has a few pictures from his house on the wall of his room: a couple of his mom’s paintings, one of his dad’s mechanical drawings, and a watercolor of unknown provenance that was at the house in Tulsa as long as I can remember. He asked for a TV in his room, but I’m not sure how much he actually watches it.

Until yesterday, I was able to visit Dad at the gazebo in the backyard. I was masked and staying six feet away, but now that has come to an end; all visits have been suspended indefinitely. It’s a bummer, but given the still growing number of covid cases in Dallas, it makes sense.

I’ll be writing Dad notes. I’m happy to drop off notes from others at the same time, or please feel free to write him directly. Thanks.