#2865 suitcase blues, corn maze mindfulness, and difficult situations

It's been a busy week. I had my teeth cleaned on Monday, but it feels like it was a really long time ago, not just six days. I spent three nights in Dixon, and it feels like it was a lot longer, but also, weirdly, shorter, too. This weekend I have been cleaning the house in preparation for family guests. I love that the house is so clean, and I'm also annoyed with us because we only clean it that well when people are coming! 

The biggest thing this week was the trip to Dixon. I was so thankful that Lizzie agreed to meet me there. We both flew in to Sacramento. She arrived a little before me, and we agreed to meet at the car rental terminal. While I was waiting for my bag, my phone rang. It was a number from Huntington Beach. I almost never answer a number I don't recognize, but I answered this one. It was a lady in Long Beach who had my suitcase. I found her suitcase in Sacramento. What happened was that we were both at Sky Cap in SLC at the same time, and our Sky Cap guys grabbed the wrong labels. I didn't look at my receipt where he put the sticker for my baggage claim, and I didn't see him put the tag on the bag that said LGB instead of SMF. Bummer. Lizzie and I had to go to Walmart so I could buy a few things until my luggage would be delivered on Wednesday evening.

I had a lot of objectives to accomplish on Wednesday, and I am happy to say that all of them were completed successfully, but not without some drama, of course. First Northern Bank in Dixon continued to be a pain in the ass to deal with. I finally got access to my aunt's accounts after the second visit to the bank of the day, and only because I brought my aunt into the bank. The behavior of the regional manager was so unprofessional. I just have a really bad taste in my mouth from my dealings with that bank.

The other big thing that happened on Wednesday was a visit with my aunt to her doctor so we could discuss a few different things. I have a more clear picture of her medical condition now, and access to her records as well as medial power of attorney. I truly wouldn't wish what I am dealing with on anyone. It is by far the most difficult position I have ever been in, even more than when my dad was dying. With Dad, I knew what was going to happen, and I prepared myself for it. His passing was painful and heartbreaking, and I know that I did what I could to ease his way into the hereafter. With my aunt, she is still living, and is physically healthy, although unable to take care of and live by herself. She wants to stay in the home she has lived in most of her life. Is that the best thing? I really struggle with the answer. 

Oh yeah, and my bag arrived on Wednesday night around 10 or 10:30. There was a little extra drama there. A bag arrived earlier and was delivered to my room, but it wasn't my bag. I immediately got on the phone with the delivery service. The driver came back to the hotel, picked up the bag, went back to the airport, picked up my real bag, and brought it back to Dixon. Sheesh Delta! I was glad to get my suitcase, though.

On Thursday, Lizzie and I visited a couple of assisted living facilities in the area. They are both nice, although we definitely preferred one over the other.  We were both emotional at the thought of taking our aunt to live there. We are not finished exploring all the options, though, so more to come on this situation.

To take our minds off the intense things we were dealing with, we decided to go through a corn maze that was right on the way out to the house. I'd never been in a corn maze, and this one is huge. It was the world's largest corn maze a couple of years ago. They gave us maps and a crayon, and sent us on our way. I'm so lucky Lizzie was there. The woman is a fantastic map reader, and she got us through the maze in just under an hour. It was so hot that day, around 93 degrees F, and it was quite muggy in the corn. I was a sweaty mess. Here are some pics:

Before we went into the maze. So many pumpkins!

In the maze. The corn was tall!

So much corn! That tent thing in the distance was the end. We'd been on two platforms before this one. 

We did it!

The best thing about the corn maze was that it completely took our minds off the reason we were in Dixon. We had to be totally present in that maze in order to get out of it. That hour we spent figuring out how to get out of the maze was exactly what I needed. I think Lizzie felt that same way.

That night, we went to dinner in downtown Dixon to a place MT and I liked both times we have been in town called Dawson's. Fun family fact: our bachelor great-uncles used to raise a little hell in town at Dawson's. It makes me smile to think of Walt and Clyde sitting at the bar, smoking their cigarettes, drinking a beer and having a laugh. 

There were some wings painted on the back of the building, so of course, we had to have a photo op.

On Friday we took care of the medical POA, then it was time to go to the airport. Lizzie and I were in different terminals, so we said good-bye at the car rental terminal, and went our separate ways. Have I mentioned how glad I was that she was with me in Dixon? I'll be happy to see her again on Thursday night here in SLC when she and mom arrive for the weekend!

With all the stuff that was going on, I haven't done any art this week. Sad. 

You know what? It was a year ago this week that Lizzie and I were in Greece. I will always be thankful that I went on that trip for the creativity retreat. It changed my life, I think. 

Time to run my family Lyft service - that just means I am going to pick T up from work. I probably won't write next week because I'll be entertaining my cousins and I have a lot of fun stuff planned, then we'll go to Yellowstone! YAY!!