Campmeeting--Day 10--Sunday

Sunday dawned bright and early. The tents were supposed to be vacated by 8:00 a.m. I got up at 6, let T sleep a bit longer.


We got dressed, ate breakfast, and began packing up. At least the rain had stopped!

The building is the Boys' Dorm--the view is not quite from our tent, actually from the edge of the parking lot. That's where we took shelter in the storm.



M arrived with the truck about 7:30 and we loaded up. We got home about 8:30--carried stuff in and I started laundry.

An Exciting End to Campmeeting

Somewhere around 1:30 a.m., I awakened to thunder and lightning. I lay their listening to the thunder, watching the lightning across the bottom of the tent flap--and thinking about all the branches overhead that could blow down on us. The wind was blowing pretty strongly and the rain poured. I wondered if there was any severe weather watches--but mostly prayed that no branches would fall on us.

About 2:30, things were starting to quiet down a bit and I thought I heard a voice on the Locating loudspeaker. I got up and turned off the fan (to make it quieter), stuck my head through the tent flap to see if there was a weather announcement. I didn't hear any more announcements, but could see people walking to the dormitories. I decided that there must have been an evacuation announcement--woke up T-- and we made our way to the Boys' Dorm. The rain had let up quite a bit. We hadn't been in the hallway (of the basement) long when one of the pastors came and gave the all clear to return to the tents and RVs. There had been a tornado warning, but the storm had passed and the warning lifted.

It was about 3:00 when we got settled back into bed.

Campmeeting--Day 9--Sabbath

I got up early for the early church service which started at 7:45. The kids meetings didn't start until 9:00, so they could sleep a little later or get ready slower.


Sabbath School had a missions emphasis with a report from Madison Academy about their mission trip to Argentina.


After church and Sabbath School, M and I went back to the tent and waited (and visited and relaxed) for everyone else to get out of the later services. I fixed lunch--haystacks being the easiest thing to fix since I had no time Friday to fix food.



After lunch, M went to the auditorium (air conditioning), Daddy went home, and the kids went off to do their thing. I called Mr. M to remind him of the mid-day medication--LB, the lady who came in this week, said she was sure she had put the patch on him wrong, but that it looked different than the last one. I told her I would come and see and put it right if need be.

I went to Mr. M's and sure enough, the patch was taped on with the plastic overlays still attached--the patch was not making contact at all with his skin. I removed the excess plastic and put it right. I fed him some supper and gave him the evening pills before I left.

I got back to campmeeting in time to visit with some old friends of ours--they used to babysit L when she was about a year old. I left M visiting with them and went to the tent to fix supper--veggie dogs--for the kids.

I went to the evening meeting. M and T carried the lawn chairs (much more comfortable for sitting through meetings in than folding metal chairs) back to the tent after the meeting. M went home--T and I wandered around for a bit--did some last chance shopping at the bookstore.

L decided to go home and not wait until morning like the rest of us--she left a little after 11:00.

Time spent with Mr. M: 3 hours
Meetings attended:3

Campmeeting--Day 8--Friday

I spent about an hour on the phone talking to the social worker, etc. and missed the 9 a.m. meeting. I went to the 11:00 service, it ran late so I had to leave before it was over. I went to the Snack Shop and got some lunch--T arrived from the 11:00 service just as I was finishing lunch. I left about 12:30 to go to Mr. M's to meet with the social worker.

The social worker pulled in right behind me at Mr. M's. She explained his options--hire a sitter (out of pocket at $12/hr.) or go to an assisted living. She said there was a good assisted living place in Gallatin that had an opening. I asked if he wanted to look at it. He said he did--so the social worker left and we got ready to go.

We got to the assisted living--very near the hospital and doctors' offices (they would take him to his appointments). It is small--only 20something residents. It was very clean and attractive. We were shown the two rooms they had available. Mr. M said he would do the paperwork right then and signed up. We stayed for supper--quite acceptable. I took him home and got him settled for the night--pills, cats fed, etc.--then returned to campmeeting.

I had to stop at the store for perishable food for Sabbath meals. I got back to the tent just as the sun was setting and put things away. I got to the auditorium at 8:10--the preacher wrapped up his sermon at 8:20.

Time spent with Mr. M: 7 1/2 hours
Meetings attended: 1+

Campmeeting Pics

One of our many tent mates.

The view looking out of our tent.

The Snack Shop entrance and eating area.

The cabins.

The tent area.

Campmeeting--Day 7--Thursday

I called Mr. M at 8:00--he had taken his medicine but not yet done his vitals.

I waited in the tent (because I had a cell signal there if the phone should ring--waiting to hear from the social worker) until 10:00, then gave up and called to see when the social worker was coming. She said she wouldn't be able to come until about 1:30 on Friday
When I called Mr. M to tell him, LB got on the line and told me his blood sugar and blood pressure had been quite low (for him)--that he had gone to bed. She made him some homemade soup which he ate a bowl and a half of for lunch. As long as someone fixes the food and puts it in front of him, he'll eat. He didn't eat the leftovers from yesterday that only required warming in the microwave.

Since I was going to go to Mr. M's on Friday, I stayed at campmeeting today.

I went to the 11:00 service about the Sanctuary by Dane Griffin.

L and her friends went to Indian Creek Camp with the Youth group today, so it was just me and T for lunch.

After lunch, I went to Walmart to pick up a few things, returning for the early afternoon seminar by Vicki Griffin--her topic was Stress Management. I also went to the late afternoon seminar by Dr. Jud Lake about Ellen White.

T and I ate supper and I came to the auditorium for the evening meeting. Bill Tucker was the speaker again.

I called Mr. M after the meeting--he had taken his meds and had had peanut butter crackers and a glass of milk for supper.

Time spent with Mr. M : only phone calls--maybe 30 minutes.
Meetings attended: 4

Campmeeting--Day 6--Wednesday

I went to Walmart first thing in the morning--called Mr. M on the way. I picked up cat food and a few other things for him then went to the bank. I took L back to campmeeting and then left for home. I checked e-mail, did a couple things, then called Mr. M to see if he was ready for me to change his pain patch. He said he didn't feel good and could he have more medicine--I called and talked to his PCP's nurse--she said no more meds.

The friend, LB, had come and fixed him some breakfast and lunch. Mr. M had eaten some--probably as much or more than he had eaten all week. I changed his patch and LB said she would pick up the prescription on Friday and change the patch on Sabbath so I wouldn't have to drive over both days.

I got back about 2:30 and needed to do laundry. The laundry room in the boys' dorm was busy (and on second floor) and I didn't want to haul three bags of laundry all the way to the girls' dorm only to find their laundry room busy, so I went to the laundromat in town.

I had picked up L's paycheck on the way back to campmeeting earlier and she went and cashed her check and picked up pizza for us for supper (we shared the cost).

Bill Tucker was the evening speaker again. I called Mr. M after the meeting--LB had called him at 8:00 to remind him to take his meds and he had.

Time spent with Mr. M: 3 hrs.

Meetings attended: 1

Campmeeting--Day 5--Tuesday

When I called Mr. M for his morning med reminder, he was confused again. He said he thought he ought to be somewhere where they would give him his meds and feed him. So, I called the Dr. office to see if Mr. M could get in to see the Dr. filling in for his PCP (who was out of town). The receptionist said she would have the Dr. call me. After waiting an hour or so, I called the Home Health Nurse and asked if she could get somewhere with the process. She said she was scheduled to visit Mr. M that morning and would get the social worker going on things. I went to Mr. M's to talk to the nurse and wait for the social worker. The nurse said his vitals were all good and left. I went to the restaurant and got Mr. M something to eat for lunch and ate with him. I cleaned up after lunch and did some laundry. Mr. M called an old friend to see if she could come every day and make sure he ate and took his pills. She said she couldn't commit to come every day, but could come every day for the rest of this week for two meals and meds. At about 2:30, I called the main Home Health office to see when the social worker was scheduled to come. The person I talked to said that she wasn't scheduled to come until Thursday. So, I told Mr. M good-bye and came back to campmeeting. (Actually, stopped by the house and visited with M for a little bit before returning to campmeeting).

I visited with a friend for a little while after returning, while waiting for T to get out of the late afternoon seminar. When T got back, we ate supper.

The evening meeting was by Bill Tucker again. I called Mr. M after the meeting for the evening pill reminder.

Time spent with Mr. M: 5 hours
Meetings attended: 1

Campmeeting--Day 4--Monday

I called Mr. M at 8:00--he was feeling better--had slept well and had taken his medicine.


M came over in the morning and we went to Trust Services and updated our wills. I got to the 11:00 meeting at about 11:30.

For lunch we tried to eat leftover macaroni salad, but it had frozen. Microwaving helped, but it wasn't very satisfying.

It had sprinkled some before lunch, but began to rain in earnest after lunch. The sky opened up and the rain came down in torrents. The velcro closure on our tent wouldn't stay closed, so we had to improvise.



Actually, one clothspin wasn't enough--we ended up with a row of about 10 of them. On the back door of the tent I had to put duct tape between each clothspin to keep the wind from popping all the clothspins off.

The wind blew quite strongly--I was laying on the bed and thinking about all the trees around the tent and decided to go to the auditorium rather than stay at the tent in case branches began falling from the trees.



I stayed for the Lifestyle Matters seminar in the auditorium presented by Vicki Griffin. She spoke about the effects of lifestyle (diet, etc.) on the brain.

The rain ran down the hillside that our tent is on and made a river across the front half of the tent.





When I called Mr. M in the afternoon, he wanted something to eat from the restaurant. He called M (since he was home and I wasn't) and asked him to go get a carry out. Unfortunately, the local restaurant was closed for Memorial Day --so was the truckstop cafe. M was able to get a sub sandwich at Subway and take it to Mr. M.

We had supper at the snack shop, then went to the evening meetings. The adult meeting speaker was Bill Tucker from The Quiet Hour.

I called Mr. M after the meeting to see if he had taken his meds. He said he had and that M had brought him a Sonic Burger (meaning the sub sandwich).

Time spent with Mr. M: only phone calls today--maybe 20 minutes
Meetings attended: 2 1/2

Campmeeting--Day 3--Sunday

I was awakened just before 5:00 a.m. by a phone call from Mr. M. He had been awake all night with pain in his feet--he had taken his pain pill shortly before calling me and wanted to know when I was coming to change his pain patch. I told him I'd be there in the afternoon.

The phone call woke L and T also (since the tent is only about 10'x12'). I felt bad for L since she had worked till 11:00 the night before and didn't get to bed till about midnight. She and I were able to get back to sleep until 7:00, but T couldn't get back to sleep and finally gave up and got up at 6:00.

I called Mr. M at 8:00 for his med reminder.

At 10:00, T and I went to the auditorium book sale--the ABC (Adventist Book Center) has a selection of new releases at discount prices. The sale lasts until about noon. T and I each bought several books and a case of FriChick.

For lunch, we went to a food booth run by our local Pathfinder club--got a loaded baked potato.

After lunch, I left to go change Mr. M's pain patch and refill his medicine box. When I got to his house, he wanted to go to the ER--I thought it would be good to get him checked out to see if there was a reason for his sudden confusion about his medicine--he wanted more pain meds so he wouldn't spend another night in pain.

We stopped by the house and picked up M and went to the ER. They weren't able to find anything in the tests they did to explain the confusion, but did give permission for him to take more pain med. We stopped at the Burger King drive-thru for supper, then home. I had to fill the pill box still. Got that done and went and made sure Mr. M had his evening meds. Then I went back to campmeeting.

Time with Mr. M: 8 hrs.
Meetings attended: 0

Campmeeting--Day 2--Sabbath (to view campmeeting live, click on this and future titles)

Sabbath started bright and early with the early church service at 7:45 a.m. Elder Johnson, the Friday night speaker, had the sermon.

Sabbath School had an education/Memorial Day emphasis. The Madison Campus Pathfinder Drum Corps accompanied the color guard for a salute to the flag. That was followed by a tribute to Desmond Doss.

After Sabbath School, M and I went back to the tent. About noon, I got lunch ready: three kinds of macaroni salad, vegetarian baked beans with Big Franks sliced in them, lemonade, olives, peas, and cookies.

I took a short nap after lunch, M and T went to the auditorium for a meeting.

Before going to church, I called Mr. M to remind him to take his morning meds. I called him again around 9:00 between church and Sabbath School--he said he had taken his meds and was going to eat sausage and eggs for breakfast.

I called again after lunch to remind him to take the afternoon meds. About 3:30, Mr. M called and said he had morning meds and afternoon meds and didn't know what to take. I told him to wait while I drove over there (25ish miles) to make sure of what he had taken and what he hadn't. I got there and he had not taken either the morning or afternoon meds. There were two blackened slices of sausage in a skillet on the stove and a piece with one bite out of it on a paper towel. No evidence of any eggs. I helped him get the right meds, fixed him something to eat, and came back to campmeeting just in time to grab a bite of supper and go to the evening meeting.

Elder Johnson had been scheduled to speak, but had to leave early for a funeral. John Bradshaw, the pastor of the Lexington, Ky church, had the evening service. It was excellent!

Time spent with Mr. M: 3 hrs.
Meetings attended: 3

Campmeeting--Day 1--Friday

Our new home for the week--just moved in.

At least we have a good rain fly over the tent!

Tent repair on the neighboring tent.

All moved in--blue for me, yellow for L, red for T.

Tent, sweet, tent.

We got to the campmeeting grounds (located at our local boarding academy) at about 2:30--got checked in, moved in, and settled. M went home after unloading the truck--the beds came with the tent--we brought a dorm size fridge, fans, tables, chairs, etc. We ate supper at the Snack Shop--a veggie fast-food located on the grounds.

Elder J. Alfred Johnson II was the speaker at the evening meeting. His sermon addressed the campmeeting theme, "Know Him, Love Him, Serve Him".

Campmeeting can be watched live at http://www.kytn.net/ if you have Windows Media Player.

Catching Up

Wednesday--May 21:
Mr. M said he was having trouble breathing when I called him in the morning--he didn't want to wait to see if his medicine would help--wanted me to take him to the ER. I went and got him ready--drove the 20+ miles to the hospital--was turning in at the hospital when he said he felt better and didn't need to go to the ER. He said he wanted to get an appointment with his PCP and go home. So, I parked him in the lot across the street and got him a late afternoon appointment with the PCP. (He already had a 3:00 appointment with a specialist). I took him home, then he said he wanted to go to Cracker Barrel for lunch, so back in the truck and drive another 20 + miles to Cracker Barrel. We got done with lunch and went to the Dr. offices to wait for his appointment. At 3:45 when he hadn't gotten called back to see the Dr. yet, he wanted to go. I talked him into going to his PCP's waiting room down the hall, then went and told the receptionist where we were. They finally called him for the specialist--then back to the PCP. It was 5:30 before we got done--then he wanted to go eat supper--at Cracker Barrel. It was about 8:30 by the time I got home after dropping him off, making sure he took his meds, fed the cats, etc.

Thursday--May 22:
I got up early to get things done to get ready for campmeeting--loads of laundry, ironing, food prep, etc. Mr. M's visit to his PCP the day before had netted a visit to wound care today--1:30. Mr. M wanted to leave early enough to eat first--at Cracker Barrel, of course. We got home about 4:30. I had to run to town for a couple things--got home and kept working on getting ready for campmeeting. When I called Mr. M for his bedtime pills, he was confused about what he was taking, so I went down there and told him what each pill was. I decided I'd better keep working when I got back and get as much done as I could before bed--not knowing what the morrow would bring.

Friday--May 23:
I got up early again to get as much done as possible before calling Mr. M at 8:00. He was in bed when I called but said he'd get right up and take his meds. I called back about 9:30 to check on him--find out his vitals, etc. He was still in bed. I told him I'd call back in a while and to get going on the vitals and meds. When I called at 10:30, still in bed. He said he needed help with his vitals and meds--I thought he was teasing and told him to get up and do his morning chores. I called back at 10:45 and he had his vitals and meds done. I called him again at 1:30 to tell hime we were leaving for campmeeting. Called again about 2:15 to see if he'd taken his afternoon meds--he said he had. I called before the evening meeting to tell him I'd be in the meeting at our usual call time, but would call when the meeting was over. After the meeting when I called he said he had his afternoon pills and bedtime pills and didn't know what to do--so I called home and had M go check on him--he went over and had Mr. M take his pills.