Christmas day is not usually as big of a deal day as Christmas Eve for my husband and me. Yesterday was our especially nice night out. Today we did a little exploration of Charleston, and then went to a restaurant at 2 pm instead of the originally planned 3:30 pm. The meal was good today, but not nearly as fancy and delicious as yesterday's.

Sounds lovely!

I called my father a bit ago and the poor guy didn't even remember that today is Christmas day. When I told him, he was distressed not knowing. I can't believe that the assisted living facility said little or nothing.

That is appalling. OMG. How can some people live with themselves?!?! HOW could they have been so negligent?!

My brother called me earlier in the day to wish me Merry Christmas and said that neither he, nor my sister, had been able to reach our father. I was the first to do so, then I told Dad to call my sister and brother back. He said he would. What's sad is that his assisted living facility now again has covid-19 cases, so all residents are confined to their rooms/suites. That is just horrible! Horrible. When I mentioned that, I accidentally referred to it as a "war". That was a slip of the tongue, but in the end I said it isn't that far from one. Though I do feel for my father, there is no reason he must stay at the assisted living. He could have returned to his home many months ago, but was afraid to. My dad is just too afraid to face life without the extreme seclusion of the facility. It's a shame! My sister would be supporting him greatly. I don't even think he would be as alone, but would at least have some freedoms he doesn't have at the facility. As it stands now, the facility wouldn't even want me to hug or kiss him goodbye before I leave for Europe.

How heartbreaking. Do you think there's any chance at all that he'll change his mind at some point?

I'm getting frustrated that I have been waking up every morning with tingling half numb hands for well over a month. I told my nephrologist about it last week, but he blamed it on me sleeping in a funny position. It does go away immediately upon waking up. I said it seemed odd that that would be 28 out of 30/31 days, though. He blew it off, anyway. I think perhaps a blood pressure med I've taken during that period is the culprit. He said no, yet as often is the case, "tingling hands" shows up in the side effect list for the particular med I'm questioning. This side effect wouldn't be a no-go for me, but I just wish I knew it was a side effect and nothing more.

Of course it could be from your bp med! I sometimes wonder if doctors read about medication they prescribe. I've seen possible side effects mentioned in the most basic online sites, but had a doctor adamantly deny it. Frustrating.

The only other cause I can think of is carpal tunnel syndrome. ??