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skin on campus Although I had a thoroughly enjoyable Monday, the same can't be said for my mom. Early this afternoon I got a very emotional telephone call from here telling me about all of the things that had gone wrong for her on Monday and today. When she called she had just gotten home from visiting with my grandma which would have been fine except for one thing. She had had an explosive argument with her brother and sister-in-law about taking caring of my grandma. Last week my mom had made the very painful decision that she couldn't take grandma home with her. The strain of taking care of her would be too much. Her brother and sister-in-law however were still willing to give it a try at their home. When my mom heard what kind of care they were going to provide for my grandma, my mom lost her temper. What they were planning to do for my grandma was less than satisfactory in her mind and she let them know how she felt about it. Neither my aunt or uncle have any medical training and it showed when they said what they were going to do for her. Neglect was a word that immediately came to mind. My dad's side of the family hasn't been any less exciting. His five siblings and him are having just as many problems taking care of their mom now that grandpa has passed away. Naturally these scenarios make me wonder if my siblings and I will do a better job when we have to take care of our parents in the future. Instead of two or six groups there will be four and that may not may it any easier. Once again this makes me worry about getting old. ... In addition to the family trouble, there was a huge fire in the area where my parents live and the sound of fire engines could be heard all through the night. Sleep did not happen for any of them Monday night. ... With the heat wave still in force I knew that walking on campus would be an experience and I was right. There were people everywhere with more exposed skin than I had seen in months. Towels had been laid down on the ground here and there providing a display area for girls in bikinis and plenty of gawking opportunities. Without a doubt the summer weather had drawn more people outside than I had seen all semester and I must confess that it was a nice change of pace for the afternoon. Inside the classroom was a different story though. The heat was almost unbearable. The professor had to check to made sure that the heat was turned off in the room and I suspect that it wasn't. I mean this is April in Wisconsin. The real summer is still months away.
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