Monday's visit

Spent the afternoon and early evening with dad and V--. I took an old version of Hoyle Casino up to him to provide some distraction. It was a little disconcerting when he told me that he has a lot of trouble getting into watching TV or movies or reading a book (he's historically very into both activities, and our conversation is often propped up by movie talk in the way that sports might serve for others). It might be that he has other things on his mind--he asked about some nonfiction (not one of his usual genres), and his tastes might simply be changing in light of his experiences.

I certainly saw some hints that the same guy is in there, though. He's still cranky, and communicating with him is like playing free-form charades with someone who can't hear very well (actually, that's not so much a simile as an entirely accurate description). The whole thing frustrates everyone involved, but him especially.

He was having bizarre computer-related problems that were resolved by hooking a traditional mouse up to the laptop, but he seems to be on board with the goal of getting him a more modern laptop (he handed me a list of specs). It doesn't actually seem all that demanding, and I'll be pricing everything for him this week.

inconsequential complications

Not much new to report. Dad's been in and out of the hospital a couple of times due to bizarre and relatively harmless complications related to getting food into his system. Like all the people on that side of my family, including myself, he has a very strong gag reflex (no jokes), and kept coughing up the tube they put down his nose. The doctor was shocked that he managed to cough the tube all the way up to his mouth instead of through the stoma.

He's really getting a lot of use out of the laptop--I think getting him a more permanent arrangement with wireless internet will be even better. I generally don't IM, but I guess I should get in the habit.