Day 248 - 10/26/2007

So after a late night last night, I planned on taking it easy and getting to bed early. That didn't happen, however as when we sat down for dinner, my mom called asking for a ride home. She ran into a pot hole and got two flat tires on her way home. Being the good son that I am, I packed the kids into the van (not only to give them some time with their grandmother and Rudy, but also to give D some alone time) and away we went.

When we got there mom was inside the gas station (where she had parked the car) chatting up someone on the cell phone. Rudy was in the car and he looked pretty tired. After transferring him into the van, we chatted briefly before he started asking the kids questions about school. Ten minutes later we're still in the car and she's still on the phone (we later found out she was coordinating with the towing company). She finally got everything wrapped up with the call and we started the process of transferring in the important things from her car to the van. Stuff like Splenda packets, maps, old receipts; you know, pretty much what you wouldn't want sitting in your unlocked car for the few hours it would take for the tow truck to arrive.

While she was doing that, Rudy started complaining about his chest and just not feeling well. He's approaching 90 and has been in the hospital a couple times in the past month or so. He mentioned that he was just tired all the time and didn't know how much more he could take. It sounded to me that he was tossing in the towel. Not being sure what to say, I tried to lighten the tone a little bit, but I don't think that worked. When mom finally got in the car, she asked him whether he was praying (I couldn't tell what he was doing as he was in the back seat).

I took them home and got them (and their automobile treasures) inside before heading back home. After putting the kids to bed, I shared with D the events of the evening, including Rudy's comment. Hopefully it was just the result of him being frustrated with his health issues and not a sign that he's giving up. After tonight I better understand the lyrics from The Who's "My Generation" where Roger Daltrey "hope[s he] dies before [he] get[s] old."