Out of the house, what fun!

Tonite, Mike and I went out to dinner with friends/business associates.
Mike has worked with her at least 15 years.  Before she worked for Mike's
old CPA firm, she worked with a brokerage firm.  It was during that time
that she met her husband.

With the background set, I met her after we moved to Vegas.  She has
worked with Mike before, and now does some bookkeeping for some
of his clients, and he does tax review and planning for some of hers.  She
and her husband had lived here in Vegas for a few years, went back to California,
and relocated her in October of last year.  She is Filipino and he is Persian.
Theirs is a true and dedicated marriage.

About 10 years ago, her husband got sick.  After extensive testing, he was diagnosed
with MD.  At first, it was weakness of the muscles, then canes, and now a
wheelchair.  She told me that it can take up to 4 hours to get him ready to go out
like it did tonite.  It made me think about being a care-giver.

I was Mike's care-giver after his kidney cancer surgery.  I had it easy.  I
was out on FMLA for 5 or 6 weeks, driving him to appointments, helping
him get in and out of bed, feeding him, the usual.  She is more than I ever was.
I didn't have to help Mike in those first weeks to the extent that she does on a daily
basis.  I didn't have to test the depth of our love and devotion, or feel resentment
at having to help him the little that I did.  Would I be able to care for him to the
extent she helps him, I would like to think so, hope so, believe so.

Tonite we had dinner at a Persian restaurant.  The second time we have been
to Habib's, the first time in their new location.  The food was great, but the company
and conversation was the cream on the top of the dessert.  We determined that it had
been about 2 years since the last time we got together, and decided we need to get
together every month or two.  The idea of getting Mike out of the house is
SO appealing to me, I just might have to force him out of the house more often!