Wednesday, February 06, 2013

A few characters no longer a part of ATALFT

"As the Assisted Living Facility Turns" has been running online for only a few months, but the President will hit two years living here this coming April.  Some interesting characters have come and gone in that time, and while we may have mentioned them in passing before; it's time for a review of some.

There was "S". She had a very strong British accent, walked around with a cane that had the most intricately carved and painted duck's head as a handle, and believed that she walked somewhere above the water.  It was her world and the rest of us were mere riffraff living within it.  She wasn't just conceited, she was convinced.  As it turned out, there was a problem of some kind with her Social Security payments and she did not pay rent for a number of months.  She suddenly disappeared, allegedly going off to live with family.  Many suspect she was merely moving on to the next facility she could scam for more months of free rent.

Then there was "L".  She was actually a very nice lady, who drifted between moments of total lucidity and much longer periods where her apparent dementia would take over.  Considering she was over 90 years old, she got around quite well.  Although she appeared to move slowly, she was quick enough to elude the staff on a number of occasions and would go out onto the street.  Often in tears, asking for the police or anyone else to help her locate her mother.  Legend has it that when she and "S" were put together as roommates, S was highly agitated and started complaining that L was wearing her clothes.  The notion is kind of silly, as it's doubtful that L would fit into S's clothing.  But they were separated.  Eventually, the family of "L" put her into a facility better equipped to handle her continued predilection for trying to 'escape'.  This is not a locked facility.

"M" was one of the President's favorites.  They sat near each other at meals and often had very interesting conversations, providing M remembered to put in his hearing aid.  It's not surprising that M had hearing problems.  He is over 100 years of age, and has been retired for over 40 years.  He was an attorney.  Even at his advanced age, he has a mind as sharp as a tack.  He would often offer advice to other residents on how to conduct their business with the facility, and he had negotiated himself a very sweet deal on his rent.  He also liked the ladies and pursued relationships with several of them, although the President suspects that his intentions were purely platonic.  He was also a fan of high-quality alcohol.  He's now in a facility that can provide more care for him, and he is sorely missed.

Next time, we'll take a look at a few other characters no longer a part of ATALFT, but are remembered very well, for their quirks, behavior, or odor.