Oct

Just Take the Car!

It’s been both a sad and interesting week for me. Let me get the bad news off my chest first. You will recall from last week’s blog that I had an assessment done by the occupational assessment, and that this week it would be repeated, as a control test. Well, it seems I did not come out of my stroke in May as unscathed as I thought I had – by early accounts the impulse control in my amygdala in my brain suffered damage. We’re not too sure yet what this means for me, but without a doubt it’ll involve lots more therapy, specialist interventions, and specialised education. As more is revealed I’ll keep you posted.

On the interesting front I visited a new dentist this week – she was really awesome and treated me very nicely. I was even given a toy by her for being so good. This visit was a check-up to determine if my teeth are degrading any further, and if more work is required on my teeth. You will recall from my earlier blogs my teeth came out with cavities already in them, as a result of the masses amount of medication I was on during the first part of my life in neo-natal ICU. Fortunately the veneers are still in good shape, and no major work is needed in the foreseeable future.

Strong advice from the dentist was that I needed to boot my dummy; so Thursday evening I bravely went to bed without my dummy and it actually worked out fine. I did ask for it a few times but Mommy and Daddy explained that it wasn’t good for my mouth and teeth; I accepted the explanations without too much difficulty. Given my difficult start to life I felt really proud that I could give up my vice so easily. Since Thursday I’ve not used my dummy again.

In lieu of my brave response to giving up my dummy I got to make a Smurf at the Build-A-Bear Workshop. I called my Smurf Giggly as I added a giggly sound to him, after I added a very special heart. I also got a stunning multi-storey garage which I’ve played with uninterrupted since.

My week started with a sore tummy so Monday I stayed home. On Tuesday Granny, Mommy and I spent a great deal of time playing at Orango Tangos. I was hit in the face twice by a soccer ball, but as they say, the show must go on, so I put on a brave face and played on. Back home Mom and I spent some time up at the pool. At the pool we rescued a bee out the water. Afterward I introduced myself “Hello Bee, my name is Jarrod. What’s your name?” Later in the day I also learned that I could get in and out of the bath all on my own.

A noteworthy mention for Tuesday is that Google celebrated its 13^th birthday.

Wednesday morning I insisted on going to work with Daddy. I really don’t like the fact that he disappears for most of the day, every day. I decided to go with him, so I said “Daddy, please take me with.” Dad answered “No Jarrod, you can’t come with because Daddy is on the bike and you can’t ride on the bike because you’re too small.” To which I answered “That’s ok Dad, just take the car!” Dad was very quiet after that – I don’t think he knew how to respond.

Thursday we woke to the tragic news that Steve Jobs of Apple Inc. had passed away. People all over the world were saddened by this maverick genius’ passing. Time and Bloomberg Businessweek even stopped their printing presses and rapidly created new covers and contents for their publications. It would be the 8^th occasion that Steve Jobs graced the cover of Time magazine. Dad and I discussed the irony in that the man who brought mobile technology into the hands of consumers all over the world, to read eBooks and eMagazines, still had the power to stop good old fashioned Guttenberg style printing! Out of respect for Apple, its primary competitor, Google’s Android, in collaboration with Samsung, postponed the launch of their Android Ice Cream Sandwich system. I giggled at the name, and Daddy explained that Android’s operating systems are named after desserts, in alphabetical order!

Later on Thursday I went to see the new dentist I chatted about above. Shopping at Sandton City ensued to shop for some toys for me.

Daddy worked at home on Friday, but Mom and I had to leave early to see Lauren for my assessment which I’ve already mentioned. By the time we were home and shared the news with Daddy we were all extremely sombre. Daddy now is realising more and more why I struggle to listen to him and often find myself in trouble as a result. At least he knows now, but I think it’s taking him time to adjust his behaviour. In the afternoon Daddy took me to Smudge Art where I played for an age with the play-dough and then I did some art work.

Saturday and Sunday proved to be quiet days with the exception of Shannon and her boyfriend Andrew visiting during the day on Sunday. Later tonight, when I’m fast asleep, Daddy needs to take roll call as its Census 2011.

Love,

Jarrod