More New Things

For a long time I have been sensitive to Kate’s behavior when we are eating out. Up until last night, she hadn’t done anything that was likely to be noticed by anyone who was not actually sitting at the table with her. The thing that has bothered me most is that she often arrives at a restaurant looking as though she is tired. Getting out of the car and walking into the restaurant she often looks sad and tired. When she is seated, she often sits there with her eyes closed as though she were going to sleep or is asleep. This behavior doesn’t bother or disturb anyone but me. I tend to feel self-conscious. I wonder if the servers and people around us might think the two of us have had a serious quarrel.

The other thing that has bothered me is her use (consumption) of paper napkins to soak up her saliva. Fortunately, several of the restaurants we patronize give us an extra supply with our meal, sometimes before. Often, we have only a cocktail napkin under each of our drinks. She goes through hers rather quickly and then often asks for mine. That is consumed quickly as well. Along with the salivation, she sometimes burps. It is not very loud but loud enough to be heard at an adjoining booth or nearby table.

Last night, she did something new. Kate had ordered a pasta entrée, and the server brought her a small dish of Parmesan cheese before our meals arrived. I noticed that Kate took several spoonsful and ate them. When her pasta arrived, she dumped the remaining cheese on top of the pasta. The latter is not unusual. She typically puts the entire dish of cheese on her pasta.

This afternoon she has been outside working in the yard. Most of the time she works in the front flower beds pulling leaves. Today she has been out back. At one point, I went out and noticed that she had cut one of the hydrangeas to the ground. I commented on it. She asked if that were all right. I told her it was fine. I just wondered if she remembered that they will die back for the winter and grow back next spring. I also said they would live nicely for another 2-3 months. I just looked outside. It looks like she cut down two plants and left one.

Yesterday she came in the backdoor and called me. I saw that she had brought a man with her. He told me that he does yard work for some of our neighbors. Then he took me outside and showed me the numerous shrubs whose leaves Kate has pulled off and have not grown back or not grown back fully. He told me they needed to be taken out and that he would do it. I told him I had plans and that I was not going to take them out right now. Kate was with us or I would have fully explained why I didn’t want him to do anything. My plan is to wait until Kate is in a later stage of her illness and to have all of them taken out, the flower beds cleaned out, and have a landscaper put in something new.