Being as there are many octogenarians, and a few nonagenarians in the complex, it stands to reason that we still wish to maintain a semblance of independence. My husband Roger, is now a proud nonagenarian. And so it was with said husband who too would wish to do something independent of me. A trip to Sonora Laboratory for blood work seemed like an easy test.
Bright and early one morning, he got on his cell phone and called Uber. “We will be there in seven minutes,” they told him, and true to their word they arrived at our door in exactly that time.
As I waved goodbye to said husband, I prayed he would do well on his first venture out on his own. . Forty-five minutes later, the phone rang.
“This is me,” he said. “I can’t make my cell phone work to call Uber.”
“Wait right there, and I’ll have our Good Samaritan neighbor Bob come and pick you up. Goodbye.” Then I rushed over to Bob’s house.
No more than ten minutes later Bob and I arrived at the Lab.
“He will probably be sitting out front waiting for us,” I cautioned Bob. “He would rather be in the sunshine than in an air conditioned room.”
There was an available parking spot right in front of the Lab, as a green taxi-cab was just pulling away.
Not seeing anyone waiting outdoors, I went inside.
“Do you have an elderly gentleman here who needs a ride home,?” I asked.
“We just put him in a taxi,” the person behind the desk informed me.
“Thank you very much,” I said as I rushed back to the car. “He’s on his way home in a taxi. He was probably in that taxi that just left.”
We drove the two miles back home. There in the driveway sat a bright green taxi, with said husband sitting relaxed in the back seat.
“Just signing the credit card,” he said.
All was well. Our nonagenarian was safely home.
“You hung up the phone before I could tell you that I had a ride home,” he scolded.
“Don’t bawl him out,” reminded our Good Samaritan.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t,” I promised, “but for heaven’s sake, don’t tell the kids.