Day 5

Day 5 : Eel day

I woke up even sorer this morning. I was feeling pretty wiped out but managed to get out of bed so I could put the garbage out. Garbage collection in Tokyo is much more frequent than in London, Ontario, but you still don't want to miss a day.

We had breakfast a little later than usual, and FaceTimed my husband who was working in the office on Sunday night for whatever reason. It is always great to know that there is someone who truly supports me and encourages me.

We spent some time in the morning at home, then I decided to take the boys out to the public pool. I quickly whipped up some protein shake and gave it to the kids, and we headed to the pool. It was only ¥1000 for one adult and three children for 2 hours of swim. Nice outdoor pool with a small wade pool. The youngest would go back and forth between the big pool and the wade pool, while the middle one just made friends with a young lady who was there by herself, and spent the entire time just chatting with her. The oldest looked a little bored since he didn't have anyone to play with, and yet he had to take the youngest to the bathroom when needed. No wonder the oldest was willing to leave the pool well before the 2 hours were up.

I decided to go off-track on eating and took the kids to a fast food place for snack/lunch. This could very well be the first and last fast food experience in this trip.

Then we headed home. I stopped at the grocery store after sending the boys home. I bought some chicken thigh hoping to have some grilled chicken for dinner, then my mom reminded me that today was the eel day. It is a Japanese custom that they eat eel on this day so they can stay healthy in the hot summer. I had no problem eating eel for dinner, so the chicken thigh just got stored away in the fridge.

It was already past 5:00pm when I finally went out to see my dad. I knew that his dinner time was at 6:00pm, so I needed to hurry my way. But I already established this new routine that I stop at a coffee shop before I get on a train, go over what I'm going to talk about with my dad and go through all the exercise I'm going to do today. So I did the same and ended up getting there almost at 6:00pm.

The first thing he said was "There's something I wanted you to help me with." He wanted to have his legs crossed in bed because his legs get tired being in the same position, but he couldn't lift his leg up enough to have them crossed. I will have to start adding resistance to the exercise.

I knew that his dinner was coming soon, but I started to work on his ankles as usual. I worked on his knees and a little bit of leg raise, then the dinner was served, so I stopped there. There was a few pieces of eel on top of the rice porridge. There was some shrimp dumpling cooked with some veggies, and cucumber salad. To someone like me who eats By Design, the hospital meal does not look like fuel source. I wondered what I'd make for my dad. The first thing that comes to mind is usually bone broth, though I've never made bone broth myself. Maybe I'd throw some fish and lots of veggies in there too.

Back when my dad was home for a short period of time, he refused to eat anything solid, so my mom would cook high calorie soup with lots of butter and cheese melted in it. She was on the right track, I'd say. Too bad it didn't last very long.

I talked about my day and how my boys love swimming. He noticed how tanned I was, which in my opinion, was a big deal. He told me that he liked the lunch today because it had beef.

I saw some pills in a small container so I asked him what they were prescribed for. He didn't know what they were, and said his doctor didn't explain to him. This made me realize once again how detached his mind is from his condition. He doesn't know and he doesn't care.

I decided to cut my visit short today. I wasn't able to work on his hip joints or upper body today, but since me being back home for dinner was also important for me and my kids, and it'd take a long time for my dad to finish eating, I just left the hospital.

Yep. I'm his daughter.

Walking home, I was flooded with lots of random thoughts. So random that I can only write them randomly. They are more questions than thoughts, actually.

• People in Tokyo walk a lot. They walk with heavy groceries, up the stairs to the station, stand in the train, etc. It'd probably make a good workout if they did it in a certain way.
• People in Tokyo are not fat. But not being fat doesn't mean that they are healthy.
• I'm probably the only person among these hundreds of people that I pass by who lifts heavy.
• My dad's weight doesn't scare me. I've got the strength to actually pick him up. But then, I realize that my dad is not a barbell. I wouldn't be able to throw him down on the floor when I need to bail. 
• One time, someone close to me said that she couldn't believe that my dad was still alive. At that time I felt offended, but it truly is amazing that he is still alive, considering all the medicine he takes and all the chemicals that go into his blood through the dialysis process. Human body can adapt so much. Wow.
• Does my mom actually really hate my dad? Is there love between them?
• Is it really possible to have my dad back home?
• I want my dad to be able to stand up on his feet again. But does he?
• I wish the hospital meal didn't use rice and bread to fill up the necessary calories. He should be home so I could feed him better. But I'm not staying here forever.
• Would my dad ever see that he is responsible of his own life?
• I need to go back to the gym.
• Oh, and I better get some sleep.
• I should have a coffee date with my sister soon.

I think it's time to take the whole thing up a notch. I will start presenting some important questions to both my mom and dad. I'm a bit hesitant because my mom looks a little bit tired and stressed from having us back in the house, and my dad's still in the hospital. I feel scared that I might have to make a big scene. How will I bring up those questions? 

As for the exercise, adding some resistance and making it a bit more of strength training would be the next step.