I would never have guessed you were forty, CG. You look a lot younger. Mind you, I thought Playcat was in her early twenties, so take that as you wish.
I was going to start a slightly similar thread last week, but Christmas got in the way.
I go shopping for my elderly neighbour most days. Pint of milk, loaf of bread, just the odds and ends. A chat about the footy or politics. Nothing too strenuous. I've always tried to strike a balance between helping him out and him keeping his independence. He's 83, and has been getting very frail recently.
Anyway, I knocked on his door a couple of Monday's ago and there was no answer, but I don't actively check up on him. To cut a long story short a few hours later I felt something wasn't quite right and shouted through his letterbox and he shouted back he was fine, but again, I felt uneasy. After a lot of umming and ahhing I decided to have a look around the back, but the curtains were drawn. Another shout through the letterbox and again a response that he was OK. I told him I wanted him to come to the door and he didn't answer, and that was enough. I called the police and when they eventually turned up and gained entry it turned out he'd fallen over. Ambulance > hospital.
I went to visit him the next day and he was away with the fairies. He knew me, he knew names and most dates, but in some instances he was way off. He wasn't quite looking forward to Bing Crosby's next tour, but it wasn't far off. How much was medication, and how much was shock or something more serious and permanent is hard to tell. His family tell me he is a little more with it, but whether it will be enough for him to return to his home seems unlikely.
The reason I mention this is the geriatric ward was a startling experience for me. All my Grandparents shuffled off when I was a child, so he is the first person I've seen slowly deteriorate.
Anyway, the point is: f*** that. I'd rather jump off a bridge than this dying by inches. The worrying part is the geriatric ward must have been full of people who once thought that.