Home Again

Greg and I just returned from Oregon to visit my dad. Our main purpose for this trip was to help him set up his art studio once again. He took down his studio a little over two years ago and has not produced any art since that time. The reason behind taking down the studio was mainly due to his health. He still is not near the man he once was, but I think having the studio available will lift his spirits a bit. We spent the better portion of a week getting it moved and set up. Thank goodness that Greg came or we never would have completed it. There was just no way that I would have been able to move everything on my own. I had no idea how much "stuff" he had. For some strange reason I forgot to take a picture of the completed studio...what kind of blogger am I? Next visit I will be sure to snap some photos to share.

In the picture above you can see my dad with his beloved cat, Max. If you knew my dad before two years ago you would be shocked to see how he looks today. I was encouraged when he called and told me to come help him get everything set up again. I thought...wow...he must be feeling better. Sadly, that was not the case. He has aged so much in such a short period of time. I will be very surprised if he actually creates anything new. He just gets too tired. It really breaks my heart to see him and watch him shuffle along. Sad.

While were where visiting, my dad also decided to purchase a rather large flat screen television. You can see just how large it is in the picture below. Isn't that crazy? His eye site is deteriorating (another reason I doubt the creation of art will actually take place) and his old tv was going out. So...he decided to go nuts and get a large enough tv that he could see easier. He was really pleased when Greg and Mark set it up for him.

I was really sad to leave my dad behind and come back home. My dad is so lonely and refuses to move close to any of us. I wish that he would change his mind. I am the one that has time to take care of him and would love having him close by. Visiting every few weeks just seems so inadequate. I do talk to him everyday on the phone to check in with him, but that is just not the same. Perhaps someday he will surprise us all and decide to move close. I hope so.

(In the background of the photos you can see some of the bronzes my dad has created over the years. He has them all over his home...pretty cool.)