VA Day

SO, today I got to spend an entire morning alone with my sweetheart......at the Veteran's Hospital in Phoenix. It was an experience. We went to get started with intake and evaluation for veteran's benefits. First, it took forever to get there. I haven't been in rush hour traffic in a long time, so I forgot how thick and scary it gets. Luckily Chris doesn't make me drive in those situations. Anyway, we didn't really know where the clinic was that we were supposed to be in (there are like 27 different clinics in one hospital, all named after jewels), so we wandered around for a bit. As we saw the sign for the Jade and Opal Clinic, we headed for the entrance. It was the first time in my life that I have literally been stopped in my tracks by a smell. I hope my face didn't show the immediate urge to turn around and head home. It was that odor of old (sorry senior citizens) and dirty bodies and I almost panicked. I said a quick prayer that the smell would fade, or I would get used to it. I felt like I stood there for five minutes, deciding whether I would continue, but it was probably only an instant. We walked into the small waiting room and signed in and then we waited. And waited. It wasn't so bad. I sat and held Chris' hand so he wouldn't feel overwhelmed with the day's prospects. And I read the Reader's Digest, which I love. By the time I was really hoping to get out of that room, they called Chris' name and we met with a nurse who was very nice and tried to be helpful. After spending some time with her, we again returned to the waiting room to wait for a doctor.
This is where it got funny. The waiting room was not as full as before. Things were quieter. Until this crazy gal comes walking down the hall. I heard her coming before she even reached the room. I had seen her earlier and she spoke with the receptionist quite loudly about her personal medical info, but I was probably too absorbed with my own thoughts to care. Well, this time she comes looking for her cane. She is convinced that someone stole it. She continues to talk to the whole room, but noone in particular about all the lovely qualities of this cane. She isn't mad, but she sure wished she had that cane back. She had it for years and it was sturdy. Now she guesses she'll have to get a new one. I felt badly for her, but I also suspect that perhaps she just forgot it somewhere in the maze of the hospital. So I just ignored her (I know, not very Christian-like) . She sat a few chairs away from me, with a man I assumed she was with. She was speaking so familiarly with him. Telling him all about the heat, her apartment, her cats. His responses were very short, like "yeah" or "that's for sure". Then she gets into the details of a feud with her neighbors. Crazy gal says that her neighbors are loud and can't they just be quiet? "Don't they have manners?", she wonders loudly, for the whole room to hear. As this irony struck me I began to smile. But I couldn't hold in my laughter when she continued. Crazy gal says that her neighbors have no right to wave a gun at her. She says she gets so mad that if they don't leave her alone, she is gonna get her gun and blow their heads off. And she is a good shot because she has been practicing with her cats, and her squirt bottle. At this point the man she is with says something to the effect of "you should be careful with guns". Then his name is called and it is clear that he was not with her, just sitting near her. His last name is Holly and so she launches into "Have a holly-jolly Christmas". Then he is gone and I think the entertainment is over. Maybe she will just sit quietly now. There is noone else near her. Except for me. And I can feel her eyes on the side of my head. She wants to talk to me. Chris is squeezing my hand and kicking me, silently telling me not to look at her. But she starts to talk and I know she is talking to me. My neck muscles strain because my brain is saying "If you respond to her, that's it for you", but my manners or something are wrenching my head to the right. She is obviously lonely, she shoots her cats with squirt bottles and she talks to anything with pulse! I can't believe I am looking at her, smiling and nodding and saying "yeah" and "that's for sure". Chris kicks me again, but I settle in for the long haul as she tells me how all year she plans for Christmas, but can't fit a Christmas tree into her one-bedroom apartment. Bless her heart, I can't ignore the woman! And then the last minute reprieve when they open the door and call our name! I smiled at her and speed walked to the door. Thinking back on it now, I don't know why I was so uncomfortable with her, other than she kept threatening to blow her neighbors' heads off. Of course I pity her, but why is it so hard to just sit and listen to a person talk when they clearly just need the attention? I don't know.
So we met with the doctor. She was nice and pretty helpful. But the same problem arose that I have faced every time I deal with the VA. I have no idea where to turn next. I have a handful of appointments set up for Chris, but do we know where, when, what they are for? We spent five hours there today and I have no idea how we are supposed to proceed. There is no set procedure to follow; we should see this doctor, and this doctor, but maybe we could get in to see that doctor. And though I don't have any complaints about the individuals that helped us today, the whole process is just a mystery still. If I were a professional woman, maybe I would try to reform the VA so that it is more efficient and comforting to our veterans. I am so glad that I was with Chris as he went through the rounds today. I hope I kept him calm in a place that could easily engender a lot of frustration. But that is what you get when the government runs health care. I wish more people saw this small-scale model of socialized health care, maybe they would be less enamored of the idea of universal health care. Anyway, that is a sidebar. As lunchtime approached, we had to get some blood work done and wait for a prescription in the pharmacy.
My last experience that stayed with me today happened as we rode the elevator to the second floor. It was packed with veterans all at least 70 years old. As the doors closed they each joked about the heavy load, and whether we could reach the top. They all spoke to the group with such ease and good-nature. When the doors opened, out we all walked and I saw they were all smiling. What a sweet feeling they all gave me. I thought "I love old people". Then I wondered if my generation would be different. When I am 70 and I get on an elevator with a crowd, are we going to be easy-going and quick to interact? Or will we stare at the doors in silence? Were these men so genial because that's the way that generation is? Is it because they are veteran's and among their peers? Or do most people just get more friendly and outgoing as they age? I don't know. But I just thought the short interaction was very neat.
We finally got half the things done that had to be done at the veteran's hospital after lunchtime. We have to go back several times I am sure. Anyway, I know this post was long and maybe whiney. I don't intend to complain, but it sure was a long day. So if anyone knows anything about veteran's benefits, give me a ring. I am gonna need it.
Oh yeah, and once I got home I noticed that my zipper was down and must have been down for at least the last four hours. Lovely.