I am totally disabled due to a severe back injury and cannot physically take care of her. Also my husband is a gem but can only tolerate her for short visits. I find myself getting "short" with her, it's like she says things that just really hurt and are irritating. I feel like all I do is run for her. I do all the Dr. appts and keep track and get all of her supplies. I have 3 sibs but all live out of state and only one will call her on a regular bases. She only calls me daily and doesn't seem to be able to call anyone else. "Forgets" how to use the phone. I have taken to hiring a lady from church to take her out once a month for lunch just to give her someone else to interact with. She seems to argue a lot with the other residents. They do a lot of activities at the home. She really has a lot more to do there than what she would living here. I volunteer a couple days a week at the local Office for the Aging and I know she resents the fact that I'm not spending that time with her.
BTW, has anyone read the contemporary novel, The Three Weissmanns of Westport, roughly paralleling the plots of the original Sense and Sensibility?