May 20, 2006

Bill was by himself for 4 1/2 days while the rest of us went to Wisconsin for our son's college graduation. I paid someone to check on him each day, but he was alone at night and was responsible for getting his own meals. He managed fairly well, other than one incident.

Either the day we left or the following day, he put a Hot Pocket in the microwave for his lunch. Instead of heating it for 60 seconds, he heated it for 6 minutes. He realized what he had done when the house filled with smoke. Fortunately, it didn't catch fire. Our son-in-law called to check on him while sitting in line to leave a downtown parking garage after a conference. When Bill said the house was filled with smoke and he had all the windows open, Tom was very concerned. He couldn't get out of line and couldn't get there anyway in less than 20 minutes. Bill finally explained what he had done, relieving Tom's concerns.

Bill apparently scared himself because he did not prepare any of the other entrees I left for him. Instead, he ate cereal or soup or drove through the window at McDonald's .

The smell is slowly disappearing from the house. For a week it has smelled like someone incinerated a bag of microwave popcorn. The drapes, upholstery, and any other fabric item has held the smell.

Knowing that Bill can get along on his own reasonably well is a relief since I will be out of town overnight at least twice this summer with events in McCall.