Let's Talk Beds and Grab Bars

WOW!  I have not written a post since Christmas and haven't decided if I truly want to return to blogging; but I wanted to share some trials and tribulations of a recent road trip The Man and I took to Oregon.  We were not sure I would be able to do long days in the car because of some serious back problems (spinal stenosis), so we did some trial runs locally here in AZ to see how I did.  Our car is fairly new and equipped with heated seats....I really want to bring my car seat into our home and use it there! With the air cranked down low and my back and bum all toasty warm, I had many "aaaah moments!"

Those comfy moments ended when we got to our first hotel of the night.  It was a Best Western (we usually find them quite adequate & reasonably priced), but we walked in and a steep flight of stairs was staring me in the face...oh no!  We immediately asked if they had an elevator or a ground floor room available...NO to both.  The clerk got on the phone and found us a ground floor room at the Holiday Inn Express just a block away.  We walked in to a brand new room, never used...the hotel chain is going through all of their hotels and updating room by room.  The bedding was beautiful, but wait...the bed was looking rather high.  The top of the bed was above my waist; okay, I'm a shortie...5'1ish" and I could not get in the bed!  I would have had a struggle even without my current issues.  Our suitcases are soft-sided, so those didn't work, and the only available chair was a rolling desk chair...great way to get my bum on the floor!  Well, The Man went to the office to see if they had a step stool (which they did not) and came back with the only other option...a case of copy paper.  That box gave me just enough height to get in and out of the bed easily.  The next morning we were told that the room was comped, and they apologized for our inconvenience.  The desk clerk asked us to please share online with the company that beds this high would cause issues with lots of people of all ages...rest assured, we did that! We were told that the company has set this room design, including all beds, to be standard in all of their hotel rooms across the country.  So be aware!

Sorry, I didn't think to take a picture until the next morning!Needless to say, we got on the phone and secured ground level or elevator equipped rooms for the rest of our journey.

The other thing I really noticed, and I'm sure The Man grew weary of, were grab bars in the bathrooms...actually, the lack of said bars!  A few places we stayed had NONE; and the ones that did have them, they were positioned poorly.  Some of you youngsters are probably wondering what the big deal is, but after a certain age, our greatest fear is falling and breaking a hip.  I have a hip problem, but do not consider myself handicapped.  I've never used the handicap stalls in a restroom, because I didn't want to be using it if someone in a wheelchair came in.  That has changed...the handicap stalls have tons of grab bars, even the roadside rest stops have them.  The "handicap stall police" will have to give me a ticket, because I'm using those stalls exclusively!

It's always so special to glimpse majestic Mt. Shasta when driving through Northern California!

In Ashland, OR, we got upgraded to a suite.  This would have been really great if we were going to be here for more than one night!  Everything in this suite was nice, except the bathroom....NO GRAB BARS!

Contrary to all my negativity, we enjoyed our trip immensely.  We went for the purpose of seeing family.  Part of the time, we were in Salem, OR and attended a 60th Wedding Anniversary for The Man's brother and SIL.  It was fun and we got to see almost all the relatives, so it was kind of a family reunion as well.  The rest of our trip was spent in Sisters-Redmond, OR seeing my sister and her hubby.  My sweet sister and BIL are dealing with cancer and chemo for him.  It's obviously a great struggle for both, but we enjoyed our time together and had lots of laughs and non-stop talking.

My BIL's mom (now one of God's angels) was a Diorama Egg artist, and even had one of her beauties in the Bill Clinton White House.  My sister and BIL decided together to gift me with one of her lovely eggs...a Christmas one.  I am thrilled to have this beautiful piece of art displayed in my china cabinet!

 

Well that's a wrap for now.  If I do more posting, it will most likely be Fall decor....I have lots of that going on in our home right now.  Some will think it's too early and that's okay.  Waiting another couple of weeks won't make it any less hot than it is right now, and this way I get to enjoy it longer! I hope everyone is having a great week!

Warm hugs,

Carol