MY PERSONAL SAFETY AT HOME

         My entire life, I’ve pretty much done what I want to do without thinking of dire possibilities. Now that I’m a widow and living alone, there are things people are talking about to me, things I’ve never given a second thought even when John was in the hospital or rehab. So, now that a variety of issues have been brought up by family and friends, I’ve begun to:

• Use the deadbolts on the doors.
• Leave the porch/driveway lights on all night. So far, I’ve managed to remember to turn them off in the morning so none of the neighbors have come banging on the door or calling to see if I’m okay. That’s not to say that won’t happen at some point.
• Always take my cell phone to bed with me in case I need to call for assistance.  Kaizer and Karma wouldn’t be much help…they’ve no idea when I say, “What happened? Did little Timmy fall in the well? Do I need to go save little Timmy?” I do say that to them some times when they are bouncing around and acting up.  
• Always lock my car in the driveway. 
• My bathroom has a ceiling that goes up to the rafters and two skylights. There are currently six plants in there…three are hanging and three are on shelves. To
  
  water them, I have to climb on a ladder. I stopped climbing the ladder when home
  alone several years ago. Now, I text my neighbor and say, “I’m climbing a ladder in the bathroom. If I don’t text you again in 10 minutes, call 911.” I’ve received various suggestions about eliminating the plants, but the bathroom is so big and ugly without them I simply cannot do it yet...where would my Begonia Gigantiosia go live. I imagine at some point I’ll need to replace the living with the manufactured…just not yet. 
• The shower became a concern, (again, simply couldn’t rely on Karma and Kaizer) so I purchased a non-slip mat for inside the shower as well as a safety grab bar I can hang on to while scrubbing my legs and feet. I mean, really, I don’t want to text the neighbor every time I get in the shower. 

I'm sure that as time passes, I'll become more aware of safety issues that will need to be addressed. Fortunately I have two sons and two great daughters-in-law that are able to give me a hand as needed. Hopefully, I won't need all that  much help for many years...dare I say decades (okay, at least one decade)...to come.