The joy of eccentric elderly parents and their routines.
Discussion
HTP99 said:
My dad always answered the home phone by reading out the phone number back to the caller,
I still do this now if it's the landline, was taught to do it when young and it has stuck. I don't with a mobile though. It makes sense actually as with a landline you call a number and hope it is the person, with a mobile you call the name and hope it's the right number.Back in the 90s my Uncle bough my Gran a microwave oven so she could warm soup (every lunchtime) and generally make things easier - it was quite expensive at the time, and he showed her how to use it. I went round 6 months later and she was warming a white sauce in a pan. When I said she could do it quicker and easier in the Microwave, she said she didn't use it because had read about the about the nuclear radiation in Daily Mail.
FarmyardPants said:
I parked my car in my dad’s garage once and he thought he’d do me a good turn and clean the dead bugs off the front. They were hard to shift so he used a Brillo pad, bless him and RIP.
Edit: wonder whether WD would shift em
Yes he does use it for thatEdit: wonder whether WD would shift em
Edited by FarmyardPants on Thursday 18th April 13:47
Spare tyre said:
My dad has got old all of a sudden and his thing is now WD40
Mum repainted all the internal doors in their house, he refitted the door handles then sprayed them with so much WD40 that it ran down and stained the fresh paint (could have been where the old oil from previous applications had been painted over I guess)
The drivers side dead lock on my car jammed on, couldn’t get the bloody door open to fix it. Turned up at their house and climbed out over the passengers side.
He’s out there spraying WD40 in the door lock. Try explaining that the physical lock barrel and lock mecanhism are fine, but the dead lock is buggered. He’s then in the drivers seat spraying it in the ignition switch as WD40 solves electrical issues.
Sprays my house locks all the time, which means you always have grubby hands after touching keys, get it on your clothes etc
When he comes round to visit he will be looking at whatever toys I have parked up, spraying anything that moves, like air vents, windows, switches etc etc with WD40.
I was repairing my fence, drilling some holes in some wood, he said it’s best to use WD40 in the holes to help the screw go in
Oiled our dogs lead when they looked after it, to stop it getting wet. Took the dog out, bloody oily hands.
Oils the buttons of the smoke alarms, dishwashers, ovens, iPads etc
I have qualifications in electronics and try to explain when and what spraying stuff is good and bad, he just looks miffed and sprays some more stuff!
Oiled the brakes on mums bike to make them smoother
Oiled the head lights on my jap import cus they were faded
Oiled the foam handle of our pram because they need “feeding” - mrs well happy with that one
Oiled runners on all of the drawers in our brand new kitchen desiputemthem being maintenance free, they were white so a nice stain appeared for a while
Oils the beater bar thing on their hoover, hair soaks it up, next time it gets turned on, it sprays out loaded with dust, over the carpet
Oils round the wheelie bin to keep pests out
A newish thing is soaking stuff in WD40 to protect it. All sorts of random stuff that doesn’t need protecting
He now has bottles, tins, jars vats of the stuff.
When I go off to car shows, events or places with work he’s asking if I can get him some cheaper
Literally everything is sprayed with it these days
Overall it’s harmless I guess
Just bloody annoying when you brush up against something and the WD40 has attracted the dirt and you have to get changed.
Must drive my old mum crazy
An old friend of mine had really bad knees , I don’t really think I have to tell you what he rubbed on them every morning do I ?Mum repainted all the internal doors in their house, he refitted the door handles then sprayed them with so much WD40 that it ran down and stained the fresh paint (could have been where the old oil from previous applications had been painted over I guess)
The drivers side dead lock on my car jammed on, couldn’t get the bloody door open to fix it. Turned up at their house and climbed out over the passengers side.
He’s out there spraying WD40 in the door lock. Try explaining that the physical lock barrel and lock mecanhism are fine, but the dead lock is buggered. He’s then in the drivers seat spraying it in the ignition switch as WD40 solves electrical issues.
Sprays my house locks all the time, which means you always have grubby hands after touching keys, get it on your clothes etc
When he comes round to visit he will be looking at whatever toys I have parked up, spraying anything that moves, like air vents, windows, switches etc etc with WD40.
I was repairing my fence, drilling some holes in some wood, he said it’s best to use WD40 in the holes to help the screw go in
Oiled our dogs lead when they looked after it, to stop it getting wet. Took the dog out, bloody oily hands.
Oils the buttons of the smoke alarms, dishwashers, ovens, iPads etc
I have qualifications in electronics and try to explain when and what spraying stuff is good and bad, he just looks miffed and sprays some more stuff!
Oiled the brakes on mums bike to make them smoother
Oiled the head lights on my jap import cus they were faded
Oiled the foam handle of our pram because they need “feeding” - mrs well happy with that one
Oiled runners on all of the drawers in our brand new kitchen desiputemthem being maintenance free, they were white so a nice stain appeared for a while
Oils the beater bar thing on their hoover, hair soaks it up, next time it gets turned on, it sprays out loaded with dust, over the carpet
Oils round the wheelie bin to keep pests out
A newish thing is soaking stuff in WD40 to protect it. All sorts of random stuff that doesn’t need protecting
He now has bottles, tins, jars vats of the stuff.
When I go off to car shows, events or places with work he’s asking if I can get him some cheaper
Literally everything is sprayed with it these days
Overall it’s harmless I guess
Just bloody annoying when you brush up against something and the WD40 has attracted the dirt and you have to get changed.
Must drive my old mum crazy
Edited by Spare tyre on Wednesday 17th April 16:00
Another WD40 story told to me by a doctor. An old guy came in to hospital very ill, they could not work out what was causing his problems, both respiratory and cardiac. He deteriorated quite quickly, the doctors were at a loss as to what to do. Until a visitor mentioned to a nurse that they should do what he did to easy his aches and pains. Rub in some WD40 in. Nurse related this story to the doctor, this got the doctor thinking about the chemicals in WD40, a few tests showed a reaction against, I think, the Stoddard solvent (white spirits?). Knowing this the patient was quickly set right. And told in no uncertain terms to stop bathing in the f
king stuff.
king stuff. My folks are still pretty on the ball - only in their 60's.There's things that drive me up the wall, like spending a fortune on sound bars and speakers for their TV while being completely incapable of setting them up or balancing sound so all you get is a very loud muffle that's worse than the TV's internal speaker would be. They both have pretty new iPhones but haven't really downloaded any apps on to them. The apps they do have are just scattered across multiple pages of homescreen, and none of the pages are filled to maximum capacity. Makes my teeth itch.
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
Wrathalanche said:
My folks are still pretty on the ball - only in their 60's.There's things that drive me up the wall, like spending a fortune on sound bars and speakers for their TV while being completely incapable of setting them up or balancing sound so all you get is a very loud muffle that's worse than the TV's internal speaker would be. They both have pretty new iPhones but haven't really downloaded any apps on to them. The apps they do have are just scattered across multiple pages of homescreen, and none of the pages are filled to maximum capacity. Makes my teeth itch.
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
Not long now. They'll soon be at the turning mobile phone off to save electricity stage. The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
Wrathalanche said:
My folks are still pretty on the ball - only in their 60's.There's things that drive me up the wall, like spending a fortune on sound bars and speakers for their TV while being completely incapable of setting them up or balancing sound so all you get is a very loud muffle that's worse than the TV's internal speaker would be. They both have pretty new iPhones but haven't really downloaded any apps on to them. The apps they do have are just scattered across multiple pages of homescreen, and none of the pages are filled to maximum capacity. Makes my teeth itch.
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
My dad would probably oil the router and phone lines, help the data passThe one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
Wrathalanche said:
They both have pretty new iPhones but haven't really downloaded any apps on to them. The apps they do have are just scattered across multiple pages of homescreen, and none of the pages are filled to maximum capacity. Makes my teeth itch.
The wife does similar on her Android, she will have random apps scattered about throughout multiple pages, sometimes you'll have a single app on one page and that is it or you will scroll through pages and there will be random empty page with nothing on it.
Spare tyre said:
Wrathalanche said:
My folks are still pretty on the ball - only in their 60's.There's things that drive me up the wall, like spending a fortune on sound bars and speakers for their TV while being completely incapable of setting them up or balancing sound so all you get is a very loud muffle that's worse than the TV's internal speaker would be. They both have pretty new iPhones but haven't really downloaded any apps on to them. The apps they do have are just scattered across multiple pages of homescreen, and none of the pages are filled to maximum capacity. Makes my teeth itch.
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
My dad would probably oil the router and phone lines, help the data passThe one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
My parents (ages 79 and 76) have recently had a new kitchen fitted, including their first dishwasher. The first few months they were eying it suspiciously and refused to use it until the instruction manual has been digested. I think they have used it about a half dozen times max. Dad won't let my Mum near it. They are genuinely treating it like there's an alien spacecraft in the kitchen.
Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
Wrathalanche said:
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
CanAm said:
Wrathalanche said:
The one charming eccentricity I can think of is when my dad sends money electronically. If its anything over £100, he'll insist on sending £1 first, "just to make sure it gets through OK", and once you've confirmed you receive it, he'll send the rest. He even does it to existing payees saved on his banking. And this is a man who has worked in IT for 40 plus years. Not going to complain if I'm getting paid though
80quattro said:
My parents (ages 79 and 76) have recently had a new kitchen fitted, including their first dishwasher. The first few months they were eying it suspiciously and refused to use it until the instruction manual has been digested. I think they have used it about a half dozen times max. Dad won't let my Mum near it. They are genuinely treating it like there's an alien spacecraft in the kitchen.
Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
I have an old phone in the glovebox of every car we have,Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
I`m pretty good at leaving home without a phone, did it today.
bobtail4x4 said:
80quattro said:
My parents (ages 79 and 76) have recently had a new kitchen fitted, including their first dishwasher. The first few months they were eying it suspiciously and refused to use it until the instruction manual has been digested. I think they have used it about a half dozen times max. Dad won't let my Mum near it. They are genuinely treating it like there's an alien spacecraft in the kitchen.
Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
I have an old phone in the glovebox of every car we have,Oh, and Dad still has an old Nokia phone switched off in his glovebox that's 'for emergencies'. Honda Jazz, obviously.
I`m pretty good at leaving home without a phone, did it today.
I have a confession to make.
I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
Roofless Toothless said:
I have a confession to make.
I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
Please tell us it was the speaking clock that you called??!I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
alorotom said:
Roofless Toothless said:
I have a confession to make.
I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
Please tell us it was the speaking clock that you called??!I'm over 70, and previously had never owned a mobile phone, when I mentioned to the family that I am starting to feel a bit vulnerable when out in the car on my own.
For my birthday in January my son bought me a rudimentary mobile phone. Yesterday I made a call on it for the first time, just to see if it worked.
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