The Crazy Report: Spring 2011 Edition

[muckefuck]

• Mom: worryingly crazy. Part of the reason for coming down when I did was to give some impetus to her efforts to get back on track, but we hardly spent any time together from the time she picked me from the airport and we fixed dinner together. My sister had me booked on Friday and then Dad was taking for two days, but we'd arranged that I'd stay with her Sunday night. But at the eleventh hour--literally--she confessed that her condo was in no fit state for company and asked if I could stay with my sister again. We were supposed to meet at a family funeral the next morning, but she never showed; I called her at Communion and she told me she was awake but just "couldn't get moving". We arranged to meet at the house afterward and have her drive me to the airport, but by noon I was making fallback plans. She finally did show and was apologetic in the car, but the whole thing had me a little concerned, even though my sister assured me this is how it's been for a while.
• Older Brother: increasingly crazy. I'd only been there a few hours when he admittedly openly to my mother that he was taking about two-thirds the dosage of his anti-psychotic as proscribed by his doctor. "So I guess you're not interested in coming to Chicago," I said, since it's agreed we won't even talk about a visit until he's in full compliance. He shrugged and said, "I guess not." So that's it, we've lost our last leverage with him. On Sunday, he dropped an f-bomb in front of the rugrats--a surprising lapse in judgment for him--so I pulled him to the other room, which gave my sister the opportunity she'd been looking for to ask him if he was once again shtupping the con-artist who'd attached herself to him a couple years ago. Sadly, yes. "We use condoms," he said, so we tried to impress upon him their fallibility, especially now that she's on antibiotics so the pill isn't an option. All in all, very dispiriting.
• Dad: not so crazy. His wife came by on Monday and gave me her sob story about how he ruined her birthday by withdrawing and dropping the ball. She wanted to know what he'd been like on our trip together and I honestly told her as good as gold. A little huffy-puffy on the steeper slopes, but sound overall, keeping his cool even when we got lost in the dark a couple times. (Sure is easier to direct him when I'm in the actual car with him.) The only real point of concern were the diverging stories they gave us about her upcoming surgery; some better communication needs to happen there.
• Sis: Trying her best not to go crazy. So besides our crazy mother and crazy brother, she's got her four sons, two of whom have spring allergies so bad she runs the aircon and makes them wash their hands after being outside. IMI is her biggest trial; less tantrumy than last I saw him, but his resistance to toilet training has just about broken her. Despite being two, the littlest one only causes a fuss when he can't go play outside (but what a fuss!) and the two oldest are pretty self-sufficient these days.