I’ve heard that pet lovers can also save on lodging by finding folks who need live-in pet care so they can take a vacation. The usual precautions against scam websites and farm owners looking for free labor should be taken, though.
Same. Having been a caregiver/POA a few times, I’ve seen the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to assisted living and nursing home staff. There’s no way I want to be on the receiving end of that type of “care.” Now, I’m also trying to stay off the radar of outfits that engage in practices dramatized in the movie I Care a Lot.
Good to know. Do you think that’s true of all levels/costs of elderly care?
I wonder if there’s any way for elder shoppers, or their helping children, to seek out better care in such places (aside from reading hopefully honest online reviews).
Unfortunately, I’ve seen bad situations in expensive private facilities, more affordable family-run establishments, and well-regulated public institutions. They were probably due to decades of reducing qualifications, training, and salaries for workers in that industry. Changes in state regulations to benefit increasingly monopolistic eldercare corporations means fewer nurses in nursing homes. If people require medical assistance in a facility or at home, what type of nurse they’ll get depends on what they need. The most common position with the least amount of skills/training is caregiver, and I encountered a surprising number in very expensive assisted living facilities.
The best scenarios I’ve seen involved care from friends and family members, with visiting nurses or paid caregivers available when needed. The models in which elderly residents live in small group homes and share expenses for assistance with ADLs or medical care also get good reviews. Sadly, cases of elder abuse reported in the news are also committed by private duty nurses who are supposedly paid well.
So potential clients should make sure facilities meet standards and pass visit inspections. Those who opt for aging in place should confirm workers hired to support them are licensed, trained, bonded, insured, and supervised/surveilled. Keeping a close eye on elderly people receiving care from third parties is really the only way to be sure everything goes well, regardless of the cost.
If you’re interested in Colani and are in the general area, go for it.
If you’d need to go out of your way to get there… maybe not. It’s not that it’s curated or presented poorly, but it’s a bit on the small-ish side and only shows parts of his entire work.
I didn’t regret going, it was very interesting to see this and that in real life, but it was en route and there was little that one wouldn’t find in books or on the internet.
Not a lot of industrial designers have their own action figure, though:
I want to second what @PsiPhiGrrrl wrote! Right on.
I will also suggest showing up at the facility, unannounced. This isn’t great for memory care, but for assisted living or residential care, it’s good. They will get everything spotless and tell everyone to smile, when they know a tour is coming through.
If you pop in unexpectedly, you’ll see a less varnished version. Like, Oh, I was just driving by and had a question, so here I am. So think of a question, and look at their response. Are they annoyed, or are they happy to see you and answer your question?
What does it smell like when you pop by? Cleaning products and lunch? Or is there a pervasive scent of urine? It’s just one detail among many, but a lot of pee soaked briefs do affect the atmosphere if they are not changed regularly.
And, ask schedule an opportunity to join them for lunch. Not every meal is an overview of the quality of everything, but a crap meal is indicative of crappy meals, but also penny pinching. How does everyone act at lunch? Are the residents happy with the meals? Do at least some of the staff eat the same meal?
Thanks, and to @PsiPhiGrrrl , so many great suggestions.
It’s so much to think about, for adult children or relatives, but especially if an older person is trying to navigate it all alone! I’m sure some places/facilities are better than others, and that more expensive doesn’t necessarily mean better.
I’m going glamping at Provincetown on Cape Cod for 2 weeks (maybe I’ll add a week) this summer.
I picked up some great gear after Xmas at both off season & post Xmas prices. Gonna be grand. And so much cheaper. Canopy tent (10x10) & a canopy screen tent. Wood fire pit. I can bring my portable AC (though I doubt it will be needed), small fridge with separate freezer door, sink, cassette toilet so I don’t have to walk to the facilities all the time, propane grill, a single propane burner, full size air bed & folding cot for guests, outdoor rugs for the tent floors and sundry other items.
I may do this every summer for a few weeks going forward. Super cheap now that I have the gear. And so much to do in PTown.
We visited that area in September of ‘23. @ClutchLinkey was a great resource! We flew into Boston, rented a car, and drove up to Portland, ME for the first night. We took the scenic route up to Acadia NP the next day and glamped there for several days, exploring the park. Then we returned to Boston and stayed in a hotel for a couple of days to visit there before flying home.
September was pretty affordable, because it was between summer peak and fall colors. I was shocked at how crowded Bar Harbor was, though. They pull cruise ships and tour busses right up and dump thousands of people on the streets every day.
Only 22 of the world’s 199 passports have fallen down the Henley Passport Index ranking over the past decade. Surprisingly, the US is the second-biggest faller between 2015 and 2025 after Venezuela, plummeting seven places from 2nd to its current 9th position. Vanuatu is the third-biggest faller, losing six places from 48th to 54th position, followed by the British passport, which was top of the index in 2015 but now sits in 5th place. Completing the Top 5 losers list is Canada, which dropped three ranks over the past decade from 4th to its current 7th place.”
If you are traveling through Burlington (and why not? it’s the Ben and Jerry’s HQ), you might want to consider camping at Grand Isle. Very peaceful, and in the right camp spot, you can hear the lake water lapping against the rocks at all hours. We rented a lean-to and pitched our tent inside it for the added weather protection / insurance:
Lovely hot showers at clean facilities–bring your quarters because it’s coin-operated.
Nice walking areas.
Lake Champlain is very cold, even in September!
ETA: clarifier
ETA: some decent microbreweries in Burlington… I forgot to mention those only because I don’t drink so I don’t usually think about those
I’ve been there when it still was the “Cabinet War Rooms” (branding, I suppose, but the new entrance makes it better accessible) and it’s really worth a visit.
Churchill said that he wished the Nazi bombs had landed closer, giving him a chance to see how the protection held up amid the blasts.
About halfway through the tour, we saw a cafe, which is stocked with a variety of sandwiches and coffee selections. We then headed toward an area with wax figures acting out how the British command operated from the space.
Is this article heavily edited? It reads as though it was put through several translation engines and some bits dropped out.
It is an interesting experience, a bit gamified though.
The usual precautions against scam websites and farm owners looking for free labor should be taken, though.
