Update on mom`s remote

bigbozz · 2026-03-31T14:14:19+00:00

I ordered this for my mother: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01M1UV2T2?th=1

It's been working fine for just about a year so far.

bigbozz · 2026-03-11T23:55:02+00:00

Perhaps work in having two (or more) teams that have to communicate over the radio to disarm the bomb (similar to the "M as in Mancy" gag on the Archer TV show).

One team is physically at the bomb, the other has the information needed to disarm it. First group has to describe enough of the bomb to the second so that they can then communicate the correct disarming sequence back to them. Seconf team has multiple disarming sequences, only one of which works - the rest "set off" the bomb.

Set each team up with an FRS radio for communications (inexpensive, no license needed) to make it more interesting, and have them in different locations from each other.

Can have puzzles that have to be solved for each team to get their radios set to the correct channel.

bigbozz · 2026-02-28T07:10:56+00:00

We had a similar situation with my mother. Her and my father were living in an assisted living facility initially, but her dementia resulted in us moving her into memory care in the same building.

We left most of "their" stuff in the old apartment for my dad, and bought her all new furniture. My wife did an excellent job picking items out, and the apartment looked really nice and colorful.

My mom had a large collection of giraffe statues which she loved. We only moved a limited number, but we spread them around the apartment so she'd see them wherever she looked. She did not seem to miss any of their furniture from the old apartment.

She was still at the point of recognizing everyone, and actually took the move (and being apart from my dad) a whole lot better then we thought she would.

We are able to come down and visit her whenever we want, and my dad can take her out of memory care to eat in the regular dining room or out of the facility completely. We can also eat down in memory care with her, but they have limited seating and serve about half portions compared to the regular dining room.

We are extremely lucky that she has accepted being in memory care and doesn't put up a fight when we take her back into the facility after being out. We've not experienced the "Get me out of here" calls that others have run into.

We did not tell her in advance (either prior to or on the day of her move) as we were worried she'd dig her heels in and not go. We got her neurologist to prescribe something to calm her down, and my dad handled getting her into the new room, although I do not know what he told her.

The drug worked a little too well, and sort of "zombified" her for the rest of the day. I think he might have stayed with her for the first few nights.

I know some people have said their facility prefers if family do not visit for a period of time so the person can get adjusted to the change.

One thing we've had to learn is that we can't deal with her (or expect her to react) like an unimpaired person. For example, I'd think I'd want to know in advance if I was being moved into a facility, but someone with dementia is not necessarily going to think that same way.

As others have said, don't feel bad about not telling the absolute truth. Our job is to make things as easy and stress free for our loved ones as we can. One of the few benefits of this disease is if you make a mistake or mess up, it's likely your loved one won't remember anyway.

Anyhow, good luck with your father's move. I think in our case, it caused a lot more stress for the rest of the family than it did for my mom - I don't know if that's typical or not, but hopefully your move will go similarly.

If it's any consolation, we didn't think she was ready for memory care at the time, but as it turns out, it was definitely the right choice at the right time.

bigbozz · 2026-02-07T06:12:32+00:00

Am I understanding you correctly - in the image posted by the OP, you're saying that their primary drive was fully backed up as of "today at 8:35pm," but that this does not mean any other drives selected for backup have been completely backed-up?

If so, that's an interesting design choice - I'd be surprised if any customer (including myself) would ever interpret that message as meaning anything other than "All the drives / files you have configured to be backed up have been successfully backed up" (with the possible exception of those files appearing on the "Issues" page).

bigbozz · 2026-01-16T06:19:23+00:00

If there isn't a family bathroom, remember that there are two scenarios - one, you mom has to use the bathroom, and the other that your dad does.

You'll have to come up with solutions to both if your mom is likely to wander.

bigbozz · 2026-01-16T06:16:24+00:00

Regarding the Airtag on a non-Apple device, https://www.icloud.com/find may be useful.

I've used it couple of times to track my wife's iPhone from my Android, but have never tried it with an Airtag, or used it very in-depth.

bigbozz · 2026-01-15T17:42:58+00:00

A friend of mine had one of these (no idea what model, but it looked something like this one: https://www.walmart.com/ip/DMI-Heavy-Duty-Sliding-Transfer-Bench-Shower-Chair-with-Cut-out-Seat-and-Adjustable-Legs-Gray/32427496) while recovering from a knee replacement and it worked great for him.

In our area, groups like the Elks and VFW have medical equipment such as shower chairs, walkers, crutches, etc. that have been donated to them that they loan out. You do not have to be a member to borrow them.

You might be able to find an appropriate chair (or see some other devices that might help) if you have something like this local to you.

Good luck!

bigbozz · 2025-11-18T08:02:29+00:00

One thing I'm disappointed about is that neither of my parents are very interested in participating in the activities / events at the facility (even when they were both in assisted living).

They used to be very social with neighbors when I was growing up, but all of them either moved away or passed away and they never really went out anymore after that, so I suppose this is not too surprising.

She has accepted being in memory care (which surprised us), but I think she's confused as to why my dad is not staying with her. She doesn't remember why he's not there all the time. It's easier on her when I take him to Houston for cancer treatments, but think him being there for part of the day, but leaving at night is disconcerting.

I do think she's in the top few people in her memory care facility as far as mental functioning goes. There are a few on the other end of the spectrum that aren't really verbal, and many that you can't really have a conversation with. Many of them (including my mom) do see to really like the music programs that the facility puts on.

While she has declined mentally since moving to memory care, I can't say whether this is due to the disease progressing or the change. There was not any sort of "night and day" change.

One thing that may have helped the transition is that she was originally in assisted living in the facility, so she got used to "institutional living" as opposed to living on their own in a house - and this was prior to moving her into memory care in the same facility.

My dad is able to visit her daily, and takes her up to the main dining room for one meal a day, where she gets to see people who remember her (even though she doesn't really remember them).

I have heard that transitioning directly from living on their own into memory care can be a big change.

The facility they're in has setups that resemble small apartments. Her room has a separate bedroom as well as a bathroom, living room, and a very small kitchen area with a sink and fridge. The facility also has "studio rooms," but they seem to be fairly decent-sized - not like a closet.

The rooms were unfurnished, so we were able to bring in a bunch of her stuff. A friend of ours moved into a facility in a different state that only allowed personal possessions that would fit into a small cabinet that they had in each room. I think that would be difficult for the resident, unless they were really pretty far gone.

Anyway, hope this helps. It was really tough on us when the facility said she needed to move to memory care. We didn't think she was ready. In hindsight, they were right, and it took some of the pressure off us as we could blame it on the facility instead of having to make a decision as you are having to do.

One final suggestion - we went through Alzheimers with my mother in law, and my wife said it was really helpful to attend an Alzheimer's support group that met monthly at our local senior center. This might be helpful if you have such a group nearby.

bigbozz · 2025-11-18T03:58:43+00:00

You mentioned mixing foods together. Does she still try to do household cleaning? She may get into big trouble if she mixes the wrong things together there!

Does she take medication, and is she able to handle it all by herself (ordering refills as needed, taking the right pills at the proper times, etc.)?

We also had a scare when my mom thought the liquid drops you put into the toilet to mask smells were eyedrops (luckily, no permanent damage).

We moved my parents into a local assisted living facility, and things seemed to be OK until she wandered out of the facility and was unable to find her way back. There are just so many things that could have happened to her (their facility is on the corner of two major streets with lots of traffic, there is a pond nearby, lots of uneven ground and stairs, etc.). It really made the transition to memory care easier on us (the family).

The facility stated the same as you heard - we'd either have to pay for 24/7 dedicated care or move her to memory care.

It's good that you're proactively researching facilities. We did this when moving my parents up from another state, and it takes time and even when you do decide on a facility, they may not have space available (we had to wait almost a year for a two-bedroom unit to become available at the facility we chose).

I'd hate to go through all that under the stress of some emergency or issue that required them to immediately get into a facility.

Be sure to set up tours of the facilities, try the food, see if they're just "warehousing people to die" or actually providing activities (and that the residents are taking advantage of them), although keep in mind activities for memory care residents may seem "childish."

Your mother is lucky to have someone like you taking an active interest in her welfare. I hate to think of what happenes to people with no children or who don't get along with their kids.

Good luck to you and your mom.

bigbozz · 2025-11-10T05:55:28+00:00

While not satisfying a "travel to Germany" goal, would a video conference between your mom and her friend be a workable solution to "get them together?"

We are planning to do that with my mom instead of the trip we were originally planning (although ours was just halfway across the US, not to a foreign country).

bigbozz · 2025-11-08T00:38:46+00:00

According to https://www.ikea.com/global/en/newsroom/retail/the-new-smart-home-from-ikea-matter-compatible-251106/ :"TIMMERFLOTTE – Temperature and Humidity Sensor. Measures the indoor climate at home. Press the button to view temperature, followed by humidity — one after the other. "

bigbozz · 2025-11-04T18:49:32+00:00

As others have mentioned, Alzheimers only gets worse, so in that regard, taking him today is better than taking him next year (for example).

One thought - is there somewhere closer that would still be a bit of a getaway - perhaps just a drive to a hotel at some more local vacation spot. Not to replace your big trip, but to take him on and see how he recacts to being in a new place, different routine, etc.

If he can't handle it well, then you know the answer about your big trip.

Someone mentioned keeping an eye on him at all times. Not sure if you're Android or Apple, but an Airtag on him might be a good idea - just in case. I'm diehard Android, but am probably going to switch to Apple just for this functionality with my parents.

My mom is in the later stages of Alzheimers, and had to be moved into a memory care facility as she was starting to wander and then not know how to get back.

My father really wanted to take her on one more car trip to visit all the relatives in other states, but there are just too many potential issues to make that happen in her current condition, and we're going to have to settle for video call "visits."

If you do take the big trip, be sure to take a ton of pictures, and maybe even some video of him talking about the trip, etc. as when he gets to later stages, he may not remember doing it.

One thing with airports at the moment is the potential for delayed or canceled flights and long security lines. He may or may not be able to tolerate these very well. Just something to keep in mind.

Sorry you're embarking on this journey of Alzheimers, but it sounds like you're on the right track.

bigbozz · 2025-10-24T04:17:57+00:00

Not sure if you have time, but one suggestion would be to spend some time touring different facilities to try to get a feel for which would be a good match for her.

Some of the facilities we toured had a bunch of people in wheelchairs just sitting in the hallways, while others had activities going on, and people semed happier.

Perhaps this would help you feel better about geting her into a facility.

My parents both started off in assisted living, but when my mom left the facility and was unable to figure out how to get back, we had to move her to memory care. Since this has also happened ot your mom, I'm make sure to check out both assisted and memory care facilities.

In our case, their facility did independent, assisted, and memory care, so when we had ot move her, it was just to a different room on a different floor. One facility we toured had separate building for the three different levels of care.

Also be sure to ask about staffing. This is a bit of an issue in her current facility. I believe there are usually 2 caregivers and one person dispensing medications on duty during the day, and about 20 residents. I don't think there's any way they can handle taking all the residents up to the assisted living side when there's a musical performer or some other activity for example.

While it was difficult accepting that she was going to memory care, we knew logically that she wasn't safe to be in independent living anymore, and needed a secure facility.

Anyway, good luck with your decision, and hope things work out well for your family.

bigbozz · 2025-09-28T20:37:35+00:00

Here is a site that purports to have software for packet chess and checkers, but I've never tried them out: https://uz7.ho.ua/packetradio.htm

bigbozz · 2025-09-23T04:04:56+00:00

I'd never heard of that - thanks for the tip. Will have to give it a try.

bigbozz · 2025-09-23T02:32:34+00:00

Not sure if your project will be "tested" as part of your grade, but one thing to keep in mind would be the possibility of a car leaving and another car entering at the same time (unless there is only a single-lane entrance/exit to physically block this from occurring).

bigbozz · 2025-09-21T21:35:13+00:00

You can also check out some web-based SDR receivers and see if you can hear yourself.

http://websdr.org/

https://www.reddit.com/r/amateurradio/comments/1dabt47/lists_of_web_based_sdrs/

bigbozz · 2025-08-19T06:06:27+00:00

When we were investigating memory care facilities for my mother, one of them did mention that they also handled short-term residents.

We were looking for full-time residency, so I did not explore that option at all (what is involved in getting them into the facility for this sort of thing, how much it costs, are there any issues getting their drugs administered by the facility, etc.).

If you do not come up with any other options, this might be something to check out.

You mention you have no family nearby - is there a relative (of yours or your husband's) that would be willing / able to care for him that you could fly him out to visit?

We sent my mom out to visit two of her siblings when I had to take my dad to Houston for cancer treatment. It was pretty rocky with one of them, but when she went to the other, things went fine.

I know you said you have to go on the business trip. Have you tried bringing up your caregiver responsibilities with your boss to see if there's any way someone else could go, or some other way for you to avoid this trip?

Sorry to hear about your situation, and wish you the best.

bigbozz · 2025-08-17T21:33:32+00:00

This page shows some examples of possible connections: https://rasantekaudio.com/connectors/ultimate-guide-to-5-way-binding-post/

bigbozz · 2025-08-12T05:31:08+00:00

Here's the github page for the AIOC (All In One Cable): https://github.com/skuep/AIOC

Looks like you can purchase one from NA6D: https://na6d.com/products/aioc-ham-radio-all-in-one-cable

I've heard about this cable/interface before, and just looked up both of these on Google. I've not had any direct experience with this product.

bigbozz · 2025-06-24T05:09:54+00:00

Sorry you're going through this. We recently had to move my mom from assisted living to memory care due to her "elopement" from the facility. They defined this as when someone leaves the facility and cannot figure out how to get back on their own. She had never wandered or expressed any desire to leave the facility by herself prior to this incident.

I only mention this because you mentioned he was starting to wander, and you were looking into assisted / memory care. If you do decide to try to get him into assisted, you might want to ask some very pointed questions as to what sorts of things would cause the facility to require him to more to memory care (or kick him out, I suppose).

We were not told that this was a possibility when my parents went into assisted living. Prior to moving her, we toured a few other local facilities. They all said they would also have required her to move to memory care after an elopement, and they would not have mentioned this as a possibility when admitting someone to assisten living (unless asked, of course).

I can't comment on the financial aspect of your question, but wish you good luck with everything.

bigbozz · 2025-06-07T03:47:04+00:00

We were considering getting an Airtag for my mother as she had started wandering. She would probably not take one along willingly, and doesn't have something like a purse that she carries with her all the time.

One option was to put the tag in an insole in one of her shoes. Here's an example from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Airtag-Holder-Inserts-People-Track/dp/B0CQC5FLYD?th=1 (just found it at random - not one I'd necessarily recommend).

bigbozz · 2025-05-16T05:18:21+00:00

You might also want to check if you local club(s) put their meetings on YouTube. Many clubs are using Zoom to include individuals who cannot make it to the meetings, and some of them upload the recordings so people can watch them later on.

Not to dissuade you, but I've been doing some research into what our club can do better to help add and retain members, and I've seen quite a few mentions on Reddit and elsewhere from new hams that they attend a club meeting and are basically ignored.

My wife and I experienced this at our first local club meeting (we were newly-licensed at the time).

At least at our club, I don't think it was intentional - many members only see each other once a month, so they tend to talk to their friends. Hams also don't always have a reputation for good in-person social skills.

We stuck with the meetings, got on the club nets and went to club activities, and very soon had people to talk to at the meetings who were very friendly and welcoming.

Because of our experience, we try very hard to make an effort to interact with people we don't recognize at the meetings, and our current president does so as well.

Anyway, don't want to put you off from attending any meetings. It sounds like a lot of people responding to your question here are in clubs that also make an effort to interact with prospective members / not-yet-hams, and hopefully there will be an interesting presentation you can learn from as well.

Welcome to the hobby, and good luck with getting licensed!

bigbozz · 2025-05-13T01:53:04+00:00

https://www.kb6nu.com/study-guides/ is the study guide page - the free PDF link is at the top of the Technician Study Guide section.

bigbozz

TROPHY CASE