(no subject)

[cabbitzilla]

I get email forwards from my sister fairly regularly. Most of them are cute or funny, but they don't 'stick' long. This one... this one sticks in my mind. I somehow suspect that it's too good to be true, but it's amusing enough that I wanted to pass it on. :)

~~~~~~~~~~

About 2 years ago my wife and I were on a cruise through the western Mediterranean aboard a Princess liner. At dinner we noticed an elderly lady sitting alone along the rail of the grand stairway in the main dining room. I also noticed that all the staff, ships officers, waiters, busboys, etc., all seemed very familiar with this lady. I asked our waiter who the lady was, expecting to be told that she owned the line, but he said he only knew that she had been on board for the last four cruises, back to back. As we left the dining room one evening I caught her eye and stopped to say hello. We chatted and I said, "I understand you've been on this ship for the last four cruises". She replied, "Yes, that's true." I stated, "I don't understand" and she replied, without a pause, "It's cheaper than a nursing home". So, there will be no nursing home in my future.

When I get old and feeble, I am going to get on a Princess Cruise Ship. The average cost for a nursing home is $200 per day. I have checked on reservations at Princess and I can get a long term discount and senior discount price of $135 per day. That leaves $65 a day for:

1. Gratuities which will only be $10 per day.
2. I will have as many as 10 meals a day if I can waddle to the restaurant, or I can have room service (which means I can have breakfast in bed every day of the week).
3. Princess has as many as three swimming pools, a workout room, free washers and dryers, and shows every night.
4. They have free toothpaste and razors, and free soap and shampoo.
5. They will ev en treat you like a customer, not a patient. An extra $5 worth of tips will have the entire staff scrambling to help you.
6. I will get to meet new people every 7 or 14 days.
7. T.V. broken? Light bulb need changing? Need to have the mattress replaced? No Problem! They will fix everything and apologize for your inconvenience.
8. Clean sheets and towels every day, and you don't even have to ask for them.
9. If you fall in the nursing home and break a hip you are on Medicare; if you fall and break a hip on the Princess ship they will upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life.

Now hold on for the best! Do you want to see South America, the Panama Canal, Tahiti, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, or name where you want to go? Princess will have a ship ready to go. So don't look for me in a nursing home, just call shore to ship.

PS: And don't forget, when you die, they just dump you over the side at no charge.
~~~~~~~~~~

Now if that's actually true, it'd be one hell of an option for folks as they age. The numbers still kinda stagger me, though; when I was still working, I was only pegging $120-$130 each day. I suspect the 'per day' number for the nursing home is a bit on the high side, here. If not, then someone needs their head examined.

Anyway, I need to hobble to the phone and make a couple calls. I've got the follow-up appointment scheduled for Friday late-morning (else it would've meant waiting another full week), and I need to see if Mom can do the driving again.

Auf wiedersehen.

Post Script: And as simple and quickly as that, I've got a driver for my appointment Friday. Mom'll be here 10:30ish, and hopefully I'll get some good news this round. And off I go again.

Comments

It probably depends

[meamgrimlock.livejournal.com]

When my da was in the nursing home here in Dallas, the cost was $5000 per month. Nearly all covered by the state, I might add. For a 30 day month, that works out to $166 and change per day.

Dad required a fairly minimal amount of support and looking after. For someone who needs more intensive care, the cost could be much higher.

And, Dad was really in a rat-hole, too. The building was old. It was structually sound, but probably could use repair. They had old, manual, hospital beds. There were a grand total of two televisions for residents to watch. There was an out-door smoking area, but not much in the way of out-door recreation. There was some activity every day, but usually only one, and if you didn't want to participate in that activity, you had to entertain yourself.

Re: It probably depends

[elisabeth.livejournal.com]

...

The states should really look into sending these folks on cruises.

Wow, what a totally odd thing to say. Oh well. *snugs and hobbles off*

Re: It probably depends

[invader-tak-1.livejournal.com]

Again, I hae a LOT more music for you! Get a hold of me online sometime!

I'd call you but I somehow lost your phone number.

Re: It probably depends

[elisabeth.livejournal.com]

I'm not home at the moment anyway, and the machine I've got down here is having heartburn issues with 80% of the software installed on it. I've not forgotten you, love, I simply don't have a way to get -to- you. *hugs*