How The "Flying Egg Factory" Got Started :)

It started as a hobby for Brent as a way for him to keep his sanity while caring for his mom (Frankie) who had Alzheimer's / dementia. We officially learned she had it in the fall of 2011, just before Thanksgiving.

Brent's Mom Frankie

I'd suspected something was wrong back in 2009. There were odd things she'd say in conversation that would make you pause for a second, but she'd quickly play it off. What really caught my attention was her loss of the ability to operate the TV remote. Even though she was technically challenged when it came to electronic devices, she originally was able to operate the remote with ease. When that first started happening, it was a 15 minute phone call for Brent to walk her through pushing the right buttons to get to the channel she wanted (forget about being able to operate the DVD player). As time passed, those repeated 15 minute phone calls turned into a half hour, then an hour... then longer than that.

After Brent's dad (Doug) passed in 2004, we discussed the fact that moving forward, Brent would need to spend every other weekend at his mom's to take care of all the chores that his dad used to do and to just be there to take care of Frankie's "honey-do" list. I would go with him when I wasn't on a deadline -- which more often than not -- I was (and still am).

It would have been easier if the internet speed was available, because I produce and post a BUNCH of videos for clients, but it wasn't. I've petitioned the ISP for more than a decade, and still to this day -- believe it or not -- it's the slowest damn DSL I've ever had to deal with... almost as bad as dial-up! Does anyone remember dial-up anymore? Then to add insult to injury, they are the ONLY service provider in the area other than satellite, which is also slow IMO and costs an arm and a leg for the data package I'd need. (Ok, ok... stepping away from the rant!)

So... after Thanksgiving of 2011, it was obvious that Frankie could no longer live alone, so we "moved in" with her. Our plan was that I would be with Frankie during the day while Brent was at work during the week. I planned to get client work done offline on sites, graphics and video projects during the week, then go back to our place (which we began to call "the office") on the weekends to upload everything I'd done and download files for ongoing and new projects. Well... that worked for about three weeks.

The Alzheimer's was progressing rapidly and basically I got "voted off the island" ... I will share more about life with Alzheimer's in another post. For now I'll just say, Alzheimer's is a roller coaster ride on steroids and I had to call Brent at work and ask him to come home. That day ended up being his last day of employment since Frankie decided she was "done" with me and I needed to leave. From that day on, it fell on Brent to care for his mom full time.

The saddest thing about it was that Frankie was always looking for Brent, because she didn't recognize him anymore. She'd call me asking to talk to him and he would be sitting right beside her or just outside doing chores. Every now and then, especially when Kris, Shelly and Benny would be around, she'd recognize him for a moment and be so happy to see him. She would start asking him how was he doing, where had he been, etc...

Replacing Railing On The Deck

I used to think Cancer was the worst disease. Not anymore. Alzheimer's is FAR worse -- it steals your memories, independence and dignity. Just heartbreaking to watch someone you love lose themselves right in front of your eyes.

Brent had an extremely difficult time dealing with his mom not recognizing him, and the hallucinations she experienced were off the chart. He had to find something productive to occupy his time and mind ... something "normal" ... that's when the chickens came into the picture and Frankie's home began it's transformation to become "the farm."