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Dear Don, I wish you and my Dad lived next door to each other so you could commiserate! Up until just about 3 years ago, my Dad was the most active 78 year old you could hope to meet. He took care of everything around the house...and I do mean everything. A retired engineer who had once been called "The Mad Inventor" at the machine tool company where he worked, Dad could and did fix just about anything. He ran a part time business doing accident investigations for insurance companies. He kept 3 sailboats and was commodore of the boat club. His favorite activity, though, was rowing. He had a single shell which he would toss on top of the car every afternoon (this thing was twice as long as the car), put into Lake Seminole, and row like crazy for 6 miles. When he would come to visit me in Atlanta, I could always count on having all sorts of things in my home fixed, improved and cleaned up. Now he lives near me. He's confined to a wheel chair, can't use his right (primary) arm at all and is beginning to lose his left arm. One of the things that distresses him the most is that he can no longer help me with my house problems. He will think and think about how he might be able to drag himself up to the second floor bathroom to help me fix the leaky toilet! It's just so frustrating for him! I feel so badly for him and, yes, I sure do miss his help! So, hey Don, you're NOT alone! Jane Koenig Marietta, GA (daughter of Fred, 81/MSA3)