Pop-Pop
...I should have mentioned this a month ago when it all started happening, but really who wants to be brought down with bad news. Now that the inevitable seems closer, I guess I just felt the need to get all my feelings out and my memories written.
I'll start with the happy stuff, my memories. Things that made people love and find amusement in my Grandfather:
• the way he raced around through traffic, honking at everyone in sight. No pedestrian or driver was safe when Irwin Schain took the road. Though I can't recall an accident.
• every other Sunday Nanny and Pop-Pop would drive to CT to visit their daughter, her husband, and three grandchildren. We'd eat bagels, Pop-Pop would drive me to choir practice on occasion, Pop-Pop would busy himself with clearing out the hedges.
• A camera was always in his hand, and he always had such a great eye, maybe that's where I got my photobug from.
• Much like my brothers and my mother, he fall asleep anywhere.
• one of my favorite memories is when my uncle started using his video camera and he'd walk to a sleeping Pop-Pop and give him a voice and move the camera around as if Pop-Pop was in fact moving. Total family inside joke - "wwwwwwooooowwwwww"
I'd prefer not to think of the less happy memories, mainly because most of those memories are the reason he's in his current situation. Pop-Pop is 75 years old. He smoked most of his life. He's suffered a ton of strokes, mostly caused by the smoking and I'm guessing lots of self-inflicted stress. Pop-Pop was a salesman in NYC working for Honey (i think?) a company that made lots of Mickey Mouse paraphernalia.
Pop-Pop suffered his worst set of strokes 7 years ago and has since been paralyzed on half his body. He's been in a wheel chair since that time and he went from being a lovable crotchety old man to a frustrating and frustrated crotchety old man. He's had a difficult existence for the last 7 years. But on August 30th, his body fought back even harder. He had a heart attack and was put in the ICU at the hospital. He appeared to be doing better for a couple weeks.
Concurrently with the Mets hitting a losing streak, Pop-Pop hit his own. He suffered another heart attack. He can no longer breath on his own. When I saw him last Friday, he was heavily sedated and could only grip onto my hand periodically to let me know he knew I was there. I watched him shake as he tried to either cough or cry - I couldn't tell. Today or tomorrow is most likely the day that my Grandmother and Uncle make the ultimate decision about Pop-Pops future. Clearly, it's not looking good.
It's looking like I'll be losing my 3rd grandparent in the next day or so and I guess I just wanted to take the opportunity to reflect on his life.
Irwin Schain saw the world, all of it, he traveled everywhere. He had 2 children, 2 children-in-laws, 5 grandchildren, 4 grand-dogs. He lived in the greatest city in the world and truly provided for his family. He witnessed 5 grandchildren's bar and bat mitvahs and 1 grandson's wedding. I'm proud to have known him for 24 years.
I'll start with the happy stuff, my memories. Things that made people love and find amusement in my Grandfather:
• the way he raced around through traffic, honking at everyone in sight. No pedestrian or driver was safe when Irwin Schain took the road. Though I can't recall an accident.
• every other Sunday Nanny and Pop-Pop would drive to CT to visit their daughter, her husband, and three grandchildren. We'd eat bagels, Pop-Pop would drive me to choir practice on occasion, Pop-Pop would busy himself with clearing out the hedges.
• A camera was always in his hand, and he always had such a great eye, maybe that's where I got my photobug from.
• Much like my brothers and my mother, he fall asleep anywhere.
• one of my favorite memories is when my uncle started using his video camera and he'd walk to a sleeping Pop-Pop and give him a voice and move the camera around as if Pop-Pop was in fact moving. Total family inside joke - "wwwwwwooooowwwwww"
I'd prefer not to think of the less happy memories, mainly because most of those memories are the reason he's in his current situation. Pop-Pop is 75 years old. He smoked most of his life. He's suffered a ton of strokes, mostly caused by the smoking and I'm guessing lots of self-inflicted stress. Pop-Pop was a salesman in NYC working for Honey (i think?) a company that made lots of Mickey Mouse paraphernalia.
Pop-Pop suffered his worst set of strokes 7 years ago and has since been paralyzed on half his body. He's been in a wheel chair since that time and he went from being a lovable crotchety old man to a frustrating and frustrated crotchety old man. He's had a difficult existence for the last 7 years. But on August 30th, his body fought back even harder. He had a heart attack and was put in the ICU at the hospital. He appeared to be doing better for a couple weeks.
Concurrently with the Mets hitting a losing streak, Pop-Pop hit his own. He suffered another heart attack. He can no longer breath on his own. When I saw him last Friday, he was heavily sedated and could only grip onto my hand periodically to let me know he knew I was there. I watched him shake as he tried to either cough or cry - I couldn't tell. Today or tomorrow is most likely the day that my Grandmother and Uncle make the ultimate decision about Pop-Pops future. Clearly, it's not looking good.
It's looking like I'll be losing my 3rd grandparent in the next day or so and I guess I just wanted to take the opportunity to reflect on his life.
Irwin Schain saw the world, all of it, he traveled everywhere. He had 2 children, 2 children-in-laws, 5 grandchildren, 4 grand-dogs. He lived in the greatest city in the world and truly provided for his family. He witnessed 5 grandchildren's bar and bat mitvahs and 1 grandson's wedding. I'm proud to have known him for 24 years.