New York in my house

My house looks like the corner of a New York City street. Signs, signs everywhere; Only difference is mine are ugly signs printed on cheap white paper in big black letters from our home printer. Lovely, just lovely. For those of you who know me, you are aware that I am a decorator by vocation and avocation. Some months ago it was my dear, compassionate husband's idea to put up the signs as a directional experiment to see if they would help Pop who never seemed to be able to find the room that he wanted to be in. My husband wanting to protect my dad's male ego announced one day that we had put up some signs to help "US" find our way around the house. My dad's remark was, "Good idea!" as if the whole families directional welfare was at stake. These signs hardly equate nicely decorated but we soon learned that they worked. So hats off to my husband.

I see him searching the walls and I know he is looking for his signs. His eye catches the one on the TV amoir. This whole scenario reminds me of the game that we used to play as kids when we'd hide something and whoever was "it" would have to find the hidden object by us telling them when they are getting hot or cold. He sees the first sign. (You are getting hot Pop.) Then he sees the sign on the fireplace with a big arrow that points left. He turns a slight left around one of our over stuffed chairs. The next sign says, "office." That's not where he was headed. But right next to that sign on the door frame is a sign with an arrow that points to the door that says "DON." The next entrance to his room is his rest room and on that door in very bold letters are "BATH." And next to that is "Laundry Room." We have that one up just to let him know that he is getting cold if he heads in that direction.

This is just the beginning. In the kitchen we have a sign that reads, "Glasses" on one cupboard, another that reads "Bowls" and on a drawer a sign that reads "Silverware." We also have signs on our bedroom doors, one for my husband's and my room and one for our son's. This is how my dad navigates our home.

Sometime today my dad feeling compelled to "organize" his travel bag containing all of life's necessities or feeling the need to rearrange his closet or head off to the bathroom I will observe him working his way through the house reading his signs. Signs, signs, big ugly signs that help keep his life and ours sane!