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Although she is legally blind and recently celebrated her 90th birthday, Matakana woman Edna Grummitt sees no reason why she shouldn’t continue to live alone.
Indeed, anyone foolish enough to suggest she might be better off in some sort of residential care will get little sympathy for the idea.
“In a home there’ll be all sorts of rules and regulations. I want to be free,” she says.
Edna was especially appalled to hear that some retirement villages forbid you to have a bottle of wine and a drink with friends in your room.
Given she enjoys a quiet glass at lunch-time most days, that restriction alone was never going to fly. These days, she must stick to reds, as she can’t see white wine and risks over-filling her glass when pouring.
After suffering from macular generation for almost 20 years, Edna now retains less than four percent of her vision.
But she finds that’s plenty of seeing ability to cook, clean, do her laundry and generally look after herself.
Edna says the key to success is making the best use of the sight she does have and developing a strong sense of touch.
She irons by feeling along the edges of the seams of her clothes, and she judges how hot her stove top is by waving her hand over the elements. So far, she has never had anything boil over.
“I don’t want the mess to clean up. If you do all the cleaning yourself, you’re more careful, aren’t you?”
Edna can’t read food labels but is adept at finding what she wants by the colour and general shape of the packaging. Often when her daughter, Janis, takes her shopping, Edna will spot the needed items before Janis, prompting her daughter to complain that her mother is supposed to be the blind one.
Edna says keeping fit is essential and keeping the house clean constitutes her workout.
“I still climb my step ladder once a week and clean the tops of my units and things like that – but don’t tell my daughter I said that,” she says.
Edna tackles a crossword with a video magnifier.
Edna also likes to keep mentally sharp and loves doing crosswords, using a video magnifier to enlarge the squares until they are big enough to see.
She adds that the magnifier also allows her to read her mail and write cheques to pay her bills.
Regular visits from family and friends means she seldom gets lonely.
“I’m fully occupied throughout the week to be honest with you.”
Edna says she never goes to bed without first having sorted out what she will do the following day, thereby ensuring she never gets bored.
Her other tip for a long and healthy life is remaining cheerful.
“If I can make somebody laugh once a day, I’m doing okay,” she says.
