It seems like yesterday that Matt was paranoid about having cameras in the house

You know those little small cameras that are super cheap these days that can link together via a simple app on an iphone or ipad

I had a few of these cameras in Virginia when we were living there, our use then was more for when we were on trips, so we could keep an eye on the house when it was empty

He was dreadfully aware of them, didn’t like them, would unplug them, have delusions about them

When we went back to Virginia in June this year, I pulled them out of storage and put a few cameras facing outside near 2 of the doorways so as to not unduly impose upon the privacy expected by our house sitters who were watching Sheba

I just wanted to be able to see that they arrived safely, no strange things were going on

Its amazing how things change over time, when I did this in June, he didn’t seem to notice or be concerned about the cameras

So I did some experimentation after we got back in June, facing the cameras inwards, testing different locations so I could remotely keep an eye on him

He doesn’t seem to even see them now at all, even though a camera might be sitting right by where he placed his morning coffee cup

So I have gotten a bit bolder in where I have placed them

Upstairs, during the summer, tends to get hot and heat doesn’t play well with him these days

Plus, since he has been falling in heat, I don’t want him falling backwards down the stairs

Annoyingly, he’s been digging into my client related papers which I now keep upstairs…..

So if I am elsewhere in the house or the property and see him walking upstairs, I can magically show up and intervene, redirect him

Mind you, all of our devices that create heat, the toaster, the plug-in oven, the hot plate, etc, these exist in the kitchen but are unplugged between uses

So he can fiddle with them without risk of burning the house down

Knives are locked up too

It did feel a bit invasive, when I first put the cameras out, first started chasing him around the house with the various camera angels…..but I need to get over that I think, its not invasive, its a way to make the home environment safe, comfortable for us both

He can do what he wants, fiddle with this or that, on his own, have a sense of freedom

He has often commented about the caregivers “following” him around

I tested if a light comes on when I look at a specific camera and it does, a little blue light, but he doesn’t seem to notice that

Last night, at 2am, I noticed all the camera lights blinking–apparently we had wifi interruption and the cameras go into this blinking mode when that happens

So I quietly flipped any cameras that I thought might draw his attention around, or down, so the blinking wouldnt be noticable

I didn’t want my new successful method hijacked!

These cameras have now become my partners on days I don’t have caregivers, it helps us have a bit more normalacy, both of us have some independence–they have become an important part of keeping him home with me and me being able to relax a bit more, sluffing off some of the caregiver stress

So if you visit, know no one is chasing you around via the cameras, these are in position for when its just Matt & me at home so we can both move about with a level of independence and safety

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