This post revolves around a phone call with my brother Jerry a year before he died.  It mostly concerns his health issues. 

At the time Jerry was 81.  He talked some about the love of his life, Joanne Pattavina.  He mentioned Joanne's mother was getting ready for Hospice care (she has since died).  

He also added that both Joanne's parents were alcoholics.

As for Jerry's health at the time.  He has vascular dementia.  Basically his vascular system is clogged up and it's affecting his brain function.  Think ED of the brain.  Caused by diet, as so many American illnesses are these days.  He also had "nitro" pills he carried around in case of angina.  And a "I've fallen and I can't get up" device he carries around his neck.

He's had two stents installed, said if he needed any more stents, he wanted the Abbott ones that dissolved.  He didn't live that long.

He talked a bit about his son Brian, who has mitochondria disease, which he inherited from his mother Carolina.  A painful illness that Brian has been dealing with for many years now.

Jerry died on February 27, 2018 from pneumonia, a blessing really as his dementia was slowing getting worse, and it would have been sad to see him go down that rabbit hole. 

It was very nice to see him one last time in the Fall of 2016 on our RV trip to the north east.