Ideas for a ‘project’ for elderly parent

[Wetwindyweekend]

My dad is in his mid 80s and likes to have things to look forward to and little tasks or projects to keep him occupied. He’s become less mobile in the last 2 years and now that the weather is changing he’s less likely to be doing little jobs in the garden etc so I’m trying to come up with some ideas for something he could potter away at in his own time.

He likes word games (watches Countdown avidly, does anagrams and things) and has had puzzle books in the past. He loves sport. He’s not keen to learn something new (I’ve suggested learning a language, taking up drawing or similar but he’s not too interested).

he’s relatively tech savvy and has an iPad.

it would need to be something he can do at home and without too much movement. And I live overseas so not something we do together in person.

A number of years ago he was given a device to digitize all his photos and slides and he loved that. Something along those lines would
be great - it was quite a big job but not too taxing and had a finite end.

I wondered about Storyworth or similar.

Does anyone have any other suggestions?

My Dad got quite into Ancesrty/family tree stuff (he has dementia now, so finds it too difficult to navigate the app etc)

Duolingo has maths and chess programs, which are both great.
I now know that i am absolutely god awful at chess!

Crossplay is excellent, too. It’s Scrabble, basically; and he can play both the computer, and you as well.

Wordle and Connections are also good.

My 92 year Dad has written a book about his life! In reality it’s anecdotes about his life growing up. He writes little pieces on his lap top and did self publish a few years ago. He did it a few years ago in his 80’s but now enjoys reading it back as it reminds him of things he’s forgotten. He has also done a lot of work on ancestry too creating a family tree.

When my dad had to give up a life long hobby we suggested he write his memoir. I typed it up for him and he got a few copies printed and bound for close family to read. I’m really glad we did it.

How about a kitchen windowsill with herbs and things like a chilli plant, he can still enjoy the fruits of his labour. It’s just a water a day and a quick check.

What about words with friends it’s a free online scrabble game. You two can have a game going over a few days if you’re busy, that’s a nice way to connect. I used to play with my mate in America, I was still working then so games could last a week.

I was going to suggest this! Even if it's just little snippets about how life used to be. It's so lovely to read, especially if his personality is clear in his stories!

What about learning how to play bridge? He could learn online and play online too once he’s got the hang of it.

lots of good ideas here, thank you. I think he’d love the scrabble type things as we always play together in person.

I’ve suggested memoirs before and he dismissed it hence my hesitation over storyworth. But I think it could be a good project.

I’ve also suggested he compile all his best jokes (the ones I’ve heard a million times!) but he thought that was daft too. Sigh.

A number of years ago he was given a device to digitize all his photos and slides and he loved that. Something along those lines would
be great - it was quite a big job but not too taxing and had a finite end.

Build on this. Tell him you want the best of the photos put into a book for the family to keep - look up companies that publish a glossy hardback book of your photos that you design and do the layout.

My DM did something like this - she has a house full of various ornaments and souvenirs, some are very nice and some are antiques or heirlooms. I told her that when she goes we will have no idea what any of this stuff is. She took photos of each thing, and got them published in a photo book with a paragraph about each one, the story behind it, where it came from etc.

Ornaments and heirlooms may not be his thing, but does he have lots of photos of his holidays and travels? Or lots of photos of extended family that have now died? Tell him you want to know about the family tree.

What about the NYT puzzle app, it has lots of daily games to play, I also do the daily quordle and Octordle

He sounds like a lovely
old chap!

@Wetwindyweekend can you remember the name of the device please?
I immediately thought of something like a family tree

Building on the digitised photos can you get him to write the names of the people/ details of the events and holidays etc. we have a lot of FiLs photos and it is so frustrating not knowing who the people are. I wish we’d gone through them with him while he was alive.

There are a few drawing apps online..... like painting by numbers. Would he be interested in that?
The guardian has a good puzzle section too

Lego? There are some lovely models geared towards adult builders these days.

If you think Scrabble is of interest, try www.playscrabble.com. You can play humans or a machine. There are also some daily “challenges”, but I don’t think they are in UK English yet.

Also have a look to see what web facilities/e press/ebooks/audiobooks his local library offer. He might have access to Ancestry.com without needing to visit the library. Also he might discover a local online reading group. Mine can’t be the only one that decided to stay online after lockdowns.

Thanks everyone, lots of great ideas and things for me to look at.

He isn’t at all interested in family history; in fact he’s actively disinterested in it. It’s a shame because it would be exactly the right type of thing that he could get stuck into online.

I’ve suggested drawing and Lego before and he wasn’t keen. I think he has in his head he’s not artistic.creative. He does also have a little trouble with his dexterity in one hand following a stroke a number of years ago so Lego might be a bit fiddly for him anyway.

@Nomdeplumeforthis1 I don’t know exactly what it was, I’m sorry. It must have been at least ten years ago and maybe 15 so I expect things will have improved since then anyway.