I think I will use the Southwest information to see if I can get a good deal to go down to LA for the Bora Bora trip.

I am holding off on buying LA tickets until I find out if I'm relocating to the Bay Area anytime soon.

Best version is invite him for meals or offer to come over and cook a meal. Not to cook a meal for nannying or charity, to visit. Maybe with microwaveable frozen dishes of nominally better nutrition (higher fiber, fruity pancakes) that he could get himself IF he likes them. There are good micro options out there, if he's nervous about cooking, he might also be afraid of trying new things on his own.

As a person whose desire to cook and/or eat waxes and wanes, I will testify that I eat the frozen dinners and the kale turns into green sludge. The kale in my refrigerator does not magically turn into healthy meals. It turns into guilt.

If she wants to help, she can bring by a healthy meal or take him out once a week.

Any chance he'd eat any of the fruit cups for kids? Sometimes it's easier to eat something that's a small snack.

Tim just told me that his dad varies the pancakes with Quaker oat square cereal, and he has a bag of frozen berry medley from which he thaws a half cup of berries that he eats on the cereal. And, you know? From age 5 until I went gluten-free in my 30s, I ate cereal basically every morning AND I didn't even add fruit on top. So he's got me beat there.

I feel really bad about the fact I'm about to have a frozen pizza for dinner. And I do so a couple of times a week.

Oh hell naw. You're an autonomous adult. You get to have pizza.

But making him buy perishables is useless unless someone's going to be cooking them for him as well.

Exactly.

Prepared food from the grocery deli that he can heat up + healthier frozen food choices would be a good compromise, but ONLY if Tim's dad is interested AND willing to try and improve his diet.

Yup, and he's totally thrilled with Marie Calendar's sweet-and-sour chicken. He has no interest in branching out, except for a pot pie.

My father is an autonomous adult who refuses to improve his diet even with heart disease and diabetes. I can't make choices for him.

Yeah, I pointed that out to Tim, too -- my dad has so many chronic conditions that could be managed better with a different diet, but he won't do it. Contrast that with Tim's dad, who is almost 80 and has zero physical health problems. No heart disease, no high blood pressure, no diabetes, no vision problems -- he is a damn paragon of health. In light of that, he can have all the pot pies he wants. They're clearly not destroying his health (although it would be nice if he were more regular, but what are you gonna do).

Any chance he'd eat any of the fruit cups for kids? Sometimes it's easier to eat something that's a small snack.

He buy applesauce cups every other week, so he's getting a little fruit/fiber that way.

Metamucil in a bowl of applesauce in the morning. My mom swears by it and it isn't onerous.

And she's 70. Ack.

Non onerous is important in our house, and having frozen veg that can easily be microwaved means we'll eat veg more often than not.

They're clearly not destroying his health (although it would be nice if he were more regular, but what are you gonna do).

It sounds like focusing on just getting more fiber in his diet would be a good start. And if that makes him happier, then maybe he'd be willing to branch out a tiny bit more.

shakes my fist at cheap airfares. I paid way more than I wanted to for mac and my summer vacation tix.

I bought a bag of baby carrots and looked up recipes for glazed carrots. I will probably actually eat some of them by the end of the week. I need to remember that butter is tasty and is useful for cooking things.