Soooo Determined!
Once my Mom's dementia started it progressed very quickly. It didn't take very long for her Physician to advise us that it wasn't safe for Mom to be driving. This proved to be quite a challenge because one of the ways that my Mom kept herself entertained was to go driving around looking at all of the pretty houses in the Dallas area (she called it "cruising").
Anyone who has ever met my Mom knows that she can be very determined and more than just a little bit stubborn. Jim had his hands full trying to get her to give up her car keys. On his first attempt he decided that it would be easiest to just disable her car - then he could explain to her that she couldn't go "cruising" because the car was broken. The only problem is that when my Mom had moments of clarity she was still a very intelligent woman. Mom promptly sweet talked a neighbor into fixing the car for her.
Jim decided to try disabling the car again - this time he taped a note under the hood explaining that Mom wasn't supposed to be driving and telling people not to fix the car. Mom was not deterred.
Mom decided that if her car was broken she would just go buy a new one. Mom hitchhiked to the local car dealership and tried her best to buy a new car. Fortunately the receptionist at the dealership quickly realized something was wrong and managed to coax a family members phone number out of my Mom (I think that she told her that it was needed for the financing to go through).
At the time that this happened it was very distressing for all involved...but years later looking back on the situation I have to give Mom credit for being very determined. I also have to laugh at the thought of her sitting in the house scheming trying to come up with a plan to get what she wanted. I know she was probably very pleased with herself for figuring out how to get to the dealership to get a new car.