absolutely disgusted

Warning, rant within.

So, my husband took a new job, and that's great but we're thoroughly screwed for medical insurance until his kicks in after a month. Let's not even go into the fact that his plan is from a co. based in the midwest and there isn't even much coverage on the East coast. and the fact that if we don't get interim coverage, he can't be covered for his pre-existing condition for twelve MONTHS!

Do you have any idea how much non-insured insulin costs? At current uninsured prices, 869.00 a month. Ouch.

I've spent some time today calling insurance companies and the *CHEAPEST* I can get for myself is 582.00 a MONTH/cheaptest for Mark is about 750 a month.

What does this 582 a month cover? 50.00 co-pay for my primary physician, 100.00 co-pay for any specialists (like my eye doctor), no perscription drug plan, no coverage for things like mammograms (With a huge instance of breast cancer in my maternal lines, mammograms are NEEDED) etc.

There is NO way we can affford that, unless we cut out some necessities like electricity, or food. And that is the *CHEAPEST* comprehensive plan. In order to get perscription drugs, wellness, vision, etc. we're talking well OVER 800.00 a month. For me alone!

I've been seeing a chiropractor for my back issues in the last month, but otherwise, I haven't been ill much in my life. I've had one hospitalization, a few visits to the ER and thats it in 15 years. And it wasn't as if they asked about any preexisting conditions...they took my name, address, SS# and quoted a price that is double if not triple or quadruple what the wesbites say. I can't fathom WHY and nobody has been able to tell me why either.

When did health insurance becomes something only the rich can afford? How many of you reading can swing 582.00 a month for yourself (not counting spousal coverage, kids, etc.) or almost 1300 a month for you plus spouse and not suffer. That's almost 7000.00 a year for me alone/15600 for us both. That is a mortgage or rent in an expensive area...that's a new CAR a year...

I just can't get over this. I'm beyond disgusted right now.

Big news!

I've been waiting for a few days to post this...

Mark (my DH) has accepted a position running the Mid-Atlantic office of a company. The company is based in Chicago, so we'll be living there for 8 weeks while he gets to know the company policies and procedures. When we return home to VA, he'll be working mostly from home.

He's been in talks about this job for ages and ages and things finally gelled when he went to the training session in late Sept. and the company owner was there. He agonized long and hard about going because my eye was badly infected at that point in time. Turns out he was meant to be there!

Sorry for the suspense...he asked me to refrain making this widely public until he told his current employer.

"We're simply havvving a wonderful Christma---what??"

I was listening to XM the other day and was jolted away from work when this song played. I had to do a double take and make sure we were still in October. People, it is early October here...can we hold off on the Christmas music until after Halloween??

Mark is away today...he had a very early flight. I can tell that concentrating will be an issue today.

Of twisted spines and Target

A few weeks ago I 'won' the opportunity for a chiropractic consult, at our town fair. Since I have very severe TMJ jaw issues and a lot of back and neck pain, I thought it wouldn't hurt to check them out.

I got my Xrays and consultation that week. Turns out my spine is a mess, as are my neck, shoulder and jaw. The good news is that a lot of pain can be alleviated and my jaw issues lessened greatly. I've lived in pain from YMJ every day since 1996 and to hear that in 5-6 mos I could be much better is a real ray of light.

Being skeptical, I chatted with my mom, who goes to a noted chiropractor and her doc and mine actually know each other. Mine is known as a TMJ specialist.

Due to my eye infection/cancelled trip to NY, my adjustments only started last week. The first two appointments went well and I was feeling fine...until yesterday.

Yesterday morning when I went in, I was limping a little. My lower back was quite stiff and sore. I should have known this wasn't going to be a 'snap, crackle, crunch' type session. First they had me on moist heat therapy then they adjusted me. I was still in so much pain that I was iced down and my lower back muscles stimulated with electrodes. No problem...I was hurting but not too badly.

Then, we went to Target. Mark needed some small tools for his freelancing job and I needed to get an ice pack. I also wanted to check out those 18.88 TV dvd sets.

Well, the minute I stepped on that hard discount store floor my back started throbbing. Within five minutes I had the flexability of the average 80 yr old and every step sent shooting pains up my spine and down my legs. I SO needed that ice! DVd sets? LOL. I could barely remember my name! They even had Sudoku books there andI barely even glanced over them.

We managed to do our shopping at turtle speed and I was soon home on the couch, ice on my back and magazines in hand.

Fortunately, this morning the pain is down to a dull roar!

And our family gets smaller....

We lost a cousin recently. My family isn't large to begin with and even though this was expected, it saddens me. We lived fairly close to each other and I had alays intended to contact him and introduce him to my husband.

Cousin Luke, as we called him, was a bit of a celebrity in my hometown. He always came home for the huge 4th of July celebration and I'll never forget how impressed I was as a child when this man in full military dress uniform would show up and twirl me around.

When I was in my teens, I took a job making beds at a nursing home one summer and spent a great deal of time with his mother, who was a patient there.I still look back on my visits with her, him gently enocouraging me to play along and let her believe I was Bernice from the Girl Scout Troop in 1929.

Ahh, I digress. In any event, I'd like to share his obituary, copied from the Washington Post. Rest in peace, Cousin Luke! You had an amazing life!

Lucien Capone Jr.Navy Admiral, Consultant

---

Lucien Capone Jr., 80, a retired Navy admiral and Booz Allen Hamilton vice president, died Sept. 25 at Inova Mount Vernon Hospital of complications following open-heart surgery last April.

Mr. Capone, known as Luke, was born in Fall River, Mass., and grew up in Bristol, R.I. He received his undergraduate degree from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1949. During a 30-year military career, he was commanding officer of three ships, the USS Hammerberg, the USS Dahlgren and the USS Richmond K. Turner. His shore tours of duty included posts as deputy chief of staff and director of the Command and Control Technical Center for the Defense Communications Agency and head of the Inter-American Defense College at Fort McNair.

He completed studies at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., in 1954 and at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in 1967. He also received a master's degree in business administration from George Washington University in 1967. A recipient of the Legion of Merit and the Joint Service Commendation Medal, he became rear admiral in 1975.

After his retirement from the Navy in 1979, he joined Booz Allen Hamilton as a principal to lead the company's new business development in military command, control and communications. He became vice president in 1983 and senior vice president in 1988. He created the C3 Professional Community, which became a prototype for joint market planning, intellectual capital sharing and networking across teams.

Mr. Capone retired a second time in 1997 but continued to lead the company's senior professional development courses and to take part in staff meetings and market strategy. He also was a jazz pianist.

Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Charlotte Lammers Capone of...; two children, "Skip" of N.C., and Judith of N.Y.; and four grandchildren.

interests coming up from strange places

My last post was filled with random thoughts about going away...but that trip never materialized.

Monday morning, I woke up essentially blind in one eye. It was one of the most frightening episodes of my life, to go to sleep healthy and whole and to wake up and no know what the problem was.

I was rushed to the docs and discovered I had a very severe eye infection and was told I should NOT go away. My eyesight could be permanently damaged and the eye doc wanted to keep a very close eye on me for the next few days.

To make a long story short, my husband went and had one of the most bizarre (in positive ways) weeks and my mom flew down to get me to the docs, be moral support, etc. There's a looooong involved story there but in the interest of not airing dirty laundry on this blog, I'll be a good girl and keep quiet.

Anyway, to get to the point of this blog...

I read...a LOT. Reading is essential for work and I read for pleasure as well. When suddenly faced with this eye issue, I knew my reading would be severely curtailed and I felt a quite a bit stressed about that. I'm not someone who can lie on the couch and stare at the TV all day without any other stimulation. Especially not if it is on Fox News all day.

I finally decided that I'd work as much as I could and find a way to keep my mind occupied in a way that didn't involve reading. I was so nervous that keeping my mind active was more than necessary--it was my sanity.

Enter Sudoku.

Sudoku is a Japanese numbers logic puzzle. I had been introduced to it by a friend on a message board a couple of months back and had even downloaded a trial version of a Sudoku PC game some time ago. But I never seemed to have the free time to investigate it.

As we were waiting for my perscriptions on Monday, Mark dragged me into a bookstore so that I could pick up a couple of magazines or maybe a book I'd been waiting for (I reeealllly wanted to get Lynn Viehls' Private Demon). Instead, I got two weeks of People Magazine and a Sudoku book. Lynn's book wasn't there yet but I have it in my hands as of this morning!

By Thursday, I was feeling well enough to try Sudoku and within five minutes I was hooked. These logic puzzles engaged my mind in a wholly different way and didn't bother my one sighted eye at all! I must have worked on these puzzles for two or three hours, in a time where ten minutes spent a my computer was agonizing.

I appear to have a new hobby and interest that I hope to engage in even after I'm wholly healed.

Health update: Mom is gone so things are MUCH quieter(and saner!!), the eye is still in a GREAT deal of pain but I have blurry vision in it and I'm progressing well, according to the doctor on my last visit. I'll be going back to him on Monday, so I hope to have some even better news then!

Meanwhile, bring on Sudoku!

Here are some Sudoku links in case this post has piqued your interest.

http://www.sudoku.com/
http://www.websudoku.com/
http://www.sudokumaster.co.uk/