I'm All Over The Map

Medical Hell

So then I get the call for the follow-up with the ENT.

After I’m in the exam room he entered and, with little in the way of preamble, stated “You need to have sinus surgery”.

What.The.Fuck.?

“Oh yes, you have sinusitis, this will take care of it.  You should only have a 20% out of pocket,  the surgery is around $6000″.

“$1200?!  Does that include everything?” I asked “Anesthesia?  Room? Vestal virgins?”  “No,” he replied “those will be billed separately”

I then remembered something from my childhood, looked at him and said, “Hey, before we do anything else, how about taking a culture and see if the antibiotic you gave me is right for whatever’s in there?”. 

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Medical Hell

When I said my sinuses blocked up I meant they became, for all intents and purposes, non-porous, impermeable, cement infused.

Literally overnight I became a mouth breather.  *At* night my snoring rattled walls, kept Paula awake, scared the cats and threatened my marriage.  She even video recorded it so I could share the delight.  747′s were quieter.

Back to the GP/PC.  This time to be referred to an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist (ENT).

I arrived, was ushered in, history taken, they then attempted to shoot shit up my nose that was supposed to lessen the irratation of the next shot of shit, which was supposed to open my sinuses.

It dribbled out my nostril and dripped from my upper lip.

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Medical Hell

“So,” said Steven B. Sotman, MD, Infectious Disease Specialist, “as far as what I can do for you, we’re done”.

That sentence, spoken about six months ago, concluded my initial, year plus Journey Through Medical Hell.

But let’s back up, start at the beginning, and I’ll share with you why I’ve lost faith in Western medicine, several Doctors and maybe give you some insight into how broken “health care” in America is for an insured, late middle aged, gainfully employed, white male.

In September of 2010 I found my eyes were bothering me, more than usual (I’ve been plagued with dry, blood shot eyes for a few years now).  As time wore on they became by turns inflamed, puffy, swollen, weepy, painful and downright scary to look at.

The usual allergy pills and nostrums made no difference, so

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Things we need in American politics:

•   A limit on the campaign season. Say… for no more than 9 months prior to the actual election. Clean up the airwaves and keep the vitriol to a minimum.
•   An aggregate time limit that any one individual can serve in all branches of government, maybe

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Seems like forever since I posted here. That’s been due to the stuff that’s been going on in real life. Here’s the short form, in reverse chronological order, case you’re curious:

After 14 years my job went away. I’m still employed by the same institution. Seems that out of an outfit with 5000 or so employees, I was the only one with my particular job title. Now, you might think that was kind of cool and unique, but in a place beholden to state funding and prone to budget cuts it can be more akin to feeling like a character from a Gary Larson cartoon.

Luckily for me some of the management felt I deserved “endangered species” style protection and moved ensure that. Abruptly.

Picture walking in on a Monday morning and your boss calling you up first thing to ask you to his office

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Since we moved into our home, we’ve enjoyed the shade and wildlife habitat provided by a lovely, large, silver maple in our front yard.  But in the last two years we’d noticed that the “knotty” midsection of the tree was getting more pronounced and the tree seemed have become a sanctuary for pestilential ants.

With the drought that ensnared Texas for most of the summer, it became obvious that our favorite tree was  stressed, but we had every confidence that it would make it through the heat and continue to grace us with its presence for years to come.

Alas, that was not to be.  Despite $200+ water bills,

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Last Man Standing?

In a stunning outbreak of common sense, an editorial in Student BMJ has experts warning that overuse of antibiotics in livestock poses definite risks to both humans and other animals.

For over 50 years farmers have been feeding antibiotics to their herds after scientists discovered the drugs improved the animals’ growth.  As time wore on however, it became apparent that the practice was giving rise to resistant strains of bacteria that could prove hazardous to the public.

In 1977 Congress proposed banning the practice, but the measure was shelved “pending additional study” (or more properly, after being lobbied out of existence).

In the interim we have seen the emergence of deadly strains of e coli, as well as

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Your Lightbulb & WiFi, What Could Go Wrong?

NXP, a publicly traded semi-conductor company, and Green Wave Reality, an energy management and automation company, have partnered and announced their intention that every light bulb should have an IPv6 internet address.

That’s right, your light bulb will be able to talk over your WiFi in the not too distant future, and the companies involved are ecstatically proclaiming “The possibilities are endless: You could monitor, manage and control every light bulb from any Internet-enabled device – turning lights on and off individually, dimming or creating scenes from your smartphone, tablet, PC or TV – to save energy as well as electricity costs.”

Green Reality has been instrumental in bringing Smart Meters (new, digital electric meters) to households nationwide, with less than universal appreciation.

While there may be legitimate consumer benefits, there are several issues to consider.  Such as, from

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Car or Teachers? Which Is Worth More?

If you are a resident of Fort Worth, remember to vote on Saturday, May 14th.

I know it’s “only” the mayoral and city council elections, but these positions are often stepping stones to higher office, and not voting can allow people who make … questionable … decisions to ascend to positions where there are real consequences.

Take our State Legislature for example.

There’s an article over at Bloomberg online that mentions how “Texas, which may balance its budget by firing thousands of teachers, plans to commit $25 million in state funds to Formula One auto racing each year for a decade” in the capitol city of Austin.

That’s right, Texas, who ranks in the bottom ten of all states and US territories for spending on education, proficiency of its students, and graduation rates, is going to fire more teachers and give money to race cars.  Not only that, but taxpayers will be subsidizing a segment of the racing community that’s proven itself to be a total loser over the last three decades in Long Beach, California, as well as Las Vegas, Detroit, Dallas, Phoenix and, most recently, Indianapolis.

I can’t help but think that if we’d culled the candidate pool at the local level back in the 1970s and 80s, we might not be seeing travesties such as this play out in our fair state.

But then again, politicians do like a populace that doesn’t think too deeply.  They tend to stay in office longer.

Product vs. People?

A few years back the local warehouse store had a great price on a combination rainfall shower head / handle sprayer combination.  Lifetime warranty too.  So I bought it.

Fast forward to today and the spray handle has lost its rubber anti-scratch bumper, the head itself is loose, expanded from the seam, and leaking water.  OK.  Call the warehouse store.

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