Thoughts and Ponderings

Back from Los Angeles.
++ doctor can help
-- SIX surgeries and that is all before we can do the hip. And completely ignores the knees, which will also have to get done at sone point sooner rather than later.
-- OMG this is going to be nuts expensive
--- I have to pay out of pocket in advance
+++ Thanks to the fact that I am on the expensive health plan at Major NonProfit I only have a $1500 max out of pocket for out of network care so ONG expensive should actually be, essentially, free.
--- I will have to pay and submit for reimbursement. If they agree it's medically necessary. Otherwise I am screwed.
---- This many surgeries and costs may cause Major NonProfit to reconsider their self-insured status.
??? Though in the grand scheme of surgical costs maybe it's not so much?
??? But I don't think they expected to spend so much on one patient

Good lord I could keep this up for hours.

Well, we did "Stay until it's done" last night, and so it is.

With a bunch of issues I had raised in temporary agreements that, somehow, were never fixed. So now, f'ex, we are stuck with if the employee asks to work on a holiday they are paid time and a half plus they are paid for the holiday (thus 2 1/2 times their rate of pay). But if one's supervisor asks then one is paid double-time. Because that makes so much sense.

We were SO punchy by the end. But we celebrated with Insomnia Cookies (y'all, they make a GF chocolate chip cookie! I was presented with a box of SIX! No, I did not eat all of them) and milk and tentative hard copies were signed, and now we get to read it, and fix typos and such.

It got so late that I changed hotel rooms to move to one closer to the office rather than trying to roll over those crazy city sidewalks in the dark. It was actually a good choice.

I have been SO grateful for the aides I hired. I was worried about NYC Aide because they aren't actually an aide by training but figured out how to support me. "Hi we are going to be hours still. Would you please go back to my hotel, pack my stuff, and bring all of it plus my rollator back here?" So she did. And ended up sleeping in my old hotel room because easier to get back here rather than going home. Yes, gratitude pay is a thing, and I will be doing so.

This process also gave me a chance to sit down with the union attorney to try and figure out how to correct my exempt status (so I don't lose out on 4 weeks of my sabbatical, among other things; when I was promoted to a level presumed exempt no one ever made the switch, and yes, I qualify). He's working on it, and also seeing if he can right-size my salary (because Major NonProfit's isms were nearly on full display in their refusal to pay someone in my job title more). If nothing else, I might be able to push for Senior added to my already ridiculously long title. That's a whole 4 percent bump. Given that the only increases I will see over the next five years are COLA (because I am noticeably above the years of relevant experience at which the steps terminate - though less so than when Management proposed 18 years as the top!).

Now to try and shower, and get ready for the day. I am going to visit my time capsule at the office. Otherwise known as the cubicle space I haven't set foot in since just before the pandemic.

In my old age I have, apparently, turned into a high maintenance human! Flew my amazing aide from my Columbus trip out to my house (well, technically, to the airportand I sent a car to pick her up), where we packed. Took said car to the other airport - where I had hired a greeter and who arranged for a porter, and then there was the wheelchair pusher person... and bags were checked, and lounge achieved, and plane boarded. Do NOT like the new Polaris setup. Too hard to figure out the buttons and, without a pillow, lie flat is stupid.

Then it took a village to get me off the plane (managed to stand up on my own thank goodness, and the aisles so narrow I actually used the seats to navigate going and coming), and a greeter to meet us, get us and wheelchair person to baggage claim (in the Domestic terminal; we'd landed in international) and then off to rental car center we all went (technically against the rules for the greeter but she clearly didn't care).

Found a car (their ultimate choice section is Gold or President's Choice so I moved up in the world so to speak... but, if I were actually President's Choice I would not have been impressed with what they offered; my car was close to 35k, and that is normally unheard of at that level). Minivans are actually relatively easy to get in and out of, it turns out. And drove to hotel without adding Aide to the record because airport CarRental Company people were strong with the 'tude. Can add tomorrow if really necessary.

Hope for some errands tomorrow but we are expecting atmospheric river so not sure how that's gonna go. Medical appt Thursday while the rain keeps falling down. Then back to airport Friday (Polaris Lounge!), and to my old stomping grounds. In-person bargaining for the new union contract the 5th to the 7th, and home on the 8th. Aide goes home Sunday, and I have someone I don't know coming Sunday night, and helping the rest of the time. Oh, and I rented a powerchair. Really good thing, too, if how many times I paused in hotel corridor walking to the room is any indicator of my (non-existent) stamina.

But I met some nifty people today.

Now I pass out. My body thinks it's nearly 3am.

Met with a provider online this AM that is trained in a whole bunch of modalities I could use - but isn't doing in-home work right now, and currently doesn't have an office. So we were trying to figure out how they could be the best help to me (the person comes well-recommended, is a friend to a couple of my friends, and we've actually met before previously). Having spilled rather more about all my conditions than I usually do (and, hearing it, I am not surprised that all I mostly do these days is bed to office to bathroom to office... with mostly ordering in and rarely going to my kitchen) I realized "external brain" would be helpful. Someone to help me figure out who I should see, when, figure out what assistive stuff I could use, who to call, and so on.

Because, as I noted to this person, "Between the pain that causes executive functioning issues and the deficit I already have in executive functioning issues having someone to help track this all, figure out appointments, etc. would be really useful."

And then they told me to go to their website to schedule our next appointment, explained they're mostly working on weekends, they keep it updated if they want to take a vacation day, etc.

UM.

I was left wondering if they actually were listening at all.

(One of the reasons I love my dietician and my therapist is that part of their routine is to check in at the end and schedule our next appointment...as in my dietician goes to her website and schedules it and I get the reminder email...and my therapist just confirms our regular date or offers an alternative and I open my work calendar right then and get it on there)

Today was, overall, a decent day. Until...

( Discussion of terminal illness ahead )

Oh, and it's my Dad's yahrzeit on the 19th.

Good thoughts, prayers, positive energy, and support gratefully accepted.

Sweetheart is out of town so I've been hanging out with the cats. Sweetheart's upstairs neighbor, who is probably Sweetheart's closest friend in the building, comes down twice a day to feed the cats and do the caretaking of them. We often have great conversations during these quick visits but I wanted something more intentional so I invited her down for dinner last night.

Conversation was fun and rambling and where are you from originally and parents and librarianship and relationships and such when, somehow, I mentioned I'd gone (some years back) to my 25th high school reunion where I recognized each of the attendees except for one redhead (I should note my high school was SUPER small so this may not have been the magnificent feat it sounds like) - and I recognized her once she started speaking. That was NOT the hair color she'd had in high school. So Neighbor said, "Wow... Dad was at one of his reunions; he went to Science... and there was this woman, M, who knew everyone's name and birthday... like walked up to everyone and announced who they were and their birthdays..." and I was like, "Umm... how old is your Dad?" and she said "83." So I said, "Huh. Was that MD who did that?" and my friend was like, "Yes....?" and I said "MSD, who married Bob D. and is a genealogist?" and my friend said, "Yes... and Bob's best friend was [famous 20th century composer...]" and I said, "Yes! them... MD was my mother's best friend. I wonder if your father knew my mother."

Note that none of us live in the city where this high school was. Her Dad and stepmom now live in Michigan, and she and I are outside DC, and my mother lived in several other places post-high school, as well (though MD stayed in NYC).

And then we went on about MSD and Bob D. and that Neighbor made stacks of visits to their house while growing up (I'd been a couple times; they were one of the first family friends I had tea with when I moved to NYC in my 20s), and really knew them well.

So Neighbor called her Dad. And said, "Dad, do remember named someone named DL when you were in high school?" and he said, "Of COURSE I remember her", and Neighbor said, "I'm having dinner with her [kid] right now."

Long story short: next time her Dad and stepmom visit - or I manage to get to their city (which is the same city where Sweetheart's mother and stepfather live) - we are absolutely getting together to meet. And maybe I'll get to hear some stories about my mother.

Neighbor arrived this morning and, apparently, had further contact with Dad about all this (because I was all set to call MD to tell *her* last night about this amazing coincidence, except that the first link I found was her obituary; she died in November 2022. Last time I spoke with her was after my father died in 2020). Neighbor's dad knew that Bob D. had died in 2017, but hadn't heard about MD. And he, apparently, even knew my mother's married name. It's not clear if they'd stayed in touch or MD told him when they got married or how (maybe a wedding announcement) but the world got astoundingly smaller last night.

I've been back in touch with various of my former schoolmates (most of whom I haven't seen in over 40 years), and it's been great to get images of my childhood from them. It will be pretty terrific if I get to learn about my mother's adolescence, as well.

Well, in my quest for new lights, I forgot one important thing. To wit, check the diameter of the fixture one thinks is going in the hallway. Because OMG too big.

However, the Universe is kind. Because I required a new light in my entry, and I couldn't figure out what I wanted there. The existing fixture was this ugly little thing that didn't throw much light. It had to go. But the ceiling is super low and I couldn't figure out how to get better lighting in there that would also look good. Enter the light for which I totally ignored the description (because I liked how it looked; as it turns out it is exactly the same light as in the hallways of Sweetheart's building - albeit larger).

( Herewith I geek out over lighting. )

TL;dr: reasons for everything. And allowing for bubbling up organically may be a slow way to renovate but it results in better decision making.

And now onto my Saturday.

There is a new staging of 1776 that will be performed at the Kennedy Center this summer. It has been intentionally cast with gender and queer representation in mind. So I asked Sweetheart if there was any interest in going, and the answer was yes! So we are going to the last performance, and having brunch there beforehand. Sometimes living here is a nifty thing!

I awakened super early to bring Sweetheart to the airport. On the drive back home I got a serious craving for lox. But not just any lox. I wanted the real stuff. Belly lox. Not this "nova" stuff that everyone has. So I pulled over a few blocks from my house, popped open a grocery delivery app, and went hunting to see who had it. Ah, my favorite Wegmans people. Hooray! Ordered belly lox, gluten-free "bagels" (note to self: find a better outlet for real gluten-free bagels even if your colleague has to fly them to you from NYC... yes, you could go to Goldberg's but it's not clear you should trust that the bagels they call gluten-free really are), "cream" cheese, and a handful of other things.

Groceries arrived, I unpacked, sliced bagel and into toaster, cut open lox, etc.

Took first bite and sighed (even though it was missing the cucumber and onion I'd planned to add; I was too hungry to cut anything up).

"Ah, I love it when I have a craving and I can make it happen," I said to myself.

"Yes, it's called privilege," my self replied.

Major NonProfit commissioned a salary study, and part of it is determining each employee's "years of relevant experience (YRE)". We're supposed to each be discussing this with our supervisors, etc. but I happened to have a super-late night discussion with our acting head of HR about it.

Lo and behold the extended discussion I'd expected to have (while fighting for more years) isn't going to materialize. They've already calculated thirty years for me (pretty much every minute in my various careers - and, when I mentioned other work experience, she completely agreed. I'll be pulling up resumes and pondering what all else to add. It's going to be likely around 32 or so when all is said and done. My cooking experience likely doesn't count unless the job involved frying donors or some such... though I certainly interacted with relevant people in several of those positions. But it's certainly harder to justify and, quite frankly, if we get a couple more years in there it's pretty close to what I've actually worked in my adult life, especially when one considers at least two full years were taken up with college (which falls into educational experience not YRE).

Goodness but I'm old! especially in terms of the folks at Major NonProfit. The current salary chart minimums max out at 10+ years (though that was originally intended as only years at Major NonProfit). So the discussion with my supervisor is going to be interesting... because there's some talk of keeping my current position at my salary scale and bumping me up 1 level to a "new" job. Part of this is because they promoted my other teammate - who leapfrogged over me into a position I declined to apply for - and they are likely earning more money than I am at less than half my age. But they were truly qualified for the position (I didn't even realize how qualified until their interview) and I would not have been successful in the role. And part of this is that they really do have to rectify my salary to more accurately reflect what I do at the organization. But salary is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to pay - and I'm doing very well in terms of health care. I'll see what my supervisor is going to say, and take it from there.

And now I should likely get to sleep. This is the downside to working from home. I can stay up late, not get enough sleep, and still turn up punctually to my office.

Well, this has taken a while for me to write. Partly I was just so wound up and baffled that I couldn't write a response to the doctor. But another interesting thing happened. I went back to my dietician because, with this "new" thing I've pretty much confirmed I can't eat PLUS all the other protein-containing foods that I react to with differing symptoms, I wanted to make sure that I can still maintain nutritive value in what I eat. And nearly the first words out of her mouth were "did he biopsy for eonosiphils?" To which the answer was, of course, no. So having my sense of my diagnosis confirmed I finally sat down (just now) and replied to the doctor's message.

Just a reminder that I had asked about the impact of my non-celiac gluten sensitivity, as well as requested an explanation of length of time he thought I might be on the medication he prescribed, and noted that one part of my condition is incredibly rare [as in studies show only two percent of ALL upper endoscopy patients have this symptom].

( What he said... )

Because it's me, it's a bit long-winded...
( What I said... )

I just don't have patience for a doctor who wants to follow a standard procedure that ignores the fact that I present with nearly EVERY SYMPTOM of a particular diagnosis and didn't BOTHER to, apparently, even CONSIDER that diagnosis. Particularly as it's on the rise - and studies are showing that's not due to medical awareness of the issue. It's really on the rise.

As synecdochic asked, "Why are so MANY doctors such TRASH?!"

If Rev. Warnock wins in Georgia (please Universe!) then Joe Manchin loses a heck of a lot of his power.

I'm okay with that.

I still have to update the adventures of Schubert the Cat but I just wanted to note, for posterity's sake, that we had a 6 hour power outage on Tuesday at my place. Trying to figure out the food consquences of such a happening (and very glad that I ignored Sweetheart - who said "Oh, you can open the fridge once just to get out what you want to cook for dinner" - so that maximum cold stayed cold). Still have to deal with getting some frozen fruit off the tray it's on and freeze more.

But I wanted to note this for posterity because I've always been a person who doesn't turn on a lot of lights. So the dark was NBD. But the silence?? That was unnerving.

I just got off the phone with Sweetheart. She had her window open overnight and one of her cats (Schubert) pushed the (already not fitting correctly) screen out and is now missing. She lives on the first floor but it's not a level with the ground first floor so he had a noticeable jump to make (easy for a cat, I know). He's a large (about 15 pounds) gray cat - thankfully with a collar that has his name and Sweetheart's phone number on it. He is an incredibly friendly cat, likes to be held, etc. and so forth. Thank goodness.

He has, at her invitation and with her standing there, gone out on her balcony a lot but never out in the neighborhood on his own. He was a foster whom she adopted. I don't know how much of his history she knows - though I'm guessing it's quite a bit. Presumably she would have known if he'd been an outdoors cat before.

She walked her building's property calling for him but nothing. She left a carrier out with some food in it. She's now starting out on walking around the block. She's got a neighbor who has helped care for the cats (the other is Pebbles - she came with the name and it was simpler not to change it though Sweetheart has a nickname for her) and I think she's calling her next. And she's posted on her neighborhood Facebook page.

I am a wreck. I'm trying to decide if I should just take a personal day. I've already told her that I'll drive around if she wants me to (presumably I'd drive and she'd be in the passenger seat looking for him). He sprints away from dogs (there were noisy ones out in the hall once and he went FLYING the length of the apartment to go under the bed).

If anybody has energy to spare for his getting home safely I'd be grateful.

First, there are no Black women in the US Senate. Vice President Harris is no longer a senator (and she was only the second Black woman to be a US senator).

Second, for the first time in history - as has been noted lots of places - White men will not be in the majority of justices.

Third, also for the first time in history, there are three Black senators seated at the same time in the US Senate. Also, Black folks are over 12 percent of the population (according to the Census, which is data I am never sure I can trust, esp here where it feels like an undercount).

Fourth, none of this would have happened if the election in the state of Georgia had not gone as it did. Mitch McConnell had bragged about how he tied up nominations to any number of courts. There is no reason to believe that he would not have done that for this historic nomination, too.

Yes, this is a moment in history to celebrate - and I normally have a very positive outlook on life - but this all gives me so much pause about change ever coming to the United States.

Another night when I should have headed to bed hours ago. No idea why this keeps happening. And AndTenor is visiting for the weekend. I had plans for tomorrow. They may be tossed in favor of sleeping.

Ugh.

Why body? I gave you the decent meds. Okay, so they weren't the guaranteed to knock me out for five hours wake up go back to sleep fifteen minutes later and sleep until I actually well and truly awaken on my own meds (those were the night before but I couldn't awaken on my own schedule so I was left feeling groggy, wanting a nap for much of the day, and not terribly sharp work performance), but they were supposed to last more than an hour and a half!

So I tackled Wordle, Byrdle, and Nerdle. I read email and DW and such. Have not returned to the WWF games I was playing before bed; they take a certain kind of energy that I don't have at the present time... and thankfully I am starting to feel a certain lassitude drifting in as I write this so I have some hope of returning to sleep...

But, before that point, I want to briefly gush about Sweetheart. Because, earlier today (today in my head still being Tuesday), I got a text about, "Do you want to see Hannah Gadsby in person?", and said text was followed by "[local theatre]".
Why yes, yes I do. And called Sweetheart whilst simultaneously jumping on said theater's website to figure out show times and seat locations. I was stunned that the ticket prices were so reasonable (and wondering if that is typical for this part of the country versus that of from whence I moved), and - for once - thanked the disability that means wheelchair seating is not only wiser than the alternative, it's pretty much required for this situation. Because it means, if the seating chart is to be believed, that we may actually have a bit of space around us. That makes this first outing during the Pandemic a touch more manageable mentally. It does mean that I am contemplating renting a chair instead of using my trusty rollator because I have zero idea of the walking distances involved, not to mention the serious elevation in pain levels. Which comes with its own challenges (said rental, I mean) but perhaps they will be worth it. I are so of teh excite about this adventure.

And now it feels like perhaps my body will allow me to sleep more so I will end here, and leave other updating for future.

Well, I have finally learned to listen to that little voice in the back of my head. The one that didn't like any of the custom bookcase options I was considering. The one that wouldn't let me spend OMG money on a set of antique barrister bookcases (but SO beautiful!). Instead, it sent me to Craigslist - where someone in a nearby town was selling a tall maple bookcase similar to one I had when I was younger, with shelves on top and doors over two shelves on the bottom. Sent the queer movers to pick it up and bring it to my bedroom. Moved the bookcase that had been on the wall with the windows into the space right outside my study, where I was wrestling with the ostensible custom piece. It's too narrow for the space on its own but I had a tall narrow cabinet like a pie safe, and it didn't have a home. So I put it next to the bookshelf. Looks decent, albeit a touch wider than I had in mind. But I'm getting used to it and now the cookbooks are in the two bookcases nominally in the dining room, relatively near the kitchen. So that saved a not-insignificant amount of money. The kids' books are in one set of shelves in my bedroom. The other is empty. Still trying to figure out what's going there. And the tall maple cabinet will likely be for all the music books that are paperbacks (carols books, The Renaissance Singer, etc. and so forth). I think I'm going to have to folder and file the octavos, etc. In truth, I'm not really sure why I've kept so much sheet music. Even if I start singing again and I sing pieces I've sung before I always start from a new copy. After all, I might make different mistakes. Certainly there will be different markings from the conductor.

And then the two bookcases that ended up in the living room have my LGBTQ books and the TBR pile. There's something like 70 books in that pile but at least they look good neatly shelved.

The bookcases in my entrway don't match but, as they're no longer directly next to each other (I put the console table between them), it's not totally noticeable. And I actually left some empty shelves on them so I have room for growth in those sections.

Two bookcases ended up in my study. They have all the relgious and spiritual books. Given that all the hymnals, etc. ended up in the built-in that came with the place I think that's actually an organizational win.

I've started hanging up art. The large clock went into the foyer. Ditto my mirror, which is now over the console table, between the bookcases. Other things are scattered about. The Noah's Ark print (technically signed and numbered but damaged; I bought it in a broken frame and glassless at at sreet fair) is at the framer. It turns out that the colors go beautifully with the futon that is in the guest room so it will go up over that. I'm actually happy about the guest room. Enough room for a queen-sized bed AND the futon couch. Of oourse it did mean I smooshed the side of the bed I can climb into way too close to the windows but most of my friends who would stay in there are able-bodied so it shouldn't be an issue. My wind chimes are up indoors, just as they were in NJ. They're adjacent to the balcony so, if I want true wind chimes I can just open the balcony door. But I've lived near out-of-control wind chimes before. I will not subject a neighbor to those (and I would never have bought these but they were a gift from ny Criminal Justice mentor when I finally graduated from college... and they're tuned). The Santa Fe Opera poster is in the dining room where it belongs. Etc. and so forth.

All of this is to say things are progresing.

Unfortunately, these days I am mostly bored by work. We have plans to get me (finally) trained on queries and exports in Raiser's Edge so I'll be able to do true analysis. Not having the home office computer setup done makes it hard to write thank you notes, but I have a pile that need doing. And there are plans for several other projects, as well. Glowing review from my manager. Here's hoping it will result in the raise and bonus I requested. Unfortunately, despite assurances of transparency from Management, all we know is that there is a "pot of money" from which raises and bonuses will issue forth. We don't even have a sense of what percentages they might be giving in terms of raises... but it's been ages since we've had any performance review system in place. Apparently the one we did something like 4 years ago essentially vanished into smoke. So fingers crossed something good comes of this. They've announced raises are retroactive to September, when we got the COLA increases, ao that's something.

Trying to settle into a routine. Not easy.

And today had some challenging moments in health. Ended up ending my work day early and I might take the full day tomorrow too (was supposed to be out in the AM for PT already - except my physical therapist is out of town so Sweetheart is scheduled to come over and help with more unpacking). We're closed on Monday so it should be a good weekend.

Well, I think it's time to make some tea and curl up, relatively speaking, on the couch to watch mindless TV.

Onwards.

Yesterday a move actually happened. It took forever because the building has stupid rules they didn't tell me about regarding moving (must go from truck to elevator; can't unload into a hallway, e.g., which makes the whole move SO much slower, esp given the small elevator we were using). But all my stuff is there minus the stuff that is at Sweetheart's. It is, truth be told, a bit overwhelming. I'm trying to get used to the idea that it is my home. Saturday I have three guys coming to help move some of the furniture (because I'm not thrilled with where it is) and to do a stack of unpacking. And I have to figure out where the art is going. And the bookcases. And where I will still have to get bookcases. And at least one console table. And rugs. And where I am putting my childhood rug.

I really hope I can make this place feel like mine. The new paint color helped immensely - but I've been living in what is, essentially, temp housing for the entirety of the pandemic (Sweetheart's house, the hotel we had to stay in, the apartment we had to stay in, my apartment after she moved back home, and now here at her house because there's limited space to move at mine - not to mention no internet) and it is really odd to realize I am home.

And tomorrow is a snow day for Sweetheart. Entirely unexpected because DC doesn't like to close (especially right after winter break) for a stack of reasons but Sweetheart's school follows DC. They were originally planning on a delayed opening. But now DC has announced closing so they are closed. Sweetheart is ecstatic. I am still working from Sweetheart's house. I am less than ecstatic.

Step by step. Trying not to freak out.

So medical stufff:
No hernia seems to be present but everyone agrees something is there. So next stop is a dermatologist on January 3rd.

So moving stuff:
Contractor is going great guns and hopes to be done tomorrow?! BUT the building I am moving into called and said, "Hey, you know all the elevator issues we're having? We were wondering if you could move in a week after you'd planned to? We'll waive the move-in fee. Otherwise, we're happy to give you one of the two elevators that are (for now) up and running..."

This was going to be a semi-complicated move. Packing one day, and moving stuff out of both my storage unit and my apartment the next day. Two 3-man crews. Two trucks. Etc. So complicated I wasn't entirely sure how I was going to be there to let them into my apartment AND my storage unit at the same time! But it made SO much more sense to do it that way than to have one crew go to apartment, drop off at condo, then on to storage unit to load it and drop it off at the condo. That just leads to exhausted movers.

So I said yes. Still pulling everything out of the apartment on the 28th but sending it to the storage unit. Here's hoping there is enough room in there! Then, on the 5th, I'll move out of the storage unit and into the condo. Turns out there is a 5 day grace period for paying said storage unit so I won't incur another month's charges. It gives the contractor another week to finish if he wants it (he says no, right now, but ask him this afternoon; his guys really don't want to work tomorrow and it's unclear if the building will let them anyway... ditto NYE).

The condo itself looks pretty amazing. I ended up re-doing most of the bathroom (because the Universe spoke). I've never had a bathroom set up to my exact specifications before and it's gorgeous. And then the paint color for the house looks fabulous. Second time's a charm! I had them paint everything the color I had in my condo in NJ when I first moved in but the color may have changed over the years or the light was that different but OMG beige undertones that looked HORRIBLE. So I asked them to throw some samples up on the wall for me and I changed it everywhere except the kitchen and bathrooms (where there is less natural light; it really works in those places).

And it's the end of the year which, work-wise, means it's pretty busy. About to dive in for a half day and then off to PT. Fun times ahead!

Well, today is going swimmingly. I called my Third Party Heath Insurance Administrator to ask about home health care. Apparently I'm covered at 100%, which is great. So then they tell me that the company with which we have the insurance contract (the contract they administer) has a vendor who coordinates all the home health care, and they can connect me directly to them.

They do that. Call is answered by someone who needs to send me to the home health care department. That person says Oh I only do existing cases. You have to open a new case. So they transfer me to the new case people. Who want my insurance company ID number. The one we don't have because we use a Third Party Administrator.

So she can't find me in the system and then tries to call the Third Party Administrator but doesn't have the information the automated system requires. She tries hanging up on it but, instead, hangs up on me (not before she confirmed a call back number) and leaves ME connected with the automated system at my Third Party administrator! And I haven't gotten a call back yet from the person at the vendor providing place.

So now I'm calling back my third party administrator to say what's the magic number I have to give to the insurance company so they can find me in their system???

This is the ultimate in ridiculous.

Went to PT earlier today. Told my therapist about my symptoms of late. She said we'll do the appointment but you should go get tested after this. And so here I sit at Urgent Care waiting for the rapid results. Presumably if it's positive they will want a PCR to confirm.

My Pshrink, when we had an emergent phone call Monday, had urged me to get tested but I blew it off, insisting I have a cold.

And so I wait.

The Universe has a very strange sense of humour. More than 18 months of wearing a mask, washing hands, using hand sanitizer, etc. and yet, somehow, the Universe decided to give me a cold for my birthday.

I can't even.

Today I went to the tile store to meet with the rep who works with my contractor. He provided some options for my bathroom that I thought were uninteresting (I'd made it VERY clear to the contractor's project manager that this is not my change to make my bathroom into a "spa experience" or anything like that; I just want practical). I suggested a wood look and he found one that was great. It was also $2/square foot less expensive than the one he'd picked out (the contractor had also told him my budget was seriously limited).

And we're doing the niches that everyone has started doing instead of the sticking out shelving, soap dishes, etc. of the past. It's unclear just *where* those niches will end up but we priced for two of them. And, despite my wanting to avoid it looking dated (because let's face it EVERYONE is doing a stripe of glass tiles in showers these days and it's just looking old), I decided to put small square glass tiles into the niches. So the box walls, ceiling, and floor will be the wood-look and then the back wall of each niche will be the pale purple glass tiles. I did ponder the idea of just having a super-modern look and have the entire niche be the wood-look tile but the entire bathroom is playing "Variations on a theme in Beige Major" so I thought some blips of color will be nice. Obviously towels, shower curtain, etc. can change that but I wanted some of the fixtures to have some feature interest. And I am NOT one of those people who makes sure that everything perfectly matches... had a cousin once say, "What colors are your bathroom? I have some towels that aren't working with my new colors; can you use these?" and I tried very hard not to laugh. Yes, it looks more "put together" and, if I find something that makes me happy to have it all match I'll do it. But I'm not tied to it.

Had to pick a trim I wasn't thrilled with but it's the least offensive to my eyes.

Also found a possible floor tile for the foyer. It wasn't part of the original quote to do the floor in the foyer (tiles are breaking but not in obvious ways so why spend the money now?) but it's a nifty very different wood look tile that I think might go well with the parquet hardwood. Forgot to take the tile home with me so I'll have to go back and pick one up. Have to lay it next to the parquet to make sure it will work. It has a lot of "movement" as one hears on home design programs. I liked it.

Onwards.