5761 arrives and I'm still blogging daily

I didn’t actually expect to keep my string of blog entries alive today. And, if you count entries with actual thoughtful content, I probably didn’t.

After Rosh Hashanah services (we’re getting awfully close to filling the church we borrow because our own sanctuary is far too small — I don’t know what we’re going to do in a few years), we spent some time with friends from our Havurah, and that pretty much took care of the rest of the day. But it’s not midnight yet, so I can keep my string going if I hurry.

More tomorrow, probably.

Not just deconditioned, decaffinated!

The High Holidays are coming up soon. In preparation for Yom Kippur, I find it helpful to give up caffeine a few days beforehand, so that I don’t have caffeine withdrawal symptoms in addition to fasting. Yesterday, I was down to a small amount of regular coffee, and today, I think I’m completely decaffinated. At least I hope that’s why I feel the way I do.

It’s hard to stay caffeine-free for very long, though — especially when eating out. So I’m sure I’ll be going through the same thing this time next year.

Perspective

After posting the above, I looked at Al‘s page for today and read this:

Folks, if you have any good karma to spare and to share… Kaycee could use it right about now.

That’s an understatement if I ever read one.

Still deconditioned, but working on it

I’m just back from another attempt at jogging 3.5 miles. Let’s just say that I really didn’t mind being delayed by red lights! But my time was down by a few seconds from Monday, so there’s some hope.

A friendly voice at my HMO

We got a slightly odd “Explanation of Benefits” from our HMO a few days ago, declaring that the provider of a routine test was “out of network” and that the cost would, therefore, be applied to our deductible instead of having the test paid for. When I called the lab, they said that they handled this particular test for Unilab, who I know all too well is covered by the HMO, and so this should be covered, too.

So I tried last night at 4:30pm Pacific and got a recording telling me that they close at 7pm Eastern. This afternoon, I was working at home and had the paperwork in hand, so I called again, and, after fighting my way through the VRU menus, eventually found myself speaking with Christine.

I explained the situation, and she said she’d submit the bill for reevaluation as “in network”, which would mean that the HMO would pay the whole bill. Since she was so helpful, I decided to ask her how I could submit the bills from my adventure in Montréal. She went away for a while, then said that emergency treatment out of the country was usually considered “in network” and would probably be reimbursed, and that, rather than try to fit my situation into the forms, I should just fax her the bills with a cover letter. So I am.

And with any luck, I’ll get a check (or should that be “cheque”?) in a month or so.

Lament of the deconditioned

Yesterday, I realized I needed to exercise more (birthdays will do that to you), and since I was home and the weather was pleasant, I thought I’d go jogging outside. I’ve been fairly faithful about going to the Y several times a week and using the treadmill or other CV equipment there, but going out into the Real World is more pleasant.

It’s also very different. Even though a treadmill does provide a workout, it’s a very different feeling than really running. And I quickly discovered that I’d been taking it too easy at the Y — I used my usual 3.5 mile course but couldn’t avoid having to slow to a walk from time to time; when I was jogging on a regular basis, I didn’t feel the need to slow down nearly as much.

If I can get through the initial phase of discouragement, I’m sure I’ll get back into the groove — so today’s posting is a reminder to myself where it’s hard to misplace.