Monday started dark and rainy, with the time change starting to impact my sleep and my ability to get started. I work at 4AM, 5AM, and 6AM, finally getting going with the sun (or less dark, as there is little sign of the sun in winter in the Pacific Northwest). I was dragging and started trying to get organized on a work-from-home Monday. I soon discovered my work reimbursement account denied some payments and wanted a refund of a pile of money. I was collecting a list of transactions for my taxes and found the issue had been waiting for some time. I did this transaction while covering $12,000-$16,000 medical bills for Susie a month, and thousands for me for chemotherapy and surgery, and taking chemotherapy–not a surprise that something was wrong–it was a crazy time.
Online, I have agreed to repay it and had the money pulled from my checking, but I have requested a new copy of the medical records so I can resubmit it later. This was my ambulance ride after my chemotherapy infusion reaction in the parking lot in March 2022, and there is some irony that this, being the only emergency for myself, was denied. I will resubmit when I have better records–all requested today.
I also noticed my checks are running out, and my order was lost (a nice person at US Bank sent me a replacement) No fraud, so I suspect I may have tossed them as junk mail, or they just got lost (looking like junk mail). Finally, one of my prescriptions was rejected, and I had quite a chat by messaging doc about that–I went to pick it up after visiting Susie, and it was not filled. Growl. I need to check with the pharmacy while they reject the prescription–crazy. So I will go with Manic Monday for today.
Additionally, I have linked my accounts in 401K, but it still does not recognize the bank. There is a note that it takes ten days to acknowledge a new bank account. So that is nearly December! Back to Manic!
I did manage to do some work and follow along at the shoe company, but I seemed to be getting sidetracked all day.
The wind is back, as it is winter now, and the rains are going sideways, but at least the river of rain has stopped, and we just have the Oregon mist. I took Air Volvo to see Susie today, and there was no slipping as the all-wheel drive hunts for a wheel that is not underwater. Last week the tires spun a bit when I pressed the gas from all the water. However, air Volvo’s good tires and excellent suspension makes it stick to the road like glue, even on a wet road. I managed to not meet any police people or cause any photo ops while driving–that I am aware of.
When I reached the hummingbird house, Susie was in her recliner chair and looking comfortable. She was feeling better, and her glasses were clean and were not slipping down her nose–better. Yesterday, we had to cut church short as Susie was uncomfortable and needed to rest (and other things). Today, Susie was fine, and we chatted with Leta, Susan’s mother, who was a Panera in Lansing, Michigan finishing her lunch. Susie and Leta talked on my iPhone using FaceTime. But soon, I needed to return to work (at home) and kissed Susie goodbye. She was sad to have me leave so soon–but said she would be fine. It is always hard to leave.
I stopped by the Rite Aid as I said to not get my prescription. The store floor is all marked up, and the shelves are messy. It is just homely and rundown. It was also overwhelmed when our Rite Aid was closed, and this store received all the work from our local store. Prescriptions can take a week, and lines are long some days.
I stopped by the Stir Crazy Kitchen near the Volvo Cave and got some Chinese/American food: Almond Chicken and Wonton Soup. I had to wait ten minutes for a to-go order. While waiting, I saw a few pickups from various drivers. Apparently, Grubhub and like services are still taking orders from folks working from home.
I returned to the chaos that was my Monday and tried to get some work and progress. I took a break, ate my lunch, and watched YouTube videos once it cooled a bit. I enjoy Drachinifel‘s channel on warship history–highly recommended but be warned, he goes into extreme detail. I also like Backpacking Brunette‘s channel on living in Mexico as she covers interesting ideas about living in Mexico and how to make it work–just a daydream for me. Her work is well done, and she covers how to make a living as a writer and Internet blogger while living in Mexico–just daydreaming. Ocean LIner Designer is also recommended for those who cannot get enough information on RMS Titanic and other famous Ocean Liners. And more daydreaming can always be found at Gentleman’s Gazette, which covers vintage men’s wear (and even some current stuff). These channels always make me smile, and I learn so much. Most correct errors you will find online, and in Wikipedia–very interesting to me that Wikipedia and other sources are just wrong–these are the true experts. Highly recommended.
After that, I continued to work and just continued with constant interruptions. I made the mistake of getting the mail, and next, I was on the phone; yes, you can guess more medical bills from the past coming to haunt me. After a quick call to North Carolina, I finally got copies of the invoices via email that I had requested for months and paid the bills after having to create an online account to pay the bills. No more checks for these (which is good as the ordered new checks, as I covered above, are missing).
Finally, the day comes to an end, and I rest for a bit; Mariah, now with a new, less cool but likely safer car in the rain (now she has a Honda Civic in cool blue with darkened windows–like the kind that gets rebuilt in particular car movie for racing), texts and we meet at the Golden Valley Brewery in Beaverton. We have the special: short ribs with mashed and veggies. I have a calming glass of wine–excellent local stuff. Mariah matches me. I do finish with coffee. Destressing happens.
We head out, Mariah to her new digs in Portland and me back to the Volvo Cave. There I finally write today’s blog (this) and start laundry.
I will spend some more time tonight downloading bank statements from the past to get a better picture of the year’s first four months. Tough months with me in cancer treatments. I must find copies of the bills for some of the medical stuff.
I was informed by Grammarly that I am on my 200th week of writing. Thanks for reading!
Alohawild (Michael Wild's) Website 