SoapboxThe Sunshine State

Bad taste and butchery

I get a little uncomfortable when people start talking about “trimming” trees. My reasons break down like this: any jackass with insurance and a chainsaw can get a licence to trim trees in Florida, and Floridians in general don’t seem to like trees. That’s what I gather from the results anyway. I’m not against all forms or reasons for tree trimming. There are times…
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Soapbox

Why do I hate thee, DST? How about I tell you

What was good for 1918 isn’t necessarily so great 90 years later. Contrary to common wisdom, some studies show it causes an increase in energy consumption (especially for us poor folk down south) – partly because of a little thing called air conditioning. How often does common wisdom lead us astray? Shifting high noon to lower noon is just asking for trouble. We have nothing to fear…
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Soapbox

Six months of billing futility, revisited

Something about that call isn’t sitting right with me. I finally got through to my insurance company, only to be told the problem: “we’re getting bills.” Now, as some poor shmuck with little more than a family and a mailbox, this sounds like something perfectly resonable to say… if it was born of my lips. As my insurance company – whose sole purpose in the…
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Soapbox

It's the little surprises that make all the difference

“Ah… Mr Kauffman? Your insurance company hasn’t paid us since your August visit. You might want to call them.” That was the office staff at one of my many doctors’ offices. We’re pretty tight, seeing as how I’ve been there a lot since August. I might want to call them? Does this imply I might not want to call them… that I might just want to pay the…
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Soapbox

With these rings

I’m almost sure I’m revisiting this topic, but it’s a worthy subject. What? You don’t believe me? The other day Cheryl was talking to someone about her grandmother’s wedding ring. Cheryl wears it on the “other hand,” in addition to her own, which she wears on her “right hand,” which of course is her left. I had a little too much fun writing…
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Soapbox

Being the other end

They have my number, so they call me. Nothing about my job is life or death, but it’s not insignificant either. Parents, children, and court orders fill my day. The parents call me because they don’t know who else to call and I usually have an answer. They don’t always like the answer and I’m not naive enough to believe they always accept it (or act on it), but some do…
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Soapbox

Back on the healthcare rant

I love it when folks say: “I want my doctor making treatment decisions, not the government,” as if an insurance company never set treatment terms. I loved it even more when our insurance company said they wouldn’t cover treatment for Beth’s Aspergers. Why? “Because Florida Law only requires us to cover treatment for Aspergers if it’s diagnosed before a child…
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Family and FriendsSoapbox

Stray comment

I was having a good day. Everything was fine until I heard one stray comment. Do you have days like this? Can one or two sentences ruin it for you? I wish I could say I have the self assurance to shrug off what other people think and say, but it’s not me. Not at all. It sticks with me. It burrows and churns through my mind, infecting everything that follows. “I don’t get it.
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Soapbox

Living hungry in the land of plenty

I work with people of meager means, but you don’t have to work with the poor to know this is a particularly harsh time. Maybe you already know recessions are doubly hard on the poor. Maybe you already know social services are cut back at the moment when they’re needed most. Maybe you even saw a column in the NYT the other day which describes the problem better than I ever could. Maybe…
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PoliticsSoapbox

McCain and Spain

So take your pick. Either McCain isn’t as smart on foreign policy as he’d like you to think, he really is getting old, or he makes rash, dare I say reckless, decisions. Either way you slice it, he’s dangerous. Maybe you’re thinking, “hey, it’s no biggie… who care’s if we piss off Spain.” Maybe you think our reputation in the world is just fine…
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