A 93,000 Winter!

A snowy morning, a bit warmer, about 24 degrees, with a  couple of inches expected today.  The lake is a white blur of snow, as I cannot see more than a 100 yards, as the other side is lost in this whiteness.  I was up at 5:15. probably because I took a long nap yesterday when Evie worked out, a mistake.  I hope we can cross country ski some  today, as it's a bit warmer and the snow should be good.  Tonight, we are planning on going to the Jamestown High basketball game, something we have wanted to do all winter, and we'll go to Taco Hut, our favorite Mexican restaurant in downtown Jamestown, just around the corner from the school.

We finally watched THE BLIND SIDE last night, something we were reluctant to do for some reason.  Well either we are the ultimate cynics or this was a movie filled with sentimentalism and cliches, but we made fun of it much of the time, predicting what was coming next, and mostly making fun of Sandra Bullocks academy award winning performance.  It's hard to believe she got any award for her performance.  The story is uplifting, I admit, and I really respect the family that took this poor black kid in and gave him a chance, and the dedication of the teachers was admirable.  It's just that, as a film, it was predictable and silly, especially in the interactions between Bullock and the football coach.  We thought we would be in tears at the end, but the silliness and cliches detracted from the humane elements of the film.  Enough....give me Winter's Bone any day.

O, yea, the 93,000.  I got my bill for my 'procedure' yesterday.  $93,000 total, all paid for by my Medicare. Amazing!  And no wonder Medicare is going bankrupt!  And I can see why the hospitals advertise, solicit patients...they need the money to keep things functioning.  I am lucky, I suppose, to have had this taken care of, but somehow, we as a nation are going to have to solve the problem of taking care of the elderly without bankrupting the nation.  I have to admit that when you don't have to pay anything for health care, you may take advantage of it.  Why not, as long as you don't have to pay, go for it.  If I had to pay thousands out of my own pocket for this procedure, I would have thought much harder about my decision.  And, I have to admit, I was a bit uncomfortable about the doctor coming to Hudson, to talk to  patients about this procedure, rather than patients seeking him out.  It was like he was out recruiting for this procedure; my skeptical side, no doubt, is kicking in.