Medicare is here--and it's a small world after all

Here it is, my "Welcome to Medicare" letter from UPMC Health Plan and Medicare Advantage card.  Two weeks ago I spoke with Virginia, an independent Medicare agent and it couldn't have gone better.  

Virginia said I could come to her office, she could come to my home, or we could have a Google Chat (like Facetime) on our tablets.   

I elected to do the online meetup, though I still ran in the bathroom and shaved and combed my hair before we got things started. 👨

She asked me how old I was, I said I was turning 65 in 3 months.  She told me the first thing I had to do was go to Medicare.gov and enroll.  She could walk me thru it, but we wouldn't be able to continue until I got my card in the mail.

I said I applied for Social Security in January, which automatically enrolled me in Medicare and I already got my card a couple weeks ago; did she need the number?  She said "I have a feeling you're going to be my easiest client today."

I told her I had several Medicare Advantage plans already selected from 3 different insurance carriers:  Aetna, Highmark, UPMC.  She asked if I had any recent medical history and I said boy, do I.  Two operations in June, one on my liver's bile ducts and then a gallbladder removal.

She asked if I knew how much my out of pocket costs were, after insurance.  I told her $880.00 (including ambulance).  We determined that Medicare thru UPMC was closest to my current insurance plan--and my familiarity with UPMC hospitals made them the preferred choice, so I wound up going with UPMC for Life HMO Premier Rx.

After we did the electronic signatures and everything, Virginia asked about my ice pack (I was occasionally holding against the side of my face) and asked if I was suffering with a migraine or allergies.  I told her I had long covid, a chronic inflammatory condition.  She said "I'm so sorry!  My sister-in-law has long covid!"

That's when the conversation got interesting.  Her sister-in-law got LC in 2022 and was forced to take a leave of absence from her job as a school teacher.  After 2 years, she was hardly any better but was close to 60 so she retired early instead.  

Like myself, Virginia's sister-in-law gets hopeful days here and there, but the relapses just keep coming.  She doesn't see an end in sight.  I told Virginia it does feel hopeless at times but you have to believe it will end sooner or later.

One thing I appreciated, Virginia complained her glasses were bothering her nose and she had to get a new pair soon.  I said I did too, mine fit fine but were 8 years old.  After we hung up, she called me right back and told me to hold off on those glasses a little bit longer, I'd be getting a Flex Spend card soon I can use towards them.  Works for me.

Well, I almost didn't blog about this (it's boring, I know) I'm glad I did---when I was inspecting the Medicare card to see what to gray-out before sharing, I noticed it said "NO PCP SELECTED" on my card and I did give them my new PCP, Dr. Cole.  I just called and reported this, they said "Someone messed up, you'll get a new card in 10 days."   Not exactly a great start, UPMC!

Here's Dr. Cole's photo.  He's a handsome devil, but very smart and very kind.  I like him a lot.

Gallbladder Chili, hope for nicotine & a couple other things

I know they've been around awhile, but aren't freezers remarkable things?  Back on Sunday, June 7 I made a small pot of chili for dinner.  But while it was bubbling away, I was fast losing my appetite and didn't know why.

I wound up letting the chili cool, pouring it into a container and putting it in the freezer.  3 hours later, I was in an ambulance, headed to the hospital for a blocked bile duct and emergency gallbladder surgery.

It's been hidden in the back of my freezer ever since, along with a frozen Italian roll.  I'd forgotten about them until last night when I was trying to make some room in there.  And seeing as how it's Thursday, and Soup Day in the Teepee... I wonder how it will taste.

Okay, it's delicious.  I just keep thinking, when I made this chili I had a gallbladder.  Ah well!

Yesterday my sister texted me and said she'd recently learned that GLP-1 drugs have been helping people with long covid.  I contacted my doctor's office and left a message, a couple hours later they returned my call and said Dr. Cole would discuss it with me early Thursday morning.  

Last week I had 2 relatively good days, Tues & Wed.  I was able to attend that Senior outing for lunch at the Old Sewickley Hotel.  But since then, the symptoms returned with a lot of inflammation in my temples and around my eyes, and pain in the jaw & mouth.

Dr. Cole is a young doctor, but honest and knowledgeable.  He told me he would not prescribe a GLP-1 for me for long covid symptoms.  He asked me if I'd gained a lot of weight since my last visit (last Sept) and I said I'd lost almost 20 lbs. since last summer.  He said "You probably have a high BMI but not enough to qualify.  Douglas, you have a history of issues with your pancreas, kidneys & liver.  Those GLP drugs put you at a higher risk for further complications."  

I told him about NHS studies of low-grade nicotine patches helping some with their long covid symptoms and he said "Can't you try upping your dosage of acetaminophen?  Those patches are for smokers and can adversely affect people with hypertension.  If you want to try them it's up to you, but you'll need to monitor your blood pressure."  Will do.

After I got off the phone with him, I put my first patch on my left underarm.  Here goes nothing.

It just occurred to me, today is my dad's birthday.  He died nearly 27 years ago and would've turned 90 today.  It's hard to believe he's been gone so long.

Finally, have you seen the movie "Obsession" that was released earlier this year?  Made on a shoestring budget of $725,000 it earned over $400 million at the box office.  I said awhile back I was done with horror movies, but saw the film was playing on Peacock this past weekend and curiosity got the best of me.

The movie is about a young man who has a secret crush on his friend & co-worker Nikki.  One day he buys a "One Wish Willow" stick at a novelty shop and wishes Nikki loved him more than anyone else in the world.  So what happens when his wish is granted?  It both is and isn't what you'd expect, but I found it brilliant as it was horrific.  

The next day, my niece Sophia texted me and said she'd heard I seen it, and would I recommend it.  Her boyfriend Luke wanted her to see it.  I warned her it was very good but wasn't pretty.  She told me later she did like it, but covered her eyes a couple times.

Speaking of pretty, here she is with her young man Luke.  All I can say is... my goodness.

Doug I don't believe it... well friend, you better believe it

Do you know what this is?  It's my last incandescent light bulb, a 60 watt GE Reveal.  Way back in the summer of 2011, the news reported the US was going to stop manufacturing these types of light bulbs effective January 2012.  The next day at work, a couple people were talking about it and my friend Candace said "You better stock up, they'll be gone sooner than you think."

And then one night I got off the bus after work and saw a sign in CVS window, a 'Final Sale' on GE light bulbs.  For years I'd been buying the Reveal bulbs, they were the perfect tone of white/not too bright.  I went in, grabbed a cart and put around 30 4-pk boxes of light bulbs in it.  Every 60 watt Reveal they had in stock.

I almost did a blog about this 15 years ago, but when I saw the top of my linen closet filled with light bulbs, I thought it looked a little crazy.  Still, as everyone flocked to the newer bulbs I rubbed my hands together and went "Heh heh!"  and continued using my old school energy-inefficient bulbs.

Around 4 years ago, I stopped using them in my bedroom to make my inventory last longer for my living room.  And now, I'm down to my final bulb.  So until this one burns out, I will get to hold onto that old timey incandescent glow just a little while longer.

Speaking of the bedroom (and my lamp in there), do you see the denim floor pillow on the right?  I bought that pillow way back around 1990-91, when I lived in my first apartment in the city.  My sister Shawn often drove up for the weekend, and we'd go to Waterworks Mall, do some shopping, see a movie, sometimes have dinner there too.  

There was a Pier 1 Imports we always visited and where I got that pillow--they had some cool stuff.

I don't use the pillow regularly--only when I get a backache.  I'll take a book and sit on the floor and prop myself up against Old Blue.  It's very dense but squishy soft.

Over the years I've wiped it down with a damp washcloth, what else can I do?  It's not like I can throw it in a washer.  And then 2 days ago I was wiping it off and my washcloth snagged on something--a pull tab for a zipper.  I've owned this pillow 35 years and didn't know I could remove the cover.

It was difficult, but I managed to unzip and remove the denim cover and soaked it in some Tide and cold water.  The water turned yellow in a couple minutes.  The pillow insert inside was surprisingly white and the manufacturer tag read Pier1 Imports 1990, 100% goose down.  

Anyway, I guess Ol' Blue is good another 35 years!

I saved the best for last.  This one's a biggie.  Back in 2012, DC Comics announced Paul Levitz had written a GINORMOUS BOOK COVERING THE DIFFERENT AGES OF DC COMICS.

For you non-comic experts out there, older comic books are broken down into 3 ages:

The Golden Age, from 1935-1956

The Silver Age, from 1956-1969

The Bronze Age, from 1970-1984

I began reading DC comics in the late sixties, and stopped collecting them in 1984.  I still read reprints on occasion, no interest in the current stuff.

Anyway, I wanted this book--at the same time, I didn't want it.  Where the heck would I put it?  Fortunately, DC came to their senses and re-issued the book in a smaller format, broken up by the ages.  But they were still LARGE volumes and weigh 10 pounds each.

So look what I bought 15 years ago... love those foil covers.

I paid $59.95 each for them back in 2011-2012, and they've been in my closet all these years.  They've also become collector's items, the Silver Age book with the Flash on it?  It retails for $455.00 now. 

Believe it or not, mine are in mint condition.  They're still in their plastic shrink wrap.  (That wasn't my intention, I just never got around to opening them.)

And finally, here was a nice little surprise.  When I was removing these from their paper sacks for this blog post, I was surprised to see each book had an alternate cover on the reverse.  Nice.  😎