what did you do today? (2008-2015) (closed)

[pb4uski]

We saw the new Bond movie Wednesday night. I thought it was one of the better Bond flicks (but I actually like them all).

 

[Nords]

Back at the end of August, Dad ended up in the hospital for a week of physical exams and a change of medications. That all turned out fine (so far so good) but now the hailstorm of medical bills is raining down. Emergency room screenings, CAT scans, transportation... I'm surprised that I didn't get one for the food or the toilet flushing.

The challenge is that the care providers snail-mail(!) half of the bills to Dad's care facility and the other half to my brother's address. Every piece of the care picture has been farmed out to a separate contractor, none of whom paid any attention to the Medicare supplemental insurance information that my brother provided. Most of these guys don't even have a toll-free customer service phone number, let alone a website.

When I was on the Mainland in September, my brother and I went through a pile of Dad's family photo albums. I bought a cheap scanner to use in my hotel room with my laptop and then I gave the scanner to my brother to use in his business or to resell on Craigslist. The unanticipated benefit of this is that he found it very easy to scan in the bills to e-mail to me, so I didn't have to wait for weeks until he got around to sending them by snail mail.

I had the same thing happen . I then had a stress test & passed .

I think an abnormal EKG is a stress test all by itself. Having to wait for the followup is an even harder endurance test.

 

[Walt34]

We had a long day yesterday. FIL is now out of the hospital and in a rehab center but does not look well at all. When admitted to the hospital he had a blood sugar level of 856. It's surprising he was conscious. I suspect this did a lot of damage. He cannot now even stand up on his own. I'm not sure how lucid he is, he doesn't talk much.

This is the guy who last week could climb a flight of stairs - albeit slowly - several times a day.

Work continues on the house to prep it for sale. New roofing shingle bundles are on the roof and I guess they'll put the new roof on next week. The weather forecast is good for that.

DW's brother had FIL's car inspected for a Maryland inspection (required of a used car for registration to a new owner) and as I suspected it is essentially scrap - it would need almost $2k of work and the car isn't worth that much. So that will probably be donated to either a junkyard or a tech school if they want it.

The whole thing feels like settling his estate. DW is, to put it mildly, depressed. I suppose the next thing is to move his stuff back out of the independent living apartment. I don't know where to - the house is going up for sale when the roof/kitchen are done and it is pretty clear to me that he's not going back to an independent living apartment.

I can't imagine how Nords did/does this from the distance he does.

 

[Nords]

DW is, to put it mildly, depressed.
I can't imagine how Nords did/does this from the distance he does.

My brother lives 20 minutes away from our Dad, but my brother and I each feel as if we have the easier job.

When an emergency like this disrupts the plan and the "routine", you end up putting your entire life on hold.

You and your family might have taken this as far as you can do it on your own. A geriatric care manager can be a big help in working with the rehab facility's discharge coordinator to recommend whether you still want to try "independent" living (with a team of visiting CNAs and nurses) or whether you want to look for a full care facility.

The GCMs have a pretty good handle on which nursing agencies and care facilities have the better reputations and which are struggling. Hiring a few hours of their experience, education, and reassurance is ridiculously cheap compared to DIY.

 

[ERD50]

After 14 years of wear and tear, I started the project of repainting the interior woodwork. I'd like to shoot whoever came up with the idea of crown molding...

I seem to be better at woodworking than painting, so in many rooms, I ended up painting, and leaving the edge between ceiling and wall 'rough', and then putting up crown molding (finished/painted before it goes up), which hides the line.

The hardest and most frustrating part for me, and near impossible to do to my standards is 'cutting in' that line. I'd rather do the molding.

Of course, next time around, it will be a bear - but I'll probably hire someone. Though, the molding can maybe give you a better line to tape if you go that route?

-ERD50

 

[Moemg]

The whole thing feels like settling his estate. DW is, to put it mildly, depressed. I suppose the next thing is to move his stuff back out of the independent living apartment. I don't know where to - the house is going up for sale when the roof/kitchen are done and it is pretty clear to me that he's not going back to an independent living apartment.

I can't imagine how Nords did/does this from the distance he does.

You may be surprised . My Mom who is 96 fell and broke her right shoulder & had a subdural hematoma in September . She has been in rehab & then a nursing home with physical therapy . It looks like she will be returning to her independent unit before Christmas . Of course with the elderly it is like Shoots & Ladders. One step forward & two back !

 

[NW-Bound]

I spent a couple of hours downloading a tax program for 2012, then playing a bit with the numbers to see how much equity I can sell to take advantage of the low taxes on cap gains that may go away. As I stopped my part-time work earlier this year, this is the first time my income drops to the level where I can realize some cap gains without paying any taxes. Nice!

I did not know about this tax break until I saw someone mentioned it on this forum. So, I told my wife that my time spent BS'ing and hanging around here really paid off. Thanks, y'all.

I will "Sell, sell, sell" between now and the year end. Need to keep an eye out for wash-sale rule though. Darn, that makes market timing ever more difficult to buy back. This is the first time ever that I look to sell gains instead of losses. It feels weird!

But as I messed around entering "guesstimates" into the tax program, I got a bit hot under the collar. Our tax rules are way too complicated. Why didn't we fire all the congressional critters and start over?

Oh, it's because the new guys may take away some of the "good deductions" that we have been counting on. Sigh...

 

[BrianB]

My understanding is that wash-sale doesn't apply if you have a profit, so you can buy back the next day if you want. What would the IRS do - call it income twice?

 

[NW-Bound]

Damn! You can see that I was still locked into the "tax loss selling" mentality...

Heh heh heh... Sell sell sell... Buy buy buy... It's a day trader's delight!

I've got to make sure I do not go overboard on this.

 

[braumeister]

Thanks y'all for the positive remarks about rotten EKGs.

I read one (only one) article about abnormal EKGs. It stated a large variety of reasons for why this could happen.

It really is amazing. When I was on active duty (USAF) I went for a routine physical and the doc got really intense about my abnormal EKG. Set me up for the first available appointment with the nearest military cardiologist.

I was freaking out, and the appointment was three weeks away. Totally rotten time for me.

When I finally got to see the cardiologist, she simply looked at the EKG and said "You're probably a runner, right? We see this a lot in healthy athletic types. Nothing to worry about. Have a nice day."

Much later, after retirement, I have had the same experience with civilian doctors who take EKGs. It's always the same anomaly, and I always have to explain to them that it's "normal for me."

 

[bbbamI]

Good to hear you're doing well braumeister. Even tho DH is not a runner, I can see what would be abnormal for some may not be for others.

I assumed our PCP listened to DH's heart after the EKG. I confirmed that with him tonight. DH said our doc noticed a 'pulse' that was coming in at the wrong time.

So, he'll have it checked out. If there is a problem, I'm hoping it can be remedied easily.

 

[Walt34]

You and your family might have taken this as far as you can do it on your own. A geriatric care manager can be a big help in working with the rehab facility's discharge coordinator to recommend whether you still want to try "independent" living (with a team of visiting CNAs and nurses) or whether you want to look for a full care facility.

This may be the time to look into a GCM, as you're right in that normal life has come to a screeching halt. Our thought is that once the house is sold much of the detail work will go with it. DW does have POA so that is helping a lot to make things smoother.

Looking at him yesterday I don't envision him ever going back to independent living but I've been wrong before so maybe he will.

 

[Nords]

Our thought is that once the house is sold much of the detail work will go with it. DW does have POA so that is helping a lot to make things smoother.

True. The first week my father was in the hospital, I spent about three days (20+ hours) sorting through files and newspapers and other "collectibles". A couple months later my brother and his GF put in about two-three weeks to empty the 2BR apartment and turn the keys back over to the landlord. They do this for a living but I was still glad to escape that part.

We got lucky on the SUV-- a '99 Ford Explorer in decent shape. Last year Dad sold it to my brother for a buck and these days Dad feels right at home being driven around in it. When I was visiting a couple months ago we spent $750 on five new tires... some of the old ones had made it for nearly a decade.

Your spouse probably has a better handle on the finances than I did, but at the beginning I was averaging 1-2 hours/day on paperwork and e-mails and phone calls. Today it's down to about 1-2 hours/week, although some projects (conservator's report, tax returns) can suck up 10-20 hours. (Friday was "Medicare supplemental insurance claims filing" day.) I spend most of my effort streamlining routine tasks.

As the word gets around on your FIL's condition, financial institutions may begin to balk on the POA. Notaries will be difficult to work with, too. Hopefully your spouse has an updated list of website account logins, passwords, and security questions. The more you can do online (and the less you have to do in person) the better. Lately I only tell the financial institutions what they absolutely need to know, and contrition is a lot easier than permission.

I don't know the best way to track down a GCM, but friends & neighbors can help find referrals. The hospital's discharge coordinator and the independent living facility may be willing to recommend some names. You end up shopping around for someone you'll bond with, because you're going to be swapping a lot of late-night and weekend phone calls with them for fast response and quick decisions. The price becomes secondary to peace of mind.

 

[NookWine-n-Tinker]

Rode the scoot up to the Intl Motorcycle Show in San Mateo yesterday. The day started as drizzly and nasty and I had to ride thru some rain to get up there, but by early afternoon the skies had cleared and the sun came out. Toured the displays and drooled over some of the bikes. The show seems to get a little smaller each year, but it is still fun. BMW had their new scoots, which looked really cool, but retail for about 10.5k!

They had some killer show bikes sponsored by JPCycles and I especially liked the ProStreet models.




Ran

 

[NookWine-n-Tinker]

iPad acted up before I could finish!

Once the weather cleared, they were doing the test rides and I rode 5 of the HD models. I liked the Switchback and the CVO Roadking, but was not crazy about the Trike. Definitely would take some getting used to that bike.

The star was the Ultra Classic Limited (the top of the line touring model) and it rode and felt like buttah!

Well a guy can dream!

Now if I could just recover from that session with the personal trainer at the gym and be able to walk normally, without pain, that would be great! Damn fit kids!

 

[Ronstar]

Went to the Arizona ironman triathlon- as a spectator. I don't know how they can swim 2.5 miles, bike 112, and run 26 all in the same day.

 

[NW-Bound]

They are not humans, but aliens!

 

[Ronstar]

They are not humans, but aliens!

You may be right. I was riding my bike next to one of the runners - I don't think he was breathing.

 

[martyp]

Worked and attended the San Francisco Bay Area Salsa Congress. Thurs - Sunday. Lots of late night salsa dancing to live bands including the 2x Grammy winning Spanish Harlem Orchestra. Stretched the limits of my endurance to events like this . . .

 

[NW-Bound]

I just got home from the downtown court for another jury duty. This was the 2nd time I was picked as a juror. It was just a DUI case, but ended up spreading over 2 days. Clear cut as day, and the cops did everything right. The driver could have just pleaded guilty and saved everybody the hassle, and a lot of court costs.

I guess it could have been a repeated offense, and he had to take his chances and hired a lawyer to try to sow thoughts of "unreasonable doubts" in at least one of the jurors' mind. Nope. I am glad it did not work in this case.

 

[Nords]

We woke up yesterday and realized that Black Friday was coming, which renders Oahu retail establishments intolerable until 2013. So we drove down to Ala Moana shopping center to the island's only diamond appraiser.

Dad gave my brother and me three rings that he's had for decades-- Mom's diamond engagement ring & wedding ring (two rings soldered together), an eternity ring of what looks like tiny little diamonds, and a funky-looking topaz ring that I think they bought on a trip to Mexico. Dad's Alzheimers has taken those memories.

The first thing the jeweler noticed is that the engagement/wedding rings have not only Mom & Dad's anniversary date engraved inside the band, but their engagement date as well. It's the first time in my life I've heard it.

We think these are going to stay in the family, but we want to know what they're made of. We should have an answer later next week-- peak Black Friday hunting season, but hopefully we can find a quiet appointment time.

This morning we visited the rental property to weedwhack the grass. Spouse did 90% and asked me to finish off the last 10%. Within five minutes I'd managed to snap off a plastic part of the string spool that can't be replaced, although I might be able to swap it out with a new spool. However spouse has decided that it's time to buy her a luxury electric weedwhacker, so we'll go shopping in early 2013.

I spent most of this afternoon kicking myself. Our investment group changed the date on our regular Friday-afternoon meeting, and I thought today was the day. I drove "all the way to town" to learn that it's actually a week from today. But I ran some errands along the way, picked up pizza for dinner, and have a couple of trashy novels from the library to console myself. Life is still good.

Tomorrow: a drive up to the North Shore in search of a neoprene long-sleeved high-necked rash guard, and this time I really mean it.

 

[MichaelB]

Well, it can't be said I don't have good timing. Broke a tooth last night during dinner. I'll call my dentist first thing tomorrow morning but she's probably off for the weekend (well deserved, she works hard). Now, if I can only remember not to stress that side of my mouth I'll get through the weekend.

 

[REWahoo]

Well, it can't be said I don't have good timing. Broke a tooth last night during dinner.

It is interesting these 'minor disasters' seem to happen at the most inconvenient times. We're currently visiting DD#2 and family for the holiday and the plumbing in one of the bathrooms developed a blockage (don't blame me - it happened just as I was arriving). Fortunately they have two others that remain operable...

 

[Bestwifeever]

It is interesting these 'minor disasters' seem to happen at the most inconvenient times. We're currently visiting DD#2 and family for the holiday and the plumbing in one of the bathrooms developed a blockage (don't blame me - it happened just as I was arriving). Fortunately they have two others that remain operable...

Three years ago our oven broke Thanksgiving Eve, as we were getting ready to host DS's fiancee for her first visit to our house and the same day someone knocked the right mirrors off both our cars. Love the holidays.

 

[braumeister]

Started the day with about 15,000 neighbors at the 103rd running of Cincinnati's Thanksgiving Day Race. It's a 10K through downtown Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, and a large percentage of participants wear costumes of one sort or another (turkey hats, Pilgrim outfits, tutus, etc.)

Lots of fun and you get to burn off a few calories before the typical overindulgent holiday dinner.