Dreading the Doctor

I know, dread is a pretty strong word, so you can pick from nervous, edgy, tense, anxious, worried, or apprehensive.

 (source)

In three weeks, I have my first real doctor’s appointment for the first time in 5 years.

That’s half a freaking decade <gulp>

The past couple of years haven’t been kind financially. 

·        In grad school (‘06-08), I had health insurance but I could only afford to use it for birth control.

·        While adjuncting (’08-10), I didn’t qualify for insurance, so I simply went without. I kept track of my blood pressure at Walmart, got a free blood test in 2010, had regularly massages, and prayed I would never have to go near an emergency room.

·        This past year, I have insurance again but haven’t felt comfortable using it beyond a few urgent care visits. With our income bouncing around, it’s impossible to budget for medical bills, so my attitude has been to just not accumulate any.

This, of course, is not a good path and I’ve been fully aware of it as the years have ticked by. I know the best approach to your health is the preventative one, and routine appointments are a part of that.

Since we moved, we’ve been holding out for my appointments until our income became stable. 15 months later and no relief in sight, it’s time to throw in the towel and just bite the bullet.

There’s a lot to complain about modern medicine, which I’ll leave to the more passionate, but my biggest beef is the complete inability to know what the hell you will be paying.

There is no budgeting, no comparison shopping, no price checking to know what you are getting into.

In an ideal world, going to the doctor would be like strolling into McDonald’s – all of your options are listed right out in the open with a clearly marked price.

The irony of using McDonalds when talking about heath is not lost ... (source)

Instead, it’s just a guessing game of how much you’ll be charge (and goodness knows when you’ll get the bill – they can wait three months to process it and then want the money in two weeks, but I digress).

Without knowing how much I could rack up at the doctor’s, I’m nervous. 5 years without proper care means I have a backlog of tests that should be run (and a few that I’m specifically requesting).

Not to mention I haven’t had a single shot since I graduated high school in 2002 and there are a few that I really should have current (my thoughts on vaccines to be documented later …).

Furthermore, I am terrified, yes, terrified, of what they could find.  I may be young, but I have a host of factors working against me – inactive lifestyle, constant stress, don’t eat enough fruits/veggies, overweight, and a family history of high blood pressure/heart disease.

Maybe I’ll get lucky and get a clean bill of health, but after so many years of poor habits and infrequent health screenings, well, the odds are not in my favor.

And the thing that really gets to me, is that whatever they might find, chances are it will be my fault I got it.  Something that was a result of my inattention to my body. 

Don't look kid - it will only makes it worse! (source)

Then I have secondary concerns about whether this new doctor will be a good match for me, will she listen to my concerns, will she explain things properly or just brush me off, will she treat me as a person or just isolate my problems … the list goes on.   

In my past, I had some serious trust issues with doctors – some from my childhood, others stemming for a bad surgery.  I had to actively work through those so I wouldn’t have panic attacks before appointments.  I’m glad I no longer fear doctors, I just fear the resulting bill.

Questions – Do you experience similar concerns about medical bills? 

Meet Our Kitties

Meet our children - Ajax (left) and Draco (right)

These lovable furballs joined us back in 2006.  We adopted them through the Humane Society at the age of 8 weeks.  Though not litter mates, they're clearly like brothers.  We jokingly refer to them as our "clearance kitties."

Meet Ajax  

Otherwise affectionately know as The Brown Bastard, Big Man, Chubbins, and Chubzilla.

Unstaged photo.  Mike didn't even know Ajax was sleeping with him until I showed him the picture

Though only a week older, Ajax has always been the larger (and hungrier) cat.  He's full Tabby, which means he switches between smart and dumb in a matter of nanoseconds.  He cannot be trusted with raw chicken in the house, either on the counter or in a trash can.  Beyond that, he loves the allure of feathers and tinfoil balls.   

Meet Draco

Otherwise called Mr. Blue Eyes, Little Cat, and Drakey Drake

Part Siamese (lavender point), part Tabby, Draco's main strength lies in napping.  He is very territorial of the bed and ensures that clean laundry has been slept on.  He knows the word "bed time" and is very excited when there are two humans to cuddle between.  He steals hair ties and pens.

Luckily, the upkeep on these two is quite minimal.  We use Tidy Cat litter and have just switched them to an all-natural cat food (no corn products).  

Do you have pets?  Are they worth the cost?

Screwy Finances Yet Again

So remember our recent bout of debt slashing?  We were flying high on our little burst of income, happily checking off items on our financial goal list.

The tables have turned yet again and we're now back to Square One.

(source)

I feel like we're in this cul-de-sac of financial repetitiveness, a merry-go-round I'd gladly exit if I could.

The dealio is that Mike was supposed to be on another month of orders during August.  So we threw all of that extra money he was earning at debt and a small pittance into savings, thinking we'd get to that with our surplus for this month.

Just kidding.

At the last minute, Mike's orders were canceled.  Yep, no warning, you can go home now.  While that's nice for us on a personal note because this summer has been completely hijacked, it also means Mike won't be earning money at all this entire month.

Lest anyone be super alarmed, we thankfully have enough to cover everything and Mike will back in classes with his GI Bill reinstated in September.  

But it's switcharoos like these that make me question our previous actions, and that's no fun at all.  How was I to know it would have been better to throw a bunch in savings first and not at debt because we would be losing income on short notice?  

I know I shouldn't be hard on us - we don't have a crystal ball and you can only make a good decision based on the knowledge that you have at the time.  

But this is what I think is the most frustrating about our financial situation - it's never consistent. No matter how hard we try, half of our income can disappear or be delayed at any time.  You cannot be financially responsible if you can't PLAN for anything.

<takes a deep breath and eats a piece of chocolate>

Things will be alright, it's just another bump in the road.  Worse things could happen.  But believe me, it will be a happy day when we have incomes we can actually count on.

Living with a Food Allergy

Growing up, I never had allergies.  Maybe a little ragweed reaction in the summertime, a sniffly nose during harvest, but no foods to stay away from and no pills to take.  

But 2008 arrived and that all changed.  It only took me a year to figure out that I had developed an oat intolerance.

(source)

Oh yes, this gut-friendly grain wreaks absolutely havoc on my digestive system.  

The crazy thing, granola bars and oats in pancakes were a STAPLE growing up as a kid, so it's not like I didn't eat a million of these things over my life.

It all started on a trip to Louisiana and an awful stomach ache on the way home.  It was like there was a ton of gas trapped in my system and it was building and not going anywhere.  There was so much pressure I could barely eat anything beyond a granola bar - ironic that I was eating the very thing that was putting me in so much pain. 

The problem continued sporadically, but another trip to New Orleans the following year revealed even more issues.  I kept thinking, "what kind of water do they have in this state?!?"

But it didn't go away upon returning.  At the time, I was teaching on overload and thought maybe stress was getting to me - developing a "nervous" stomach was my body's way of telling me things were out of balance. 

I spent much of a year looking like this (source)

It then occurred to me that something I might be ingesting was doing the damage.  I have several friends who were lactose-intolerant and I had just learned about gluten sensitivities.  Without insurance, I decided to do my own detective work.  I set up two-week schedules and eliminated suspect foods - first dairy, then wheat. 

Dairy didn't reveal anything and cutting out wheat was only partially successful.  I think it dawned on me after taking one bite of oatmeal and being in pain that oats, not wheat, could be the culprit. 

Two weeks after avoiding oats, I was discomfort-free until I ate one forkful of apple crisp with an oatmeal topping.  Back to square one but food irritant confirmed.

Since then, it's been pretty easy to avoid oats.  You read labels - the end.  I've found I need to stay clear of:

• Any version of oats, including whole, rolled, flour, fiber, and bran
• "Multigrain" is highly suspect
• Cereals can be disastrous (I'm looking at you Cheerios)
• Any product by Kashi (which I loved) is a no go
• Bread products need to be scrutinized, increasingly tortillas and flat bread
• Recent oat infiltrations - pasta, tortilla chips, and bread crumbs

I honestly feel very lucky that this problem isn't more severe.  I cannot imagine eliminating dairy, or gluten, or both.  I know two people who have corn allergies - can you imagine?! <shudders>

And to be clear, despite that I used it in the title, my oat issue isn't an allergy but an intolerance.  An allergy would mean I'd get hives or would swell up when eating them, but that's not the case and I can use oat lotion/soap without problems.  This is purely a digestive issue, though people understand "allergy" better than "intolerance."

The most wretched thing about oats is how long my system is messed up after eating them.  There is the initial GI tract complications for several days, but the lasting problem is severe dehydration.  It takes weeks to correct and in the meantime, I make poor food choices when all I'm craving is salt.  

I've done some research and an oat intolerance doesn't seem to be a common issue.  There's not much information out there on why it occurs or what changes in the body when oats enter.  All I know is that my reaction to oats is very similar to those who can't eat gluten - I just have an easier time avoiding it.

Do you have a food sensitivity - what is the cost of living with one?

How Osama bin Laden Saved My Finances

Kapow!  Kablam!  Splat!

(source)

Those are the sounds of our debt being slashed, cut down, and eliminated.

And I have Osama bin Laden to thank for it. 

Let me explain.

The original reason Mike was called up on orders is because base security was raised after the bin Laden incident – just a precautionary move. The base couldn’t staff this required manning solely with area Guard members, hence a phone call to Mike.

So Mike has been on full orders for the military the last two months, all because we finally caught International Terrorist Numero Uno. 

That’s a full-time job that just landed in his lap. Which translates to a windfall in monthly income. All of a sudden, we had a surplus of several thousand dollars.

We resolved from the get-go to take that money and B-E AGGRESSIVE with our debt. No crazy purchases or shopping sprees here.

So far, we’ve paid off these accounts IN FULL:

·        KAPOW!  Leftover personal loan from February - $500     

·        BAM!  Credit union credit card - $400                           

·        KABLOOIE!  Bank credit card - $850

·        THAWP!  Firestone account - $1300

It makes me giddy to know we have eliminated 4 monthly payments - over $3,000 of debt that’s gone.  That’s huge!  That frees up around $200 in payments each month.   

(source)

We’re also taking out sizable chunks of our Furniture Row account. Even though there’s no interest and the monthly payment is $45, it’s still another obligation. We now have the balance under $1000 thanks to a recent $400 payment.

One of my other goals with our surplus was to close some of these accounts once they were paid off – you know, remove the temptation. I learned, however, that closing a credit line can actually HURT your credit score.

Believe it or not, your credit score can take a ding if you close out your oldest lines of credit. For example, I have a card leftover from a bank we’re no longer with. I thought because it's orphaned and has a high interest rate (14%+), that it would be good to cut it up.

Wrong!  Because that account has been open for over 8 years, it’s actually my oldest line of credit. I don’t fully understand the logic of it all, but it would be detrimental to close it. So it’s been designated the “god-forbid-we-have-a-$2,000-emergency” or “Jennie’s-traveling-for-work” card and is safely residing in the lock box.

We also added Mike to our credit union card. Without trying to embarrass the poor guy, I have a credit score 100 points higher than his, mostly because all of our bills are in my name. So we’re trying to bump his up by getting his name on a few more well-managed accounts.

This is the same reason we’re not closing out the Firestone card, as it’s solely in his name. It’s also very good for emergency repairs, which we all know how disastrous those can be on a budget.

As successful as this round of debt slashing has been, we only eliminated 40% of our credit card debt.  Mike has a card with 4 grand on it that needs some serious attention. That’s not comfortable at all to have hanging over our heads, but we knew this would be the year we cleaned up our credit card act. 

At some point in the future, we’d like to be as “off grid” as possible with credit cards. We learned some hard lessons in our early days and still  worry about our dependence on them when our income situation gets fouled up. But it’s an ongoing process to live  responsibly within your means.

There’s no one way of driving down debt. The best advice I can give is to just tackle it with as much force as you can muster, even if that’s $25. Make peace with your debt and own it before it owns you.

Netflix Drama

By now you've undoubtably heard or been affected by the Netflix plan hike. In essense, they separated their streaming and DVDs into two plans and raised prices for both.

Here's the email I got earlier this week:

We are separating unlimited DVDs by mail and unlimited streaming into two separate plans to better reflect the costs of each. Now our members have a choice: a streaming only plan, a DVD only plan, or both.

Your current $14.99 a month membership for unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs will be split into 2 distinct plans:

Plan 1: Unlimited Streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month
Plan 2: Unlimited DVDs, 2 out at-a-time (no streaming) for $11.99 a month

Your price for getting both of these plans will be $19.98 a month ($7.99 + $11.99). You don't need to do anything to continue your memberships for both unlimited streaming and unlimited DVDs.

These prices will start for charges on or after September 1, 2011.

You can easily change or cancel your unlimited streaming plan, unlimited DVD plan, or both, by going to the Plan Change page in Your Account.

We realize you have many choices for home entertainment, and we thank you for your business. As always, if you have questions, please feel free to call us at 1-888-357-1516.

–The Netflix Team

There are a lot of people utterly rankled by this price increase.  I have a couple theories on why this is:

• In this economy, people are holding litte luxuries even nearer and dearer to their hearts than in previous years. A $5 increase on something that's already "an extra" is too great a hit for some.  And it feels personal, no less, because we've cut and cut and cut - where does it end?
• There is mounting frustration that our goodies and services are continuing to increase, but our salaries have become stagnant. Everything is getting more expensive, except we don't have room to meet those increases.
• Not everyone has great mail or download capabilities. There are some who can barely get 1 DVD a week or streaming is a joke.  With already limited service, a price jump is laughable.

For me personally, I'm going to eat the increase.  It doesn't bother me. 

But here's the thing - we don't have cable at all.  I mean, we physically have a TV, but no plan whatsoever.  So our entertainment budget is pretty low each month - maybe $40 between Netflix, the ocassional Redbox, and whenever we make it to the theater.  And that's probably a high estimate.

I used to be a devout Family Video customer. I love walking into a video store and browsing covers. You can find the best stuff that way.  But we started to have more and more disk problems with them and their prices weren't super great for new releases. Now I have to go 20 minutes out of my way to get to a store, so that's kind of pointless.

Redbox is a nice deal for new movies and I like the price - $1 a day is great. We have one at our HyVee, which is not only 7 minutes away but along my work route. But you only have access to new releases and they rotate them out after a couple of months. I've also found that the dispenser will have a photo of a movie but it sometimes won't be available, which is very irksome when that's the only one you want.

I enjoy Netflix because of the variety they offer.  I get exposed to movies that I wouldn't before, particularly those that are hard to track down, foreign, independent, and documentaries.  It's also invaluable to me while teaching film courses (as I am right now).

If you're among those who can't stomach the increase and are mulling over dropping Netflix, here are some alternatives to consider.

Have you used any of these?

A "Princess Bride"-themed Wedding

If you're in the Midwest right now, you know Mother Nature has set the temperature to BROIL the last few days.  I hope all of you have been hunkered down indoors with your air conditioning.

I, on the hand, gleefully spent this weekend being part of a wedding.  The humidity was ridiculous, there were serious concerns about the dogs overheating, the groomsman may have gotten a bloody nose after the ceremony, and the DJ was moved indoors, but a bucketload of cupcakes seemed to pacify everyone :)

Despite the heat, I think this is the cutest wedding I've ever attended.  The couple's dogs are named Wesley and Buttercup from the "Princess Bride" and used parts of the movie for the wedding, such as their entrance music.  We even rode out on white hobby horses like in the end.

They used a lot of personal touches and did somewhat of a "shabby chic" decorating scheme.  All very low cost but completely personal.

What follows here is a photoblog of us not melting the entire time.

The reception hall

Mason jars - easy to find and easy on the pocketbook

Several guests conspired to bring these cute guys home but they were foiled by the bride

Myself, the bride, and her sister.

Pearls borrowed from grandma, hair clip found at Hobby Lobby for $2

Instead of bouquets, we had pomanders.  These were made by someone and used heirloom buttons - so cool!!!

The groomsmen - their boutonnieres were also made of the same paper flowers

Wesley the Ring Bearer

Buttercup the Flower Girl

Possibly the cutest cake topper ever amid a sea of cupcakes

One of six flavors from a local bakery - this is lemon with raspberry icing

The humidity at this point majorly interfered with breathing, despite the smile here.

Congrats and have fun on your honeymoon!