IrishAyes
IrishAyes's JournalThanks, as I'm sure you must've known I was only referring to the mean crowd.
However, I do fail to understand the persistence of your interest in exactly which state I chose for retirement. It's smack dab in the center of the notorious Bible Belt. Given the financial luxury of choice, I'd have moved immediately to Calais, ME - to me the most beautiful spot on earth, where my Irish ancestors first settled after escaping John Bull following the death of Michael Collins. A brief stop in Wales for new identities eased the immigration problem, and we kept the new family surname for the sake of prudence even after my grandfather and g-grandfather had passed on. My father was born here, but there was the matter of his own American military career to think about. We still managed to send money 'back home' though. Not to do so would've been a great sin. One particular distant uncle sent $500 a month his entire life.
As for mental health matters,
remember the senator who had to pull out of a presidential race years ago because he'd been treated for depression?
I also heard a great news story on mental health this morning, on GMA I think. It had to do with a recent study where mice were infected with taxoplasmosis, the virus dangerous to expectant human mothers who clean kitty litter boxes. Turns out that the mice who got the injection lost all fear of cats. Their brains had been rewired in fighting off the virus. So this leads to the strong chance that the true root cause(s) of mental illnesses may be traced to infections. Think of the human suffering that could be alleviated.
When I was in healthcare, I once worked at a psychiatric crash unit and received a lot of heated abuse from coworkers because I treated the patients like human beings. Talk about hidden guilt! Every time I said anything nice about the patients, all hell broke loose from the staff. But then I was the only one who could walk the ward with reasonable safety in the dead of night too. The patients did some remarkable artwork, and one big fellow who didn't do mornings announced he was my special protector anyway - I don't think management ever caught on to the fact that I slipped peanut butter cracker packets in his bedside table drawer on rounds so he'd have something for breakfast in peace and quiet.
We're on the beginning of the road to single payer anyway.
May take awhile, but the whole country will get there eventually.
Thanks for the great news about your son, and the critical info on grandfathered plans
I have half a mind to pass the latter on via a letter to the local weekly paper, but our state's one of the ones opting out as much and as long as it can. Don't know if it would do any good here at this point.
Bee-yoo-ti-ful...
I've always said the rethugs will try to rebrand it as their own and brag about how they 'saved' the country from Obamacare. Shameless hypocrites, the whole lot. Looks like it might cost them the midterms, too.
Sorry I jumped to a conclusion. Didn't know you meant your folks!
I wouldn't wish it on nice people, which I presume includes you and your family. I was speaking of the other kind. And like I said, I do like some people here. They're not quite all hysterical teabaggers.
Haven't researched MOM suitability for dogs yet, but certainly would before using.
There are all sorts of non-bath solutions for stinky dogs. A very light dusting of cornstarch - NOT talcum - or a brief spray with well diluted vinegar, or official dry or waterless shampoo, etc. It's just that the idea of MOM had never crossed my mind. The brewer's yeast they get helps against smell AND fleas.
Thanks. I've suffered terrible DU withdrawal these past near 2 weeks now.
However, the super dooper wi-fi signal booster finally arrived today, and with a lot of trial and error I found a place where it actually works, a little better even than before.
It doesn't hurt for now but I'm still working on the old laptop. The Acer Chromebook is factory refurbished, so it didn't come with tech support or a printed manual, and I haven't YET managed to examine the non-internet functions. It works fine at the library where I hate to work, and it won't automatically load the driver for the new booster; so I can't use it at home yet. But in time I'll crack the code and all will be well there too. Just a matter of time and maybe a ton more sweat and tears. Yet I think it will be worth it in the end, and this 8-yr-old laptop will croak eventually.
Unfortunately most of my first internet evening has been spent on catching up on email, signing petitions etc. Let's see how far I can get caught up on DU threads before I crash.
Ha! That would serve them right - a little taste of their own medicine.
As I said, I've slowly made slight social inroads here, but it's such an uphill slug that it's hardly worthwhile. It's been an education, though. Makes me extremely appreciative of every small kindness. Maybe I can understand a little better when other people cave to social pressure, too, having enough scars to understand the pain. I never had the least patience with it before. Still don't have much, but I don't detest sufferers quite so much as I did.
And for someone with a slim pocketbook, the advantages I've gained are almost compensation enough. My property tax is a whopping $180 a year, etc. I could afford lots more elbow room than I ever could most places. So for a congenial semi-hermit, it comes at least close to evening out. Just have to remember I'm not going to get everything I want. I have one big painting on my living room wall that depicts a town in Europe so I remember there are other places in the world, and I'd be dead w/o the internet connection with old friends from former places and new connections with DUers, for instance.
So with a decent balance of tough and tender, I still manage a reasonably happy life. Especially when I look around at other people's problems. And when I hug my dogs, all's right with my world for then.
Great lineup there.
Wasn't Bono funny impersonating Bill?
I schlepped over to the library again today for the internet and to track my wi-fi signal booster order once more. It went through Colorado for some stoopid reason, then wound up in Michigan later. Now it's finally scheduled for delivery to my home today. While it's better than nothing, I so detest trying to work at the library that I'm going to answer only your OP this morning; tonight I'll put in a long catch-up session at home since everyone knows I don't like to miss a single BOG OP. I'm sooo far behind after 10 days that it takes my breath away. But that's nothing compared to the 150 personal emails I have to wade through.
I've scanned the BOG thread titles, though, and can hardly wait!
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHome country: US
Current location: retired to MidWest
Member since: Mon Feb 18, 2013, 10:15 PM
Number of posts: 6,151