Douglas E. Berry

I hate feeling this helpless.

2023-01-21T00:24:48Z

It never ends. Last spring I had a procedure to biopsy some nodules in my lungs. We cleared it with the insurance. Paid co-pays. Moved on.

Now we're being told the insurance never paid. Kirsten is drafting an appeal letter, we've been making phone calls, but yet another blade has been added to Damocles' Sword Emporium.

Anything helps. Spreading the word is possibly the best thing you can do if you're tapped out. A lot of little donations can make a mountain.

Anything helps, a hundred small donations can work wonders. Sharing this brings more hands to the effort. Thank you all so much.

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We are in dire need of help.

2023-01-13T21:57:02Z

Back in November, I managed to get a Grade II ankle sprain which caused me to miss a ton of work. That healed, but on New Year's Eve, I had a nasty fall while clearing out our old storage unit. Long story short, I suffered a fractured elbow (no surgery needed, thankfully) and trauma-induced bursitis over the greater trochanter. Yes, football fans, I have a hip pointer.

I just have to let things heal, and I'm on Vicodin for pain management. But I'm missing another month of work and bills rejected by my pitiful insurance carrier are starting to show up. Right now, I can't get out of bed without help. It is slowly improving, but that doesn't help in the short term.

To that end, we're running a GoFundMe campaign. Anything helps, really, anything at all. What might be the best thing all y'all could do is share this campaign. Many hands make the burden lighter.

Thank you for anything you can do to help us out. All donations will be used for medical expenses only, you aren't paying for our Burning Man supplies.

More Medical Problems

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Ah, the time we accidentally loaded the truck. . .

2022-12-31T03:03:25Z

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Say my name.

2022-12-06T21:37:48Z

My name is Douglas Edward Berry. Not at all exotic. In the Army, I got used to just being known by my last name, as my first name was my rank, "PFC Berry" was how people knew me.

Most people call me Doug, which I'm fine with. There is one variation of my name that one person on the planet is allowed to use. I've had various nicknames, user names, and of course Uncle Bullhorn, my name at Burning Man.

But Douglas E. Bery is what I go by. It's how I sign my name, it's the name I use when I publish things. It is a simple, uncomplicated name with a great family history.

So the the fuck are medical offices utterly incapable of getting my name right? I just got a call confirming an appointment for tomorrow. They asked for Edward. I have never gone by my middle name. I did contemplate it as a nom de plume for a while, something like Edward Karasu (the surname is Turkish for dark water, which is what Douglas means in Scottish Gaelic.)

The usual thing is reversing my name, and asking for Mr. Douglas. That has happened so many times over the past three decades I have to wonder if they bother reading the form where I filled out my name correctly. I know it seems like a minor thing, but it's bloody annoying and potentially dangerous as these places are handling my health care!

I will admit that I let my frustrations out today when the office asked for Edward. I didn't shout, and I wasn't profane, but I did let the office person know that they need to read the name correctly.

Because I have a name.

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Ive put out the begging bowl again.

2022-12-04T20:47:53Z

Torn Ligaments, Torn Finances

I've suffered a Grade 3 ankle sprain, which is preventing me from working. I don't have near enough PTO accumulated to cover my losses.

In case you were wondering why this was so important at this time, why losing my income at the end of the year was so dire, here's why.

I take Xarelto to prevent blood clots. I have also fallen into the Medicare "donut hole" of prescription coverage. I need to refill my Xarelto.

A three-month supply is about $450. I can't just stop taking it, so it has to happen.

I hate that I'm trapped in the nightmare that is the US healthcare system.

Please share this campaign far and wide. Thank you for any help you can give.

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You speak of Fat Bears, I bring you Fat Squirrels!

2022-10-18T00:38:53Z

While Fat Bear Week has come and gone (I'm still on Team Otis) I'm having my own version.

Fat Squirrel Month.

The corner where I work is great for many reasons, one being the large number of trees along the greenway and the small grove on the other side of my corner. These trees are home to a good number of squirrels, and over the past couple of years, I've learned to identify them.

When there's no one to cross, I usually sit quietly and observe. So now is the time when the squirrels are getting ready for what passes for winter here. They are stuffing their cute little faces and packing it on!

Right now, Black Bart appears to be in the lead, being a chonk of an inkblot squirrel. Right behind him is Tweaker, so named because he acts like he just smoked all the meth. Despite still racing up and down trees for no apparent reason, he is putting on some mass. Finally, we have Squirrel Judy, who sits on her branch and scolds everyone in range of her voice. She chitters at me, the crows, other squirrels, and especially at families who leave the school near the end of my shift, interrupting her Eat What The Kids Dropped time.

But there is a new contender, and he's not a squirrel I know! I've only spotted him a few times, but he had a very distinctive white streak in his fur along the line where squirrel fur goes from bark-grey to tan or orange. I've named him the Phantom for his vanishing act. He appears to be getting enough food to move up in the rankings if I spot him more often to be sure.

You tax dollars at work, and all squirrel genders are assumed.

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Because I enjoyed driving around with a cannister round pointed at my vitals.

2022-10-03T00:38:16Z

Hey, do y'all remember the Takata airbag scandal? Where Japanese manufacturer Takata used unsafe accelerants in their airbags, then fake test results, resulting in multiple deaths when the inflation mechanism acted more like a Claymore mine than a safety device?

Remember that? It was a big deal when, on May 18, 2015, a recall notice was issued for some 32 million inflators on vehicles for many automakers, including BMW, Fiat Chrysler, Daimler, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Subaru, and Toyota.

I mention this because I have to take Tuesday morning off so I can drop Darby the Ford Ranger off at Capitol Expressway Ford to get the driver's side airbag* replaced. 7 years, 4 months, and 17 days after this urgent recall due to a defect that had already killed at least nine people was announced.

Aside from wishing that Takata executives be forced to serve as crash-test dummies in cars equipped with their airbags for five years, I'm pissed that the automakers didn't jump on this and say "Holy fuck, people are driving around in our product with a known killer defect! Clear the decks, we're building a solution NOW and making sure our customers are safe!"

I can even blame Ford because every single automaker affected by this has had the same lackadaisical attitude. But they better wash my damn truck, that's all I'm saying.

*The passenger side airbag was replaced a few years ago.

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Reflections on a Burning Man - 2022.

2022-09-12T02:53:46Z

This year was hard. After a two-year hiatus, everyone was rusty and bad at things. As kshandra said, this was the year we brought too much and forgot everything. She's not wrong. We, for example, totally failed to plan for lunch. Breakfast and dinner were covered, but I needed small things to snack on throughout the day to keep my blood sugar and energy levels up. We already have several good plans for next year.

I am both ashamed and angry at my physical failings. My low blood pressure led to constant issues with browning out when I stood. I am physically weak, and could not help out with camp duties. That will change. I'm going to see my doctor about the blood pressure issue, and I am committed to being in better shape next year so I can contribute! I'm also going to fill out volunteer forms for the departments I can do, like BMIR (the official radio station,) Box Office, or Earth Guardians.

I want to be better. I want to carry my share of the load. Everyone who knows me understands that I am determined to do my part.

But many thanks to my campmates who helped me through this hard week. Even to the point of walking me to the porta-potty bank (hereafter referred to as the "jots") and making sure I was OK. They also fed me. So, onto the breakdown!

( Friday, August 26th )

( Saturday, August 27th )

( Sunday, August 28th )

( Monday, August 29th )

( Tuesday, August 30th )

( Wednesday, August 31st )

( Thursday, September 1st )

( Friday, September 2nd )

( Saturday, September 3rd )

( Sunday, September 4th )

( Monday, September 5th - Tuesday, September 6th )

Well, that's it. I took very few pictures, as this was an amazingly hard year.

See y'all next year in the dust!

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MegaMadness

2022-07-29T22:06:51Z

I ran out to grab some Gatorade because it remains Muggy here in the Valley of Silicon. Of course, I dropped $20 on MegaMillions. Paying the math tax. . . but what would we do if we won?

I'm really not a materialistic person. I would get all the work done needed for me to have working dentures, pay off my immediate family's debts (and I have a wide definition of family), and probably buy a condo in San Francisco across the street from Oracle Park and membership in Club 415. But no mansions or supercars, Kirsten might want bling, but not me.

What we would do is travel. I've never been to Prague or Vienna. I want to marvel at the art and history of Northern Italy and (if safe) visit the ruins of Carthage. Ride the restored Orient Express from Gare de l'Est to its terminus at Sirkeci garı in İstanbul, a city I love like no other.

But most of it would go to support causes near to my heart. Aiding Native American Nations, and supporting liberty for all, all the Bleeding Heart groups would get generous donations from us. I might even buy a suit.

I will, of course, be buying politicians. But being new at this, I'll start small. A library commissioner, perhaps.

My one, damn the cost effort will be to recover The Maltese Falcon and bring it home!

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Everybody, I has a BIIIIG announcement!

2022-07-29T01:56:19Z

Tramp Cripwire has been repaired and is ready for pick-up!

[APPLAUSE]

We're going over Monday. There will be pictures! The next step is getting the wheels aligned, and we have a place in mind for that. This has been THE hurdle, mentally, emotionally, and financially, that we have been needing to get past.

Now, I can look at prep without wondering where I'm going to sleep, and start planning out loads. This weekend we're hitting BevMo for the liquid portions of our camp dues. We just need to keep going over what needs to go in That Box, needs to go in the Kitchen or Shade boxes, or needs to be stored in the trailer's cubbies or just loose in the truck bed for easier access.

WELCOME BACK FROM THE DEAD, TRAMPY!!!

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Doesn't anyone want to stick needles in my arms?

2022-07-13T22:04:50Z

Y'know, usually the hard part of getting a blood draw done is finding a working vein. Today, it was finding a damn lab. This order comes from the Stanford Eye Clinic, and they tell me to use an SHC facility. I look, cool, one relatively nearby.

They only handle blood donations. No one has bothered to update the website. But they send me to one I've been to before, down by Good Samaritan. It's a nice day, the radio is providing good music, let's do this thing!

SHC labs don't have a contract with my insurance, and of course, nobody thought to send in an authorization. But the good news is my usual lab, Quest, will do the test, and they are just in the next building over!

With high hopes, I walk over. . . and that building has been without power for over a day. Fuck. Now, I do have my usual Quest location, I check, they are open until 1600. Great!

I show up there, and a tech is pissed that I don't have an appointment but doesn't bother to tell me that they are closing early until I try to log in for a walk-in.

Done.

I did pick up all my meds, went shopping for a clicking torque wrench (one of the ones where you can set the torque required, and it clicks when you reach it. I have been converted to properly changing tires by a guy named Rainman Ray on YouTube.)

They don't carry them, I'll check at Home Depot and Habor Freight.

I also finally found gallon-sized Gatorade in stock.

But damn, what an annoying day!

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Hurray and wait, it's a way of life!

2022-07-11T20:24:50Z

Well, that was a slog. I had a follow-up today with one of Dr. M's associates because the man is insanely busy. Now I expect eye appointments to take a while, but this was epic.

I was there to see if the damn inflammation had gone away (spoiler: no, it hasn't.) But an additional test had been ordered that involved a dye infusion. Normally, when I'm warned ahead of time that someone is going to try to access one of my tiny little veins, I take preparatory steps to help them. I'll drain a 32oz bottle of water on the way to the appointment, I'll wear a hoodie to keep my arms warm, and I'll do exercises while waiting. That sort of thing.

But no warning, so after three stabs, no good vein. So they punted. I'm back on the Prednisolone Acetate drops again, and see Dr. M in August. Tomorrow, I have to go get a blood draw and pick up some meds.

One of the tests is a second check to see if I have Birdshot Chorioretinopathy, which would suck mightily.

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Big update on the trailer situation.

2022-07-03T20:33:13Z

After much consideration, we have decided to get the original trailer, the one damaged in transit, repaired using the insurance money we've received. Part of the reason was the insurance does not cover transportation costs, so we would be on the hook for shipping this trailer back to Outbound and paying for a new one to be delivered. That could cost close to five grand that we need for other things.

So, the place that did the estimate can do all the work except for the wheel alignment, and we've got a good referral to a place that can do that job. We just need to get the remaining insurance money (the deductible owed to use by the hauling company that caused this nightmare) and we can start work. We might get started earlier for a faster turnaround.

We will end up being a little out of pocket, but nowhere near what we would have paid for shipping trailers back and forth across the continental divide. So, that's the plan, and the name is officially the Free Trailer Tramp Cripwire, or Trampy for short.

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The Staff Officer strikes again!

2022-06-20T00:01:46Z

kshandra and I were doing a little clearing out of stuff in the kitchen and came across a Box of MYSTERY on a hard-to-reach shelf. Being the Designated Tall Person, I got it down. It was filled with survival food from Patriot Pantry. Which is the best crazy prepper site ever.

We went through them and decided that we could use most of them for Burning Man. A couple are going up on the local Buy Nothing group. This simplifies the food planning aspect for both our dinners as well as for the camp Thanksgiving. The others? Well, I bought that travel pack of hot sauce for a reason.

We will still be doing some stuff on the food saver and freezing it because it's always good to have options. One thing we will bring is a can of beanless chili to add to the Mac and Cheese because chili mac is good Army food. Campmates are welcome to join us for that culinary delight.

So as of right now, we are pretty well-sorted for the food plan. We have breakfast stuff, dinner stuff, and even a few desserts. Lunch will be leftovers, if we eat lunch, because who wants to eat midday at Burning Man?

Now we're just waiting to hear about our camp dues and the resolution of the trailer mess.

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How hard can this possibly be? Harder than that!

2022-05-29T02:08:42Z

Dear Halford, I hate Bank of America.

We are *still* trying to close our account. We went to Kirsten's preferred branch, one right next to a huge upscale mall, and they are closed on Saturdays. Because closing on a day when people with big money are shopping is smart.

We head over to the one we know is open, go in, and the line for ONE teller is nearly out the door. We get to the concierge desk and get told that the person who had been waiting the longest has been there for 45 fucking minutes. I look around and literally every horizontal surface you could possibly call a chair is occupied.

So now we need to take time out of Kirsten's workday later this week, march over, and not leave until we have closed that chapter. If they even try to hard sell us into staying, I will go Bullhorn.

This reminds me; earlier this week I sent for some information from the Neptune Society. Hey, I'm going to die and since no one has even started planning my funerary temple yet, let alone start excavating a proper tomb, we figured start planning.

A few days later, I'm eating breakfast and get a call from the Neptune Society, and the guy is hard-selling me even after I told him I was eating, I just wanted to read some information, and was not interested in setting up a meeting where I supposed that along with cremation services he'd try to sell me a timeshare vacation home.

Fuck them. We've done a little searching, and found that if we eliminate most of the American Way of Death from the equation, I can be cremated for around $700.

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This is hard.

2022-05-25T22:19:33Z

This is really hard. I've struggled with it for weeks. But I've finally made my decision.

I need to get back into therapy, and this time, commit to it. Y'see I build walls faster than Pink Floyd. I have shut away so much so I can keep pretending that everything is fine. I can't do that anymore. As terrifying as it is, I need to find a therapist and find the courage somewhere to be honest. Because I want to write a novel. I want to not be scared of even trying anymore. I want to learn what having a friend means.

If that last one shocks you, know that I was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder a few years back. I honestly don't understand friendship. I have trouble with social norms. I either take too much or retreat completely. At this point, I really don't think I have any friends, just people I know. I am so fucking lonely. Because I have no clue how all you zombies do all this!

But yeah, the novel. I want to write. People tell me my writing is good, but my depression tells me everything is shit. I had a depressive episode last year where I did the digital equivalent of throwing my papers in the fire. I deleted everything in a rage because I was sick of looking at it and being too cowardly to take the simple steps of submitting it to someone! I owe people articles, but I don't write them because my brain tells me that I can do it.

I'm tired. So goddamn tired.

So it's time to check my benefits and look into getting help. And in doing that, doing the hardest thing I've ever done.

Confront who I really am, with no walls, no defenses, no diversions. I'm scared shitless of what I'm going to find. But I have to do it because I simply can't go on this way.

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A very busy Saturday

2022-05-21T22:18:10Z

We're having a busy day! We took my long-neglected bike down to The Off Ramp for new tires and dry lube. did the weekly shopping while waiting for that to get done, and after a short break, we're heading down to do some stuff with the totaled trailer and then to REI for a little prep shopping.
Which, annoyingly, will include pricing an emergency backup tent if this drama with the insurance company drags on much longer.

(A little bit later. . .)

After a rest, we rolled all the way down to the place where we store our trailer. It's not overly convenient, but the price is decent. We had two goals, Use our trailer dolly to place the trailer in the slot (neither of us is very good at backing the trailer up, something we *will* work on when we get the new one) and putting the useless fucking license plate on.

Turns out the license plate didn't come with nuts, so we'll be hitting Home Depot for those. Also, I was a bit concerned about the play in the mounting, so will be adjusting that next week when we go down to try this again. We did move the trailer into position, and as a bonus, figured out how the read stabilizer legs work. Go us.

From there we rewarded ourselves with a trip to REI. We picked up some camp food, mainly breakfast stuff because easy in the morning is best, I grabbed a nice set of small hot sauce bottles and a dessert. We're going to save that for last night.

We also picked up so camp lighting solutions, two rolls of Nunn tablets, and a water bottle that will fit in my bike's water holder. We briefly looked at shoes, as the New Balance shoes I wear for work are definitely showing their age, but didn't find anything good.

The one thing we failed to do was go to Bank of America and close our account. We have cut every autopay and reset every account to work off the Star One Credit Union account. Today was the day we were going to go in, get the last amount out, and end that chapter of our lives. But we forgot.

We even identified the fail point. We were fully expecting to drop off my bike and be told: "it will be ready Tuesday" or whatever. Instead, they had an open shop and were able to get to it right away. Our carefully laid plans in shambles, both of us forgot the bank and instead opted for the weekly shopping.

It's all good, we'll go over there next weekend. Along with finally seeing Dr. Strange.

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By day, I was a Crossing Guard, but by night, I was a. . . STAFF OFFICER!

2022-05-14T21:29:37Z

I really missed my calling as a CMF 51 Logistics geek.

Today we attacked Burning Man planning head-on. We had a pile of stuff here at home, and I wanted a good inventory of what was here and in the storage unit. If we know what we have, we know what we need. My plan was to reduce the pile at home to things that will be needed immediately when we reach the Playa. These can be stored loose in the truck or in the trailer. Triaging things got detailed, down to the expiration dates of medications in our first aid kits. We're going to need refills.

For example, I have a Camelback hydration backpack. I usually keep things like my goggles and spare dust masks in there, along with a small first aid kit, a MOOP bag, and the like. I'm not going to need most of that until we've set up camp and I'm ready to explore. I will need a dust mask and goggles as soon as we get to Gate Road. So the Camelback goes into a box, and one mask and my goggles will be in the truck cab. My thought was immediate needs at hand, everything else packed.

With a small box of things to be boxed, we headed over to the storage unit, played Jenga with everything in there, and started an inventory. The box holding the shade structure was the easiest, as the bag for the structure takes up almost the entire box. It was then that I realized we really only had one other box (these are the big black storage boxes with yellow lids that have become ubiquitous over the last several years) and it was only partially filled. We did the inventory, pulling all the cookware for a thorough cleaning at home, and checked the expiration date on our camp food (we'll be eating Biscuits and Gravy through 2047), before carefully repacking to maximize space.

So we are only going to have two storage boxes going out. This makes loading Darby much easier, as I can put all the beer for camp dues and our sodas and the like in the trailer for balance. Coming home, as we inevitably have at least one filled 7-gallon water jug still filled, we can use that for weight. Since we are also porting out our garbage and normally get the camp's recycling, I could also move the lighter storage box there as well.

There are plenty of other things to consider in my load plan, three of the water jugs plus a 5-gallon Igloo cooler, a folding table, our camp kitchen, camp chairs, a 5-gallon gasoline jerry can, three collapsable bins, and our clothes for both the event and the drive home. But those are easier to fit in around the edges.

Now we just need the trailer drama to end.

Like I said, Infantry by training, S-4 officer at heart. Many thanks to kshandra for writing down the inventory in a legible hand and for a lot of the heavy lifting.

P.S. I really need to wear suspenders with these jeans.

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We're still laughing.

2022-04-30T20:28:30Z

As I said in an earlier post, today is the first day of Santa Clara's annual city-wide clean-up campaign. This is the weekend where people in Zone 1 (which includes us) can haul all sorts of crap to the curb and it will be gobbled up, no questions asked.

As always, this event brings in hoards of scavengers looking for examples of the "one man's junk. . ." axiom. One of the things we hauled out was the bag holding the old cover for our trailer. This cover failed so fucking hard. It shredded in what was a mild California winter. We actually got called by the storage lot owners to come and take care of it.

We were still cleaning out the carport when scavengers grabbed the bag. Congratulations, assholes, enjoy your bag of fabric confetti! If only we had thought to add glitter to the bag. . .

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Eyes and random shit

2022-04-30T02:32:08Z

Hey kids, it's an eye update!

After a long day sitting around at the Eye Institute (several doctors were dealing with emergencies which left them way behind) I finally got to see Dr. M. He was very happy that I don't have cancer, but as he pointed out, this still leaves us in the dark about the cause of the eye inflammation.

So we may be subjecting my poor eyeballs to a cyberpunk-ish horror called Electroretinography. Which actually, sounds pretty interesting, if a bit horrifying for someone as paranoid about their eyes as I am. But for now, we're stepping down the steroid eye drops over an eight-week period. If the inflammation is still under control at that time, we can start scheduling the removal of the cataract from my right eye.

The funny thing is they were so far behind that when I left the front office folks had all gone home. I'll have to call Monday to set up my follow-up.

In other news, I'm rather disappointed in our latest Giants store purchase. I take blood thinners, which means I do not react well to cold weather. So. as you can imagine, night games at Oracle Park are a challenge. What do you think of when you hear the word "anorak"?

As the child of a Brit, and having been raised on British TV, I think of a warm, hooded, bit of rain kit, usually with a half-zipper. So I was thrilled to see one for sale on the Giants' site. Folks, I have T-shirts that are heavier than this. I wore it out today, on a very mild day, and it provided no warmth nor protection from even the slightest wind.

sigh At least it looks good. I'll just wear it as the outer layer as part of my San Francisco Summer Evening arctic survival kit.

This weekend is the annual city-wide clean-up for our area, also known as "dump everything in the street weekend." Our pile will be small but interesting. I may take pictures of the more interesting piles of junk. After the visit from the plumber, and the need to clean out under the sinks, we are also heading over to the Household Hazardous Waste drop off. Busy times.

Next week we'll mark 31 years of marriage with a dinner at the one surviving Black Angus in the South Bay. Then next weekend we're seeing Dance with the Dead with Magic Sword opening. An evening of trippy instrumental music.

This has been your Eyes and More^TM update.

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The Trailer epic continues. . . .

2022-04-17T23:19:14Z

To bring people up to date, here's where we stand.

Last winter we ordered a very basic travel trailer from Outbound Trailer. We really just need a stable place to sleep at Burning Man, but getting goodies like installed solar panels and a good quality trailer to replace the, um, interesting home build that was the first Free Trailer Beowulf made it an easy decision.

Outbound was great, got our trailer built, and then onto a shipper. That's where shit hits the fan. The original driver - who has since been fired, hopefully from a cannon - reported that he was stuck in Anaheim. At first, he claimed his truck just died, but his story kept changing. Asshole. Eventually, the new trailer was delivered.

And it was fucked up. The tongue jack was twisted, and this was a piece of metal! The wiring harness had been completely sheared in two places. Inside, there was damage to the flooring. But the best part, the damn driver had been SLEEPING IN OUR FUCKING TRAILER. kshandra found the asshole's clothes in one order, and he had opened the packet of paperwork that was for us and left it scattered all over.

We learned that the trailers are shipped with the tongue jack retracted. The asshole had stopped, set up the trailer, strapped it, and drove on, probably grinning at how he was saving per diem money. Outbound was shocked. The shipping company was pissed, and we were stuck with a trailer that had obviously been severely damaged.

We've been dancing with the shipper's insurance company for weeks now. They want us to get an estimate on repairs. Fine we find a place to do it, go to the yard where we store the trailer, and. . . the damn hitch lock we bought won't come off. Back home, a little research showed that we bought a piece of shit that won't open with the keys, but will come off with a Slim Jim in seconds.

Fuck our lives.

We ordered a much better lockset. One that not only includes a ball coupler lock, but also a lock for the coupler latch and the hitch pin, all working off one key. The problem was getting the old lock off. So today we headed down with mayhem and chaos on our minds. After a fun detour caused by traffic on 101, we arrived.

The damn lock resited WD-40, the shim we brought, and dire threats. I was giving it one last try when it finally came loose. FUCK YEAH! We installed the new locks, being sure to test them carefully. Victory was ours!

After that, we went to Orchar. . .oops, I mean Outdoor Supply Hardware. I wanted some solution for identifying keys with my bad memory. We found great key toppers in various colors, a nice set of D-ring carabiners to hold trailer-related keys, and batteries.

Now we can take the trailer for inspection. I am seriously worried that the frame has been damaged. This thing has been totaled, and it is all the transport company's fault. We need them to pay out so Outbound can build our replacement. They've promised to put us at the top of the queue, as this has never happened before.

We're taking it over on Wednesday. Fingers crossed, everyone!

Oh, and we've decided that the name of the new, undamaged, trailer will be Free Trailer Beowulf II

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I've seen the future, I can't afford it.

2022-04-04T23:49:26Z

More insurance fuckery is afoot. Last week, as I mentioned before, I got hit with some big bills for what I had been told were covered visits. Well, today I called my provider.

The really big-ticket whammy was approved, but for some reason was not going through. This provider contacted me by mail asking for a copy of my insurance card, which I emailed them. So now I have the insurer working on the other end.

The other bill, which is about to become two bills, is for the interventional pulmonologist. Nobody told me, but that provider is no Bueno with my insurers. So I may be on the hook for about 850 bucks there. I can and will appeal.

The big problem is that this is the guy who is supposed to be doing my biopsy this Friday! So despite having been told that it had been approved by his office, I stayed on the phone until the CareMore (ha) rep confirmed that this was in fact covered.

Of course, this means I have to tell my surgeon I cannot do a follow-up because even a video appointment with him is over $300. California needs to pass its single-payer plan yesterday.

We bought a lottery ticket Saturday. Can we please win so I can worry about having too much money for a change?

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Buckle up!

2022-04-03T17:38:25Z

Because I really need more fucking stress in my life right now. . .

I just got two bills for medical treatment totaling nearly $4,000. Both were for appointments and procedures approved by my insurer. I also got a letter asking for a copy of my insurance card, as there were difficulties getting my carrier to pay. Needless to say, Monday after my first shift I shall be burning up their phones.

Did I mention that I got called for jury duty next week? The week I'm scheduled for surgery? I went to the ejuror site to try to say "I have surgery scheduled that week, sorry" online to find that you have only a very limited set of options, and can't ask for a postponement by phone or email. I'm still going to call the court to tell them to fuck off.

It's going to be an interesting week.

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A busy day!

2022-03-13T22:19:16Z

Done today:

- Reorganized my gaming shelves so the Runequest stuff is more accessible.

- Put the redundant books up on eBay.

- I'm eying a few other things I may sell in the name of decluttering.

- I have a load of dishes running in the dishwasher.

- I'm going through five loads of laundry, including my reflective vest.

- Put new filters in my masks, which I'm going to wear until my kids have their mask mandate lifted.

- Cleaned my work Hydroflask. I drink 32 oz of water with a Nuun tablet every shift. Neen to clean out the yummy mold weekly.

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Hope is the thing with flaming straight pipes.

2022-02-22T01:23:27Z

Too early to tell, but there's a light glimmering at the far end of the tunnel that might not be an oncoming train for once. It might be a V-12 trike with racing slicks driven by a punk unicorn with bags of cash and drugs.

Who has four friends who want to play RuneQuest.

Stay tuned. . .

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