Getting an annual physical at the doctors

[Oaktree]

And most of the suburbia I'm in feels the same about home improvement contractors, plumbers and roofers.

At least in suburbia there are more to choose between. Out here in the boonies there might be one or two reasonably competent contractors (who are generally booked up well in advance) and a bunch of glorified handymen who have a paintbrush and know where they can borrow a ladder and call themselves a painter. Had one I interviewed for a work project maybe 10-12 years ago who was like that. Asked him what he used for paint, and his reply was whatever's on sale. Uhhh, yeah. He didn't get the gig.

 

[MattB4]

For whatever reason, I've gotten more sociable as I've gotten older. In my younger years I would never chat up a stranger in a store (or wherever), but am more likely to now. Not that anyone would consider me a social butterfly by any stretch of the imagination, but I'm much less of a hermit than I once was.
Personally, I find friends more important than family members. You choose your friends.

Talking and interacting in a pleasant manor with others is a necessary skill set. But, if by nature, you are a loner (and not one because of mental problems, addiction or circumstance) you simply do not bother with making friends. You might have friendly neighbors, acquaintances and even people you do things with. However you do not lean on these folks.

Yes it is handy to have someone available to feed the cat if you need to travel.

 

[tractortroof]

The gastroentrologist I've been using is a private practice, and he seems to be honest. I was on the "10 year" plan until my last visit. When it came back clean, he told me given my age (late 60s at the time) unless I had problems he probably wouldn't need to see me again.

I do agree that the healthcare system is about as obtuse as it can be, especially when it comes to fees and random charges on the bill, not to mention all the "independent contractors" who don't bill thru the hospital. I thought Obamacare was supposed to take care of that, but clearly it didn't. Fortunately, I'm on Medicare now, and the insurance company pays what they pay and that's that.

Obamacare apparently resulted in making the middle class pay everything. If I see one more commercial saying that you can have full coverage health insurance for $50 a month…. Whatever haven’t to fraudulent advertising being a crime??

 

[dmccarty]

I spent a couple of days reading this discussion.

This has to be one of the best conversations on TBN, though it went all over the place, which is maybe why it was so good.

Toooooo many good comments to comment on.

 

[CalG]

Well. I guess I passed the annual physical today. I even made an appointment for another one next January! Optimism abounds!

As a concession to not sending a snake with a camera up my hinder parts, I need to send a "dump in a box" off to some lab where they seem to find interest in that sort of thing. In a couple years, I'll be too old for that stuff.... ;-)

I celebrated the event by digging 5 inches of soaking wet, packed in snow out from the business end of the snow blower...and dosing two of the tractor's fuel with anti-gel. It's supposed to get cold here next week..;-)

 

[dmccarty]

..

December 24th, stopped in on the way back from Church to visit them to make sure everything was ok. Found out my neigbor had lung cancer, stage 4.

...

He smoked regularly.

I was at a grocery store a couple of months back and went to check out. I was in one line but another line had fewer people with less items so I changed registers.

You know how that ended.

The guy in front of me in the new line only had a few things....

But he wanted a pack of cigarettes. And there went my getting out of the store faster. He was face timing with his wife/girlfriend and she is the one that wanted/needed the cigarettes. There was some back and froth with the cashier about the cigarettes, burning more time, and the cashier went to get a pack but came back with a cartoon. The girlfriend/wife only wanted a pack so back went the cashier.

By this time I was talking to the man and giving him a bit of grief. I told him that his lady really owed him for everything he was doing while she sat in the car. He agreed and told her what I said on Face Time and then held the phone up to me so I could tell her. It was all in good fun and he had apologized for making me wait which really was not an issue since I was not in a hurry. I knew I was really asking for it, and when I left the store, they had waited for me so she could say hello. We were laughing all through these conversations.

Now what shocked me was the cost of the pack. I think it was around $10!

Years ago, I knew two people who worked in our cafeteria who smoked. I was shocked when they told me a pack was $5!. A two pack a day smoker was spending $300 month years ago. Now it would be $600!

The other day I had to return something to another grocery store and I was looking at the prices of the cigarettes. At first I was seeing $50-60 a carton, then got to the big name brands and they were $80-100! I mentioned this to the cashiers and they said which is the most expensive brand? I thought that was a stupid question because I could SEE the prices. But she lifted up a panel and there were cartons for $100-120!

Unreal what cigarettes cost and I don't think NC taxes them like other states. Not to mention the health issues.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Very good friend passed early this morning stage 4 lung cancer. She started at 12yo, Marlboro. She did make it to 87 though.
$8,750/year for smokes.

 

[masseyrider]

Here in Ontario Kanuckistan a large pack is pushing $20. Blows me away when I go get a couple lottery tickets thinking I'm pissing money away and some body ahead of me blows $40 on 2 packs.
The kicker is the smokers you do see are usually the people that look to be the least able to afford the nasty addiction.

 

[EddieWalker]

Isn't there a huge black market for cigarettes' in the high tax areas like NYC? People can drive across the border to Canada, or other states, and buy them for a lot less, bring them to NYC and sell them for a profit and still be cheaper then what they sell for in that city.

 

[deserteagle71]

As a concession to not sending a snake with a camera up my hinder parts, I need to send a "dump in a box" off to some lab where they seem to find interest in that sort of thing. In a couple years, I'll be too old for that stuff.... ;-)

I had an appointment with my doctor yesterday and told him it had been 10 years since the last time I had a colonoscopy and was surprised when he told me that since I was well past the age of 75 it wasn't recommended. News to me...I didn't realize that after a certain age you didn't need them.

But we compromised and I'll be doing the "dump in a box" thing also.............just to make sure.