More Month Than Money

Usually I do some Environmental Cleanup on a Tuesday Morning coz I'm dropping the Grandchild off at her Work at 6:00 a.m., but DAMN it was Cold this Morning!  Now, this is Arizona, in the Spring, it's never this Cold by the end of April!   A few Weeks ago it was unseasonably extra Hot and hitting 109 already and breaking Heat Records.  Now it's Colder than a Witch's Tit some days, WTF?!   So, no, I didn't go do it, I went back Home and hunkered down where it's Cozy Warm at my Computer Desk to Blog instead.  *Winks*

Rusty took Princess T to do a Photo Shoot with her New Car, she was very risque' and said it was her Bad Girl Outfit.  She didn't want me to Blog with it, but you know I was gonna, Right?!  *Winks*  I mean, she looks Adorbs even in a Mister Fredericks Of Hollywood kinda way, and I know she's a Good Girl who can just Rock a slutty outfit too.  *LOL*  So I joked when they got back, coz it had been after Dark when they did it and I asked her if this was for Rusty and she was draped all over her Sexy Car for the Photo Shoot?  *Bwahahaha*  She claims she'll Share the Pixs with me, so I can see them, we'll see... *Smiles* 

She did keep her Jacket on for my Pixs so they'd be more Modest.  *LOL*  But, she did let me take some and then critique them for Approval.  *Ha ha ha*  These few made the Grade.  And then Below them, some more Old Glamour Shots of The Daughter and I we had done when she was about 12.  I liked how they turned out but I'd never had Hairspray in my Hair before and HATED it, and they do put more Makeup on you than an Old Hippie is comfortable with wearing.  Plus, my Makeup Girl couldn't seem to understand why the Facial Makeup she used for White Clients didn't match my complexion at ALL.   So she made me look White and The Daughter thought I looked like a Ghost or Japanese Kabuki.  *Bwahahahahaha*  In retrospect, since I knew nothing about Makeup Foundation either back then, I'd of advised her to use Hispanic Skin Tone Foundation instead.

But the Glamour Shots of Yesteryear were Fun and The Daughter's Orthopedic Dental Surgeon who was doing her Braces for a Jaw Issue, had Paid for them.   I'd Paid Five Grand for her Braces, which, back then was a Mega Amount of Dental Expense, but it was during my First Corporate Life as an Executive Banker, so I had the Benjamins back then.  Even tho' Insurance refused to cover it even tho' it was a Medical Condition being corrected for her Health and so her Face wouldn't end up with a deformity, and not for Vanity reasons at all.  But you know how Insurances are, and back then I had an HMO thru CIGNA, which, could be good... or could Cheap Out... it was always a crap shoot what an HMO would cover.   But they were New back then in the early 1980's when they were formed, and so every Employer was touting them as the Next Best Thing in Healthcare.  Never had one since.  *LOL*

They didn't put much Makeup on her, since she was a Child, so she just required some Lip Gloss, Natural Color Eyeshadow and Mascara.  Kiddos have that flawless Skin going on so don't need any Foundation.  And she wouldn't Smile big coz the Braces weren't on yet, then she spent a lot of time not Smiling BECOZ of the Braces.  *LOL*  But, once they were off she had one of those Perfect Toothpaste Commercial Smiles.  So, I always felt the Investment was worth it.   See Below, her at about Age 15 with the Colgate Commercial Smile and perfect Teeth.  That's also about the Age she went completely Off Rails too.  And was well over 40 before she got Straight with being Clean.

 Of coarse she screwed it all up in Adulthood with Substance Abuse, which wreck your Teeth, Skin and Hair.   She regrets that now, but did get Clean eventually, but over 25 Years of Abuse took it's toll heavily.  But her being Clean for the first time in her Adult Life and sustaining it for several Years now has made me very Proud of her for finally doing it.  That's why we wanted that recent Boyfriend Gone, he was Using.  At least he hasn't been bothering her or us anymore, he got his Vehicle taken away for Wrecking it and I don't think he had it Registered and might have been driving it without a renewed License either.  He had a lot going on that he needed to get put Right.  And with having Stage 4 Cancer I think he just didn't expect to Survive so didn't do anything he was required to do or needed to get done anymore.

 

I'm going to be taking The Son to an Appointment Today that he doesn't know how it will go, so he's nervous about it.  Way back when he still had an operational Vehicle, he got a Ticket for Driving under the Influence.  He Paid all the Fines, took the Classes Twice they required.  He messed up with the First Set of Classes and so he had to take them again.  He had to pay for them again, but finished all the required Classes and was Square on all the Terms but One.  Well, they also required him to pay a Grand+ for an Interlock Ignition Device for a Year.  But, by then he didn't have an Operational Vehicle anymore so didn't get one.  He couldn't get a Mechanic to ever figure out what is wrong with the Malibu and wasted a lot of Money trying to fix it, insure it, register it, when it was never safe or reliable.  He'd gotten it Cheap and it was a POS.  He was getting Rides to Work and Back or taking the Bus.  You can't put one on a Vehicle you aren't Driving or don't have.

  

Anyway, for the whole Year he was required to have one, his Co-Workers or I were either taking him, or he was riding Public Transportation to and from Work, or anywhere else he had to go.  He didn't think it would be problematic.  Fast Forward to last November when his Employer Laid Everyone Off.  So, now he had no Income or Job either, definitely no Money to do Car Repairs or replace the Vehicle he still has which hasn't been Operational in so long now it's got Spiders building Webs on it.  *LOL*  He had Two Non-Operational Vehicles here, Sold one that was a Vintage Celica, for Parts, to a Salvage Yard, and will probably be Selling the Malibu to the same Salvage Yard too.  It would have Cost too much to get either of them roadworthy and reliable, and the Celica didn't have a Title.  So, anyway, since he'd Honored everything else he thought the Courts dropped it all, it's been a long time now.

 

But, he got a Letter from the Courts saying he has to go to Court, before a Judge, about why he didn't comply with the Interlock Ignition Device installment requirement of his Terms?  You not only pay for the Device but pay to get it Serviced regularly, a big expense and it has to be on a Working Vehicle.  It's all about the Money, he knows that, but he has no way to pay them that Grand Plus Extra now, his Fines had been extravagant and he Paid them in Full, the Classes had been expensive, he Paid for them Twice due to the them requiring a double take, to extort more Money.  He now Owes the IRS Sixteen Hundred due to that Scam of the ACA they're running on folks who can't afford Insurance, go to Marketplace to get an ACA Approved Coverage, then find out it's like a Loan and not a Subsidy at all, coz you gotta pay it back to the IRS at the end of the Year!!! 

 He didn't even use Sixteen Hundred worth of Medical, he'd of been better off Uninsured!!!  And has no way to pay the IRS or the Courts for their Interlock Ignition Device he can't put on anything he doesn't have and isn't even Driving anymore!!!!   So, anyway, the Court said they could make him spend Three Weeks in Jail now... whatever, he still has no Job and no Money... so, if it will Square him with them, just do it.  He doesn't wanna wait 'til he HAS a Job after all this time of trying to get Hired anywhere, and THEN lose the Job coz they make him do 3 Weeks of Jail Time for all this.  He's frustrated coz he said when you try to do Right, they Punish you unfairly anyway, and kick you when you're Down, in the meantime Billionaires and the President are committing all kinds of Fraud and the most Serious Crimes with Supreme Court sanctioned impunity!!! 

Anyway, I have to Drive him to the Courthouse or he couldn't even get there coz the Buses don't run as early or on that Route to get him there by the Time assigned to him.  He has no Money for an Uber, he's been Selling Plasma, that's how broke he's been since he hasn't even been getting Unemployment, his Employer screwed all the Employees they Laid Off out of their Unemployment by cutting their Hours first.  Then saying they didn't meet the Criteria anymore for Full Time Employment they'd Contractually Agreed to Work!!!  The only reason nobody contested the cut Hours was coz about a Month beforehand, the Company held a Meeting and said they'd have to Lay Off SOME Employees if ALL the Workers didn't Agree to taking Reduced Hours instead. 

 So, they all Agreed, so that none of their Co-Workers would be Laid Off during the Holidays.  Then, the Company just Laid Off anyone who have Five Years or more with the Company anyway just before Thanksgiving!!!   Some had worked there over 35 Years!!!   And all of them had accepted those Reduced Hours so that none of the Newbies, who typically get let go first, would have to be Laid Off and Unemployed right at the Holidays.  It was a shitty thing to do but I felt like the Owner, who was recently Widowed when her Husband unexpectedly dropped Dead, was Selling the Company to an Asset Stripper Investor, and that's what they just do and everyone gets Screwed in the doing of it.  So, anyway, it's been a succession of Unfortunate Events beyond The Son's Control... Car Troubles, Job Troubles, Financial Troubles and now Legal Troubles. 

 

Back from Court, it went well, there was a Female Pro Tem Judge filling in and she was very Fair, is giving him 2 Weeks to provide some evidence of something else they need and re-schedule a Zoom Meeting before whatever Judge will be there then.  She felt it would have been punitive to Sentence him to 3 Weeks in Jail for not putting a Device on a Vehicle he doesn't have.   No way he's ever getting that Malibu running so he'll have to Sell it for Parts to a Salvage Yard and save up when he gets Employment to even get another Cheap Vehicle.  Then try to save up to pay off the IRS and this Interlock requirement if they continue to insist he must do that.  He'd rather they just put him in Jail for 3 Weeks now and be done with it all.  But sometimes they make people do the Jail Time and still do all the other shit anyway.  But, Today went well, he was 3rd on the Docket so we weren't there for Hours.

I took him out for Breakfast afterwards coz I was starving by then and taking all my Meds, especially the Ozempic Injection on Tuesdays, on an empty Stomach, makes you feel Sick.  And Nurse Remi is coming at 11:00 a.m. for The Man, and then some other PT Evaluation Person from the VA is coming at 12:30 a.m. to Evaluate him for more Physical Therapy, since HUMANA's Approved PT Visits were only Three and the VA can and will often provide more Services to their Disabled Veterans.  I have yet to hear from the Hospital about the Cardiac PT he'll do there on the 5th Floor... probably delayed until either or both Insurances give Approval on that too?  It can all be quite confusing to keep straight in my Head which Services are being provided, Approved, and by Whom?  You have to fit all of it into an already over-scheduled Calendar as well, it's all very consuming of your Time and Energies.  He's not the only one here with Needs or Appointments that I'm Caregiver of.

I've got to see about picking and meeting a new Primary for myself since my Doc got Transferred to another Location, which is too far to go.  So, tho' I really Love my Doc, I can't commute that far to see her.  So, have to be Assigned someone else now.  *Le Sigh*   LATER: Nurse Remi just left, his BP and Oxygen Saturation were both excellent, but he's Weaker and not feeling Well at all.  So, she's still very concerned about him.  Clinically he appears doing better but clearly Physically and Emotionally he is NOT at all.  So, it's a dilemma, we don't wanna expose him to ER's and Hospitals too much coz lots of serious Contagions are going around again, including COVID, and he's got a compromised Immune System and Medical Fragility as it is.  So do I with my comorbidities, so, can't Risk that exposure unless absolutely necessary.

We will have the PT Evaluation Guy from the VA coming at 12:30 to determine Qualifying for Expanded Services provided by the VA rather than our other Two Insurances.   Both HUMANA and TriCare provide some, what they won't provide the VA might provide and Authorize.  Good thing he has all Three.  But he Served 39 Years for EARNED Benefits and so he deserves decent Healthcare Services.  I'm just very worried about him now, he's getting weaker and weaker, we Need to be able to keep him at Home coz there's no Placement that will take him, they wouldn't before either after his TBI.  Now he's got Dementia too, along with everything else he already had, they for damned sure won't wanna take him now.   And, even IF they did, it's not Affordable and would leave the rest of the Family absolutely destitute just to ensure he got Long Term Care we couldn't afford.  I don't Need Five other folks, including myself, destitute. 

 

And my Docs are saying, reduce your Stress.  *Bwahahahahaha*  Yeah, Right.  *Rolls Eyes Dramatically*  Nurse Remi did Share that she has a Schizophrenic Nephew and has had similar experiences with the abuses my Two Schizophrenic Family Members have been thru.  The Daughter and her Son both have had identical traumatic experiences due to their Illness that her Nephew and their extended Family have endured at the Hands of a System that doesn't handle such things appropriate, compassionately, or well.   So, she has a Point of Reference and she said nobody wants to Talk of these things, becoz nobody Cares.  So what the Families go thru never improves or changes.   You become very Cynical and disgusted with the lack of Humanity extended.  We treat Animals better.   Rant now over.  *Winks*

Anyway, other than all that everything is Swell.  *Bwahahahaha*  I don't know that when Wendell comes Tomorrow for his last Authorized Visit, The Man will be up to any Exercises whatsoever still?  He's too Weak, too unstable right now, so Physical Therapy is not happening and of coarse that leads to more Physical deterioration.   So, it's all rather a doubled edged Sword to navigate thru effectively.   Plus, he's getting to where he feels so Unwell that he's resistant to doing any of it too now.  It is scaring me coz we have to keep him Well enuf to remain here at Home and be able to meet him at his Point of Need ourselves.  I don't know how much longer we can, Realistically?  So that lack of feeling any Security about it Stresses all of us out.  

I think I already might have told you that the Older Lady, the Mother of one of The Daughter's Friends, who they had worked so hard recently to set up in a Home Hospice, well, just a few Days after they went thru all the Work and Expense to do it, she Died.   The Daughter felt it was perhaps Merciful Timing since the Mom was in a Bad way and had told The Daughter, I just want them to Let Me Go.  She was ready, she'd made Peace with transitioning into the Afterlife.  And, there's a part of me that Senses that The Man is almost to that place himself actually.  I don't wanna say it out loud, but I'm Sensing it strongly, just like I did with my own Dad.  When Dad was ready and willing to Go, he just Went.  Just like that.  

 Mom fought The Grim Reaper with all she had in her, so she lingered a very long time and her Care became astronomical in Cost.  Over Eleven Grand a Month and that was Years ago.  She had no Estate or Resources, so became a Ward Of The State of California to obtain her level of Care.  My Brother's influential and Celebrity Friends were the ones who got her into the Best Care Facility we couldn't afford and CalCare covered, including her Hospice later on.   But I've just got the VA for The Man and it was $200 a Day for the Old Soldier's Home over Fifteen Years ago and they wouldn't take him then.  Said he was too High Maintenance and they didn't have enuf Staffing for his level of Care needed.  I had no fucking Staff, but they dumped him on me anyway, I had Two very Young Special Needs Grandkids to Care for at the time as well, it was a LOT.  It's a LOT now too, but... it's the Hand Dealt, so you Play it.

I'm trying not to Drop Dead from the Stress or Strain of it nor go Off Rails again and have Caregiver Burnout again and end up back in a Psyche Lockdown for a lil Vacay.  Coz that was an involuntary "Adventure" I'll never Forget.   Nor will anyone involved.  *Winks*  Anyway, having my Nice Breakfast with The Son, after his Court and before Nurse Remi and the other PT Guy comes was Stress Reducing.  I didn't have quite the Hood Hookup of Fruit as the Take-Out Day when I got it for The Man and I.  *Winks*  But, it was Lovely and The Son said he Loves that place, he'd never been before I have taken him a couple times.

Their Specialty Iced Coffee is to Die For... my Favorite anywhere.  I brought some of mine Home, coz Today was Ozempic injection Day and it suppresses Appetite a LOT.  So, you don't usually even Feel Hungry, and even IF you do, when you start Eating you Feel Full instantly, but know you must Eat... and so I did the best I could with it.  All delicious, all Editorial Looking too, as you can clearly see.  I'll just have to finish the Seasoned Potatoes later on.  Their Million Dollar Bacon is SO good and just a slight Upgrade you can make for $1.99 more, well worth the Upgrade IMO... it has Hot Honey and Seasoning, OMG... it's a Sweet, Salty, Spicy Flavor Profile of Candied Bacon.  They coat Thick Cut Bacon in a Glaze of Brown Sugar, Maple Syrup, and Spices like Black Pepper and Cayenne Pepper, then Bake 'til Caramelized and crispy... making it both Sweet & Savory.  It's very much like the Bacon But Different that my other fav Brunch Restaurant "Snooze" offers, they add Red Pepper Flakes to theirs and is slightly better IMO.

It's the EOM, with more Month than Money, but I SOOOOO Needed me some Comfort Food and someone preparing it FOR me, Okay.  *Winks*  The Recycling covers most of that kind of thing when I'm a Broke Bitch otherwise and there's more Month than Money.  Today we had a Nurse {Remi}, a PT {John}, and the New PT Evaluation Guy, a pleasant Young Black Male Nurse originally from Tennessee, who'd introduced himself to The Man and The Daughter but I didn't catch the Name of and forgot to ask.  He's putting in a request for Authorization for Two Visits a Week and then see if we can work up to Three as The Man regains {hopefully} some Strength and Stamina to retain Mobility and ability to remain in the Home rather than an Inpatient Facility for Rehab.  He was pleased we've managed to do it Outpatient and at Home for so long by ourselves mostly.  He commended me on managing that, coz it's Rare I guess.

He was telling me a lot of Families don't want to put in the Work at Home to Rehabilitate their Loved One or have the means to pass that off onto an Inpatient Facility and do, for convenience and Skilled Care instead.  I told him nobody would accept Placement of The Man coz he's an Escape Risk.  His PTSD kicks in and if he thinks he's being held Prisoner, he Escapes, and that's a liability and risk to the Facilities and he's managed to Escape every single one he's ever been in.  Plus, we strongly Feel that nobody is as Invested in a Loved One as their own Family, so generally they do better with the Loving Care of Loved Ones they know and Trust, who are Invested in them more than any Stranger could or would be.  He agreed.  So when he asked what our "Goals" are, I told him simply to get him to where he can remain in the Home under our Care and Familiar Surroundings to him where he Feels Safe and not feeling he's a POW.

 *******

Taking it One Day at a time... Dawn... The Bohemian