Book Board Chat

Re PAs vs. doctors. My really BIG pet peeve nowadays is when you have to be admitted to the hospital and your own doctor, who you've been seeing for over 20 years, doesn't come to see you any more. Instead, you are dealt with in hospital by what is now called a "hospitalist", a strange doctor you've never met before and who knows nothing about you. When I asked, I was told it's all in an effort to free up your doctor's time to see patients in his office. Well, that's all well and good, but when you're in the hospital and need your doctor maybe more than any other time, suddenly you have to deal with a stranger who doesn't even work directly with that hospital but is contracted through a third party outfit. The last 2 times my DH was in the hospital we we were confronted with this. I called over to the doctor's office and fussed about it and was told it was a "new method". PAs are also used in an effort to save doctor time so what does that leave the doctor doing? In our case, he seems to concentrate on annual physicals which have to be scheduled way in advance. If you get sick or hospitalized and need to be seen right away, here, at least, you can't see your own doctor. We've seen some good PAs who are building up practices of their own but they're simply not as educated as an MD. Guess you can tell it bugs me. BIL just had triply bypass surgery in Houston last Monday. He hadn't been in a hospital for a long time and was shocked to be attended, after surgery, by a doctor he'd never met before.

June, my DH and I also enjoy reading series books and recently discovered The Clifton Chronicles by Jeffrey Archer. We had enjoyed his other novels and didn't hesitate to trust these would be very good as well. It is a series of 6 and so far we're on Book 4, a wonderful saga of the Clifiton family in England. I hear that Book 6 is either just out or coming out soon. It's such that we rush to finish and then are sorry we did! It's nice that we mostly enjoy the same books so then can discuss. He downloads them on his Kindle and then they also load on my Kindle.

JoAnne, my mom & dad had come home from church that Sunday morning, Dec. 7, 1941 and Dad had sat down to change out of his dress shoes, a brand new pair from Sears & Roebuck. The phone rang and he was told to report to the depot immediately and the news of the attack. He was station master there for Southern Pacific. He said it was exactly one week later before he got back home with holes in the sole of his new shoes so he just took them off and threw them away. He told that story many times. It was his job to expedite troop and equipment movements for the duration. It was very scary at first as no one knew if the enemy wasn't headed directly to our shores. My husband's grandparents left their farm in Iowa and went to work in Calif in a munitions factory. His g-mother said she could remember falling asleep on her feet at work. I wasn't born until 1945 but my brother and sister were along. Mom told us of ration coupons and food shortages, rubber products etc. My mom was quite a good cook and had to make many adjustments, like less sugar etc. I had 3 uncles serve and 2 returned with what we recognize now as PTSD. I love the music and clothes of that era and the bravery of all who lived and served both here and the UK.

My DH and I remembered 2 miniseries from the 80's that we'd enjoyed very much, Winds of War and War and Remembrance. While waiting on the Olympics to start and to stay far away from politics on TV, I ordered both on Amazon and gave them to him for Father's Day. We've been watching Winds of War first as it is the build up to WW II starting in 1939. It is 6 dvds about 2 hrs. each. War and Remembrance begins in 1941 with the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The cast is huge. Robert Mitchum has the starring role, Polly Bergen his wife, Ali MckGraw as the Jewish girl and on and on. It is so enjoyable, hard to stop watching, like a book you rush through because it's so good then are sorry when it ends. Fictional of course but also very historical. Interestingly, the War and Remembrance set was $152 but the Winds of War set only $24. At any rate, completely worth it. I love Amazon.

Maybe I should explain that my sister doesn't drive herself to the store *smile*. She bribes her husband into doing it by ordering ice cream.

Diane - Love the 'toast in the slot'! LOL Can't you just see it??

JoAnne, Amazon has several distribution centers in/around our Ft. Worth area and just this week announced they will be opening a 520,000 sq.ft. cold storage center also for fresh produce and grocery items, same day or next day delivery. I don't know but am confident they'll be doing similar in the Houston area as it is also a very large metro area in the state. Also, Walmart here has online grocery ordering. You order online and are given a pickup time. Out in front of the store there is a spot you park, call in with your confirmation no. and someone brings your groceries out to your car and loads them. I haven't used it myself but my sister, legally blind, has and loves it. Maybe somewhere in your area some retailer does the same. Or check out Amazon.

Oh JoAnne, forgot to mention your chair lift. I'll be very interested to hear how it works. I've only seen them on TV. Sure hope it does the job for you.

And Patsy, welcome back! Missed your sense of humor. I get you about the crowds at the book sales; I don't much do crowds any more either.

Wow! What a wealth of information you have all given me about health ins. in retirement! I sincerely thank you! I had no idea that premiums were tax deductible for one thing. It seems apparent that we'll need to meet with a medicare rep and we will do that. DH wants to make sure he can keep his cardiologist and we both want to keep our primary so will need to check to see what they'll accept. My dh is a viet nam vet so can get his drugs from the VA which might mean a different plan for his drugs etc. It's a puzzle but I feel like we have the beginnings of a plan now and again, I thank you.

Nice weekend weather here but humidity way up today with storms in the forecast for tomorrow night. Temps today in the mid-80's. Had lunch on Saturday with DD and her husband and oldest grandson. Lots of laughs and good food. Our youngest grandchild, the only girl, will be 12 on Wednesday so expect we will be getting together with them next weekend. Her dad, our son, works 6 days a week so most activities with them occur on Sundays. Yesterday was just chores - grocery shopping and laundry. Ugh! I swear if I retire I will find another day to do laundry. I hate spending my Sundays that way!

Diane and Jane Thanks! Ya'll have a great weekend!

Good morning and TGIF. Sunny and dry here today, temps should reach 82. Ground is soggy, hope it gets a few days to dry out.

Eldest GS is coming home for the weekend to catch playoff hockey and basketball games. We hope to share brunch with he and his folks on Sunday. it's always fun to see him and hug his neck.

Thanks to all for your comments on retirement, I will have to re-think this. My BIL retired end of December and my sister told me to never ever retire at end of calendar year as no one wants to talk to you at that time, i.e., insurance, medicare etc. They have had many bumps in the road and are still learning to deal with both being together all day. She's always had 8 to 5 by herself but I expect they will work it out. We enjoy each others' company, even after more than 50 years, so I'm not worried about that.

Now, about my biggest worry - retirement health care. My company no longer offers it to retirees. Does anyone want to share what they do? Is plain old Medicare the best? I understand different states and even different areas within states have different carriers. My head gets dizzy just trying to think about it. And it seems that anyone I could talk to about it just wants to sell me their plan. If you're tired of talking about this please just ignore me.

Jane, I'd call you brave and inspirational! I think I need to stop being a scaredy cat.

Jane and JoAnne, all of us in major metropolitan areas in Tx will see our insurance rates go up as a result of this spring's storms from hail and high water. We expect that but it's especially hard to see peoples' homes and belongings wiped out, often more than once. Really sad pictures this week, too, of livestock being lost to high water. There is a saying here "Turn around don't drown" and still folks don't understand how quickly water can carry them away. I asked my DH why, with advance notice like we had, wouldn't people load up their most precious belongings and drive to higher ground and he said because many had no place else to go. That's just really sad.

JoAnne, honestly I think I am just afraid of retirement. My dad was forced to retire at 65 from the railroad and was dead 3 years later, bored and ready to go. I'm afraid of health care and having to choose private insurance to go along with Medicare so for now it's just easier to go along with the group coverage I have now. I am tempted, don't get me wrong. I think I would like to find out what it's like to sleep in and have a whole day to decide how to spend my time, to read more good books. Now I have to limit myself to several chapters a night on my Kindle and I do so love to read. I used to do hand work and have bags of unfinished projects. Not sure if my eyesight would hold out any more but it would be fun to find out. I figure one of these days I'll get a sign of some sort that's it's time. Just hope it's not too late.

Sorry, I meant to say that we have NOT had the heavy flooding that other areas have experienced this week. I'm sure you've seen the news reports. We feel very lucky.

Good morning everyone, I just want to make a few brief comments on posts here this morning. Weather is still cloudy - had heavy rain overnight but forecast for the weekend is much better. We've been fortunate in that we have had the flooding other areas in north Tx and SE Tx have been seeing all week.

Several years ago, property taxes in our city were frozen for residents over 65 so we enjoy a steady amount of about $3200 a year. I wonder how many other communities have been able to reward their older citizens with that benefit? Tx law says that property taxes cannot exceed a 10% increase in one year, so even if property values rise more than that, as they have this year at 14%, you only have to pay 10% more if you're not exempt.

One of the ways I have rewarded myself for continuing to work at an older age is to have household help. My lady comes every 2 weeks and I pay her $100. We are tidy people anyway but that way I don't have to vacuum or mop or do bathrooms. I cleaned house from the age of 12 on as my mom sewed and made all the clothes for 4 girls so we girls did the housework and washed dishes. Daddy wouldn't let us practice our cooking skills on him *smile* so mom did the cooking. I simply don't want to do housework any more. Simple laundry on the weekend, most of our workclothes go to the cleaners anyway.

DH has a lawn service come in once a week, March through November and pays them $130 a month for all service. It's nice to know that he doesn't have to do the heavy chores any more and can just play with his flowers and veggies as he chooses.

Happy Hump Day everyone. I stayed at home yesterday to avoid our bad weather. I have a 27 mile commute to my office one way and we had gale force winds with driving rain - something I didn't feel like dealing with. I spent most of the morning on the laptop. I have remote access to the office. While I was doing that, I stewed a chicken and made chicken and dumplings for supper. They tasted real good in the cold last night. Today is sunny but still windy. I guess March is here in like a lion.

Good early afternoon all. Warm and windy in Big D today. Expect a cool front w/rain in on Sunday night into Monday. We need rain. After a deluge in the spring and early summer it all stopped. I've lived here 25 years and don't remember this mild a winter. After January I expected the bottom to drop out in Feb. but so far no ice or snow. Very unusual. With an early Easter we may not get any this year. Trees will be budding out and bulbs coming up any day now. Tree pollen is heavy that has everyone's sinuses messed up.

JoAnne I read with interest your news about Jack's scalp issue. Several years ago, My DH had several spots on the his head (he's bald) that exhibited the same symptoms as Jack. The Dr. sent him to a dermatologist who took biopsies. They came back as pre-cancerous squamous cell lesions. They then did what is called a "Moh's" procedure where they go in and scrape away until they get clear margins after first giving him a few little injections of anesthesia, dressed the places and sent him home. You can google Moh's. I think it's a fairly common result of age and too much sunlight. He hasn't had any more appear and still has a shiny place on his scalp similar to a scar but at the first sign of more, would surely return. It wasn't painful beyond the first day and even then minimal. Hope this calms some of your worry.

Thank you all for your insight into downsizing. If I ran the numbers it could be that we would also just about come out even, as we also pay for lawn maintenance, maid, repairs, property taxes etc. But my DH has a workshop in the garage that he enjoys puttering in and he really enjoys playing in our large back yard with his flowers, baskets, pots etc. Not something we have to consider right away as we are both still working but at 72 and 70, a subject that comes up occasionally. Ideally we'd like to just stay put as our kids and grandkids are less than 20 miles away, except for the 2 that insisted on going far away to college:)

We too need to downsize. No longer need 4 bdrooms and 2 living areas but how to find a smaller place that wouldn't cost us more than we spend now?? I'd want to spend less $ not more. What do other people do? We love our area but some of the retirement facilities around here are so attractive and appealing but expensive. Seems like a smaller place would put us right back in an area with lots of school age kids.

Jim, interesting what you said about peoples' looks changing with age but not so much their voices. Reminds me of that poem "Velveteen Rabbit" where the rabbit tells the little boy that he doesn't get "Real" until all his hair has been loved off and his joints stiff and creaky. Maybe our voices better reflect our souls and looks don't really matter. I hope so anyway, as my looks are going fast:)

JoAnne, my dh and I are blessed to have our 2 kids and 4 gkids within 12 miles of us here in N. Texas. B'cause of his career with an airline, we lived in GA many years and relocated here over 20 yrs. ago. I guess mainly because of the good economy and job possibilities in Tx, they followed and have raised their families here. We couldn't ask for more. The older we get, the more thankful I am that they are nearby. The advantages are immeasurable. The good news about weather in both Tx and Ok is that it never stays one way for long. The area where you live now must be like heaven; I'll never get there but see pictures and watch travelogues; ;it is beautiful beyond belief but my dh would never make it through a winter:) He says he wouldn't be able to put on enough clothes.

JoAnne, It's wonder that your son wants you closer and you should be, but I can't imagine a more dramatic environment change than the one from the Hudson Valley to Oklahoma. Oklahoma is blistering hot in the summer, bitterly cold in winter and prone to tornados in the spring. The wind sweeps across the state, west to east and north to south all the time. I would recommend a visit there first to see how you take to it. Just my opinion...and meant kindly.

Diane, that's it! Thank you very much! The members on this board are also so very helpful. I really appreciate it.

Hoping someone can help me. I am familiar with a poem about crossing the water that contains the line"where did she go"? This has been requested for a funeral service Wed. morning. Something about a ship sailing out of sight and those on shore grieving her departure while others on the far shore are waving in greeting. I simply cannot remember the name in order to pull up a copy. I hope someone here knows. I've checked both Sylvia Plath and Tennyson but not quite the same. Thank you in advance.

Homechick

My grandkids prefer Chick Fil A cards and I also give them at Christmas. Their folks use them as stocking stuffers too.

Beth, what a generous person you are. I love to send food gift cards to my college age gkids. They are always appreciated as it allows them to go off campus and have a treat with friends! I'd be glad to send you some to give this boy and I'm sure others would as well. I don't know how to do it but if you can respond with an address somehow privately I will send you some in the mail go give to him.

As a little boy, my father would accompany his mom to church. Often the choir would sing a song from the hymnal, and not yet knowing how to read,he understood it to be "Gladly, the cross-eyed bear". He wasolder before he discovered they were really singing "Gladly the cross I bear. When he admitted it to us, we made sure he got a cross-eyed bear from Santa the following Christmas and, after many years "Gladly" lives on with my sister and proudly sits in his own little chair under the tree each Christmas.

Morning all, I too just finished Port Mortuary, also disappointed. No more Scarpetta for me. If you like that genre, try Lisa Scottolini, especially the ones about the all female law firm. Excellent writing, great plots, highly entertaining! Stormy in Dallas today. I won't enjoy the drive home from work.

Good morning everybody. We are s'posed to hit our "heat peak" today in Ft. Worth with 105. By the time I get home from work all I want to do is shuck off my clothes and drink something cold. August makes me think (again) about retiring. LOL

Jim, thank you for your insight into SS. You said it better than I ever could. I have kept working because I can and SS goes straight into savings. When the time comes that I can no longer work full time I'll get a new plan, like reading new books and eating bon bons *smile*. We need to maximize our $'s in case we get hit with huge medical bills that Medicare won't cover and People who retire before 65 are taking a huge risk in my opinion. unless they have to of course.

Helen, my DH has a Kindle Fire and loves it - I know you will too. We both pretty much enjoy the same genre (mystery & suspense) so he buys them for his kindle and downloads same to my iPad. Love it!

Good morning BB'ers! Warm in Ft. Worth but not as hot as it could be this time of year. Preparing to go birthday shopping for our son's 40th b-day tomorrow. His wife turns 40 today, so for a very long time this is how we've celebrated the 4th! I remember so well the year he turned 3 and the bi-centennial - he thought the ships were coming into NY harbor because of his b-day! LOL We still find time for a hot dog or 2 and some fireworks. Hope everyone here gets to do the same.

Mysteryhorse, thanks for commenting. I sincerely hope I didn't sound stuffy in my post. My main reason for not retiring is really good healthcare benefits and a husband with heart disease, who, thankfully, draws a pension from his many years with an airline. SS is a very, very nice benefit. Medicare Part A is also very nice and simple to navigate. Actually, all the navigation is done for you through hospital billing. We don't need Part B or D yet because of my group healthcare and, frankly, I am scared to think about needing that coverage, what with all the changes coming, so, since I don't have to retire, I just decided to wait until the Healthcare Act is more implemented to see what's in store there. I think the smart people on this board will find and report to us all as they travel this road and we will all learn from them.

I have enjoyed all the SS chat. If you want to feel REALLY rich, wait until you reach full SS age to apply. I couldn't apply until 66 because I am still working and made too much money, but at 66 that no longer mattered. So now I'm still working AND collecting SS! Greatness! I get to save all my SS. Downside is nothing and nobody is yet paying any interest worth having.

Ladies, food moths (we call them weevils). My mother taught me to put a stick of doublemint gum on each shelf of my pantry to keep them away. I guess they don't like the smell. Anyway, I haven't had any in a very long time. Hope this helps.

Mornin' everybody. Really good chat going on. I'm enjoying the book lists and movie talk. I'll remind my dh to check out that Mark Harmon one coming up on USA - he's one of our favorite actors. I was born and raised in deep south Texas and I don't think I sound any different than anybody else. LOL But I lived in Atlanta for 20 years and do recognize deep south. I could listen to a cajun accent all day and never get tired of hearing it. Lovely lovely people.

On the other hand, since my dad worked for the railroad, a few times a hobo who'd been riding the rails came to our back door asking for food. Mom always fed'em but they had to sit on back steps to eat and didn't get the good dishes.

Growing up in S. Texas we weren't really "southern" but old habits died hard. We didn't havre any marked water fountains. My mom was the seamstress/repair person for my brother's baseball team uniforms. Sometimes a couple of the colored moms would bring things over to our house for mom to repair. She always invited them in but they politely refused. They "knew their place" and insisted on staying on the porch.

When my DH was in the army stationed in VA a few of them got weekend leave and decided to do some sightseeing in DC. One of the guys was colored. The group decided to have lunch at a Woolworth's lunch counter and were told the black guy couldn't be served. My DH was astonished - he'd never heard of such a thing. The black guy knew exactly what was going on. This was 1963 - right before all the civil rights stuff started.

Mornin' everybody. Yet another hot one here but small promise of cooler and (maybe) some wet stuff by the weekend. I have so enjoyed the posts since yesterday. Patsy, your pictures were gorgeous! I, too had elbow length white gloves and my mom made all my clothes too, even my wedding dress. In the mid 60's we still wore hats and gloves to church. My DH is retired from Eastern Airlines so we took many a trip all dolled up each time. The kids would complain at dress clothes in the summer but rules were rules. I kinda miss that. Too casual now. Seems people behave better when they're dressed up.

Living in Atlanta for 20 years we were very familiar with Savannah and it's still one of my favorite cities. Our kids would qualify each year in HS for all-state band and chorus and competition was always held at civic center in April. We would chaperone and spend all our time while kids were in rehearsal playing tourist. Especially loved the riverfront area and Tybee Island. Even went over to Hilton Head a couple of times. it's been I guess 20 yrs now since I've been there, I bet it's changed some.

Mornin' everybody. Weather teased us a bit early this morning with some thunder and just a spritz of rain. It will be back to 106 by close of day but was nice to hear thunder. East coasters take care. As a little girl growing up in south Texas I remember a couple of hurricanes - the incessant wind and rain - my dad roaming the house with a flashlight checking for leaks and mama filling the bathtub with water. Scary for a kid tho we never did have any real damage - too far inland.

Hi everybody - I've enjoyed lurking on your board for a long time. I'm thinking about the east coast and the coming hurricane and recent conversations on here about that area of the country. Have any of you read Anne Rivers Siddons' books? She writes primarily about the "low country" areas of the Carolinas and is a very gifted writer. I think you would enjoy her.