Another warm day in Chicago - in February

   I'm not complaining.

   I am wearing a tee-shirt and capris and walking around barefoot. I am opening windows and airing the house out. I am sitting on the front porch with the bird and enjoying the warm sunshine. I am watching the Crocus bloom in the front yard. I am driving around with the windows down and the wind blowing in my hair.

   But at the same time, I am a little concerned. It is February. We have had a mild winter with little snow. Surely there must be ramifications for all this spring weather in the middle of winter?

   As I see the tulips push through the dead leaves of last autumn a little voice asks me...is this a Sign of Climate change? There seems to be a rush to dismiss science and the arguments to protect our environment. I wonder. I worry.

   It is refreshing to see buds on our maple trees race the lilac bushes striving to be the first to burst, an event that typically arises in May. But at the same time it saddens me to think of the lost blooms should snow and ice reclaim their wintry domain. Will it be a long and dreary spring?


   Or will the daffodils that have taken hold stand strong against the blowing wind and blustery cold?

I am not complaining.

   I just want to be assured that while the weather has gotten unpredictable and wild in some places and unexpectedly mild in others, we don't just chalk it up as an aberration. That we continue to consider our impact and effect, our responsibility and our duty to the world around us. I want to know that we will strive to protect and preserve while we endeavor to learn more about our natural resources.

Because I don't want to see us risk the blooms of tomorrow with the debates of today.

The Unaffordable Care Act

   Anyone looking in on the United States could not fail to be confused by what we present as health care. As a citizen, I am not only confused, but also frustrated, upset, angry, and trying not to go broke. Once upon a time, having lived under a good coverage umbrella provided by employers at a reasonable cost, I didn't realize there was a problem. I recognized that there were issues for those who did not have my good fortune, but in my fairy-tale world, our country had taken measures to help eliminate this problem.

Some fairy tales don't have good endings.

   Reality reared its ugly head when my family no longer lived in this warm and fuzzy chapter of our health insurance book and had to move into the sequel of our health care arrangements. That is where we have learned the long, hard and expensive lesson that health insurance is not equivalent to health care. And the term Affordable is a relative term.

   For those yet unversed in this alternate universe, health care insurance in America goes by many names. Group health plans (or employer health insurance) is the name often affixed to insurance coverage provided by companies for their employees and families. An extension of this coverage is COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) that allows families and individuals to continue their workplace insurance for a limited time after employment ends. This can be helpful if you are in the middle of a treatment and wish to continue on your plan, but it is at full cost to the individual and their family and can be quite expensive. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (usually referred to as Obama Care) created the open insurance Marketplace. Through the market place various private health insurance companies compete for business to provide insurance to individuals and families who do not have coverage through their workplace. If the individual or family is eligible, they can also apply medical tax credits against their monthly premiums.

   Still with me? It doesn't end there. For those of low income or no income and folks who qualify for Supplemental Security Income, there is Medicaid, an insurance program managed directly through the government.  Seniors 65 and older and those who qualify for Social Security Disability Insurance may enroll in Medicare, another government managed program. (Mind you, SSDI recipients are not eligible for Medicare until two years after their SSDI entitlement.)

    In addition there are also Health Cost Sharing Groups like Christian Health Care Ministry, Samaritan, Medi-Share and Liberty HealthShare (to name a few) that can provide options for medical benefits currently required by law. Some of the latter types of coverage might also be found under the title Medical Cost Sharing groups.

   Add to this quagmire different types of healthcare insurance options offered such as HMOs (Health Maintenance Organizations), PPOs (Participating Provider Options), EPOs (Exclusive Provider Organizations), and POS (Point of Service) plans.

   Now remember, your doctor or treatment facility of choice may or may not accept your insurance and can choose to refuse treatment based on what insurance coverage group you have - except in the case of emergency room visits. But beware, if you are admitted to a hospital that is out of your network you may incur additional charges for the duration of your stay. You are expected to be a savvy consumer, not just a patient following qualified medical advice.

Does your head hurt yet?

  Take some aspirin. There's more. Each type of insurance has its own rules and covers these options in different ways. In addition, each individual insurance company has different levels of coverage under each one of these categories. All this depends on what you can afford to pay in premiums, deductibles and out of pocket expenses. While laws enacted over the last few years have stopped insurance companies from refusing to accept preexisting conditions or placing dollar caps on coverage, it has not prevented them from raising the premiums, deductibles, or those pesky out of pocket expenses.

   Per the original expectations, insurance premiums on marketplace options in my area were expected to increase about 25% in 2017. What we saw was a 55% increase in premiums. And raised deductibles. And increased out of pocket expense. Moreover, there were less insurance plan options to choose from. Did I mention that many insurance companies have decided to ditch participation in the marketplace?

Most of us now just call it what it really is. Unaffordable.

   So why aren't Americans jumping to repeal? 

   Maybe because there are approximately 18 million people who wonder what they would do for health insurance next year. Right now, I am one of them. After all, no one has seen an alternative plan offered. Perhaps the estimated 27% of adults under the age of 65 who have preexisting conditions are beginning to worry about the future of their coverage should the law be repealed. Could it be that women in the United States (about 51% of the population) want preventable health care benefits without being discriminated against as they were before Obama care? Possibly we have been numbed to the point of submission.

Who knows?

So for those of you watching the United States and wondering about the madness here, there is treatment for that...but no one can afford it.

   Sources: Health Care Acronyms; ACA coverage number-potential losses; Preexisting conditions estimate; Preexisting healthcare demographics; Number of women in United States; Census data

Drivers Education: An Entertainment Guide for Parents

   Perhaps you are approaching this milestone. Maybe you already have a fifteen or sixteen year old (who looks like they couldn't be more than eight) waving a permit at you, begging to sit behind the wheel of your car while you recall every questionable decision they have ever made. Like the time they thought it would be a good idea to sled down the basement stairs on a garbage can lid.

You may think drugs and alcohol might seem like a pretty good option for you.

Don't despair. It's not all bad. As a matter of fact, it can be kinda fun.

   How so? Let me share a few pointers that might make this a more enjoyable experience for you. Some were shared with me by other parents who have already passed this stage. Others I picked up on my own. Make sure your insurance is up to date.

   Let's start with the initial driving lesson; the first time you take your precious son or daughter out behind the wheel of the family vehicle. Drive out to a large, vacant lot (ideally one with NO LIGHT POLES). Change seats with your excited teen. Have them adjust the seat and mirrors. Be sure they are buckled in tightly. (Make a point of checking their seat belt for them.) Then, before they put the car in drive, calmly remind them they will be driving a $20,000 vehicle; one that your family relies on heavily for day to day activities like groceries and getting to practice and going to work; a vehicle that you cannot afford to replace should something happen.

   Feel free to increase the auto value if you have a more expensive vehicle or your if your offspring has no monetary clue. The bigger the sticker price, the wider their young eyes will grow. Make sure you tell them they are now mature members of society (you will have to practice this line in the mirror) and as such, you will expect them to take care of your vehicle. Explain that driving an automobile is a huge responsibility as it would take a lot of hours for them to earn enough money to replace it. Not only is it fun to see their facial expressions, but it will ensure that each stop sign they encounter will require five minutes of checking for cats, dogs, cars and non-existent pedestrians.

   Once they come out of shock, have your teen start the car and slowly drive back and forth in the parking lot. Alter whether they should turn right or left. Randomly pick parking spaces for them to park in and have them get out and walk around the car to check and see if they stayed within the lines. Set up a few cones and introduce them to parallel parking, having them do a walk around each time to check their progress. Make sure to keep your giggling quiet when they are out of the vehicle as sound can carry well through a closed window.

    Just when they start to feel confident, have them slowly drive backward around the lot. Remember, it is important you pick a lot with little or no light poles for this to be uneventful.

Do this until you can no longer contain your laughter. Angry teens are not good for cars.

Image by Lydia Bellamy-Palma - Contemplation

   This practice can extend into several driving lessons. Once you feel they have more or less grasped the basics of the car, it is time to try driving more advanced avenues. Cemeteries make an excellent option for the new drivers. Chances are if your teen runs over someone, they will already be dead! Try to choose cemeteries with flat headstones as they do less damage to vehicles.

   Once your teen has got the hang of turning, breaking and actually using the turn signal without looking down at the steering column, you are ready for real roads. Quiet roads with little traffic, like side streets are good starters. I recommend areas with lots of dead end streets. It is quite amusing to watch teens as they struggle to master the three point turn for the eighteenth consecutive time. When they start getting wise to the fact that all the choices you make are dead ends, it's probably time to move on.

   Now, switching gears from the quiet residential side streets where you have enjoyed terrorizing your neighbors and on to major thoroughfares, might sound a bit daunting at first. To help you through this hurdle, it is recommended to start combining driving practice with errand running. This ensures that not only will you get frequent breaks during the lesson, but that your teen will become familiar with all the stops you usually make during the week.  By the time they obtain their license, they should be well versed with the area and able to run all of your errands! Your body will begin producing natural endorphins just thinking about all the free time you will be gaining in the future.

   As they become more self-assured and their skills improve, you can now start to mix things up a bit. Like picking routes with lots of yield signs, or better yet, traffic circles - if your area offers them!

   At this stage of the game, make sure to take a few trips where you drive in heavy traffic on the highway. Be sure to point out all the difficulties to them. Watch the news together and focus on all the reported accidents. Then at intervals during driving practice, ask them if they think they are ready for expressways. Make sure you pass many entrance ramps during your trips together. Although you know they aren't ready and you really aren't going to do highways yet, they don't know that. It makes up for the time they pretended to eat ants.

   When your teen has finally acquired enough hours and experience, it is time to let them drive somewhere unfamiliar. Plan this trip for a day when you have a lot of time and pick up your favorite food and beverage before heading out so you won't get hungry or thirsty. Have your teen drive to a predetermined location taking a circuitous route laden with turns and frequent change of directions. Once you are sure they don't know where they are, tell them it is now their turn to find their way home from memory. Lean back in your seat and enjoy the ride. Watching individuals who proclaim to know everything struggle to differentiate between north and south is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

Remember, make the most of your teens driving time. Seldom will you have a captive audience again. It is an excellent time for discussion topics of your choice, introducing them to your taste in music, and grilling them on their activities.

Before you know it, these days will be over...

After which they are going to ask for the keys.

Meanwhile, just outside of Chicago...

   Since my husband was off work for the day, we thought we would spend a little time together at the Morton Arboretum. Nothing like a balmy 50 degree day in February to take a walk in the woods.

Nope, no global warming here!

   As we walked, we viewed wildlife around us. We were fortunate to see some Red Sparkled Ornaments that have not migrated yet. 

   We felt lucky to have spotted so many. Even saw one of the more rare Silver Crested Globes, but was unable to get a good picture to share. Maybe next time.

   Spotting these creatures in our area is uncommon this time of year, their food sources of gingerbread and candy cane often exhausted by this late date, but possibly the warmer weather brought them out.

   It was evident that other people are also enjoying the unseasonably warmer temperatures. This was one of several primitive structures we saw along the trail. Looks cozy!

Until next time...

Who stole my news!

   A growing number of people receive their news via electronic feeds. It's a testament to the expanding digital age. Some feeds come directly through news agencies from major networks such as ABC or WGN, while others are more generic feeds that will include news from various sources including Reuters, CNN, and NBC as well as editorial comments.

   For many, this is a more economical use of time. For me it's simply a self defense tactic. There is only so much sensationalism I can take. When I reach my limit (which is admittedly very low) I fail to absorb more information. I seldom survive broadcast news past the second story. Rather than be in the dark to the changing events of the world around me, I opt to pull my news out of a feed.

    The danger in using these tools to collect current events is customization. Typical feeds can be personalized to incorporate only the news and articles you want to collect from agencies you want to read or view, thus supporting your bias. To avoid this, I make an effort to select a variety of reputable sources to enrich my knowledge of current events. There is still a great deal of sensationalism, but it is tempered to a degree that allows me to gather news and still function.

   Typically the results are good, I generally receive news that both support and counter my own personal beliefs. But recently I noticed something was wrong with my open approach to gathering information. Some of the articles were disappearing from the news feed.

   This week I saw a headline for a news story about the GOP that alarmed me. Okay, I see lots of things in the news that alarm me. This article, however, was quietly tucked between big headlines about the national prayer meeting in which our president evidently prayed for a TV show (there was a great deal more to what he said, you can view the transcript through this link here) and what drug he takes to fend off hair loss (ummm, not sure how this is major headline news).

   Since I was pressed for time, I thought I would come back to read the story later. I suppose I should have bookmarked it, but I didn't. I didn't think I needed to, since it seemed of some importance on a national level. I was wrong. Returning to my feed a short while later , I found the article was gone, along with one other that I had chosen to bookmark. There were still "headline" stories about presidential hair loss drugs and what the POTUS signature says about him (hate to think about what my signature says about me), but the headline that had caught my attention had vanished.

It wasn't the first time I had seen this happen.

   Pushing my brain past projected conspiracy theories that now cropped up, I managed to recall that the headline mentioned GOP changing senate rules in regard to presidential picks. In light of other waivers being issued recently, this topic piqued my interest. I scrolled the entire feed, but to no avail. Had I imagined the story, or was the GOP so unimportant that it could not maintain national headlines?

   Not daunted, I did a few searches using Google and found the original New York Post article GOP changes Senate rules , approves cabinet pick. I also found the NPR article I had bookmarked, Senate Republicans defy Democrats' Boycott to Advance Trump Nominees. My desire to know more about the topic let to further investigation into articles that helped familiarize myself with the workings of our Senate and the rules passed by both parties in the past four years. It wasn't a flattering picture for any of the groups involved.

If I hadn't believed any of the conspiracy rumors before, I was now inclined to keep an open mind.

   Why had these and other articles "disappeared" while stories about hair care products and backlash stories about celebrity opinions had continued to abound? Now I can't help but wonder....

Who stole my news? And why?