Journal

It's been a long time since the last update. I have survived the move from Maryland to Florida and I am still trying to get settled. I had a very hard time getting my health insurance transferred to Florida, and when it finally did get changed, I found I had to wait a long time (October to January) to even see my primary care physician. On my first visit, I discovered that she does not prescribe narcotic pain medications. I requested a referral to pain management and had to wait 3 weeks for the appointment. When I got there, I found out the pain management does not prescribe narcotic pain meds either. I only take low doses of the medications, since that's all I can tolerate without bad side effects, but at this point I was getting desperate because I was running out of medication even though I was taking less than I was prescribed in order to make it last. The pain management doctor referred me to a medication management doctor who would not give me an appointment until the end of April. They told me it was my primary care doctor's responsibility to prescribe my pain meds which she would not do. So I called my insurance company to find another pain management doctor that would prescribe pain medication. Finally on February 20, I got my pain medication. I also got a referral to a neurosurgeon for my lower back problem. My neurosurgeon in Maryland had already recommended a laminectomy for L2-L5.I have an appointment with the Florida neurosurgeon for April 15. I hope maybe he can suggest something that will work for both my stenosis and my retrolisthesis, as the pain is getting worse despite my move to better living consitions.

Since I moved into my new house premanently, I have discovered it has a lot of problems that I did not know about when I bought it. The house is barely 4 years old, but the garage door opener does not work and I am physically unable to open it manually, the master bath shower has a leak I have not been able to find but that caused the linoleum to peel up, and I have yet to get the pool working. The first problem I found was that the pool did not hold wate. I paid someone to fix the leak, but it still would not hold water until I drained it and found a crack in it. (My pool is fiberglass which should not be drained, which is why I did not try that first.) I had someone come and fix the crack. In the meantime, I found that the motor on the pool pump had glass in it and was burned up, so I had to replace it. I don't know for sure yet if it will work, or if there is another problem somewhere in the system since I have been feeling too bad to clean the dirt off the bottom and fill it with water.Hopefully, I will be able to get my house problems resolved soon. I am very grateful that I don't also have to struggle to work in addition to all of this.

I am so angry and frustrated with the economy and the corporate and investor greed in this country! I just read a news report from Reuters and this is what it said

Over 96 percent of U.S. Gulf oil production and 82 percent of natural gas output had been closed as of Sunday afternoon, the U.S. Minerals Management Service said.

The Gulf normally pumps 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil, a quarter of all U.S. production, and 7.4 billion cubic feet of natural gas, about 15 percent of domestic output.

At least nine refineries with a combined capacity of 2.2 million bpd, or 12.5 percent of U.S. refining capacity, were being shut along the south Louisiana coast ahead of Gustav's projected arrival west of New Orleans on Monday.

Other refineries were reducing processing rates and further shutdowns were possible.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita wrecked more than 100 oil platforms in 2005, shutting down a quarter of U.S. oil production and closing several large refineries for months. Analysts have warned Gustav could deal a harsher blow and potentially send oil prices up $10 a barrel or more.

The New York Mercantile Exchange opened its electronic trading platform earlier than normal on Sunday to allow traders to adjust positions ahead of the arrival of the hurricane.

U.S. crude oil futures were up $1.70 at $117.16 a barrel as of 4:35 p.m. EDT after rising as much as $3.14.

It is not enough for investors and profiteers to raise prices and gouge the common people durning the weekdays? Why do they have to open up the Mercantile Exchange on a Sunday just so they can increase prices????? Is there no limit to profiteering??

Will someone please tell me why this needs to happen?