Updates
So, apparently, my insurance got a $1200+ discount on my MRI. That cut the bill down to about $427, $200 of which they paid. I'm stuck with the rest of it, since I hadn't hit my $300 deductible for the year yet, so they won't pay the 70% they normally would. It's kind of a hard thing to expect me to hit that number considering how I barely got my insurance in about September. It would be nice if they'd prorate that or something . . . even $150 would be very, very nice.
Anyway, I also got an explanation of how much they paid my physical therapist, and how much I'm responsible for. I've been paying co-pays at every visit based off what the insurance lady there figured I'd end up paying in the end, so I'm wondering if they took that into account. Hopefully, the therapist sent them the entire bill rather than whatever was left over after my co-payments. Anyway, all the stuff the insurance company sent me said "This is not a bill," so I'm just going to sit tight until someone out there sends me an actual bill. Unless it's a bill for $1639, of course. ^^
Last Monday was the last of the 16 physical therapy sessions my insurance would cover for the calendar year. I'm feeling a lot, lot better now, and my therapist could tell. He said I didn't need any more sessions, but I should continue doing my stretches and exercises to make sure that I heal 100% and prevent future damage. I've been good about that so far. My back still aches a bit--actually, I'm noticing it a lot more than I did before my therapy started. But I think that might be because the intense pain in my leg took my mind off anything else. My back pain was always an afterthought when speaking with my doctor and therapist. So, it was rather frustrating at first when they were focusing so much on my back. But it definitely was the cause of my pain, so I've got to give my medical professionals some props.
My search for a good dog continues. When I chatted with a few of you a while back, there was a particular dog I had applied for through a rescue organization. It was a terrible experience! I suppose my first sign should have been when I sent in my application via email, and did not hear anything back for over a week. Thinking maybe I had failed to fill some vital line of the form in, I opened the application on my computer. Well, tried. It was corrupt! Okay, that's my fault for not checking the application, but seriously, a quick email telling me that it wouldn't open would have been nice. So, anyway, I send a general inquiry to the main office, and resent the email to the volunteer in charge of the dog I'm interested in. She replies within an hour, telling me she's sending the information on to the foster parents. Alright, now the ball's rolling! Only, not.
Another week passes. It's Thanksgiving week, so I'll cut them some slack. I send another inquiry to the main email address (the first one never got answered) giving them the dates I sent stuff in (and telling them that the volunteer I communicated with said she was going to pass the application on to the foster parents), and asking how long the adoption process usually takes. I just wanted to know if I should be contacting the volunteer in charge of my dog again. If it usually takes that long, fine. I'm willing to wait. I told them that. Never get an answer back from the main email. Instead, I get a very huffy answer back from the volunteer I had exchanged emails with before, who I had initially sent my application to. She said something like, "I did give your application to the foster parents. I'll forward your information again." Now, I'm a little sensitive to language and its nuances. She didn't say, "I passed your application on, let me look into it." She said "I did." That's defensive language. She obviously felt that I was accusing her of not doing it. I wasn't. I figured she had, which is why I contacted the main email address. I figured since she'd done her part, she probably didn't know how far along in the process the foster parents were. Since I had no way to contact the fosters, all I could really do is find out how long the process usually takes. I never did get an answer to that question, by the way.
I don't get any more contact for another week. Finally, I get an email on Monday (sent Sunday) from one of the fosters; it's titled "adoption." I get really excited, thinking things are finally moving along, and I'll be able to meet the dog to see if his energy is a good fit for me, and interview with the fosters to see if my lifestyle is a good fit for him. Not even close. I can't have the dog. They won't even consider me. Why? Because I have no other dogs, and I'm not home 24/7. He literally said that the dog had been around people or dogs 24/7, and he was afraid that the dog would get bored. Also, I don't have a doggie door, and the foster home does. So, he wouldn't be able to go in and out on his own all day. 0.0 I literally sat there and bawled my eyes out. Seriously, there is maybe a total of 9 hours a week when either my sister or I aren't at home. Most of those hours are early morning hours, meaning that the dog would probably be asleep, anyway. If they'd actually talked to me rather than relying on a stupid form, maybe they'd know that!!! And . . . why did it take them almost three and a half weeks to give me such a check-box rejection! It did not sound like more than a 5 minute decision! They didn't even suggest a better dog for me from their shelter!
So, I went to the pound on Monday with my sister. Saw two dogs that I like, maybe three. Though, the third was whining quite a bit to get attention, and I'm not sure how hard that habit would be to break. One was absolutely adorable, and when I got home, I figured out that he might be a Alopekis or a Meliteo Kinidio (Small Greek House Dog). He'd been brought in as a stray with no tags, which means he wasn't up for adoption. The shelter's policy is to hold the dog for four days, then put it up for adoption if he passes his behavioral tests. This dog probably will--he seemed very calm and curious. I also saw a dog that was marked as a mix between a Corgi and a German Shepard. He didn't look to be much bigger than a typical Corgi, though. He was black and tan, though Corgis come in those colors, too. My only worry with him would be that the German Shepard (if he truly has some in him) will make him a bit bigger. He was about as big as I wanted to get in a dog.
Yesterday, I went out and bought three food dishes (I happened to see some of the kind I was looking for earlier at Ross) for about $5. It would have cost me well over $20 to get the same kind at a pet store. Also bought a baby gate to block off our living room, since the Christmas tree is in there. I figure $27 is better than hundreds or thousands at the emergency vet when my dog eats a Christmas ornament. -_-
Anyway, I'm heading back in a little while to see the dogs again. I hope the little stray is still there.
I woke up early enough this morning to see the sunrise. It was slightly overcast, so it was very beautiful. That's one thing I miss about living down in Rio Rico. We always had the most beautiful sunsets down there, mostly because there were little groups of clouds more often. Also, we didn't have all the houses blocking our view, since we lived on a hill. I took a couple of pictures this morning--maybe I'll post them later.
I've got about five or six job applications to fill out, too. Busy, busy! ^_^
Anyway, I also got an explanation of how much they paid my physical therapist, and how much I'm responsible for. I've been paying co-pays at every visit based off what the insurance lady there figured I'd end up paying in the end, so I'm wondering if they took that into account. Hopefully, the therapist sent them the entire bill rather than whatever was left over after my co-payments. Anyway, all the stuff the insurance company sent me said "This is not a bill," so I'm just going to sit tight until someone out there sends me an actual bill. Unless it's a bill for $1639, of course. ^^
Last Monday was the last of the 16 physical therapy sessions my insurance would cover for the calendar year. I'm feeling a lot, lot better now, and my therapist could tell. He said I didn't need any more sessions, but I should continue doing my stretches and exercises to make sure that I heal 100% and prevent future damage. I've been good about that so far. My back still aches a bit--actually, I'm noticing it a lot more than I did before my therapy started. But I think that might be because the intense pain in my leg took my mind off anything else. My back pain was always an afterthought when speaking with my doctor and therapist. So, it was rather frustrating at first when they were focusing so much on my back. But it definitely was the cause of my pain, so I've got to give my medical professionals some props.
My search for a good dog continues. When I chatted with a few of you a while back, there was a particular dog I had applied for through a rescue organization. It was a terrible experience! I suppose my first sign should have been when I sent in my application via email, and did not hear anything back for over a week. Thinking maybe I had failed to fill some vital line of the form in, I opened the application on my computer. Well, tried. It was corrupt! Okay, that's my fault for not checking the application, but seriously, a quick email telling me that it wouldn't open would have been nice. So, anyway, I send a general inquiry to the main office, and resent the email to the volunteer in charge of the dog I'm interested in. She replies within an hour, telling me she's sending the information on to the foster parents. Alright, now the ball's rolling! Only, not.
Another week passes. It's Thanksgiving week, so I'll cut them some slack. I send another inquiry to the main email address (the first one never got answered) giving them the dates I sent stuff in (and telling them that the volunteer I communicated with said she was going to pass the application on to the foster parents), and asking how long the adoption process usually takes. I just wanted to know if I should be contacting the volunteer in charge of my dog again. If it usually takes that long, fine. I'm willing to wait. I told them that. Never get an answer back from the main email. Instead, I get a very huffy answer back from the volunteer I had exchanged emails with before, who I had initially sent my application to. She said something like, "I did give your application to the foster parents. I'll forward your information again." Now, I'm a little sensitive to language and its nuances. She didn't say, "I passed your application on, let me look into it." She said "I did." That's defensive language. She obviously felt that I was accusing her of not doing it. I wasn't. I figured she had, which is why I contacted the main email address. I figured since she'd done her part, she probably didn't know how far along in the process the foster parents were. Since I had no way to contact the fosters, all I could really do is find out how long the process usually takes. I never did get an answer to that question, by the way.
I don't get any more contact for another week. Finally, I get an email on Monday (sent Sunday) from one of the fosters; it's titled "adoption." I get really excited, thinking things are finally moving along, and I'll be able to meet the dog to see if his energy is a good fit for me, and interview with the fosters to see if my lifestyle is a good fit for him. Not even close. I can't have the dog. They won't even consider me. Why? Because I have no other dogs, and I'm not home 24/7. He literally said that the dog had been around people or dogs 24/7, and he was afraid that the dog would get bored. Also, I don't have a doggie door, and the foster home does. So, he wouldn't be able to go in and out on his own all day. 0.0 I literally sat there and bawled my eyes out. Seriously, there is maybe a total of 9 hours a week when either my sister or I aren't at home. Most of those hours are early morning hours, meaning that the dog would probably be asleep, anyway. If they'd actually talked to me rather than relying on a stupid form, maybe they'd know that!!! And . . . why did it take them almost three and a half weeks to give me such a check-box rejection! It did not sound like more than a 5 minute decision! They didn't even suggest a better dog for me from their shelter!
So, I went to the pound on Monday with my sister. Saw two dogs that I like, maybe three. Though, the third was whining quite a bit to get attention, and I'm not sure how hard that habit would be to break. One was absolutely adorable, and when I got home, I figured out that he might be a Alopekis or a Meliteo Kinidio (Small Greek House Dog). He'd been brought in as a stray with no tags, which means he wasn't up for adoption. The shelter's policy is to hold the dog for four days, then put it up for adoption if he passes his behavioral tests. This dog probably will--he seemed very calm and curious. I also saw a dog that was marked as a mix between a Corgi and a German Shepard. He didn't look to be much bigger than a typical Corgi, though. He was black and tan, though Corgis come in those colors, too. My only worry with him would be that the German Shepard (if he truly has some in him) will make him a bit bigger. He was about as big as I wanted to get in a dog.
Yesterday, I went out and bought three food dishes (I happened to see some of the kind I was looking for earlier at Ross) for about $5. It would have cost me well over $20 to get the same kind at a pet store. Also bought a baby gate to block off our living room, since the Christmas tree is in there. I figure $27 is better than hundreds or thousands at the emergency vet when my dog eats a Christmas ornament. -_-
Anyway, I'm heading back in a little while to see the dogs again. I hope the little stray is still there.
I woke up early enough this morning to see the sunrise. It was slightly overcast, so it was very beautiful. That's one thing I miss about living down in Rio Rico. We always had the most beautiful sunsets down there, mostly because there were little groups of clouds more often. Also, we didn't have all the houses blocking our view, since we lived on a hill. I took a couple of pictures this morning--maybe I'll post them later.
I've got about five or six job applications to fill out, too. Busy, busy! ^_^