Enemy of Entropy
And That’s the Week
I consider Sunday the first day of the week, rather than the last.
It was a week full of appointments for the girl, and getting paperwork shuffled to various bureaucracies. Sam and I had lovely dates Wednesday and tonight, although both of us were so exhausted Wednesday that we turned in much earlier than usual.
Friday, I was supposed to take Katie to an appointment, and woke up with one of those migraines – the sort that tempt you to take an axe to your neck to make it better. I lost the vision in my right eye, which happens with the really bad ones. This appointment had been scheduled for three or four months, and rescheduling it would mean another delay of at least that long. But when the vision just isn’t there on one side, and isn’t trustworthy on the other, driving is a Bad Idea.
My hero moved heaven and earth to dash home (via MARTA!, which was quite a feat) and take the girl to her appointment. There was some brief nonsense there at the office over Sam’s relationship to Katie 1 but it all worked out.
Well all really, really disliked the other doctor Katie had been seeing in this specialty, and the new lady was totally different. She was also completely on the same page as we are about medications. Another specialist has been very gradually changing Katie’s migraine medications, and the poor kid has had so many bad/weird medication reactions in her life that it’s even more important to make one change at time with her than for most patients. That’s the rational approach, anyway, when you’re trying to monitor the effects of a change. Right?
Well, the old doctor seemed to have some bee in her bonnet about “polypharmacy,” and kept wanting to change or just take the girl off meds that have managed a chronic illness for years. Not because the illness has gone away, no – just “because,” or at least we couldn’t ever get anything more specific out of her. She ignored everything Katie and I said, and Sam only dealt with her slightly better due to his years of living with that psychotic hellbeast to whom he was married.
The doctor also refused to accept the diagnoses with which Katie arrived at her practice, or do a thorough evaluation of her own. When she claimed, “I see no sign of X,” Katie said, “um, what about (symptoms A-G).” The bitch actually said, “Oh, that’s just textbook.” Excuse me? That’s because she fits that diagnosis, you crazy old twit!
Oh – we also had trouble just seeing the old doctor. One time, we showed up and were informed that she was “out of the country” and had been for several days, due to a death in the family. So, whose covering her patients for her? Nobody. Why didn’t they call us to cancel or change the appointment? There were too many appointments to call everybody. Oh, that’s professional. Yep, a death in the family is a legitimate crisis, but medical professionals make arrangements in advance in case of such things2.
Anyway, we won’t have to worry about the crabby old beast again! The only thing good about that office was its proximity. Since the new doctor is happy to just see her patients every three months instead of monthly, and gives them refills for that period, the fact that her office is a little further away isn’t a big deal.
So that’s something improved. Yay!
Our A/C quit today. It has been limping anyway, and obviously, we’re not anywhere near the real heat of the summer yet. Sam changed the filter last night 3, and the system worked a tiny bit better, but not enough. Then it just died this morning. Sam called the landlord, who sent out their handyman, and we were told that the compressor was dead. The handyman said he “might” have a spare compressor 4, and if he does he’ll come back Sunday to install it.
We haven’t been sleeping well due to the heat even with the A/C on, so Sam picked up some things and installed a window unit in our bedroom. It is beautifully icy in there now! That is, of course, the best temperature for sleeping, especially if you want to cuddle or otherwise have skin-to-skin contact.
Other than our bedroom and Katie’s room5678
1 No, he isn’t her biofather, but I’ve given him all manner of “authorization to obtain medical treatment” and “power of attorney” forms and so on, and nobody’s raised a fuss in the past that I can recall.
2 Especially when, as we learned was the case, they have elderly, ailing family members in other countries who might kick off at any bloody moment. The death couldn’t be considered a “surprise” in any practical sense.
3 we do it monthly, even though the filters we buy say they’re good for three months
4 Odd thing to have around, isn’t it? I mean, there are lots of different models of A/C systems, and that isn’t a one-size-fits-all part, as I understand it.
5 which has had a window unit since 2006
6 , the house is steamy. It isn’t nearly as hot outside as it is in here. This place just holds heat awfully well, for whatever reason.
7 We hardly used the heat at all this winter, because we didn’t need it. We disputed the September or October gas bill and got a refund that left us with a credit balance ’til April!
8 So I hope the shade-tree mechanic, as Daddy would call him, does show up to get it all working on Sunday. I’m less than thrilled that Mr. Obviously-Not-EPA-Certified runs around handling freon, but that’s beyond our control.
Comments are closed.
