Running around

I really ought to be coming home from tonight’s free Neko Case concert in Central Park. Alas, it was not to be for several reasons including the heavy storm that was supposed to fall today (which didn’t), and the lack of reliable and accessible bus service at this time of the night. (The steam pipe explosion on Wednesday made the latter problem many times worse than usual).

But more than anything it was the very stressing and tiring days today and yesterday that have just about knocked me out.

Yesterday I was at the Hospital for Joint Diseases all day in order to take care of some urgent problems with my health insurance and to accompany my bros to their respective appointments at muscle clinic. Besides being on the road for roughly a dozen hours the main problem ad to do with the changes with Medicaid and related health care that have made things fast more difficult for my brothers and me. For instance, whereas before I could just make an appointment to muscle clinic or equipment clinic with little trouble now I have to got through the rigmarole of filling it paperwork and getting referrals from my primary care physician. Perhaps I’m making it seem like before it was as simple as snapping one’s fingers but it feels that was compared to the current feeling of having to jump through a myriad of hoops.

Making things worse was the lack of accurate answers by the staff at the hospital. I talked to three different people regarding my situation and I received three distinct replies. It was as if more red tape was being added to the already growing mountain of confusion and complexity.

Oy vey!

Below are a pair of pics taken yesterday, first of my brother Jonathan then of mom and Kevin:

Today was not as difficult and harried, thankfully. I woke up at before dawn and went with Kevin and mom to the dentist. Unfortunately, some miscommunication nearly derailed my trip as I was not scheduled to be seen today. Mercifully, there were some early morning cancellations so Kevin and I got our teeth thoroughly cleaned by a very kind albeit slightly sadistic dental hygienist. Unfortunately for me, it was not my usual hygienist which was too bad since I really like to see/chat/lightly flirt with her. Oh well.

Afterwards we decided to celebrate Colombian Independence Day in our own low-key, simple way by having a killer breakfast at a cozy Colombian bakery on 46^th Street and Queens Boulevard:

Chicharron, chorizo, coffee, arepas, corn mazitas.

The perfect remedy for our heady minds, tired bodies, and growling stomachs.

The rest of the morning was spent on running a few errands (e.g. supermarket, Kevin’s haircut) before returning home. I took this pic while taking a quick breather on the street outside the barbershop:

So yes, I did miss going to the concert tonight and I know I would’ve enjoyed it thoroughly. However, I’m getting some much needed downtime at home which will definitely come in handy since I’ll be playing catch-up with some pending work and even more appointments await me next week.

C’est la vie, non?

MP3: Neko Case -Bowling Green (Live, 2000)

MP3: Neko Case - I Wish I Was the Moon Tonight (Live, April 2006)