Read a posting on FB supposedly by an ER nurse describing a patient with tattoos, a gold tooth and an expensive cell phone. Patient reported smoking more than a pack of cigarettes a day and consuming beer and pretzels. The payer for the patients care in the ER was Medicaid.  The point of the nurses story was that we as a people need to be responsible for our own care and I couldn't agree more. I am concerned that as a people we are ready to "throw the baby out with the bath water " when it comes to the many entitlement programs that we can no longer afford.  Medicaid, Food stamps, housing assistance, heating assistance were meant to help the helpless. Unfortunately we have many of those in our country.  As a nurse who has worked with patients who receive Medicaid I can tell you that there are many folks who receive Medicaid and these other benefits because there would be no other way to afford any level of health care. Without Medicaid many of these folks would not survive.
When these programs were established I believe they were created with mostly good intentions but without the benefit of a crystal ball no one was able to predict the wide spread misuse that would also be created.  At the very bottom line I believe we are faced with 2 options. A smaller government that reduces these benefits drastically and forces people to figure out their own needs or a much larger government that keeps the benefits as is but creates many, many  government jobs and tighter oversight to make sure that fraud is reduced and that truly needy people receive the help they need.  This  decision is the job of our elected officials. God bless.

What next?

Here I am trying to decide what do I want to do with the rest of my life? I never really thought seriously about where and what I would be doing at this stage of my life. I have been married for 40 plus years to a man who has kept things interesting, to say the least. He has reached the point where he is looking to change his life , leave the world behind and enjoy the years that he has left. He always thought that he would die young and now that he is approaching 60 he wants to spend the years he has left enjoying the good life. Certainly he has worked for the right to do so. He has always been the decision maker in our relationship but now seems to be struggling with all the choices. I on the other hand have never really thought about what I would want to do if I ever retired. I have aways seen myself continuing to work, maybe part-time or volunteering more to stay connected with the world and to give purpose to my day, living in a smaller home, in an area not too different or far from where I am now. My husband on the other hand is dreaming about running away and living the life of a world traveler and beach bum. There is no doubt that we both want to be together so somehow we will need to find the right plan for us. Where can I find the how to book?

And it begins

Okay- so this is blogging? Not sure if this is going to be for me but I guess I'll give it a try. It reminds me of children when they learn to write their name. They will write it on anything even if it means getting into trouble. I have always thought that it is a way of letting the world know that they exist. Do I exist? Usually I think so, but maybe by writing this blog it will give me tangible proof.

Just this week my mother died. Not really surprising she was 92 and I am almost 60. What strikes me is that I have made my way to the top branch of our family tree. There is no family member left between myself and eternity, perhaps that is why there is this need to see tangible proof of my existence.