Healthcare for everyone?

I already had a lengthy facebook discussion on this topic, but I really want to expand and hear everyone's thoughts.

As far as I'm concerned, when it comes to healthcare, politics should be the least of Americans' concerns.  First and foremost, our concern needs to lie with the actual HEALTH and CARE of our fellow Americans.  It should not matter which side of the political spectrum you fall on.  So far, choosing sides has accomplished nothing...unless you count arguments, bullheadedness and a blatant refusal to consider anything the other side has to say, simply because the "other side" said it. 

I heard a joke recently that, while amusing, ended up making me sad.  The joke is: What's the difference between politicians and infants?  Infants eventually grow up and stop crying.  The "funny" thing is, it just goes to show you what a joke our political system really is. 

(Side note: The same joke was made regarding kU basketball players.  Now THAT is funny.)

Healthcare reform is definitely offering change.  I don't think you have to choose a political side to want change.  You don't have to pick a "team" to want the best for everyone, even if they don't agree with your particular values.  Whatever happened to compromise and working together for the COMMON good, not the Democrat/Republican good?

I don't pretend to know everything about the bill that passed, but let me tell you what I do know: how it affects me and my family.

Maybe people with company health insurance don't realize what goes on when you actually own the company.  Let me tell you, it's not pretty!  The idea of providing incentives for small businesses to offer healthcare to their employees is a great one.  I guess a lot of people don't necessarily think of farmers as "small business owners," but that's the reality.  We reorganized our insurance last year and the result was less coverage for employees and paying for our own coverage rather than being covered by a corporate plan.  Do you guys even know how much coverage costs for a young, healthy married couple who isn't covered by a mass corporate plan?  I do!  Over $400 a month.  I thought those kinds of prices were reserved for the elderly and sick!  And if you want to have maternity coverage, which you better--just in case, you can go ahead and tack on almost $100 extra.  It's outrageous!

I also believe mandating that insurance companies cannot deny infants born with "pre-existing" conditions coverage is a fantastic idea.  I can't believe an infant can have a pre-existing condition to begin with, but if the insurance companies say they can, I say insurance companies need to have some regulations.  Most people have no idea what it costs to care for someone with even a "mild" pre-existing condition (like asthma) but I can tell you that it would make our current insurance plan look like a drop in the bucket.  If you want more details, Heather from Dooce.com has some excellent blogs regarding her personal experience with paying for children's health insurance once they have been deemed "high-risk" based on their "pre-existing conditions."  Scary!

On a mostly related note, I also think the part of this reform that bans insurance companies from kicking you off your plan just because you are unlucky enough to have recurring cancer or other extremely expensive medical issues, is a FANTASTIC one.  Maybe I'm missing something here but that just seems obvious.  And to be totally honest, I didn't even know insurance companies could do that, prior to this reform being passed.  What a disgrace!  As if you don't have enough problems dealing with a little thing like recurring cancer, they could kick you off your insurance and you could go bankrupt paying for treatment that may or may not work and could, in fact, kill you?  What an excellent idea!  Just in case anyone in the entire universe didn't know insurance companies were a-holes, that ought to clarify things.

So let's review my version of the new reform bill:
-Incentives for small business owners to offer healthcare to employees
-Mandatory coverage for people w/ pre-existing conditions (which, btw can include allergies)
-Insurance for people w/ recurring and expensive medical conditions

Is there anyone on Earth who doesn't think that sounds reasonable?  Look it doesn't matter what side of the spectrum I'm on...those things just make SENSE!  And isn't common sense the one thing Washington is missing?  Duh.

Granted, there are a lot of things I don't like about this bill.  I think everyone should have access to health care at a reasonable cost, with the same quality of treatment and doctors.  I don't think the government should require you to pay for health care...I just think you shouldn't be treated if you don't have it.  Why should the government be responsible for your poor judgement?  Most of all, I don't like the cost.  We are already trillions (that's TWELVE zeroes, people) of dollars in debt and this plan costs trillions more.  I understand better than most that you have to spend money to make money, but this is ridiculous. 

Instead of focusing on why everyone who doesn't agree with you is wrong and what you don't like about this plan, focus on coming up with concrete solutions and then DO SOMETHING about it.  Don't like how it went down?  Don't re-elect your representatives who passed it.

This bill isn't perfect.  We can ALL agree on that.  It's a start though. 

Soapbox, completed. 

South Beach, Day 1

201.6

TWO HUNDRED ONE POINT SIX POUNDS!

It seems a lot worse when you spell it out.

That is embarrassing.

Now, at the risk that I'm about to offend someone who weighs as much or more than me, let me add this disclaimer:
Any comments made about this number (my weight) are strictly in regards to ME, and should be regarded as such. ME. My height, frame, size, etc. ME. Not anyone else. Me. Ok. :)

Whew. Now I can "tell you how I really feel." Have I mentioned that I think that is one of the dumbest phrases I've ever heard? It annoys me just from a literal standpoint...because whenever someone says "tell me how you really feel," I usually just have. And yes, I get the sarcasm/irony and that that's why people say it. It's still stupid and redundant. Much like this blog some days... :)

So, here's how I really feel:
-Disgusted with myself
-Embarrassed that I let it go this far
-Curious about how long it will take to dump all this weight back off
-Shocked that I have gained 80 pounds since high school graduation. 80. EIGHTY. 8-0. Holy shit! (Granted, as anyone who knew me then can attest, I was so thin that several people thought I might have a problem...so I needed to gain a little weight...guess I took that a little too far, huh?)

I've never read The Secret, but I do believe in the power of positive thinking and "positive self-talk," so I'm done beating myself up about being a lazy fat ass now. :)

In some ways, I'm actually really fortunate that I used to be excruciatingly thin and can remember what it's like. I see so many women who have struggled with weight issues their entire lives, and they have no idea what it's like to have FUN shopping, because things actually fit you, and don't cling to your belly button. (Man does that suck. I am so fucking sick of seeing my belly button through all my shirts, I could scream! There are not enough spanx in the world to hold that sucker in.) Anyway, I imagine it would be extra hard to stay motivated when you have worked so hard for so long and gotten nowhere...especially having no real idea what it's like once you lose the weight. At least I KNOW how much better it will be and can use that to my advantage.

Talking about spanx reminds me...I read an interview with Gwyneth Paltrow after one of her children was born, and she was talking about how she looked so good after having a baby...she was wearing one spanx on top of the other...under EVERY outfit.

Let me reiterate...Gwyneth Paltrow, one of the thinnest women on Earth is wearing two sets of spanx with every outfit. And her photos get airbrushed before we see them. If that doesn't make you feel a little better about yourself, I don't know what will.

Day 2 is coming shortly, pray for me.

Dear Women...

My sister and I went to see Britney Spears at Allstate Arena this past Tuesday. She was awesome! We were pleasantly surprised to see more adults there than teenyboppers. The Pussycat Dolls opened the show and they were great! I'd heard good things from friends who've seen their Vegas show, but this was truly amazing. They even performed a song from Slumdog Millionaire. As for Britney, her concert was everything a person could want in a performance...acrobats, ninjas, muscle men, hula hoop girls, clowns (could've done w/o them!), midgets, music, dancing, singing (and yes, some lip-synching, though, watching how much energy she puts into her dancing, you can hardly blame her) and more! All in all, she put on a hell of a show.

It wasn't all fun and games, however, at the Britney concert. Between the PCD opening performance and Britney's, the woman seated next to me started up a conversation. I'd guess her to be about 35. We chatted for awhile and seemed to be having a normal conversation, right up until she asked me when my baby is due!!!!! Yes, you read that correctly. A COMPLETE STRANGER asked me when my baby is due. Let me just state this for the record (I'll even enlarge it and change the color to be 100% clear, since it is apparently not already obvious...):

I AM NOT NOW, NOR HAVE I EVER BEEN, PREGNANT!

Geez. All the women out there, I know you can relate to how irritating it is to spend forever contemplating your outfit, hair, makeup, shoes, jewelry & etc., only to have someone make a rude and ridiculous comment like that.

The annoyance of having wasted so much time w/ my (clearly not as flattering as I thought) outfit, however, is the least of my worries. First off, I'd like to know how many other people wondered if I was preggo and didn't say anything. Actually, I bet I don't want to know! Secondly, what kind of moron asks a COMPLETE STRANGER if they are pregnant? And for a woman to ask...that's a double dumbass whammy! Seriously...let's just assume for a second that the situation were reversed, and I was the idiot asking this strange woman about the condition of her uterus. What if this woman just had a miscarriage? Just what this poor woman would want, to have to explain to a total stranger that actually, she was pregnant, but lost the baby. Right. What if she has a tumor? (Yes, I actually do know someone who had a tumor and was constantly barraged w/ questions about when she was due.) What if she can't have children? That's probably the ultimate worst-case scenario, but, I have another friend who is having a hard time starting a family, and if someone ever asked her when she was due, I don't think any court would hold her accountable for her actions.

The BEST- (if there can be a best) case scenario is perhaps this woman just carries her weight around the gut and I've just totally embarrassed her, and reminded her that maybe she's not quite as cute as she thought. Back to reality: this is the category I fall into.

I'll admit, I am NOWHERE near my high school graduation weight, nor am I very close to my college graduation weight (graduation was almost 4 yrs ago, for those keeping track). I have been very irresponsible with my food choices, lack of exercise/movement in general. Not that I don't move at all...I will definitely jump once in awhile...for a falling wine glass. :)

What's the point of all this whining? It's time to do something about it. I don't want to be asked again when I'm due until the day comes when I am actually pregnant. And let me tell you...that will be awhile! But hey, at least I know what 60 extra lbs. feels/looks like...and at least then I will have an excuse! :)

This weekend is my last bad-eating, no-exercising, lazy ass weekend. Starting Monday, I will go back to the South Beach Diet, as it has worked well for me in the past (until I totally ignored all the rules!), and I will be monitoring my progress via Growing On Goofy. Please keep up with me and keep me motivated. My theory is, if I'm already embarrassed by my weight, maybe a public announcement of that big nasty number (my current weight) will be enough motivation to stick with this lifestyle change. Adam is joining me on this plan, only via a modified version for lunches, as it's difficult to cook in a tractor. Hopefully this will make things easier for both of us.

So please stay tuned for Monday's starting weight and a little more about my plan to shed it. Don't worry, I promise not to bore anyone with the details of every meal I eat or mile I walk. No one would read it if I blogged about it anyway! I know I wouldn't.

One final note though...especially for all the women reading this...can we all just band together and PROMISE not to ever ask a woman if she's pregnant/when she is due, unless and until you know this person and are 100% positive she is pregnant? It would save a lot of unnecessarily hurt feelings and embarrassment on both sides. Thanks.