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**richb** · Jan 21, 2014, 03:48 PM

I am not a hardware or software guru either but not a reason to not stick around and post something here everyday.
i am a left of center type who hangs around almost exclusively with Conservatives. We end up having some interesting conversations, and only one of my golf associates ever got really angry with me. That was when Obama won his second term. He did not talk to me for two months. I broke the ice by buying him a drink and hugging him. We can all get along,

Hope your prospects brighten.

**dibl** · Jan 21, 2014, 04:18 PM

I've always liked you Woody, even if I didn't comprehend all of your stream-of-hallucination treatises.

I'm 63 and happily (if not richly) retired now, but it would not take too many twists of fate to put me in line behind you at the application desk for aspiring greeters.

Be well.

**oshunluvr** · Jan 21, 2014, 04:44 PM

Sorry to hear of this turn for you Woody. I hope your "bad mood" passes as quickly as a rum-n-coke induced hangover and you're right back here confusing and confounding many of us again! Good luck and God speed.

**Snowhog** · Jan 21, 2014, 10:04 PM

Woody@

We all have to take stalk of life now and a'gin (maybe while partaking of a Tonic and Gin), so I can understand. That you find yourself in a 'bad mood', I send you my condolences; been there, done that.

As a member of KFN, you have been, well, hmm, how do I say it, "different". But, being different isn't a bad thing, nor I guess, is it a good thing. Being different is, well just being yourself. If we were all alike, how boring a world it would be!!

There is no requirement to be a "productive member" here in KFN. Many who come here do so to "get something" with no desire to "give something". Give. Take. Don't give. Don't take. What ever floats ones boat is, what floats their boat.

So, you are welcome, even if at times you rankle some of us. Who hasn't? I know I have.

**life0riley** · Jan 22, 2014, 12:46 AM

woodsmoke,

I've only been here about a year. I've followed a lot of threads and contributed where I can. Certain members stand out and you are definitely one of them. It's OK to ruffle some feathers from time to time as long we are respectful. I apologize if any of my replies were short and terse. I've enjoyed your posts and have bookmarked some of the threads. I never put a label on you and frankly it doesn't matter to me. I hope things start to look up for you soon.

**Feathers McGraw** · Jan 22, 2014, 02:58 AM

Woody,

I'm here for 2 things: tech support (in which I am most certainly a leech... most of my questions aren't even strictly speaking about Kubuntu!) and interesting conversation.

Having you around certainly makes for more interesting conversation. I (as one of the "liberals" you mentioned) enjoy having a range of views on the forum: if all you ever do is talk to people you agree with then you never learn anything!

So, I agree with Snowhog, although a "Tonic and Gin" suggests more tonic than gin, which is my only point of contention!

Stick around mate

Feathers

**MoonRise** · Jan 22, 2014, 06:06 AM

Woodsmoke, don't go too far. We're here and still love the perspectives you provide. It makes us as a forum talk. As it should as a whole and of which you are a part.

**GreyGeek** · Jan 22, 2014, 06:50 AM

"Socially liberal, financially conservative... somewhat of a libertarian"
That pretty well describes me, except that I hate any political party, philosophy or organization which is trying to destroy the Constitution and/or extort money from citizens, which is turning out to be most Democrat and RHINO politicians, and most corporations.

I, too, am retired, but not richly so. In today's financial environment it wouldn't take too much of a disaster to put any retiree in the Chinamart job line. Like having a fixed annuity with rising costs of living, or an SSI benefit with a fraction of a percent COL raise while the real COL is rising at double digit rates. Having a medical crisic that one's health insurance plan won't cover. For example, a year before I retired my wife had open heart surgery. The hospital bill alone, for 9 days, came to $348,000. My out of pocket costs were less than $5,000. With my current Human PPO "Advantage" plan such a medical necessity would reduce us to eating beans and rice for the rest of our lives, and shopping at GoodWill for cloths. Having Medicare is like having no insurance at all because very, very few doctors will take a person with only medicare on as a patient.

Fortunately, my annuitiy wasn't being funded by Bernie Maddof's "investments", nor did we lose our house when the housing bubble put so many home owners under water and onto the street.

**richb** · Jan 22, 2014, 07:00 AM

Having Medicare is like having no insurance at all because very, very few doctors will take a person with only medicare on as a patient.

Have to disagree with that statement
Then the list of 100's of Doctors accepting my Medicare Advantage PPO plan is wrong?

**Qqmike** · Jan 22, 2014, 07:09 AM

streams of consciousness ... dibl, as is so often the case, we are on about the same page with your comment "I've always liked you Woody [well, it is NOT the case that I do NOT like you], even if I didn't comprehend all of your stream-of-hallucination treatises. I'm 63 [64] and happily (if not richly) [semi-] retired now, but it would not take too many twists of fate to put me in line behind you at the application desk for aspiring greeters." Be well. [I would expand this "be well" part.]

Some of your posts make people want to fight, or at least argue. And people love to do that, fight & argue, that is; or, at least to rant their own views of goodness & rightness. And I think the mods have kept things fairly civil here, if not unfairly civil. ;-) This CAN be trying. Recently, I fell out of sync/communication with a pal who insisted on holding up Rush L. as an example of speaking the facts, the truth, having a multi-million dollar empire, with x thousands of listeners, ... I didn't even bother directing him to the de-bunking sites on the maniac. But I did step aside (out of) the weekly communications. That was four months ago. Live and let live.

Be well. Not good to be alone. You can live alone, but not be alone. Even if the social-fix is controlled, 'measured' (somewhere on the interval 0% to 100% time spent per day with people somehow, counting phone calls, Skype, chats, email, or in person, even with strangers you run into in the stores). You sound like a helper. Pay attention to that and find someone to help/teach/mentor.

As for bad moods, I'm suspicious of people who are even-keeled. Not suspicious. I mean to say they are boring; I dare say they are not the most creative, productive, imaginative people amongst us. I think you gotta be a little crazy to be OK and thrive and create. Of course, you know this if you've ever hung out with intelligent, creative types, whether artists or mathematicians--I've known many of both. Moods are part of it. Often there's a message in the mood, whether it be a down mood, bad mood, or anxious mood: pay attention to it and see what it's trying to tell you (usually to do something, move, take a risk, modify the path, change something, and such).

As for money ... I suspect most of us could write many pages of posts on this. What I know is that people are not as helpless and they may feel. There are many legal ways to make money. Hell, this is America, damn it. Think: small, cash side-line, hobby?, service?, make/import/sell a product? Look at all the really crazy businesses people are starting on-line. People often say that going it alone, self employed, is difficult. Taking a job and working for someone is a way -- but imo it is very much more difficult ... showing up for work, doing what they tell you, dealing with people's personalities, what a hassle! Think options, possibilities.

And, finally, not that you asked for any of this arm-chair psych sh* (guess I'm in an up/manic mood this morning), the very first thing I thought of reading your post was "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff ... and it's all small stuff." A friend recently gave me tons of neat, expensive, even rare, books from his aunt's estate after she passed away. Among them was that little silly book. I've heard of it, it is classic in the self-help lit. Tip #31: Don't allow yourself to be fooled by your low moods, they're deceptive, they can fool you, be aware of normal quick and drastic contrasts in mood even between morning and afternoon, if you leave it alone, it will pass, "not the time to analyze your life," and best of all, a little formula: "The trick is to be grateful for our good moods and graceful in our low moods." A little goofy, but well put.

**Detonate** · Jan 22, 2014, 07:54 AM

I am 72 years old so I certainly understand what retirees are facing. The down economy has left me supporting my grandchild and her five children who have moved in with me. That's why you don't see me on the forum as much as I used to be. I am not physically able to go back to work so we are living on my pensions. I am fortunate to have good health insurance, Medicare +B, and Tri-Care for Life. I am not surrounded by liberals or conservatives, but I seem to be associated with people who just don't care one way or the other, and that's even worse.

**GreyGeek** · Jan 22, 2014, 04:06 PM

Originally posted by richb View Post

Have to disagree with that statement
Then the list of 100's of Doctors accepting my Medicare Advantage PPO plan is wrong?

Before I retired I had BCBS and the monthly premiums were a little under $1,500, with my employer picking up 2/3rds. Everyone accepted BCBS. A year before I retired my wife had open heart surgery. A few months later I had green laser treatment for BPH. Our out of pocket costs for her's was around $5,000. The out of pocket for mine was a flat $1,000. Combined, the total bill for both was $356,000. About a year later BCBS announced that they were dropping the plan my employer had been using. (My employer was the dept of revenue in my state).

I retired before that shift happened (the state became its own insurance vendor) and moved to BCBS Medicare Advantage PPO. We had that policy for four years and about the only thing we used it for was dental and vision, and the occasional respiratory infection. A year ago last August BCBS sent us a letter stating that they were dropping the plan we were on. Actually, they didn't drop it, they created a "new" plan with the same offerings but with almost 20% higher premiums, but it wasn't "available" in our area at the time we were forced to go looking for a new policy. Like a business that goes bankrupt to avoid paying creditors and then opens up a similar business nearby under a different name.

That began our journey if finding a new Medicare Advantage PPO and doctors who would honor it. First, you find the list of all Medicare Advantage plan being offered in your geographical location, right down to the county you are living in. Then, using those plans and the lists of doctors they claim, you start calling them and asking if they take the plan. We found that list of doctors given by insurance companies were not very accurate. Most doctors would not just come out and say "we don't accept medicare or medicare advangtage plans" but what they would say is, after they've danced around to see how old you are, "we have no space for new patients". The only plan accepted by some doctors within 5 miles of us was the Humana Advantage PPO. Humana is not half the plan that our BCBS plan was, and it costs the same. In the last five years our co-pay has risen from $20 to $65, while covered services have been slashed and those that remain covered are so under reduced limits.

Using the data since we retired, I've noticed a trend in Medicare Advantage payouts. For the last six years, the total paid out by the two insurance companies have never exceeded 75% of what our premiums paid in. My wife's premium for last year was around $1,200. Her out of pocket was $124. Humana paid a little over $600. Doctors billed $1,260, and were paid a total of about $725. Humana shifted the risk of treatment to the patient and doctors, who took a $500 hit treating us. Some of the problems we are having with Humana caused me to do some googleing to see if my wife and I were an exception or the rule. Here is one of the sites I found:
http://www.wejonesmd.com/Pages/Ins/humana.html

Because of the hassels the insurance companies at subjecting doctors to, many here are talking about refusing to take MCA PPO in the future. Some have already started a cash-only practice and will "take" any insurance plan. What they do require cash for services rendered and then print an issurance application for payment form with the costs for the visit and/or treatment already typed in. The patient signs it and the doctor's clerk seals the envelope and gives it to the patient to mail. Payment is made by the insurance company to the patient. Therein lies some of the tricky parts.
http://www.boomeon.com/posts/risk-sh...st-your-doctor

Cash is king, especially if you are retired. Either the government will have to force doctors to take HealthCare.gov or doctors witl be going to cash or quiting in droves.

Personally, it is obvious to me that MCA PPO plans will not protect against a major medical catastrophy, even though that's really all they are, and pay very little on everything else. So, if one of us had a heart attack or were in a serious accident, at todays medical prices, we'd be bankrupt before sunset with or without a MCA PPO. I'm doing the math on dropping the PPO and just using Medicare and cash.

**richb** · Jan 22, 2014, 04:35 PM

Guess I am just lucky then. Here in Upstate new York, I have never heard anyone having a problem who was on Medicare finding a doctor or having large bills with catastrophic health issues.
by the way i have a $0 Advantage plan.

**Qqmike** · Jan 22, 2014, 04:38 PM

Boy, such a difference in perspectives so many people have on this subject (health care in retirement). I notice this talking to friends and relatives in the Midwest--IL, IN, and OH. Imo, the best thing is to have access to some big Medicare Adv Plan that offers an HMO/PPO. Co-pays should be reasonable; and maximum annual out-of-pocket cash should be reasonable (like $3000/person). But not everyone has access to such. My friends in the Midwest have had to do Medicare + some supplemental policy costing $150-$300 per month for the supplement (plus the $105 for Part B Medicare).

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