Welding, Leather Work & Medical Care

 

I went to the rec center Monday to do my walkies and the man in charge flagged me down to see if I could do a little welding job for him. He tried it with his MIG but he was running the voltage way too low for fear of burning a hole in the thin round tube. I can understand his concern - the tube is thin. I TIG welded it without too much difficulty, though. Got to keep the pickle-ballers happy!

I had talked to Surly recently about getting a new belt. Either recommending a vendor or making me one. He said he could knock one out for me. I gave him the specs and he sent me the above photo of the tongue of the finished product. I wasn't looking for anything fancy, but he personalized it for me with a welding hood. Not only is that boy a cracker jack machinist, he's turning into quite the accomplished leather worker. This one should keep my britches up for the rest of my life.

Yesterday was a day spent with medical people. I had an appointment in the morning for a medical screening. This was with an outfit that does non-invasive testing to make sure the blood's flowing like it should. After my recent cardiac event, it was mostly to just satisfy my own curiosity. If they see something life threatening, they send you to the emergency room. If not, they mail you the results in 10 to 14 days. Must not have found anything too bad since they let me walk out of there.

Later I took the missus to urgent care for her back issue. After spending a couple hours there, they recommended going to the hospital emergency room. So off we went and spent a few more hours there. We left the house about noon and finally got home about 7:00 PM. Long day but she finally got a bit of relief. Long term isn't looking so good, though. I think both of us are just wearing out.

I got the bill for my recent hospital visit the other day - just a tick over $100 K. However, my part after the Medicare and supplement insurance is next to nothing. I'm always bitching about the Feds wasting my tax dollars, but I do appreciate Medicare. Before I qualified for Medicare, I was paying $1,800 per month healthcare insurance premiums. That'll blow a big hole in your beer budget.