Where Am I?

     Theoretically, you should be able to triangulate from this sign to figure out where I am -- assuming the mileage figures are accurate. So can you make a guess?

     I'm 619 miles from Cleveland, 7368 miles from Tianjin and 4270 miles from Amsterdam. To help you out (in case you can't read it) I'm also 8100 miles from Guam. I'm not even sure where Guam is. But that's what it says.

     One thing you can tell for sure. I am not in the snowbelt.

     And I'm near the beach.

     And . . . not to stereotype or anything, but I'm in the South.

     I'm about ten miles outside Charleston, SC, where the weather these days is . . . well, it's a lot better than home, but with a high in the 60s it's more playground weather than beach weather. But that good. We are visiting grandchildren, and spending more time at the playground than the beach. Some grandparents -- the lucky ones -- live near their grandkids and get to see them all the time. But our kids moved away. So we have to go find them. 

Good News, Bad News

     I got my first Social Security deposit of 2022 last week. The good news: the gross amount has increased by . . . 5.9% is what they tell us.

     The bad news: The deduction for Medicare has risen by twice as much or even more. Net result: My take-home has gone up by all of $34 per month. As they say, don't spend it all in one place. Right?

     The good news: Last week we embarked on our annual trip south to see grandchildren and to get a taste of warmer weather. The bad news: It involves a 700-mile, two-day drive down I95, fighting traffic, negotiating the Washington, DC, beltway, dueling with 40-ton semi-tractor trailer trucks the whole time.

     The good news: For whatever reason, traffic on I95 was noticeably lighter than normal -- maybe because of Covid, or the weather, or because we drove on Saturday and Sunday when there's no rush hour, and fewer trucks menace the road.

     Despite our expectations for warmer weather, we saw snow on the ground all through North Carolina and into South Carolina. But the good news: Today, here outside of Charleston, SC, it's 30 degrees warmer than it is at home in  Pennsylvania. The bad news. It's still only 52 degrees outside. 

View from our rental -- nice but chilly

     The good news: Back in Pennsylvania the incidence of Covid is now going down. According to the CDC, Pennsylvania saw 113,000 cases last week, down from 162,000 the previous week.

     The bad news: The disease is still raging in South Carolina. The air is thick with Omicron.

     South Carolina is one of the worst states in the nation right now, behind only Alaska, Oklahoma and one or two others. The incidence of Covid in Charleston County is 294 cases per 100,000, compared to only 85 at home in Bucks County, PA.

    The good news. We got to see the grandchildren yesterday. We played with them outside. They are healthy and Covid-free, and so are we.

Does Our Spirit Carry On?

     I recently read a novel called Bewilderment by Richard Powers. The author, a professor at Stanford University, has an impressive resume, so maybe he knows something we don't.

     He has studied both physics and English literature. He has written a dozen books. He was awarded a MacArthur genius fellow, won the National Book Award and a Pulitzer Prize, and is, according to Oprah Winfrey, "one of our country's greatest living writers."

     Bewilderment follows the story of Theo Byrne, an astrobiologist at the University of Wisconsin who lost his wife in a car accident and now takes care of his son Robin who is “on the spectrum.” Science comes to the rescue, as the boy takes part in an experimental program that allows him to feel his deceased mother’s emotions. Unfortunately, political pressures intervene and shut down the program, leading the boy to . . . well, I won't give away the story.

     The book is strictly secular. It's ridiculous to think, according to the author, that there's a God who has given us a special place in the universe, who watches over us, planning rewards and punishments for our actions on Earth. The universe is too large, the possibilities for other life -- even intelligent life -- are too great, and it's just an act of narcissism to think there is anything unique or special about us humans.

     Yet a fellow scientist at the university has developed this computer system that captures the emotions of Theo's dead wife, and allows Robin to connect with his mother. The boy begins to feel what his mother feels, to understand how she loves him and what she wants for him. This in turn brings the troubled boy a measure of relief. It calms him down, dissipates his anger, gives him perspective, and offers the boy an almost normal life.

     The story made me realize what some religious conservatives mean when they claim that science is another religion all in itself. After all, science seeks to discover how we got here, why we are here, and what happens to us after we're gone. Isn't that what religion is all about?

     So even in the Powers non-religious world, we're not completely gone when we die. Science has a way to keep us around -- not just in photos and films and recordings, but in our emotional and aspirational essence, so we can communicate with people we've left behind and help guide the lives of our loved ones.

     I guess all of us hope that there is some form of life after death, however murky our view of it may be. No one wants to believe that death is the bitter, final end.

     There are many songs and speeches, prayers and poems to inspire us to believe in some kind of afterlife. You likely have your own favorites. Here is an unlikely one from the rock band Dream Theater called Our Spirit Carries On. It gives me chills every time I hear it. I hope it does something for you, too.

Oh, My Aching Tooth

     When I first went on Medicare I signed up for a dental insurance plan through AARP. It's called Delta Dental, and I'm sure some of you have it.

     I gave it up last year because the premium was going up, and it seemed like the coverage was very limited.

     Originally, my old dentist in New York gave me a discount because of the insurance. Then Delta Dental reimbursed the dentist for a portion of the bill, so I never had to pay more than $20 or $30 for a visit.

     When I moved to Pennsylvania the dentists in the Delta network all seemed like cut-rate operators. And I didn't want to end up in a Dollar Store for my dental work.

     A friend recommended a dentist who was supposed to be very good, but not in my plan. So that's where I went. It seemed like a thriving practice The office was modern, with all the latest technology. But I had to pay $200 to $300 for a regular visit, and Delta only reimbursed me a scant $40. That was bad enough. But then I needed to replace an old crown. The charge was $1600. Delta ended up paying about $200.

     I finally decided the insurance just wasn't worth it, especially since in addition to the deductible there was also a cap on the reimbursements. The maximum was $1000 a year. Anything beyond that, I was on my own.

     So I ditched my insurance. But maybe it wasn't such a great idea. Because a few months ago I had to have another crown replaced. Ouch. In more ways than one.

     I got the crown in, paid my $1600. But it wasn't right. I went back for an adjustment. Then another, and another.

     And yet another. This time the dentist brought in the endodondist to check to see if I needed a root canal. He banged on my tooth. He tried to freeze it. He took an x-ray. And he concluded I did not need a root canal.

     So why does my tooth still hurt? It doesn't hurt all the time, doesn't keep me awake at night. It only hurts when I try to chew on it. But isn't that kind of what a tooth is for?

     Now the dentist has recommended I get fitted for a night guard. He thinks I grind my teeth, and maybe that's causing the problem. Oh, and by the way, that's another $700.

     So I don't know. My friend still swears by this dentist. Linda at Thoughts from a Bag Lady in Waiting relates her story of traveling to Mexico to get her dental work done. She seemed pretty happy with the results. But she's from Arizona. I live a long way from Mexico.

     One of the items proposed in President Biden's so-called Build Back Better plan is to include dental work in Medicare. I think that would be a great idea. Don't you?

Things I Just Don't Understand

     The cliche says that people our age start to lose touch. We don't know what's going on in the world. We don't know the trends, and we sure don't know what's in store for the future.

     Well, I guess I've gotten to that stage, because there sure are a lot of things I don't understand

     For example, I don't understand why people refuse to wear masks. They don't work, they say. Well, they don't work perfectly, but they do help to prevent the spread of the virus. And really, donning a mask when you're on a plane, a bus, or in the supermarket . . . it's not that big a deal.

     But then, I don't understand why people line up to go to Starbucks to buy bitter, overpriced coffee.

     And I don't understand why people drive 75 mph, often 15 or 20 mph over the speed limit, risking their lives just to save a few minutes on a trip. Are we all in that much of a hurry?

     And how it is that these same people are up in arms about global warming, yet as a group Americans are now buying more gas-guzzling SUVs than ever before?

     Another thing I don't understand . . . why are all the most popular movies these days cartoons?

     I don't understand why people say the U.S. is anti-immigration. There are 47 million foreign-born people living in America today. That's almost ten times as many foreigners as there were during the great immigration of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Today's 47 million represent 17% of the U. S. population. When we were kids, in 1970, foreigners represented less than 5% of the U. S. population. So that's a lot of immigrants for a country that's supposed to be anti-immigrant.

     Here's one that really makes me wonder:  Pro-choice liberals use the slogan: My Body My Choice. Conservative anti-vaccers use the slogan: My Body My Choice. How does that make any sense?

     Republicans are supposed to care about law and order. Yet they want to do away with gun rules and take the law into their own hands. They flout safety regulations. They thumb their nose at the criminal justice system.

     Meanwhile, Democrats want to give more money to the poor and raise taxes on the rich. Yet they also want to expand tax breaks that mostly favor the wealthy, like the state and local tax deduction (SALT) that according to the Fiscal Times would "provide a tax cut of $285 billion over five years with almost all the benefits going to the top ten percent of earners."

     We're also in an age of instant communication with smartphones, texting, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and a myriad of ways to connect with people. Yet a study by the insurance company Cigna found that about half of Americans say they're lonely. NPR says older adults are especially vulnerable since many live in isolation. Loneliness has led to greater drug use, and higher suicide rates especially among the elderly.

     Finally, sports teams are renaming themselves to avoid offending Native Americans. But in Colorado a Native American group is suing to prevent the renaming of schools with Native American mascots. They oppose the use of caricatures that mock their heritage, but claim that erasing Native American names from the public square comes from "a paternalistic assumption that we must protect Native Americans by erasing references to them and their heritage." I get why some names are negative. But what's wrong with Braves or Warriors?

     As you may know, the Washington football team abandoned its monikor of "Redskins". Now, after more than a year of trying to settle on a new nickname, they've announced the team will make its big reveal on February 2. Drum roll please . . . 

     The point of a name is to make the team seem scary and ferocious, with the idea that it will boost morale and intimidate opponents. So if they really want to scare people they should name the team the Washington Representatives, for there are plenty of scary people in Congress. Or how about the Washington Lobbyists? Or maybe even the Washington Anti-Vaccers?