Warning: rant ahead

At least you got to sit, I hope. I feel your pain, trust me. The world is upside down and backwards wound up in red tape.

We made two trips to the DVM to get the non-pictuce, non-driver temporary ID that wasn't sufficient ID for the 5th 3rd bank. I stood in line for more than 6 hours total to be told twice that your father couldn't amass the six points of ID to get an official ID. WTF?!?

Nearly in tears, I appealed to the supervisor and plead his case. We were in luck. They decided that Con-ed --was-- stupid enough to spell your father's name wrong and they would accept that as the last piece of ID to get the New York ID.

It cost your father $36 in car fare to get a $6.50 ID mailed to him (and not in time to take it to Florida, obviously.)

The last trip we rode the subway and I got a Nathan's Famous hot dog out of it and I bet you didn't get that. (But Wimmer's weiners are still better.)

I spent similar long hours with Medicare, Social Security, the hospital billing staff (I cannot say nor spell that name), the gerentology department, the visiting nurse's office, the phlebotomist/lab, and PT (when the bills were denied by Medicare) and the government personnel offices, the government personnel (retirement) office of insurance (life) and ditto but health and then tackled the annuity. I had to check the mirror to make sure I didn't have a receiver growing out of my head instead of an ear.

I answered at least six phone calls per day from bill collectors. Every day. Increasingly hostile. What part of "I can't help you." didn't they understand?

But then again, I could have sold the house to the vultures who thought the family still owned it and were feeling me out for a low-ball bid once they saw the 120-plus bags of trash, shredded papers and the 40-plus bags of clothing that went to St. Vincent dePaul.

I hope you found some comfort in wormwood. (And I thank you again for the best sauteed mushrooms ---ever--- made with the last 1/4 cup of vermouth in the bottle at the castle.) And for the magic pill that let me sleep the night before the plane trip home. (That's a day I want to forget but never will. . .it ranks as one of the worst in my life and that includes an awful lot.)

Believe me, Joe and I are cleaning house and putting our paperwork in order or I am putting a fricken match to the place come New Year's Eve.

I started cleaning off the garden today. The stench of rotted produce is perfuming the air so my mood is just peachy keen. Drought followed by monsoon. Would could have guessed? Thank goodness I have chocolate and espresso.