Gator Country

As much as the latest storm tried to prevent it, I made it to Miami after only modest delay. Today I rented a car and drove out to Big Cypress, which is part of the Everglades.  The trip passed through an indian reservation, so I stopped and chatted with a native guide who offers airboat tours through the "Sea of Grass".  I may have to go back and try that.

But today, I wanted to take a walk in the Glades.  It was a reasonably warm day - about 70 degrees and sunny.  The glades are absolutely teeming with life, most notably birds life!  I saw hundreds of anhinga and cormorants, which means that the water was full of fish.  There were many different types of wading birds, from the large blue herons and snowy egrets to smaller colorful bank-stalkers whose names I don't know.  And quite a large group of buzzards were scrumming in a field, obscuring my view of whatever meal they were jostling over.

The walk was fun, although the section of trail I was on was rather dry and more brown than green (it is winter after all).  But the water was full of alligators, turtles and fish and the scrubby thickets with small wrens, mockingbirds and quite a number of orange and black butterflies of about 2 inches in width.  I took some pictures which I posted on a tab above.  Hope you enjoy them! BB 

Winter at the Beach

I admit it: I’m not a fan of winter. So, to escape the cold wind (1 degree this morning, predicted zero tomorrow morning), I have planned an escape to Miami. I corralled a friend to join me and, hopefully, will be jetting south on Wednesday morning (weather prediction for Tuesday into Wednesday = ice cold and snowing). Another generous friend has offered the use of their apartment, complete with pool and gym, so how could I say no?!?! I also hope to daytrip over to the Everglades and have lunch with the alligators. But mostly, I’m just looking to do my napping in a place where the thermometer uses 2 digits, and with luck, the first one will be a 7!


How can a guy who doesn’t tan love the sun so much? I guess wonders never cease. Here's a shot of what I'll likely look like when I get there….see, at least I'm smiling!! BB

90 Day Moratorium

I had a scan last Thursday and my meeting with the onc today. I have more growth, as expected. About the same amount as last time. But rather than going straight back to chemo, he offered me the option of holding off a while longer. So, I basically jumped at the chance to wait. He said that my growth rate is “not fast, but not slow either”. He also said that most patients, after having experienced chemo, prefer to delay future treatment! So, we’re going to let it ride a little longer. If I have pain problems or get jaundice, the plan will change, but as it stands, I will it ride for another 90 days and then we’ll do another scan.


I am pretty happy about not having to go back right away. I was rather dreading it. And our strategy is to stretch out the time between treatments for as long as possible since doing so can both prolong my life and make it more enjoyable. So now I can truly say Happy New Year!

Happy New Year

Time to wish you all a Happy and Healthy 2011!  We had some friends over for New Years eve - it originally started as a small gathering but somehow morphed into about 30 guests!  But it was great fun!  Morristown does fireworks at midnight and we have a perfect vantage point from our front windows since we are on the top of a hill.  The 9:15 fireworks show, which is much longer than the midnight display, even rattled our windows! David followed his usual tradition of running outside in his bare feet at midnight but this year decided to take advantage of the snow and sled down the front yard.  It was rather icy and he crashed into the mailbox!  No damage other than a cut on his toe.  The sacrafices he makes for tradition....

I also had another little omen experience this morning.  If you recall, I blogged about omens about a year ago.  The spirits were crows (a symbol of change) and pileated woodpeckers (a symbol of opportunity).  So, when I went out this morning to get my newspaper from the end of the driveway, I was greeted by a flock of crows caw-ing their heads off in a tree beside the driveway.  Then I heard the thump-thumping of a big Pileated Woodpecker.  He was a particularly big one, banging away at the tree holding the crows. Once again, I must say it's odd that this was my wake up call on January 1.  But in the spirit of mysticism, I hope that whatever changes come your way in 2011 will be new opportunities.  And that you are happy and successful in all your endeavors!  Happy New Year!

In the spirit of change, I'm trying a new trick with this post.  I uploaded a video of the fireworks last night rather than a picture!

Race to the Holidays!

Here we are in the final stretch before Christmas and I want to take a moment to wish everyone a Happy Holiday! I wish you all a calendar full of festive activities and bellies full of egg nog and cookies!

My kids are anxiously awaiting the start of the winter break. But it feels to me like the fall term has flown by! Vicki has submitted most of her college applications and even gotten a response from one already. She was admitted to Rutgers only days after she pressed the submit button. I’m sure it will be a long wait to hear from the others, though. Hopefully, she’ll have a tough decision to make in April!

David has done very well adjusting to high school life. He joined the winter track team to stay in shape for football and work on his speed. He had his first races this weekend, running at Drew University in a large invitational meet. He ran a leg of a Freshman 4 x 200m and anchor for a Freshman 4 x 400m. They won their heat in the 400m relay, which was fun to watch. Tomorrow, he is running with the JV team in the 55m sprint, also at Drew. The picture above is with his 400m relay buddies just before the race (he’s on the far left).

I also want to thank you all for the tremendous support you’ve given to me and my family this year. For us, it was a much better 2010 than I thought it would be and your friendship is a big part of that! Happy Holidays!!

So Far, No Snow

It’s been a while since I have blogged so I thought I would leave a quick note. I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving and that you had the chance to get together with family, enjoy some good home cooking and watch football. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday – it’s much more relaxed and non-commercial than Christmas.


And now we are in mid-Hannukah. We had a nice family time with more, good home cooking and even a little football. Morristown High School played on Saturday for their section’s state championship at Giants Stadium (sorry Jet fans, it’s still Giants Stadium to me, even if that’s no longer the official name!) I took David since some of his buddies from the freshman team were promoted to Varsity for the playoffs. While he tells me that they all lamented their role as practice dummies and side-line cheerleaders, I have to believe that it was a great experience. They got to play (well, warm up and then cheer) in a pro stadium and, I’m told, will get rings just like the regular Varsity guys as Morristown won! What a thrill that must be!

Rob and the kids are doing well – Vicki is finishing up her college applications and David preparing for his first meet on the Winter Track team. They both press their tired noses to the window each morning hoping for a snow day, a wish I am sure will eventually be granted. Enjoy the season!

November Turkey

With our calendar pages firmly turned to November, it is time once again to celebrate that uniquely American experience of gluttony and sacrifice. Yes, it’s time for your annual benefits enrollment! And the big benefit issue on the platter at the center of our tables is, of course, healthcare. While I am a firm believer in setting aside a large portion of your favorite side dish – the 401(k) plan – I recognize that it is not the main event. So, in the interest of recipe-sharing, I add this contribution:


I have the good fortune of still being considered an employee, although a disabled one, until next June. At that time, I will have been on Long Term Disability for 2 years and thus eligible for Medicare. My employer will then drop me from the rolls and I will become a ward of the state, albeit a paying ward. I have further good fortune in that my family will not be similarly dropped but, instead, are eligible to move into the unsubsidized “Retiree” health plan, which provides coverage for both retired employees and those who left employment due to disability. The plan is different, and no doubt much more expensive, but hey - it’s better than going without.

My employer subsidizes health insurance at a rate of over $1,100 per month per employee. So each employee receives a company subsidy of $13,200 per year. The cost of insurance above that is born by the employee. For the “Cadillac plan” (my phrase) with the lowest deductible and coinsurance, the cost for a family is about $300 per month ($3,600 per year). The least expensive plan, with higher deductible and highest coinsurance, costs half that amount - $150 per month or $1,800 per year. There are also two “high deductible” plans – generally more attractive to young, healthy and/or optimistic employees – which have a high threshold to meet before receiving any insurance coverage but have “low” premiums. The cheaper of these costs $73 per month (a bit under $900 per year). So the true cost of insurance for a family, inclusive of the company subsidy, ranges from about $14,000 per year for the least-coverage High Deductible plan to almost $17,000 for the most-coverage traditional plan.

These numbers bring to mind several thoughts about healthcare in America:

1. Median family income in New York, where my job is based, is $56,000 per year ($4,000 higher than the national median of $52,000). At that income, a premium of $14,000 to $17,000 per year is unaffordable. Only with a very large subsidy is coverage possible for the average family.

2. I am surprised how expensive the High Deductible plan is. The idea behind these plans is to pay smaller premiums and then fund a Health Savings Account for paying medical bills, should they occur. If an average unsubsidized family still has to shell out $14,000 for the premium, how much more could they really put into an HSA?

3. In the past, I have always selected the “Cadillac” version of my employer’s offerings since the additional monthly premium amount was well within my budget. For the past two years, I have paid about $5,000 to $10,000 in copays, coinsurance, etc above the premium amount. (Note: My insurance is out-of-pocket for about $170,000 over those two years). Could an average unsubsidized family really afford $17,000 in premiums and then pay another $10,000 on top of that each year? If a non-insured person got the same treatment I did (admittedly doubtful) and not paid, would the $200,000 over two years just be passed on from doctors to insurers (and ultimately insured people)?

4. The value of the company subsidy is one of the reasons that working for a large company is better than for a small one. Unfortunately, small companies create the most new jobs in America. Therefore, we are shifting the “true” cost of healthcare to America by virtue of the increase in the portion of Americans who work for small companies with no or low-subsidy healthcare. There are those who feel that healthcare costs will only fall when consumers feel the cost and bargain with doctors for lower charges. I am certain that consumers are feeling the cost but they are powerless to bargain and thus, simply go without and hope not to get sick.

5. State-run healthcare insurance exchanges do nothing to change this dynamic. The core problem is the cost of healthcare, not the method of paying for it.

Okay, so that’s my entry in the recipe contest. For a while longer, I will still be one of the lucky ones, but the cost of healthcare in America is still November’s biggest turkey.