ReneBean

Run, Rabbit, Run!! Go, Go, Go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Keep up the good work. :]

Casper, the FRIENDLY Ghost Band... That's the ticket. Glad to see you are feeling better, Sugar! Don't get up to too much trouble... :]

When you say irregularly regular - how OFTEN do you normally get the visit? I had a thing when I was about your age - where I spotted EVERY DAY when I went into work. (I figured work was killing me). The end result was that due to having periods no more than QUARTERLY for many years - the lining in my uterous had built up and it was trying to clean itsself out. (I, also, had convinced myself I was probably dying of cervical cancer). The current stress I was experiencing had triggered the process. Go - get the girlie exam - and be prepared for the cure. What they do is give you a hormone supplement - which will make you bleed profusely with more "material" for weeks. Oh Joy. The good news is that with any luck at all, you aren't dying - and once you complete the Cure process, you should flip back to normal. Good Luck!! Let us know what the doc says.

Jill - Of course their attorney had every reason why they shouldn't have to pay. That's her job. Chances are good that they will say "no" if that was not an INDEPENDENT review board. Find out what you have to do to get and INDEPENDENT review - I had to go to the State of CA - and you may have to go to the State of IN. It's all part of the process. In the mean time, YOUR job is to collect documenation to argue all the points that the insurance attorney erroneously made. Get some statistics on paper regarding the cost of a hospital stay for a heart attack, or the cost of long-term diabetes care vs the cost of the band surgery and related complication rates & expenses. The numbers won't lie. If you are currently taking medication that could reasonably be expected to go away if you lose the weight - stack the monthly cost (to the insurance co) of the meds you are taking against the cost of say, 3 fills a year. State Review Boards love documentation. Keep your chin up! Go get 'em. I am keeping my fingers crossed for you.

Howdy! Again, this whole Work thing is crazed - and I am spent today doing yet MORE stuff for the Committee ChairChick thing. I guess I am stuck with it until after Friday, when we have our big Committee Membership Rally... Anne - great to have you here! I am a mortgage underwriter. Oh - and if you REALLY want to be evil - get toys that make NOISE. The more annoying, the better... Zylophones are a favorite.... (Oh, yeah. Evil, thy name is Irene) Doc! Welcome and congrats on your surgery date! You picked the right place to come for information. The folks on this site know about all there is to know, and we even have an MD or two that visit periodically. It's all good. Besides, we have a great time getting to know each other here in the Jersey forum - even though lots of us are from other places. :] Well, today I got to read - but I don't have too much time to reply to everybody... I miss you guys, too. I am still hammering out the details of the next trip North - but it looks like the time for any get-together would be SATURDAY, Jan 21st - after I have done my time in Due Diligence Review. My flight leaves Newark at 4 - so it would be a breakfast/morning thing. OR - we could always do a late-night friday night (Jan 20th). Whatever works for the most people. I would so love to meet everyone!! IRA??? 1) Where are you? 2) Whatcha doin' on Friday night or Saturday morning on the dates specified above? Everyone - I PROMISE I will find or make some more time to check in. Love you guys!! Irene

Alex!! You kick BUTT!! Keep up the great work - and get excited about that goal. Goals are good! :]

Hey Zoe! Good to see your face, again. Do tell. What's the plan for the 20 pounds in 26 weeks? Hope you are feeling all the way up to par. Welcome Back!! :]

Wow, you guys!! There is so much wonderful stuff here that I don't even have time to read it all right now - but I didn't want to let another day go by without stopping in to say HAPPY NEW YEAR!! These folks here at work seem to be taking the whole Work Concept seriously today - and I am late, late, late getting home to DH. Have to run. LOVE to see all the new faces. I can't wait to read all this info and have a chance to respond. Maybe tomorrow... :]

Whooo Baby - it's back to the gym for DH & I tonight...

Yes - it's true. According to BC/BS, I am too fat for the Lap Band. Zone6, so glad it worked out better for you. Good Luck with your Band! :]

Dee Dee! Keep on smiling! You're gorgeous! :]

Party On, Devil De!! I will raise a glass of fizzy peach drink to you when the clock strikes 12 in Texas. Hugs, Hon. I hope you feel better soon. (and don't let Billy get TOO much beauty sleep - You need to get that nasty bug under control) xoxo

I think it has to be something like that. I know that the insurance company will never actually PAY that much, and so does the doc. I also know it is somewhat common practice to over-bill the insurance companies. Surgery Center of Richardson charges $15k cash - but they bill insurance twice that. The doc explained it as giving us a "discount" because they don't have to spend any time fighting with the insurance company to get paid - but I haven't seen my doc's office doing anything with insurance since the initial submission. So, there must be some other reason why the docs over-bill the insurance companies, KNOWING they will not get paid. Anybody know for sure?

Good luck, Sharon.

Aw Crystal. I'm so sorry. I hope Astro is running in green fields and sunshine. Hugs!

Well, my IT dept decided to make use of the Friday before the long weekend - assuming everyone would leave early - and they shut down our computers at 5! So, I came home and collapsed into a little relieved pile and didn't come here to check in. (slug, slug, slug!) Yesterday I felt about 10 pounds lighter and at least 5 yrs younger - I didn't even realize how much that test was stressing me out!! I am even more relieved today - since I would have felt obligated to go in and re-test if I hadn't passed. The Deadline was 12/31/05. Woo Hoo!!! Better still, I have convinced DH that IKEA on Saturday when they are having a sale is a BAD idea... He can go and look at flooring during the day when most folks are at work... So, today, we just have to make a run to Sam's Club - and maybe take in a movie - and then I get my wish of staying in for the rest of the weekend. I will probably be vegetating... so you may not hear from me again until Monday. Betty-Love, Thanks for the offer of the cookies - but seriously - since I passed that stupid test, I don't have the burning desire to eat one (ok, MORE than one) that I was having. You all kept posting about baking and cooking and all I wanted to do was go to the nearest baked goods aisle and grab, grab, grab. It was bad. I did resist, though, and now that pressure has passed. Cindy - you are so funny!! I laughed so hard about that making an outfit for Pat business... Pat, Honey, I just can't reconcile that picture of you in your beautiful suit and your red had with a picture of you in a leather halter with Daisy Duke cut-offs and tangled hair. I'm betting you have a really good set of riding leathers - that cover all the essentials. Come on Pat, fess up! Any tattoos from your wild-child days? And Cindy - hope DD is doing well. It probably would have been the highlight of her week to get a cast - but the story wasnt exciting enough. She would have had to make up some more exciting reason for the break.... lol! Glad you had fun shopping! I haven't had fun shopping since I was 12. Since then it has been an arduous, torturous process of finding something that fits, but doesn't make me look HORRID. Eileenie - Some of us would be THRILLED with that lovely precipitation. We are already thinking forward to Spring here... We MIGHT get another cold-snap in January - but after that, the flowers start blooming. If we don't get some rain - there won't be any water for flowers and grass... And that whole Hank Hill thing about the lawn? That is REAL. The folks around here get all crazy about having the perfect lawn. I don't understand that compulsion, myself... So I guess I will never be a TRUE Texan. I have NO plans to party-hearty or any of that other stuff. I will probably watch Dick Clark (they must have him digitized... He can't REALLY still be alive and doing the New Year's Eve show, can he?) and play my computer game. I am going to keep on eating what I want until Tuesday... Monday night, all the garbage goes where it belongs and I am back to protein shakes and proper meals... Happy New Year's!! If I am not too slugged out, I may check in. Love you guys!! Irene

Friends don't let Friends break Surgery Aftercare Rules! Mind your doctors, ladies and gentlemen. They are there to keep you alive.

Even if you don't change jobs today - preparation is a good thing. Visit some organizations in your chosen field - learn the lingo and then, when you go to the interviews - you will sound like a pro. Good Luck!!

OK, at this moment, I am the HAPPIEST PERSON ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH!! I have passed the much-dreaded test...and on the First Try - thank you very much. WHEW!!! Now I can focus on the other things I have to get done over the next few days... And, "surprisingly" enough, my urge to drive over to Betty's and rummage through her baked goods has subsided. HMMMM. Could I be a Stress Eater? Oh, YEAH. Patty - Blow torch alternatives: Hairspray and a lighter... Local Fire-Breathing Dragon... Falling star/meteorite... Oh - or you could just put the thing under the broiler for a minute or two (if it can stand to be heated?) I THINK you can actually do it with a match - if you are careful about the head not falling off onto the dessert...But, I am certainly no expert at cooking. Who the heck doesn't love Creme Brulee?!? All that yummy, creamy fat & carmelized sugar. *sigh*. Thank goodness DH has never been much of a Pastry/dessert kind of cook. His Entrees are fattening enough! I really would weigh 500 lbs if he did Desserts, too! Hey Sherry - Boring is GOOD. Too much drama gives me a rash! And I'll tell you a secret - I never leave when they let us out early... Unless all my stuff is done and put to bed. So, after slaving like a dog for the short week, you get to spend the weekend driving? I hope the pay-off of seeing the in-laws is a good one. Me, I am all for hanging out at home for at least 2 of the 3 days.... But DH has some kind of big ideas about going to IKEA (yes, AGAIN) and looking at wood flooring. Geesh! He was also babbling about several other stops he had planned for this weekend... The only one that sounded any good to me was dinner and a movie... (yep, it's official. I am a slug.) Eileen! Spin the Champagne Bottle at this office would be WAY too scary. Besides - our "Champagne" comes in green cans with a little red dot and the number 7 on them... (low budget - big production value). I think the entire investment for this mini-shin-dig is under $100 for our office of approx. 280 people. It's just a little something to break the monotony/drudgery of the busiest day of the month. We'll have one of the boss-types do a count-down on the overhead speakers - we'll all drink a little toast and we'll go back to work. Well, that's all the news that's fit to print. I'll check in with you kids again tomorrow. (no guarantees for the weekend, though. I might be in that holiday vegatable state.) :]

Go, Girl!! Get R Done... :]

Juicy Coture? Sounds like fun... What - is it like Victoria's Secret? Please advise for the Americans. Great job on the NSV's! Keep working that band! :]

Coolness! Good luck!

I am kinda of the opinion that if you have to ask whether or not to get an unfil, you probably already know the answer... Of course, I am NOT an expert in these matters - but I have read that eating solid foods is a REQUIREMENT of a happily functioning band. I have to vote for small unfill. (if you're taking votes.) Good Luck!! :]

One other thing, Kim - Once you determine what field you want to go into - find their organization and go to a meeting. I work in the mortgage industry - there are 3-4 different professional organizations - I chose the Association of Professional Mortgage Women because I had friends that brought me along. Once you go to a meeting and start talking to people - they will tell you what you need to do to break into the field. Besides, you will meet people that are actually IN the field you want to work in. Also - if you are getting rejected for jobs because they think you only have call-center experience, then your resume is not doing what it is supposed to do - which is SELL YOU. You need more job description, a personal cover letter, or SOMETHING to tell prospective employers what you have done and why YOU are the one they should hire. I firmly believe that you should try to figure out what makes you happy - but money is what it takes to survive. It might be "safest" to just stay where you are until you finish school. The money is good and they already know and love you... Just my 2 cents. Good Luck!

I THINK that if they are self insured - you can go to the employer and see if they will cover it for you. Blue Cross only administers what the employer is willing to pay for, so if the company won't issue you a special authorization or something, I think you are stuck. :[