It's been a great week as far as the diet is concerned. Probably the best week I've had since the challenge began. I'm down 9 pounds with only about 6 to go. I've been consistently below 1200 calories a day, mostly salads, and I haven't eaten anything after 6 pm all week. I've also put in some pretty good cardio workouts all week as well. Today though I was starting to feel a little weak and shaky so for dinner I had a small steak in place of the salad as well as a little bit of popcorn and licorice (not together) for a snack:) .
Tomorrow I get to warm up a little bit. I'm taking some oxygen concentrators down to the valley for repair so Ryan (my 13yo) and I are going to take the bikes and climb South Mountain a couple of times. The forecast is calling for a 79 degree day and I can't wait. My skinny white legs are looking forward to a little bit of sunshine.
On a whole different note, today while I was at the hospital I saw a couple of Medtronic reps bringing in some equipment. One of the items was something to do with Abdominal cauterization (or something like that). I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with companies like Medtronic (if you have ever used a Tens unit or Muscle Stim, these are just small examples of what they make) and Stryker (mostly hospital beds). I'm sure even fewer are familiar with the excise tax placed upon these companies this year. Starting in 2013, as a way to help pay for the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) there is a 2.3% tax on all medical devices. I can't help but believe that Congress hit those with the smallest lobby the hardest. Who's gonna pay for this tax? You and I, the hospitals, the caregivers. Who suffers? Well everyone. The consumer is gonna pay in the end, but even worse, both Medtronic and Stryker have already starting laying off employees. Medtronic laid off 1000 workers in 2012 and is looking to lay off 500 more and Stryker is looking to lay off about 1050 employees. This is just 2 of many large companies who are having to make some tough decisions in the wake of the affordable care act. This is just the beginning. How many of you pay for your insurance out of pocket? I bet your rates went up already didn't they? Last year we paid 648.00 month for our family insurance. That's with a 7500.00 deductible!!! As of 2013, we now pay 748.00!!! $748.00 frigging dollars on top of a $7500.00 deductible.
I realize many of you are probably on board with the Affordable Care Act. I think there are parts of it that are good. Being able to keep your kids on your insurance plan longer is good. Other than that though, the plan is flawed big time. There is nothing in the law to keep insurance plans from gouging those of us that currently pay for our own insurance. Of course they are going to try and screw us, they are going to try and make all money they can before the entire Care Act goes into effect. They need to find a better way to pay for the plan. Think it's gonna work out good?,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,In Canada, it's nothing to wait 5-6 months for and MRI. How long do we have to wait here? Maybe a couple of weeks at the most.
Being the powerful nation that we are, I do believe we all deserve the best healthcare possible. I just don't think this is the way to go about it. Take attorneys, politicians, and money hungry caregivers out of the picture and I think we could all agree on a way to care for those that can't afford it. Taxes, taxes, and more taxes is not the way to go about it. Small companies are going to take a beating. It's just not feasible to take this many hits and keep your head above water.
And now the sequester...............well it's about time the government is pressed hard to make some cuts. I hear poor VP Biden is going back to taking the train back to his home state instead of flying on military aircraft. The hardworking middle class has been taking hits for years now. Cuts in pay, increased payroll taxes, layoffs.............how about congress take a decrease in pay, take away all the benefits they enjoy, I'm all for kicking some ass in Afghanistan, but they seem to be so ungrateful, I say screw em, bring our guys home and put them to work here instead of blowing money on a country that can't stand us. Let's help the countries that actually like us.
I'm sure I don't know nor understand the big picture, but I think we would all be pissed beyond belief if we actually knew where our tax dollars went. Wouldn't you love to see a detailed spreadsheet of how each politician spends money?
Ok, I'm getting off of my high horse. Gonna go get my bike ready for tomorrow. I'm thinking I'm even going to treat my son to Red Lobster after our ride. Looking forward to some down time.
Have a super day.
Tomorrow I get to warm up a little bit. I'm taking some oxygen concentrators down to the valley for repair so Ryan (my 13yo) and I are going to take the bikes and climb South Mountain a couple of times. The forecast is calling for a 79 degree day and I can't wait. My skinny white legs are looking forward to a little bit of sunshine.
On a whole different note, today while I was at the hospital I saw a couple of Medtronic reps bringing in some equipment. One of the items was something to do with Abdominal cauterization (or something like that). I'm not sure how many of you are familiar with companies like Medtronic (if you have ever used a Tens unit or Muscle Stim, these are just small examples of what they make) and Stryker (mostly hospital beds). I'm sure even fewer are familiar with the excise tax placed upon these companies this year. Starting in 2013, as a way to help pay for the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) there is a 2.3% tax on all medical devices. I can't help but believe that Congress hit those with the smallest lobby the hardest. Who's gonna pay for this tax? You and I, the hospitals, the caregivers. Who suffers? Well everyone. The consumer is gonna pay in the end, but even worse, both Medtronic and Stryker have already starting laying off employees. Medtronic laid off 1000 workers in 2012 and is looking to lay off 500 more and Stryker is looking to lay off about 1050 employees. This is just 2 of many large companies who are having to make some tough decisions in the wake of the affordable care act. This is just the beginning. How many of you pay for your insurance out of pocket? I bet your rates went up already didn't they? Last year we paid 648.00 month for our family insurance. That's with a 7500.00 deductible!!! As of 2013, we now pay 748.00!!! $748.00 frigging dollars on top of a $7500.00 deductible.
I realize many of you are probably on board with the Affordable Care Act. I think there are parts of it that are good. Being able to keep your kids on your insurance plan longer is good. Other than that though, the plan is flawed big time. There is nothing in the law to keep insurance plans from gouging those of us that currently pay for our own insurance. Of course they are going to try and screw us, they are going to try and make all money they can before the entire Care Act goes into effect. They need to find a better way to pay for the plan. Think it's gonna work out good?,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,In Canada, it's nothing to wait 5-6 months for and MRI. How long do we have to wait here? Maybe a couple of weeks at the most.
Being the powerful nation that we are, I do believe we all deserve the best healthcare possible. I just don't think this is the way to go about it. Take attorneys, politicians, and money hungry caregivers out of the picture and I think we could all agree on a way to care for those that can't afford it. Taxes, taxes, and more taxes is not the way to go about it. Small companies are going to take a beating. It's just not feasible to take this many hits and keep your head above water.
And now the sequester...............well it's about time the government is pressed hard to make some cuts. I hear poor VP Biden is going back to taking the train back to his home state instead of flying on military aircraft. The hardworking middle class has been taking hits for years now. Cuts in pay, increased payroll taxes, layoffs.............how about congress take a decrease in pay, take away all the benefits they enjoy, I'm all for kicking some ass in Afghanistan, but they seem to be so ungrateful, I say screw em, bring our guys home and put them to work here instead of blowing money on a country that can't stand us. Let's help the countries that actually like us.
I'm sure I don't know nor understand the big picture, but I think we would all be pissed beyond belief if we actually knew where our tax dollars went. Wouldn't you love to see a detailed spreadsheet of how each politician spends money?
Ok, I'm getting off of my high horse. Gonna go get my bike ready for tomorrow. I'm thinking I'm even going to treat my son to Red Lobster after our ride. Looking forward to some down time.
Have a super day.
