2024 Life Logs, Day 236: More About Whales, the DNC, My Sister, and Fall Weather
Date: Friday, August 23, 2024
Weather: Sunny, A Tad Warmer; High Temp 76, Low 61 degrees F
Location: At Home on Lakeview, Falmouth, MA
Starting with the weather, it has felt like fall this week. And I am not ready for it to feel like fall. Today was a tad warmer, and the forecast indicates it is going to stay in the 70’s during the day, and 60’s during the night for the next week. That is much better than highs in the 60’s and with nights in the 50’s. There is just one more week before school starts, and if it is going to warm up significantly, it will probably be on the first day of school. That’s what happened last year.
About my sister. This has been a crazy week. But as soon as she finally met with her orthopedic surgeon and he declared four more weeks of non-weight bearing on the one leg, I anticipated a struggle with her Medicare Advantage. Yesterday morning, I got the call that tomorrow, Saturday, would be the last day the insurance company would pay for her stay at Autumn Care where she is being rehabilitated. But I was also given very specific directions for filing an appeal. The appeal was with an independent agency, and it took no more than 5 minutes on the phone to do it. I did this yesterday before leaving for the whale watch. When I hung up, I was sure that something that easy was not going to end up benefiting us. I was given instructions on how to check on the progress of the appeal on their website, so I did that this morning. There was a big banner saying they had been offline for hours yesterday and delays in decisions should be expected. But when I checked late this afternoon, I was very pleasantly surprised. An independent physician had reviewed Patsy’s case at 12:55 pm this afternoon and declared that a disagreement with the notice that her insurance benefits would end tomorrow. It said, “Continuation of skilled services is appropriate.” Then I got a phone call stating that her coverage would continue until the next review date. I was told that if services are denied then, I can file another appeal. Thank goodness filing an appeal is easy. And thank goodness my sister, and everyone else at Autumn Care exposed to Covid, are still testing negative. I sure hope they stay that way.
The Democratic National Convention is next on my list. Last night when I watched Kamala Harris’ acceptance speech as nominee of the Democratic Party for President, I couldn’t have been prouder. She looked presidential and she sounded presidential. After all, she is Vice-President of the United States. Plus, she sounded hopeful and that seemed to be contagious. I know defeating Donald Trump is going to be an uphill battle, but if she and Tim Walz can keep the hope and the joy in this campaign while offering serious and commonsense solutions to issues, I have hope that they can prevail.
Now for more about whales. I checked the Hyannis Whale Watcher Cruises Facebook page and read the following about yesterday afternoon’s whale watch trip. “8/22/24: It’s trips like these that totally skew the answer to the question “What is the average number of whales you see?”. So far, we are up to 30 individuals, and that doesn’t include the whales in the distance that we never had close looks at! The fall is shaping up to be spectacular… whales yesterday include: Dusky and calf, Abrasion and calf, Fern, Rapier, Arroyo, Infinity, Leukos, Pleats, Draco, Jabiru, Azrael, Sprinkles, Woodwind, Samara, Nile, Pitcher, Milkweed, Wifi, Combat, Tangle, Snare, Lamp, Shatter, Snap, Putter, Bandit, Grackle, and Mostaza.” I felt like we were seeing something very special yesterday and this statement supports that feeling.
Finally, I get to today when I was just on kid watch at the Goldstones. Ollie and his friend Simon did more biking and this afternoon Ollie and I went to Staples to buy school supplies. This evening, Heather and Jed sailed Ardenna from Woods Hole to Quissett. A diver is going to replace the chain on their mooring tomorrow, so the boat needed to be moved temporarily. Sam was at a farewell party for his friend Sebastian who is leaving to attend his senior year at a school in Belgium. Ollie and Jonah stayed at home, and I came home to play with Shadow. I then went to Quissett to pick up Heather and Jed and take them to their car in Woods Hole. And now I am looking forward to a quiet Saturday.
