RE: Service Dogs
On a lighter note, a couple of years ago, when my Service Dog was only 2 years old, we were south bound on US 101, north of Eureka, CA.
Our young lady (Tolly is her name) walked up to us and stood looking at the door. We figured she may have to use the bathroom, but there wasn't any "good" places to pull over, so I figured I would stop at the next rest stop. After a couple of minutes, she gave up and moved back behind us. In a minute or two she brought her lease up to my wife. Then she stood looking at the door. We got the hint, pulled over on a slightly wider spot off the road and they got out. Tolly went to the only piece of grass close by, got rid of any liquids in her and then immediately got back in the coach. We humans learned a lesson there and now pull over at the first safe spot we can find.
We have heard of people training their dogs to "piddle/poop" in the shower stall. Not too sanitary, but if you were in a hurry or did not have a safe place to stop, I guess it is better than the carpet. It could be cleaned well of course.
BTW, I took a letter describing how Tolly has saved my life several times this year to my Primary Care Physician and asked he enter it into my medical records. He read it, smiled and said ok. He even gave me a prescription stating my Service Dog is vital to my health.
We did this because we heard Hawaii is trying to put more barriers up concerning Assistance Animals. Tolly wears her vest in public and we put the Service Dog and Medic Alert dog patches on it. We have never been asked not to bring her into any establishment. Including Sutter Roseville Hospital when my wife had surgery.
I did make one mistake when I took her up to see my wife. We walked into the hospital, down the hall and got on the elevator. When we got to the second floor Tolly almost leaped out of it, then turned around and sniffed the floor inside. When we got to my wife's room I told her about that and she laughed, saying Tolly has never been on an elevator before. For a (then)2 year old Portuguese Water Dog, I thought she took it very calmly. THEN the good part began. The staff saw me take her in and soon they were all coming around to see her. She stood on her hind legs and put her right front paw up on the bed, so my wife could pet her. You KNOW what is next. The left front paw was there too, then the right hind leg and then she was laying very still next to "Mommy". None of the staff said to get her off the bed.
I told them she was stressed out because my wife had not been away from her since she was about 6 weeks old. They smiled and said it was fine. It didn't hurt that Tolly had been to the groomers a couple of days before the surgery. She was the hit of the ward. When given her choice, she preferred to lay next to "Mommy" and lay her head on my wife's stomach. I think both of them "healed" together.
RE: Side effects of Gentamicin antibiotic
I was down to around 15 prescriptions, now back up to 21. I have ten specialists I have to see and each gets a typed page with my current prescriptions, any meds I have quit in the last 6 months, meds I am allergic to AND the antibiotics I have had in the last 3 years. Small fonts.
I list any type of steroid in red and most recent changes in yellow. They get the dosage, dr. name and phone number. I learned the hard way.
I read the side effects of Cipro in 1999 and it said one side effect could be death. (I think that was Cipro) My PSA went from around .5
to around 8 in a year, so they did a necessary biopsy. I forget how many of the Cipro I took, but I did not get any of the side effects.
BTW, the doctor I consider the BEST in his profession on the coast and maybe in the USA made a mistake yesterday. Or his office did anyway, they prescribed an antibiotic I am allergic to. Walgreen's caught it before I did. I was too sick to answer the phone when this doctor called or it would not have happened. Even the best can make a mistake. It is up to the pharmacist and us to cross check our meds.
(Please don't take that as any form of criticism in your case. You had no way of knowing, but I bet you make sure you don't get that med again. That said, if we have a choice of death or taking a medication with known bad results for us, I would take the medication again I guess.)
I sure hope you get better fast.
RE: Service Dogs
My wife says there are websites that will help you train your Service Dogs to do various things.
I am in my 5th day of detox off morphine/fentanyl/oxycodone/demerol, etc. I am functioning at a low level, but my Service Dog is at my side.
If you can't find the websites, let me know and I will ask her.
RE: Hospitals and RVs
I was never in Kaiser, but have many friends who are. National Jewish Hospital is the number one Respiratory Hospital in the USA for 11 straight years, but no RV help there.
Cherry Creek State Park was wonderful to us. Considering the KOA in Denver was something like $65 a night.
It sure pays to ask around.
RE: Hospitals and RVs
Sutter Roseville Hospital allows RV parking, but they told me the parking site is now moved a couple blocks away. NOT GOOD for a wife walking back to the RV late at night.
We live close by so it is not a problem for us, but if you were coming down from Ft. Bragg, it would not be too good.
RE: Service Dogs
My service dog KNOWS when work is over because the vest comes off and I tell her "Free Puppy".
My wife takes her to Lend-A-Heart Therapy sessions at retirement homes.
After a few hours there, she (Tolly, our dog) gets home, is told "Free Puppy" and she jumps straight up in the air, then runs in circles for awhile. If I tease her a little she will run laps through the house, using the couch for a "berm" or "bank shot". As fast as she runs, she has NEVER hit one of the grandsons yet. Our youngest just started walking. He will even step in front of her and she goes around him or over him. Which he thinks is wonderful. He (19 months old) laughs and claps his hands.
So yes, my service dog "lets her hair down" after a strenuous session.
Our Ham Operator group has been having breakfast in the same restaurant, the same booth, for 21 years. She goes there the 3 mornings a week. The people who eat there mostly know her, but only say hi. If they want to pet her, I make her sit next to them and they can pet her. My wife told me to do this so the dog understands there is work and this is different I guess. Like most husbands, I do as I am told. :) It has worked great so far.
EDIT: I am trying to talk my wife into doing dog training over the internet/telephone. If you have a 115 pound lab that does not listen well, she might be able to tell a person how to deal with it. Or not.
Not every dog can be a service dog. Even Labs (as precious as they are) have some who might not be a good Service dog.
RE: Service Dogs
I take my Service Dog to a restaurant 3 times a week to keep her used to public dining places. She is always the biggest hit there and I have to keep her under the table.
With me eating, as well as others, I don't want her to forget her manners. She wears her vest and no one ever says a word. I do have to watch for crayons, etc. under the tables.
Same with the hospital. She is usually the center of attention after a few minutes.
RE: Service Dogs
Define traveling. RV traveling? Pretty simple. Flights? Cruises?
More complicated. Also, it would sound like you need a "bracing type" service dog, a larger dog. Not as easy to travel with on a flight, etc.
We thought about taking ours on a cruise, but need to feed her. She is "raw fed" at home. A quarter chicken daily (uncooked). Bones are soft when uncooked. Dog food is easier to carry, but our dog does not like it as well.
So traveling with a lab or retriever is harder unless you are doing it in an RV and even then it takes forethought for us.
RE: Medicare and extra insurance
I have more experience with Medicare, Tricare for Life and Mediplus than I would like. I am currently being treated by... nine or ten specialists. They all take Medicare, but one of them refuses to bill Tricare For Life for me. I am dropping him.
Mediplus is from MOAA, a retired officers and I think NCO group. They seem to be merging. Having been a Sgt first, then an officer, I think I qualify for most plans. We just had a big hike in fees for my wife and I - it is now $400 a quarter, but they pay 100% of whatever Medicare and TFL don't pay. Before I was on SSDI I really needed Mediplus, but now that I have Medicare up front, I will drop Mediplus next year. We do use Mediplus to pay for my prescription copays at Walgreens. I don't trust the drug program that mails me my meds. I am probably wrong not to trust them, but I KNOW I can get my meds at a Pharmacy, never too sure about a mail order outfit. Class II is another story.
Most doctors and Durable Medical Equipment (DME) dealers do NOT know TFL covers a lot of things Medicare doesn't. Be aware of that if you are retired military. Apria fought me until I went to Corporate to ask them how much money they are losing through ignorance on the part of their employees. Grrrrrrrr. Even when I sent the Sacramento Apria people a copy of the page that states this, they didn't seem to understand Tricare for Life covers more things.
My wife uses Tricare Standard (PPO) and we have not had anyone refuse to see her. I did have a Pain Mgt Doctor's office say they did not take Tricare Standard or Tricare for Life, but would take Tricare Extra or something like that. I told them they cannot take only one kind of Tricare, but this lady knew it all. It wasn't worth the hassle to educate her.
For Chronic Pain, Medicare has many more doctors than Tricare in the North East part of Sacramento. I am not sure why, but as was mentioned earlier, I think any Dr. taking medicare has to take Tricare.
Another thing you should be aware of is how you are billed and what you really owe. Example: A DME in Sacramento told me they had been refused by Medicare (It was for an E bottle of Heliox and a special regulator). I told them to file the EOB with Tricare, because Tricare was paying for the Heliox until I went on Medicare. They billed me some outrageous amount and I called Medicare. Medicare told me this company had NOT billed Medicare. If they did, Medicare would pay it.
The lady at Medicare explained that some independent medical firms have been known to tell the customer this story because the customer is billed at the high rates and usually pays it. Put another way, a monthly charge was $500, but Medicare would only pay about $135. See what I mean? The lady told me Medicare would be glad to call this DME and arrange for training of their people. I repeated this to the bookkeeper there and the charges disappeared. I called later to see if they had been paid and was told not to worry, it had been resolved.
I still don't know what happened. Same with Dental Charges. I ran out of Delta Dental coverage after a car wreck in 2001. I needed a crown, which I was told cost $900. Delta only allowed a portion of that and they told me how much I had to pay. The dentist signed a contract with them which was binding in my situation. Saved me $$$$$.
BTW, anyone keeping track of the lawsuit against Medicare? DME's from across the USA filed a lawsuit and Congress is fast tracking a bill
to stop Mediscare. You can Google Medicare and lawsuit to find it. Never a dull moment.
RE: Who here takes Neurontin?
Judy,
Check out all the things Neurontin is prescribed for... I was amazed when I was looking under SSRIs or something along those lines. I found
Amatripaline (I know I misspelled that one) and Neurontin in some strange places.
I think it is one of those drugs like Prednisone where they tell us they are not sure how it works, but it does.
The good news for me was...I took it awhile, maybe a year, then cut back and got off for about 3 years. I am back on it now. I hope Bud can get off of it too. Good luck...Dave
RE: Who here takes Neurontin?
Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) -- I took it a few years ago, then it came back under high stress.
I take 900mg and I think the doctor said the maximum safe dosage was about 4500mg or something like that. It originally made me sleepy, but not for long.
Hmmmmmm, I have another in a long run of problems with my teeth. If Neurontin works on my leg nerves, I wonder if it would work on the nerves in my mouth?? My dentist is on vacation.
RE: $8000 TV???
More has happened, but I was waiting to be sure the repairs were made.
Our TV was repaired for free today. I researched and read that the Patriarch of FILCO still owned all of them. Tony is a straight up, good old fashioned guy. He was the reason I trusted FILCO. I gave him a courtesy call as to what my plans were and that I was sorry to see he still owned this store.
I learned a LOT about FILCO, some of the family members who work there and that he insisted on fixing this for free. He said he heard I offered to pay half, but he insisted on paying for the entire thing. And he did.
We watched how the tech replaced the bulb container, even videotaped it. We also found a retired Sony Tech who only charges $40 for a house call. This other tech said he would install the Phillips Lamp for that $40. The Lamp is available for around $100. NOW we can rethink the situation. If it costs us $140 every 2 years, I can "live" with that I guess. I was told projection TVs will be going out with Laser coming in. I am very happy to hear many of you are not having these problems. I am guessing we will pay the $140 in a couple of years, then when it fails the 3rd time, we will get rid of it.
Circuit City is in Chap 11, then a couple of other places like that are going under in our area.
Lots went on behind the scenes that I would love to tell you about, but out of courtesy to "Mr. Patriarch" I won't. I was even offered another TV to use while the bulb was enroute, etc. I will drive across town to deal with Tony in the future.
I am still dealing with Sony concerning how they mislead the public, claiming 6,000 to 8,000 hours for the bulb. Consumer reports stated, in Dec 2007, the bulbs should have a 5,000 hour life. We got about 3.000 hours. At the moment, I probably won't believe any of the manufacturers again. Get the proven technology. I hope that is Laser by the time this one dies again. We might fix it and have it put in our living room. To be used occasionally. Or maybe not. I wish I knew if it would last a long time in there. Or our bedroom? Of course my bride would have to sleep in the hall way... :)
Some of you suggested I should have read the contract. There wasn't any. I just got it yesterday. If the dealer does not have a copy in the future, I will get them to write it down on the contract and sign it. "This extended warranty covers all parts for xx years." and sign it.
Thanks for your suggestions, most of you had good inputs, while others did not seem to grasp the timing of the situation. If a TV has been out 4 months, it is usually impossible to forecast a lamp going out every couple of years. Thanks again.
RE: $8000 TV???
FILCO did NOT offer me a written warranty to look at. I was given a verbal description.
If the bulb cost $.29 I don't want the TV. If the bulb were free, I don't want a TV that is guaranteed to break. I would not buy anything that is guaranteed to malfunction.
Sony is not jumping at the chance to make things right either.
As for Sony not selling this set because they could not make enough money, hell, if the other TV's are the quality of mine, they might keep one factory open making bulbs.
One of my biggest concerns is where will I find the bulb in 15 years?
RE: $8000 TV???
For all you "geniuses" who told me to perform due diligence and I should have researched it, here is an article about the NEW KDS-R60XBR1, released in August 2005. I bought mine around 4 months later. The projection tube takes an average of 2 years to die. One of you said a year. Can you "geniuses" who performed due diligence please tell me how I could have known the bulb would go out when (in theory) none had failed yet? I did look around in 2005, but did not find anything talking about the Projection Bulbs burning out in 2007 or even 2008.
Note that the Consumer Reports article below, dated Dec 2007 (2 years after I bought my TV, they state the claimed life of the bulbs is 5,000 hours. Could we call this article "due diligence"? Two years later? It sounds like Consumer Reports was unaware of 3,000 hours or 2 years also. I guess that puts poor ole me in good company. Not as smart as you, but heck, I only wanted to help people. Since some of you are clairvoyant, can you tell me how long the Phillips bulbs will last? I am told they are the correct replacement.
August 16, 2005
Sony Expands HDTV Line with 50 & 60-Inch Grand Wega TVs
Sony Electronics today introduced two new sets in the line based on the acclaimed Silicon X-tal (Crystal) Reflective Display (SXRD™) technology delivering full 1920 x 1080 high-definition resolution. The 1080p (progressive) KDS-R60XBR1 and KDS-R50XBR1 Grand WEGA models compliment two existing SXRD products -- the 70-inch QUALIA™ 006 micro-display and the QUALIA 004 front projector.
CONSUMER REPORTS ARTICLE
December 2007
CONSUMER REPORTS: FIRST EVER BRAND REPAIR RATES FOR LCD, PLASMA AND REAR-PROJECTION TVS
December issue also features Ratings of HDTVs; Advice on extended warranties for TVs
* They want to buy a TV from a more repair-prone brand because it’s low-priced.
* The TV will be used for 5,000 hours, the claimed life of many bulbs, within the time covered by an extended warranty, and the warranty covers bulb replacement.
* The warranty does not cost more than the bulb ($200 to $300) or 15 percent of the TVs price, whichever is less. CR recommends bargaining for a lower price; warranties have a high profit margin.
All kidding aside, I tried. Some times you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you. I guess I am getting old, after doing business with them for about 20 years, I thought I could trust them. Caveat Emptor? We can only do so much, guess offering to help was a mistake.
$8000 TV???
This is a warning to RV owners and anyone buying a a large screen TV. This posting is done in an effort to educate and save YOU from the trap we fell into.
LONG STORY SHORT, MORE DETAILS AVAILABLE IF YOU WANT THEM.
We bought a Rear Projection TV, and were told this 60 inch Sony would need a projection bulb every 6000-8000 hours of usage (Store owner's version). 4 hours a day = minimum of 1500 days = around 4 years. Cost around $400 installed by professionals. We bought an extended warranty that cost around $450. We were told it covered everything. Total cost $5,009.71, plus the $300 stand.
That is the Filco story today(where we bought it in Sacramento, CA).
June 19, 2008 the set failed, the bulb died with around 3,000 hours. I called the extended warranty people to find Filco had never sent our money to them to activate our insurance. I called Filco and they said they would check into it. Approximately 900 days after we bought it, FILCO says they have activated the insurance, and by the way, this bulb is not covered. Had I not called, FILCO would never have bought this policy and they would have kept the $450 without paying taxes on it.
I told the manager my wife and I do NOT remember them telling us one word about projection bulbs. After all, we bought the unit New Years Eve, around 3pm (to get the sales tax break in 2005 -- we bought our motorhome that year).
I told the FILCO owner I got 15 years out of the last big screen TV we bought from them and this is a SONY, we figured we would get 15 years out of it also. 15 years at $400 every two year is $3000 more. No sane person would buy a TV that they would have to pay an average of $200 a year for the life of the TV. Maybe I am wrong. Had I been told the truth, I would never have bought this unit. There were plenty of less expensive TVs.
There is much more to the story, but if this story saves even one of you from this mess, it is worth it. I am not sure where to post this, but I hope you leave it somewhere so people can read it. EDIT: In trying to be factual, I forgot about a forum rule about mentioning --
how to say this correctly -- we are not supposed to discuss what we plan on doing about it. I hope I said that correctly. Sorry about that. We are retired, on a fixed income, this is not what I wanted to spend my money on. We were materially misled and the store owner at Filco told us too bad. Local store owners gripe about the internet and Walmart, but I could have saved money by buying it there, enough to pay for the bulbs for some time.
Please take note I have tried to tell the facts. No name calling, etc.
BTW, the fastest way to find problems in large ticket items is to ask about the extended warranty and what does it NOT cover. Insurance is "Risk Based". If the product has a part that fails a lot, that part will usually NOT be covered in the warranty. Ergo, had I been told this extended warranty from GE would not cover the bulb, I would bought something else.
PS - if you wonder why I trusted FILCO, it is because we had bought several major appliances there in the last 20 years. What we were told now is that there was a change in ownership. Guess I am getting old.
RE: What Did They Find on Your Brain MRI?
I had a brain MRI done and was in there well over an hour. But mine was not for headaches, it was for severe Respiratory problems. They were looking for some kind of lesion.
I don't get any real headaches, but my best friend growing did. It was awful. He would have to go to bed, turn out the lights, etc. trying to get relief. Even as a 16 year old I KNEW he was hurting and felt bad for him.
Funny, I hadn't thought about him for years. We lost contact while I was in the service and he moved out of state. His younger sister had bad headaches too. That seems odd as I look back on it.
Best of luck, I don't have an answer for headaches, other than Oxycodone and frankly, that might not help. I hope all is well.
Good Sam CSP is a Non-Admitted Carrier here...
I received the renewal for my Good Sam Continuing Service Plan or whatever CSP stands for. They made of point of telling me to please fill out the D-1 form and send it in.
I read it and fired them. In California, a Non-Admitted Carrier (NAC) means they can do anything they want and the state of California cannot touch them. I understand why companies do it, they save money and paperwork. BUT if CSP WERE an admitted carrier, they would have to comply with the laws in Calif. and if they went broke, the insurance pool would pick up 80% of the policy... or, more to the point, they would pick up 80% (at least) of a repair. Or so I was told by the Dept of Insurance.
By being an NAC, they could pull their coverage from the state and I might have to go to the state they are domiciled in to get a claim paid.
Some of you won't care about that, some of you will. I am willing to pay a little more to get an Admitted Carrier.
RE: Good Sam ERS strikes again
I plead guilty to not reading every single post in this thread, but I got a shock today.
I called 800-947-0770 and worked my way through the press 1 or press 2 maze. My wife had a flat a couple of blocks away, so I put my lightweight air tank in the truck, inflated the tire and got her off the streets.
I called and was told Goofy Sam would send someone to put her spare tire on, but I would have to pay for it. I am NOT in an emergency status, so I am not too unhappy about that, but I asked them about my RV. I told them my RV is sitting next to the house, what if the 22.5 tires went bad while sitting there. I am disabled and can't lift a 100 pound+
tire. Same thing, even on my RV. If it is not an emergency, they don't pay for it.
Since the card plainly says EMERGENCY ROAD SERVICE, and it refers to roadside assistance dispatch --- having a car in my yard does not qualify. Fine. After reading some of these posts, it makes me wonder if they pay for your tire change if you are on the side of the road?
OR do they send a repairman out, he changes it and you pay him. I guess I am wondering what other "gotcha" clauses goofy sam has in the contract. Guess I had better read it closely.
BTW, it is a 2007 Toyota Prius and our Toyota dealership said to bring it in, they would fix it for free. That is Folsom Lake Toyota and it is a Saturday afternoon. WOW. We have bought 3 Toyotas there, but I never expected a free tire repair.
RE: Does O2 concentrator degrade interior???
I have heard of ozone causing problems with rubber, but not oxygen.
I sleep with a Concentrator and Ventilator. No problems at home or in the RV. The longest I have used it at one time is about 6 weeks. I used oxygen a lot in the Air Force and never heard of your problem.
Good luck with it.
