# Fewer days, more rants (February Mini-Rants) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 2, 2023, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184 "2023-02-02T01:08:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/101 "2023-02-07T22:26:18Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Also, just a general rant on UPS Canada: if you get a package from the US, it’s delivered with the ransom note that you need to pay a $35 “brokerage fee” because they’ve done all this work to clear a package through customs … It’s extortion, pure and simple Yes, and this is why when I find out that a US company is going to ship by UPS, I won’t do business with them. And I’m sure I’m not the only one. Pretty sad when part of your income stream is essentially an extortion racket that’s based on victimizing people who don’t know about it. ---
**Author:** ![Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mundane_super_hero/32/6304_2.png) [@Mundane\_Super\_Hero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mundane_Super_Hero)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/102 "2023-02-07T22:34:01Z")
You’re awesome! Please allow me this really bad day. I’ll be back on Thursday. And if some D-gsh-t HR asks if this is ‘PTO’ or not, please tell them to take a big bite ( and to figure it out for themselves ). ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2023, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/103 "2023-02-07T22:39:13Z")
Thanks for the backgrounder. Makes sense, although it doesn’t explain how Nestle was content to profitably run their Stouffer’s business for decades, and suddenly decided that they can’t any more. I assume that costs have gone up so much that their marketing folks figured that a profitable price point wouldn’t sell very well. I know that before the pandemic Stouffer’s were sometimes on sale at 2 for $5.00. Now, some varieties are more than twice as much – 2 for $11.00, and apparently Nestle still isn’t making enough profit. Pisses me off, though. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/104 "2023-02-08T01:44:53Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > She said it sounds like perseveration which is not uncommon with autism. His brain is just getting “stuck” and it’s a good sign I can redirec My thought exactly. Dweezil would frequently get stuck on certain phrases, and hyperfocus on topics. And if he got upset, he could be utterly unreachable at times. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/105 "2023-02-08T02:36:19Z")
It scared the shit out of me the first two times it happened but I think I am okay now that I know what to expect. Now that I understand it’s a self-soothing behavior I think I can take a calming and redirect approach. The trick is keeping _myself_ calm. We had a relatively uneventful evening, though he started hitting himself on the head (second time he’s done this), I tried to redirect to a less injurious stim and got him to start clapping his hands. I have no intention whatsoever of trying to suppress his stims as long as they aren’t hurting him. I think his stims are fucking adorable. Especially when he’s extremely excited about something he loves. He cannot physically contain his joy. I’m like, “When have I ever been that happy?” ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/106 "2023-02-08T10:16:24Z")
My BFF is in Calgary and is as upset as you are for the same reasons. She’s hoping Marie Callender’s will get more freezer space. They have decent pot pies if that helps any. I wonder if a Canadian company will step up. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/107 "2023-02-08T16:28:42Z")
My rant today is directed at Apria, the company that handles my CPAP supplies. Back in November I had to jump through all kinds of hoops just to update the exp. date on my HSA card. (I couldn’t just update the existing card, I had to add the new card, unenroll from autopay because it was tied to the old card, then set up a new autopay with the new card. And I had to call to get instructions from a CSR because the steps were not obvious on the website, and for some reason the CSR could see everything I was doing yet couldn’t just step in and do it for me.) My insurance changed at the beginning of the year and I had gone to their website as soon as I got my new insurance card to try to update my insurance. Again, shitty web design that won’t show me what my current insurance is, just fields for updating. No email confirmation that my changes were accepted. I was expecting a new shipment of supplies around the end of January and when they didn’t show, I figured I’d better call and make sure they had my new insurance info. Apparently the changes I tried to make online last month never showed up, so the CSR took all my new information, then said it would be 30-45 days for the new info to be verified, and that I could expect my next shipment of supplies _in late April_. So now I have to make the last of my current supplies stretch for another two months, which I wasn’t expecting. They better at least get my order right this time! ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/108 "2023-02-08T16:53:45Z")
This has happened to me more times than I can count. I don’t know your financial situation, but I was able to order a single replacement mask for around $50 without using my insurance. It helped me stretch my supplies. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/109 "2023-02-08T16:54:49Z")
Theme of the week: Our health care system is so fucked. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/110 "2023-02-08T16:59:11Z")
You do not lie, **Spice Weasel**. ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/111 "2023-02-08T17:12:14Z")
I thought about that. I know I’ve seen masks at CVS. I may just go get one to tide me over until April. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/112 "2023-02-08T17:29:41Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > know I’ve seen masks at CVS. I may just go get one to tide me over until April. It might be worth getting that mask/ supplies online rather than at a brick and mortar store like CVS, who jack their prices waaaay up. When I was waiting for my insurance authorizations for both supplemental oxygen and then a few months later CPAP, getting supplies from Amazon and online suppliers was much cheaper. You have to sort through prices a little but it made a big difference and ai had no problems with service or delivery speed. Here’s my favorite respiratory equipment supplier-they have been trouble free to work with and have an easy to use website and ordering process: > **[DirectHomeMedical - Search Results for You!](https://www.directhomemedical.com/SEARCH.html)** > > Founded in 2004 Direct Home Medical provides a premium range of sleep, oxygen and asthma therapy products to customers across the United States. We're here to help so give us a try. We like to make a big impression with swift service, low prices,... Their prices are also always the lowest in the field. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/113 "2023-02-08T21:41:13Z")
Update: we have an autism evaluation for **Wee Weasel** on the way! Parent intake is March 14th, then they schedule the ADOS. This is for Bridge Authorization. You can only get services covered under Blue Cross if you have an evaluation done at an approved center, but of course the wait lists for these centers are seven months to two years long. Crucial months and years in your child’s development just pass with no help of any kind. So I guess they decided if you get an autism diagnosis from a place in one of their Bridge Authorization referral lists and fill out a bunch of paperwork, you can start services immediately while you’re waiting to get into an insurance approved center. Here’s the rant. Most people don’t even know Bridge Authorization is a thing (including providers.) I can’t find it when I Google. My husband knows that it’s a thing because of his professional experience coordinating autism service coverage for clients. When he called the insurance company to ask them about Bridge Authorization they had no idea what he was talking about and gave him the wrong information. He was the one who had to tell them, “That is not how it works. That’s not how any of this works.” But once he weaseled the correct phone number out of them, he had no further issues. I’m grateful that Bridge Authorization is a thing, but I’m pissed it’s even necessary. The insurance company has created this massive bottleneck of desperate parents and kids in need of services by creating all these ridiculous restrictions and then not even educating its staff about customer options. Once more, with feeling: Fuck the US healthcare system. ---
**Author:** ![slalexan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@slalexan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slalexan)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2023, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/114 "2023-02-08T22:13:55Z")
> [@Spice\_Weasel](#): > > Fuck the US healthcare system. THIS! My own healthcare related rant - Drug costs. I am trying to get topiramate for weight loss. My brain drugs have made me hungry and I am having a REALLY HARD TIME controlling my weight. I’m now 330 lbs and I hate that. So I was prescribed topiramate. And now I can’t get it filled because insurance is being a dick. One dosage is covered but another is not. On top of that, not everyone has it in stock so I had to call around to even find a place that could fill it. Why is this happening? On top of that, my daughter’s ADHD medicine will cost $126 to fill. Because of course it will. Why wouldn’t it be more than a hundred? I’m sure the cost is definitely related to how much it costs to make the drug. _sarcasm_. The good news is that her sleep medicine will cost $1 for a 3 month supply. Because the world make sense. ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/115 "2023-02-09T00:59:12Z")
A Troubling Reaction I walked to the local market to buy groceries tonight. I was at an intersection I know well. There’s no light but traffic coming from my right has a stop sign. I checked all around. There was a car off in the distance to my right. I definitely preceded them to the intersection. Also, they had a stop sign. I began to cautiously cross. The driver (here after referred to as that asshole) did not stop at the stop sign. They did not even slow down. Had I been less cautious, they would have hit me. They stopped only because of traffic on the big street they wanted to turn on to. I was furious. I had to fight the urge to bang on their window and berate them. As I walked around the rear of their car, I had to fight the urge to key it. Even now, I find myself fervently wishing all kinds of harm upon him. Back at the end of December, I stopped my Concerta/Methylphenidate (My ADD medication). Since that time, I’ve found myself much more prone to anxiety, panic and rage. Tomorrow, I have a meeting with my caseworker at the mental health progam I attend. I plan to share all this and more. I am still very troubled. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/116 "2023-02-09T01:05:32Z")
> [@slalexan](#): > > On top of that, my daughter’s ADHD medicine will cost $126 to fill. Because of course it will. Why wouldn’t it be more than a hundred? I’m sure the cost is definitely related to how much it costs to make the drug. _sarcasm_. Which one? Vyvanse costs me $400/month until I hit my deductible, then it’s $100. But I just heard it’s about to go generic! Can’t wait. The state of ADHD meds in this country is generally pretty awful. I was reading about the massive shortage caused by unanticipated demand and limitations imposed by the FDA based on last year’s demand. I’ve really about had it with the handwringing over prescription medications in this country. I don’t think making it impossible for sick people to access the drugs they need is the solution to ending addictions. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/117 "2023-02-09T01:06:33Z")
> [@DocCathode](#): > > I was furious. I had to fight the urge to bang on their window and berate them. As I walked around the rear of their car, I had to fight the urge to key it. The appropriate action would have been to take down the license plate number and as good a description of the driver as you could get, and report them. It may not have resulted in a successful conviction, but would hopefully at least have resulted in a police visit and a check of their record. Surprisingly often, assholes like that turn out to have suspended licenses, for example. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/118 "2023-02-09T02:06:19Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > > [@Dr.Drake](#): > > > > What do they think they are protecting you from? > > Here in the USA we have HIPAA. Which is a health privacy legislative bogeyman that the medical industry emphatically does NOT understand, yet greatly fears. > > All manner of silly secrecy and semi-secrecy is done in the name of HIPAA compliance. Much of which is legally unnecessary nonsense. > > What they’re mostly protecting is their own fear of liability for something they don’t understand. > > Whenever a business says “We’re doing _X_ for your convenience” you should interpret that as “We’re doing _X_ for _our_ convenience”. “For your protection” is in the same category. Read it as “We’re doing _X_ for _our_ protection.” > > Bizspeak: the only time they’re not misleadingly weaseling is when they’re bald-faced plain-language lying loud and clear. Ya see, if they allow themselves to be exposed to liability issues, that will divert resources away from their ostensible mission to fulfill your needs effectively and safely. So, in a roundabout way, it really is about your protection and convenience. Yes, it sounds like bullshit to me, too. But I’m pretty sure I’ve got their rationalizations down accurately. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/119 "2023-02-09T03:00:46Z")
To the person who designed the clear nozzle on the Dial 3-1 body wash+face scrub+shampoo bottle. Fuck you. I never thought I’d have to Google ‘how do you open this bottle?’ wet and cold from a fucking running shower. And pressing down and turning the nozzle 90 degrees fast didn’t work! That piece of plastic ended up in the trash and now I just pour it on myself like it’s the Dark Ages. I hope someone kicks you in your genitals. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2023, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184/120 "2023-02-09T05:02:10Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > My rant today is directed at Apria, the company that handles my CPAP supplies. I have used them from time to time - in fact, thanks for the reminder: I spoke with someone in DECEMBER about ordering a new nebulizer. Someone was supposed to call me within a day. I’ve used them for CPAP supplies in the past. I quit using them once because they insisted on sending me a chin strap that I literally could not use (I have a large head, and they quit stocking the brand name ones, and the cheap knockoffs literally DID NOT FIT AROUND MY HEAD). Another time, I was switching to a different style of mask. They sent me the pillows. Not the rest of the mask. I guess I was supposed to try to jam the hose into the silicone pillow bit and hold it in place with my hand. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fewer-days-more-rants-february-mini-rants/979184.md?page=7)