Tough choices
Our boy dogs got in another fight today. An ugly, nasty fight. I ended up with a bad gash on my left index finder when I tried to grab one by the collar and pull him off. Yeah, dumb move on my part, but I thought the no slip collar would put my hand far enough away that I woudn't get bit - NOT.

The first choice we had to face was what to do about the dogs. We may have to put one or both of them to sleep. I don't have energy to go into the details of what happened, but I've been at my job long enough to know the options are limited. Fortuantly, my boss is an expert when it comes to this sort of thing so I will have access to the best advice available later this week. For now, we can keep the boys apart in different rooms and defer that decision for a later day when I have a chance to talk to him. I'm not ready to make that kind of a decision right now anyway.

The second choice was what to do about my finger. It needs stitches by modern standards, but otherwise I think it's okay. Who knows, I'm not a doctor. Instead, I'm one of the 45 million Americans who don't have health insurance. I decide to pick up the phone and start calling the places that are open on a Sunday afternoon and ask them what they charge. It's surprisingly difficult to get this information, but I manage to discover that the cost for a doctor just to take a look and not do anything (like stitches or xrays, etc.) runs from $80 to $200 depending on the place. Stitches would bump this price up to $300 to $400. That pretty much made the decision for me and I opted for self-treatment. I did as much to prevent infection as any doctor would do and made a splint fashioned out of a plastic fork handle with some duct tape to hold it on for a couple of hours which allowed the wound to seal up except for one spot than continues to ooze. If it keeps up, then I'll hit that spot with some super glue. The fact that I'm typing this post makes me think there is no major damage under all that swelling and uglyness. Sure, it hurts like a mother-fucker to type, but I can do it and the fact that it hurts like a mother-fucker is a good thing. If it didn't hurt, then I'd be at the emergency room working out a payment plan.

Now this might be a good opportunity to rant about the lack of health insurance coverage in the richest nation on earth, but truth be told, I probably would not have gone to the doctor even if I had insurance. My last insurance plan wouldn't have covered any charges unless I had already met my $5000 deductible and the best insurance plan I've had in the last 10 years had a $150 copay for emergency room treatment. No, don't give me health insurance, give me a doctor that works on Sundays who charges an affordable rate. Yeah, like that will ever happen.