Ohtani rightfully wins the MVP. Man, I can't wait to see him in a Twins uniform next year.
20 thoughts on “November 17, 2023: Bestest Good Playing Guy”
Dark place, folks. MY FiL continues to be hospitalized, tho not for much longer. He's made some progress in pt as he's able to get out of bed and has been walking a bit. The social worker hasn't found a placement and we've been struggling with the state to get a final piece of documentation to have his application for medical assistance reviewed (the title to a broken-down trailer is keeping us from moving forward). They've declared that he's back to baseline and that means he must go home. He isn't in any shape to be okay at home, and his house isn't safe for a person in his condition. They don't give a rip. Yesterday, the social worker just happened to pop into his room when his son was on the phone with him. She asked to talk to him and convinced him to come up to Aitkin and take his dad home on Saturday. We called everyone we could think of to try to stop him from being released because his wounds have not healed and require daily treatment. The hospital don't care, my BiL sent a scathing text to Dr. Chop about how she's a horrible sister and that he never wants to talk to her again (spoiler, there will be words my friend). I'm trying to be the voice of reason to a group of unreasonable people. Once discharged he loses the his referral for inpatient rehab and goes to the bottom of the list for medical assistance. Greatest healthcare system in the world*
I finally told my BiL that what he's doing will set his father back and potentially kill him. I suspect that I'll be receiving a text telling me to pound sand and that will be that.
Not good. Nothing we can do but start over on the county MA paperwork.
*not
Ugh, sorry to hear about the ongoing struggles. Not justifying the BIL at all, but in my experience the family member physically closest has pretty much always felt like they're bearing too much of the burden compared to those geographically further away.
Not excusing anything that may have been said, but pointing out he may not be coming from the most rational place given the added stress of the situation.
True, true. BiL is upset and stressed because his dad is really sick. BiL also refused to go up there and help him get urgently needed care. Instead, he called us and told us that we needed to come to Minnesota and deal with the problem.
Their’s is a very complicated family dynamic. He was largely shielded from the wreckage dr. Chop’s mom caused prior to her death. It’s a mess that no mop can clean.
Oy.
Families are the best.
Best wishes to you and the good Dr.
And add to that, BiL has said he’ll block any attempt we make to “put dad in a home”. Ugh
Sorry you two have to go through all this, Joe.
You are all in our prayers.
This is one reason I will never work in a hospital. Social workers get pressured all the time to ask patients and families to do things that are against their best interests and potentially violate their code of ethics because insurances stop paying and the hospital doesn't want to lose money.
There was a time in this country when nearly all health insurance was not-for-profit. That changed in 1973 with passage of the HMO Act. Far from delivering improved services at lower rates as promised, the HMO Act only served to drive consolidation and vertical integration and ultimately less consumer choice and higher costs.
My wife runs the rehab at a local long and short term care facility. The facility subcontracts the Physical Therapy with the company my wife technically works for. She gets to juggle her company's desires versus the facility's desires versus Medicare versus Physician's orders versus family's wishes. It is simply amazing how it only seems to get worse each year in this country in regards to health care.
Our clinical healthcare is probably the best in the world. Our way of paying for it probably the worst -- a Gordian knot of immense proportion tied and tightened strand by stakeholder strand over the past half a century.
Dunno if I ever shared it here, but in late 2020 my mother had to go to the hospital for a slipped disc in her back. They discharged her to a retirement home in the midst of a COVID outbreak before she could walk again, despite her numerous autoimmune diseases. She promptly caught COVID, miraculously survived, then almost died from a gallbladder infection in the spring of 2021. She was (again) discharged to a retirement home before she could walk. The retirement home tried to say that her insurance wouldn't cover any additional time recovering, and tried to boot her... again. Before she could walk. Again. My dad and her were able to fight it and she was able to get the treatment she needed, but it was a fight.
I'm still shocked she made it through all that she did, but I am fairly certain that if she had to go home without being able to walk again, she'd be dead now. It's heartbreaking to me that these decisions ever have to be made.
Brother, I feel you.
Sending positivity.
That's tough, sorry to hear that. Family, man. I think I'll be fortunate there in that I expect my brother's to be reasonable about these things. My 70 yo step dad fell off a ladder yesterday and fractured his back (fortunately not too low, so he'll recover) so it seems like things are getting closer and closer to that sort of age.
This situation has prompted conversations with my siblings about aging parents - and aging ourselves. Tough conversation but important.
Sending all the positivity I can to you and the good Dr.
Estrellas did not play yesterday.
Caribes lost to the Cardinales 3-1. Willians Astudillo was 1-for-3. Caribes had only four hits, and no one had more than one. Liarvis Breto took the loss, blowing a 1-0 lead by allowing three runs in the eighth. .He gave up three hits and two walks while striking out two.
From FanGraphs today, I missed this glorious pitch from Eduardo Escobar in September.
How was Carlos Gomez only on the Twins for 2 seasons? I would have sworn up and down it was more like 4 or 5.
Dark place, folks. MY FiL continues to be hospitalized, tho not for much longer. He's made some progress in pt as he's able to get out of bed and has been walking a bit. The social worker hasn't found a placement and we've been struggling with the state to get a final piece of documentation to have his application for medical assistance reviewed (the title to a broken-down trailer is keeping us from moving forward). They've declared that he's back to baseline and that means he must go home. He isn't in any shape to be okay at home, and his house isn't safe for a person in his condition. They don't give a rip. Yesterday, the social worker just happened to pop into his room when his son was on the phone with him. She asked to talk to him and convinced him to come up to Aitkin and take his dad home on Saturday. We called everyone we could think of to try to stop him from being released because his wounds have not healed and require daily treatment. The hospital don't care, my BiL sent a scathing text to Dr. Chop about how she's a horrible sister and that he never wants to talk to her again (spoiler, there will be words my friend). I'm trying to be the voice of reason to a group of unreasonable people. Once discharged he loses the his referral for inpatient rehab and goes to the bottom of the list for medical assistance. Greatest healthcare system in the world*
I finally told my BiL that what he's doing will set his father back and potentially kill him. I suspect that I'll be receiving a text telling me to pound sand and that will be that.
Not good. Nothing we can do but start over on the county MA paperwork.
*not
Ugh, sorry to hear about the ongoing struggles. Not justifying the BIL at all, but in my experience the family member physically closest has pretty much always felt like they're bearing too much of the burden compared to those geographically further away.
Not excusing anything that may have been said, but pointing out he may not be coming from the most rational place given the added stress of the situation.
True, true. BiL is upset and stressed because his dad is really sick. BiL also refused to go up there and help him get urgently needed care. Instead, he called us and told us that we needed to come to Minnesota and deal with the problem.
Their’s is a very complicated family dynamic. He was largely shielded from the wreckage dr. Chop’s mom caused prior to her death. It’s a mess that no mop can clean.
Oy.
Families are the best.
Best wishes to you and the good Dr.
And add to that, BiL has said he’ll block any attempt we make to “put dad in a home”. Ugh
Sorry you two have to go through all this, Joe.
You are all in our prayers.
This is one reason I will never work in a hospital. Social workers get pressured all the time to ask patients and families to do things that are against their best interests and potentially violate their code of ethics because insurances stop paying and the hospital doesn't want to lose money.
There was a time in this country when nearly all health insurance was not-for-profit. That changed in 1973 with passage of the HMO Act. Far from delivering improved services at lower rates as promised, the HMO Act only served to drive consolidation and vertical integration and ultimately less consumer choice and higher costs.
My wife runs the rehab at a local long and short term care facility. The facility subcontracts the Physical Therapy with the company my wife technically works for. She gets to juggle her company's desires versus the facility's desires versus Medicare versus Physician's orders versus family's wishes. It is simply amazing how it only seems to get worse each year in this country in regards to health care.
Our clinical healthcare is probably the best in the world. Our way of paying for it probably the worst -- a Gordian knot of immense proportion tied and tightened strand by stakeholder strand over the past half a century.
Dunno if I ever shared it here, but in late 2020 my mother had to go to the hospital for a slipped disc in her back. They discharged her to a retirement home in the midst of a COVID outbreak before she could walk again, despite her numerous autoimmune diseases. She promptly caught COVID, miraculously survived, then almost died from a gallbladder infection in the spring of 2021. She was (again) discharged to a retirement home before she could walk. The retirement home tried to say that her insurance wouldn't cover any additional time recovering, and tried to boot her... again. Before she could walk. Again. My dad and her were able to fight it and she was able to get the treatment she needed, but it was a fight.
I'm still shocked she made it through all that she did, but I am fairly certain that if she had to go home without being able to walk again, she'd be dead now. It's heartbreaking to me that these decisions ever have to be made.
Brother, I feel you.
Sending positivity.
That's tough, sorry to hear that. Family, man. I think I'll be fortunate there in that I expect my brother's to be reasonable about these things. My 70 yo step dad fell off a ladder yesterday and fractured his back (fortunately not too low, so he'll recover) so it seems like things are getting closer and closer to that sort of age.
This situation has prompted conversations with my siblings about aging parents - and aging ourselves. Tough conversation but important.
Sending all the positivity I can to you and the good Dr.
Estrellas did not play yesterday.
Caribes lost to the Cardinales 3-1. Willians Astudillo was 1-for-3. Caribes had only four hits, and no one had more than one. Liarvis Breto took the loss, blowing a 1-0 lead by allowing three runs in the eighth. .He gave up three hits and two walks while striking out two.
From FanGraphs today, I missed this glorious pitch from Eduardo Escobar in September.
How was Carlos Gomez only on the Twins for 2 seasons? I would have sworn up and down it was more like 4 or 5.