Of MRI's and other ethereal things

This entry is past-dated. {grin}  It takes me longer to write and put an entry in than the 1-hour I have at a public library, and I'm not yet used to writing in small pieces ... I may yet gain a new skill!

For those of you who wanted information on the status of my arm/hand(s) -- the MRI was ... inconclusive.

I quote the doctor interpreting it: "The MRI is inconclusive. However, it's going to take months and months and months to get you neurological testing."

My response? Looking the doctor directly in his eyes I firmly said, "Are you telling me you are not going to order the neurological testing because it's going to take months and months and months for an appointment for me?"

The doctor said, "Well, it's going to take a long time."

I waited for a bit, while we looked at each other.  It may have only been a few seconds, yet it felt like hours.

Finally, with my strong, courageous voice, in even tones, brooking no exception, I replied, "I want the neurological testing done."

The doctor looked at me, shrugged a kind of head nod, which I took to be a yes.

At which point the doctor made a note in my electronic medical records and told me I should watch the mail for the appointment like I had to do for the MRI.

I'm not certain how long months and months and months is ... but we'll find out, eh?

The first thing that occurred to me was -- why do I have to be adamant, extremely assertive and very nearly aggressively forceful to get the danged neurological testing set up? Isn't that something that the doctor would recommend, considering the arm is hindering my life, lifestyle, income and general well-being? Why is "it'll take months and months and months to get the appointment" a factor in whether or not to order the testing?

However, I can share with you, if you are on GR, and using a free clinic, check with them to find out if you can have more than one clinic visit scheduled in a month's time. I was surprised to find out that I'm limited to one visit at the clinic a month.

How Do We End Homelessness and Is It Even Possible?

This is a response to HG's blog post on ending Homelessness

That’s going to depend on what someone’s definition of homelessness is.

Homelessness is a global issue. How deep are you and I willing to go to find the “cause” of homelessness?

Is homelessness found predominantly in industrial societies? Is it also happening in tribal societies (which in my mind are usually smaller, and not focused on “money” as the means of income)?

Is homelessness: The street people? The poor? The destitute? The addicted (pick your element of addiction)? The panhandlers? The mentally challenged? The physically challenged? The emotionally challenged? The spirit (no, I’m not talking about religion or religious beliefs) challenged? A mix of any from column A, B, and C?

Does ending homelessness mean: No more people on the street? No more people couch surfing? No more people in socially defined unhabitable places (and if so, which society makes the definition)?

Having a home is a multitude of things … it’s not just having the space to “be”; it’s having the ways and means to find, maintain, and provide the constructive growth of space to “be”.

Having a home is not just having a safe space to sleep; it’s about believing you have a right to be in the world.

I believe homelessness can be ended with educating both the homed and the homeless in awareness, self-esteem, acknowledgment, validation, and self-worth.

More and more people are becoming homeless … whether they fit the stereo-typical image of homelessness or not.

The core beliefs of the society — what we teach each other — is what needs to be changed to end homelessness.

A paradigm shift, if you will.

Elsewise, homelessness will not end, it will merely transform and be represented in differing ways.

Sheena Iyengar on the art of choosing (a TED talk)

Ran across this today ... how do you feel about this perspective?

Sheena Iyengar on The Art of Choosing. 



And if you consider it a good choice -- TED (Ideas worth spreading)


And here's an image that I choose to look at today because it symbolizes choice to me!

Image by Micky.!
Creative Commons - Attribution 2.0