By Sandy Sanders
My comments about Medicare quickly brought responses from people who were quick to agree. One letter was sent to us and published on Wednesday also agreeing but said I referred to the federal employees as “idiots.” The writer must have just read into my column words I did not write because I was complimentary of the employees I had talked to and most definitely never called anyone an “idiot.”
I did hear from one person who said she had a family member who was one of the writers and she, too, had problems sometimes with the system. Here’s one possibility for all of the confusion. She said this person she knows was on a Medicare conference call last week with 17,000 people. How do you really know if everyone is on the call and especially if they are listening? I am certain of one thing no one asked a question.
More than wanted ...
You know how sometimes you ask for something and get way more than you bargained. This happened last week to the “Chipper.” Residents were urged to bring their old Christmas trees to locations around town so they could be chipped into recyclable compost. Sounds like a simple request but not so much. It seems that some people decided it was easier to leave the lights on their trees. One large outdoor tree was still in a bucket filled with concrete. The very best story I heard of “what was not quite what was asked” was the numerous “artificial” trees at a couple of the drop off locations. Now I know why stores can sell so many artificial trees each year. No one is “recycling” them back to their boxes and into the attic.
Haiti and the questions ...
Knowing one of the two men from Adel who were in Haiti during the earthquake brought this disaster close to home. Families in that community are hurting and, at the time of this writing, John Scarboro is the only known survivor. His son-in-law was still missing. Watching the television news broadcasts of the walls of concrete that had fallen like dominos was unbelievable. Homes and buildings that hold up well during hurricanes become tombs during an earthquake. John and his company were there to formulate plans to construct 30 enclosed basketball courts. As he was quoted in our paper on Saturday, “they have got to do something for the kids.” And in a country where 50 percent of the population is under 18, John is exactly right, but, as he knows so well, it will be a long time before basketball is on the mind of Haiti’s children.
Ringo ...
In 1963, I saw the thousands of people trying to jam into the Atlanta baseball stadium to see the British group, the Beatles. I did not have tickets but today I wish I had tried harder. Only two of the group lives today and Ringo Starr, the drummer, will turn 70 in July. He will celebrate his birthday performing at Radio City Music Hall, the home of the Rockettes. What a contrast! I don’t know if Ringo’s age makes my 65 seem young or is it just another reminder how quickly I will be 70. I am glad to see he is still working (and married after 29-years).
We all want the answer ...
Our 3-year-old granddaughter asked her sister Wednesday morning when she saw a heavy frost on the grass outside her home, “When is the green coming back on the grass?” Honey, let me know the answer to that because so far this January I am beginning to think it never will.
