Rain, Ride, Articles to Read

Two days ago it rained here.  It was off and on all day.  Radar looked like this.  It's not usual for there to be rain in March.  However, Phoenix got hammered with much rain and many road closures.  Farther north there were road closures due to giant boulders in the middle of the road.  Sedona had mandatory evacuations is areas, due to flooding.  So, we dodged that bullet, and happy we are about that.

So, the 15th and 16th were largely spent waiting for the weather to improve.

Today was better.  We rode out from the ball fields to the north, since that's where the wind was coming from.  They were dumping treated water again.  Look for the black arrow just left of center.  It's pointing at a guy who is fishing.  He caught two fish while we were watching him.  Unfortunately, his shirt is the same color as the foliage, so you'll just have to trust me when I tell you he's in there.  Farther up the trail, we saw two guys heading to the little waterfall section with fishing equipment.  I guess it's a thing.  We wonder if they came from the treatment plant, or what.  They must, because if no treated water is being released, the river beds are dry. 

These are either Mexican or California poppies.  They're out and they're very cheerful.  They're growing by the trail with no irrigation.   Hardy little buggers.

We proceeded north, past the "trail closed sign" to find out why that sign is there.  This is why.  The city is putting in new 24 inch sewer lines.  So the trail is permanently closed for the rest of the year, or longer if they run over.  There is no detour, and they won't let you walk up to the road and run across, it's closed to all.

Allegedly they will repave the trail when they are done.  That would be good.

Dinner last night was an epic fail.  Before leaving Spokane, I bought an inexpensive light weight grill pan to use on the AirBnB grills.  My thought was that it would be a disposable item.  Last night we got it out to see what it would do, and to grill a bunch of squash.  Basically, it burns the "grill marks" onto the food, without cooking it all the way through.  We're abandoning it when we leave.  The good news is that the cast iron skillet we bought fits perfectly in the box the grill pan came in.

Here is a disturbing article  I read.  The original article was in Stat News, which is now pay walled for me.  The article I am linking to links to the Stat article.  Try the link, see if you can go to the source of the news.  In a nutshell, Medicare Advantage has started using AI algorithms instead of doctors' judgement to determine how long it should take for a senior to recover from cancer, or a broken bone or whatever.  When the predicted time is up, you're out.  Here is a quote from the Medicare Advocacy article.

Behind the scenes, insurers are using unregulated predictive algorithms, under the guise of scientific rigor, to pinpoint the precise moment when they can plausibly cut off payment for an older patient’s treatment. The denials that follow are setting off heated disputes between doctors and insurers, often delaying treatment of seriously ill patients who are neither aware of the algorithms, nor able to question their calculations.

Older people who spent their lives paying into Medicare, and are now facing amputation, fast-spreading cancers, and other devastating diagnoses, are left to either pay for their care themselves or get by without it. If they disagree, they can file an appeal, and spend months trying to recover their costs, even if they don’t recover from their illnesses.

Medicare Advantage is a for profit entity.  They make money by denying treatment. 

Here is an article that was infuriating.  It recounts the experiences of two eminent Black doctors at a medical conference.  One was mistaken for the car valet, the other for the AV guy.  In both cases, they were wearing lanyards with their conference credentials in plain view.  It's not a long read, and it shows how much implicit bias is still roaming around.

Finally there is this.  CLICK HERE to play the video.  There is much tweeting about the possibility of arrests next week.  I'll believe when I see it, but one can hope.

Maybe this will happen.  Stormy Daniels spent a fair amount of time with the Manhattan DA this week and pledged to make herself available to the grand jury.

That's all I have to say about these things.