Doorbell ditching

Look at what just showed up at our door. (Yes, just. At 11. Don't worry 12 is our bedtime.)

Inside the bag was another bag wrapped around two candles and two knives.

And the knives have me utterly perplexed. Who would just give away two knives? Was the bag wrapped around the knives just so they wouldn't cut up the bag that was holding the carving tools? Is this one of those pass-along things? If it was, there is not letter indicating such, and no ghost sign for us to put in our window so other givers do not target us again. Also, we only have two days left to give it away!

Well, we are going to have fun carving anyhow! Thanks, stranger!

Forget Squa Peak, I'll Show you a Real View

We went camping this weekend. As in, we set up camp last night at about 6:30. We roasted hot dogs and chatted until about midnight. Then we slept (and I use the term loosely) on the cold hard ground until 7:50 this morning. At which point we packed everything up and came home.

Originally we were going to go with friends, but they had something pop up this weekend. We thought about not going at all, but we haven't been camping since Jenn came to visit us in New Zealand. We wanted to be sure to go before it got too cold, and while the canyon is still very fall-ish.

We went to a campsite that Eric found while running a few weeks ago. He had been up there a few times since then to go roast hot dogs for work. It was a great site, and the views of Utah Valley were awesome. Hopefully there will be enough time this season for us to go at least one more time. (And hopefully some friends can come with us next time!)

Utah Food Co-Op Strikes Again!

This is what I brought home this week from the Utah Food Co-op. It cost $23. Yep, that's an eggplant. I've already turned it into baba ghanoush. (Yes, I actually cooked!)
Food included:

• 2 lb. boneless, center-cut pork loin roast
• 2 lb. split chicken breast (boneless, skinless)
• 1 lb. lean ground beef (85/15)
• 4 4oz. cubed steaks (1 lb. total)

• 1 loaf Stoneground artisan wheat bread
• 16 oz. lentils

• 2 avocados
• 6 Golden Delicious apples (Utah-grown)
• 6 pears
• 5 bananas
• 1 head cabbage
• 2 lbs. carrots
• 1 eggplant
• 3 lbs. yellow onions (Utah-grown)

I will say that I wasn't uber-thrilled with the meat selection this month, but I went ahead and got a standard share instead of a harvest share, which only includes fruits and vegetables.

If you live in Utah, you should really do the food co-op. There are pick-up locations all over the state. It gives you great food that is often grown locally. (Hooray for sustainability!) There may be stuff that you don't want, but you can always (a) try something new or (b) give it away. Plus, the things that are included are, as a rule, really great quality and really good for you.

Like taking $20 from a baby

I mentioned back in July that Eric made our nephew, Dave, cry. And I mentioned that it was a story unto itself. Ready?

So, there we were playing Guess the Person with the kids. Frankly, since Dave is only five (and a half) he was only marginally involved in the game. Eric and I had read most of The Wednesday Wars on our way to Jackson Hole, so the civil rights movement was on my mind. (That may sentence may lead you to believe that The Wednesday Wars is about the civil rights movement, but it isn't. The book just takes place during the sixties.) So, the person I had in my head was Martin Luther King, Jr. Eric figured it out pretty quickly, and he was doing his darndest to ask questions that would be really good clues for the older boys, Ty (eleven) and Bridger (nine). For some reason Dave became particularly interested in this round of Guess the Person. As Dave tried to guess who it was, Eric told him, "Dave, if you guess this person I will give you $20." What Eric really meant was, "Dave, if you guess this, I will be ASTOUNDED, and I will give you $20." What Dave understood was, "You can do it! Earn your $20!" Within a few guesses one of the older boys guessed that my person was Martin Luther King, Jr.

Then Dave cried for about 35 minutes. This is why Dave loves me most, because I do not make him cry. (That's one nephew of whom I am the favorite. Eric is the favorite of the other 13 nieces and nephews. And, that's not much of an exaggeration.)

Domesticity

You know how sometimes you have a discussion with somebody and she (or you) says something to the effect of, "Our family is starving. I haven't gone to the grocery store in so long. There is nothing to eat in my house!"?

Yeah, I could have that discussion with you. Except, not really. The last time I went grocery shopping? I'm honestly not sure. It was definitely before I went to Washington, D.C. last month.

Only, I'm not starving. At all. This is because Eric does the shopping. And the cooking. And most of the cleaning. And the laundry.

This is partly because I am a terrible wife, but mostly because Eric is just that awesome (and I taught him how to cook). Also because I get home from work every day at like 7:30, and by the time I get home I am way too tired to figure out what to cook and to be bothered cooking it. Plus, usually I don't have to because Eric has already cooked something by the time I get home.

Husband, in case you are actually reading this, you are the best. I will keep you forever. And I promise that one day we will return to normal.

Healthcare fail

Eric went to the doctor a couple of months ago, and I have been stewing ever since. I do not make much of a secret of my left-leaning politics and my pro-nationalized-healthcare sentiments. But this whole episode doesn't have a lot to do with that. So you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that I am not about to bombard you with my political opinions. I am, however, blogging about just one problem with America's healthcare industry.

Eric had been having problems all summer with his allergies. After using practically every over-the-counter medication and not having much luck, he finally buckled down and went to a doctor. He took with him a list of the medicines he had been taking, which included a nose-spray and the generic version of Claritin, called Loratadine. The doctor listened to Eric and then prescribed Claritin-A (or something like that). The doctor warned Eric that it would be a rather expensive drug, but Eric felt like he didn't have much of a choice because he was feeling so miserable so much of the time.

Off Eric went to the pharmacy where he learned that his medicine would cost him roughly $120. He did not expect it to be that expensive. When he told the pharmacist that his allergies weren't $120-per-month bad, the pharmacist said, "Well, Claritin-A is really just regular Claritin mixed with Sudafed." Both of those drugs are over-the-counter medications. The pharmacist called the doctor, had the prescription changed, and Eric went home having spent about $30.

Here are my problems:

1. Eric was already on Claritin. Why would the doctor prescribe the same drug that was already not working well for him? Aren't there other drugs that are possibilities?
2. What interest did the doctor have in prescribing Claritin-A? If he knew that it was rather expensive and could be replaced rather cheaply, why would he ever prescribe Claritin-A to anyone? Shouldn't his number one concern be his patients?
3. Why are drug companies making drugs that already exist? Obviously, the answer behind this is money. It's clear that the drug companies wouldn't research, manufacture and market drugs unless they saw profit behind each drug. They wouldn't see profit behind such a useless drug if the doctors weren't prescribing it.

Am I the only one who thinks this is absurd? Are there any medical personel out there who can shed some light on why this doctor would prescribe something that costs four times the amount of the cheaper alternative?