Huh? Wha?
Hi
_June it's nice to meet ya on the Internets. Unfortunately coming here to plant a garden would be a rather long commute, since I live near Houlton, about 200 miles from Augusta. I used to rent my farm to a neighbor who was growing potatoes, but he gave up on potatoes and just raises cattle on his own land. Unlike most of the U.S., the biggest loss of cropland in this area is due to bushes and trees taking over, not always a bad thing, but a sad indicator of how rural areas are being decimated by government policies and "the discipline of the free market".
Thanks for your kind words regarding my writing. Sometimes I can do it, sometimes it's just too hard. The Internet has made distribution of words cheap and easy, but unprofitable for nearly all writers. I have heard some appalling stories of how little money folks are being paid to write stuff for the Internet. Technology is a powerful weapon for driving down wages, as seen in manufacturing, meat packing, etc.
I have a friend who works part time for the newspaper in Lewiston. She has been there many years and is still paid peanuts. She even writes a regular column, but they won't give her a byline, or hire her full time, 'cause then they'd have to pay more. We certainly can't have that!
I do have some good news to report. I have finally won a partially-favorable decision on my Social Security Disability claim. This means I wll now receive a monthly payment, but they stuck it to me on the retroactive part of my claim. The law says they have to pay retroactive benefits back to the onset of my disability, less five months. (Apparently disabled people don't need to eat for the first five months of their illness/injury.) But the hearing officer is free to determine the onset date according to their whim and how badly they wish to be promoted.
I also just finished bankruptcy, so my farm and my retroactive benefits are reasonably safe from creditors. And with retroactive benefits in hand I was finally able to settle the lawsuit against my trailer house, with enough left over to fix the roof when the weather warms up. I will qualify for Medicare in June, at which time I hope to see a CFS specialist, most definitely out-of-state.
Have you found any doctors anywhere in Maine who have been even remotely useful? I found a nurse practitioner in Presque Isle who believes I have a real illness and is treating the OI symptoms. She won't go beyond that, but is more than willing to make any referrals I need, although *I* have to do the legwork of finding a CFS specialist.