Eating in the Ghetto on a Hundred Dollar Plate

The short version is that I messed up.

The longer version is that through a confusing and nail bitting and nerve wracking serious of stupid events, India ended up with no health insurance in a country that, well, charges lots and lots for a visit to the emergency. $1600.00 later, and this single-momma-grad-student-living-on-a-fellowship has been bumped from person to person to person in government/social services trying to figure out how to pay for that sucker - the bill, not the daughter, or me, though I am a bit of a sucker. Today, a very nice man named Scott told me that the best he could do for me was to let my bill go to collections and maybe I could work some payment option out with them. Poor Scott. His voice got all shaky and nervous and I heard him put on a fake tough-guy suit to get through it. If he wouldn't have sounded so darn nervous I might have let mean Angela out, just because I was feeling a little freaky by then, but, I didn't. But holy smokes: COLLECTIONS? Isn't that one step away from debtors jail where India will have to bring me meals of bread and water and work in a factory making rugs because her little hands are perfect for those tiny embroidered flowers that all the clean rich ladies like?

Damn it. I need to learn how to make money writing. Imagine that. (And while you're imagining that, ask me how much money I got for that children's book I published. Yeah. You know. The one that won that award and sold out. Just ask.)

(*I should add that India is fine now. In case you're the worrying kind.)

In other news: I think I like writing again. It was touch and go there for awhile. I think I might, might like it still. Ask me again next week.

AND, AND, AND... HOLD ONTO YOUR HATS!

This Friday by 5:00, you will be able to pick up your phone, dial 319-354-0214 and reach ME ME ME! And India. The "No Phone" experiment of 2009/2010 is done. It was a flop. It is darn near impossible to function without a phone and you would not believe the rigmarole you have to go through filling out forms without a phone.

Boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen, I am full of heart. And dinner. And the desire.

Good night.