Vis a tergo

What I Learned Today - Clean your dryer vent!

When I first moved into my house, I bought what I thought was a really nice washer and dryer, the Maytag Neptune series. As it turns out, the model of washer I got was plagued by at least a couple of problems; a badly designed seal that caused mildew to grow if it wasn't meticulously dried out constantly, and a circuit board for the controls that would blow a particular resistor.

The blown resistor seems to just be a sign of a badly designed circuit that ended up involving the automatic door lock on the door, and on, and on. The dryer seemed to fair better, but Ronda and I noticed a while ago that her cheaper dryer worked much better than my pimp-daddy dryer.

When she moved in we switched out my washer and dryer for hers. Lo! And behold! Her dryer worked no better at my house than my old one. That's when Ronda busted out her Girl Knowledge.

It turns out you have to clean your dryer vent every once in a while. I'm not talking about the dryer screen in the dryer. I'm talking about the big tube that goes from the back of the dryer, into the wall, under the house, and out the wall.

Ronda ordered some special cleaning devices and when they arrived, we got to work. We moved the dryer out from the wall and disconnected it, then used the special devices to try and bore through the years of accumulated dryer lint. The main device looked like a toilet brush on a long wire.

The Dryer Cleaning Device

We were able to shove this brush-like thing into the vent from the outside wall and drag out a couple of lint balls the size of Astro. When we turned on the dryer no hot air came out the vent, though.

That's when I got the idea to enlist my shop vacuum into service. In the end, the combined lint balls were probably about the size of Tanner. Air was flowing freely out the vents. Our clothes dried rapidly.

So, lesson learned! Clean your dryer vent, especially if you're clothes aren't drying in one cycle. Man, that Ronda's handy.

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Ronda's here!

Now that the kitchen is done, the next step was to get Ronda moved in! We're not completely finished, but we've made a good start.

Astro, her trusty Beagle, seems to love the extra space in the backyard. We assume that it's more area to sniff. Tanner just loves the company. Now we just have to deal with getting her townhouse sold.

We're working with Neil, a Realtor/General Contractor who helped my mom sell her house after living there for 33 years or so. He's been a huge help -- and it's extra nice to have a realtor with a contractor's license.

Once her place is sold, we'll just need to move the furniture that was left behind for "staging" purposes, which means I'll actually have a couch in the basement. It also means I won't be shuffling between houses when she goes on one of her many business trips for her company.

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What I Learned Today - Concierge Medical Practices

I recently had an appointment with my doctor that started off with him telling me, ominously, that there would "be some changes in [his] practice." He assured me that they were changes that would improved the level of attention I received, and that there would be someone in to tell me about it later.

Sure enough, when the appointment was ending, he returned to the examining room with a woman in tow. Carrying pamphlets. She informed me that my doctor's practice was going to become a "concierge" practice. Actually, I'm not quite sure if the marketing spiel she gave used the word "concierge", but after I looked up her company's website and searched some more that seemed to be the common label affixed to it.

If you're in the dark, as I was, a concierge practice amounts to you, the patient, paying a fee to use this particular doctor. The fee ranges in price, with the average I've seen quoted on the web as $1500 a year. My doctor wants $1800 a year. Keep in mind, this is a fee that isn't covered by insurance although it may qualify for a "flex" account you belong to. Paying the fee doesn't change anything about your medical expenses as they have been in the past with regards to insurance coverage. You still have to pay your deductibles.

Of course, there are some benefits that are touted in the marketing for the "product". The main ones that I remember are; a comprehensive physical ("This level of physical alone would cost you $4000!"), computerized medical records ("We even give you a CD you can keep!"), and 24/7 access to your doctor ("On his personal cell phone!"). During this whole encounter, it felt a lot like a meeting you might go to after there have been layoffs at your company. The one where they talk convincingly about how it's a "Good Thing!".

On the doctor's side, he promises to keep his practice to under a certain number of patients. I think the number I heard was 600. So, 600 patients paying $1800 a year each comes out to $1,080,000 a year. From what I've seen, the management company takes a one third cut, leaving the doctor with about $720,000 a year from the "subscription fee" alone. The economics of a medical office are pretty complex, so after paying his staff, malpractice insurance, and other costs associated with his business, the doctor ends up with nowhere near this amount in the end. It's also unfair to say this amount is over an above the income he was already making, because the number of patients has been cut to probably one third of his pre-concierge practice.

So, for $1800 a person -- did I mention that each person in the family pays this fee? -- you get a physical and more access to your doctor. So a family of four would pay $7200 a year. The only demographic I can imagine this being attractive to are high income older folks. They can afford the high fees, and they typically have a greater need for high doctor availability.

Is there something I'm missing beyond the marketing hit list?

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