N ~ Not Paying For a Creeper

These are the continuing adventures of a Swedish immigrant during her first year as an American. She boldly went where she'd never gone before...please come along on Adventures in America.

I told you that I think my claustrophobia started with being tied down and in traction (check out H and I). I think my current complete and total disrespect, hatred, malice, nightmares, and frustration with medical insurance companies started with this incident.

Yesterday I told you about the mechanics creeper that I tooled around on.  Here's the picture again:

(that black pad was where my head went, and I used my cast-only-to-above-the-knee leg to push myself around the house, though here I'm lying completely off of it so Farfar and I can do the puzzle)

This idea was really genius on The Swede's part. Mechanics lie on a wheeled short-bed contraption to roll themselves in and out from under the cars while they're working. A determined girl (like...ahem...say me...) could wheel herself about the house if she had one. So he bought me one.

I don't remember if I overheard this conversation between The Swede and the insurance company, or if it was between my parents, with The Swede recounting the story, but it went something like this.

“Sir, we don't pay for special pajamas for kids in casts. You have to buy those yourself.”

“Sir, I'm not talking about pajamas. I'm talking about (insert my description from above).”

“But it says here on your itemized list “creeper”. Isn't that some sort of pajamas?”

“Well sir, for babies, I guess they might call their pajamas creepers, but my daughter is 9 and is in a body cast. There are no pajamas she can wear. This is a device she uses to move herself around the house.”

I wish I knew if they paid for it or not, but I can't remember. If it was my insurance company today, they'd call it “durable, medical equipment” and make ME pay for it. Believe me, I know.

P.S Have you met Gary? Gary Pennick of the blog Klahanie? He's our anti-challenge spokesman, and has done amazing promotion for us WITHOUT being a participant. He's actually blogging the alphabet backwards. He's just that way – unique, super punny, has the sharpest wit I've met in a long time, and well, I just adore him. So please, go pay him a visit and tell him Tina sent you.