Stacy Horn

I watched the Sanjay Gupta thing, “The Last Heart Attack.” I’ve decided against the coronary calcium scan, for now, but I’ve been furiously googling kale, collard greens and swiss chard. And, I’m leaving to go swimming in a few minutes.

I exercise every day, and swimming is something I do three times a week, but I’ve been thinking of upping that to four. Bill Clinton runs every day, and I think he said he runs for three miles. Swimming just feels so good. I tried to go swimming yesterday, for instance, and I couldn’t. They changed the schedule around and it was “kids only” when I showed up. So I did the treadmill instead.

Here’s the thing, when I go swimming, and if I don’t over-do it, afterwards when I’m walking home I feel blissful and full of energy. After the treadmill I did not feel at all blissful, and it made me feel worn-out.

Oops, gotta run. Here is Vulture Cat. He sat there for about five minutes, staring at the spot he was about to curl up in.

One of my first jobs was at a Woolworth’s. I was 17 years old and a Christmas temp, but I didn’t work on the floor. My job was assessing people’s applications for credit and deciding if they should get coupons or not. This was what they gave at the time instead of a credit card, but they were essentially the same thing. I can’t believe they gave that job to a 17 year old. I felt mortified every time an adult came to me to apply for credit. People in their 20’s or 50’s, etc., had to sit and wait to have their finances evaluated by a teenager.

According to the guidelines I was given practically everyone was eligible. But I did the math and it wasn’t a great bargain. The interest rates were high and the people who could least afford it would end up paying a lot of money for a small amount of credit.

I tried quietly explaining this to everyone who applied, (without my boss seeing) but every single person went for the coupons regardless. Finally one woman looked at me and said in tears, “I have to buy Christmas presents for my children. This is the only way I can do it.” I felt like such an idiot. I come from a relatively privileged background. I was aware that the applicants were struggling financially of course, which was why I was trying to steer them away from digging this hole for themselves. And for what, I remember stupidly, cluelessly thinking. For the kinds of things you can buy at a Woolworths? I hadn’t stopped to think why someone would go for them anyway, why they would need to go for them anyway.

I approved everyone (who was eligible) without a word after that.

I bring this up because I’ve read so many tweets and articles basically sneering at the people lining up for these holiday sales. Yes, some of those shoppers lack imagination for what they might do with a Friday, and some are shopaholics or hoarders or insane (the woman pepper spraying people to get them out of her way). But some of them are mothers who are struggling to buy their children Christmas presents. Or things they need. Or maybe something completely frivolous, because it’s hard to live on nothing but the bare necessities all the time.

Yes, I’m doubly sensitive about this these days because I’m on a tight budget myself. In fact, I think the only thing keeping me off those lines yesterday is the fact that I don’t have children!

So I feel lucky that this is what I got to do yesterday. My friends Ellen and Giovanni hosted a music party. Everyone had to bring two Brazilian songs and I was introduced to all this music I probably never would have heard otherwise, it was great. (That’s Giovanni and Ellen on the left, and some of the guests.)

I needed new jeans. Old Navy was selling them for $15, but shopping on Thanksgiving is an insane idea, right?? I decide to chance it.

The store was almost empty. I try on a million different jeans, but they don’t have my first choice in my size. I take the second best ones to the cash register while this battle rages inside my head:

Are you just buying these just for the sake of buying something? Even though they are only $15 does it make sense to buy something you do not love? You have to get them hemmed so really, they’re going to cost $35. But that’s not bad. But now that’s $35 for something you don’t love. But, but, but these look great, and maybe the ones you liked better wouldn’t look as good, you don’t know, you never saw what they look like when they fit, you just liked the wash …

This dialogue continued as I got to the cashier and she started ringing them up. I was this close to saying never mind, I’m not taking them, when I noticed that she’s tried three times to ring them up. Finally she says, “These jeans are 97 cents. They must be from last season or something, but they are 97 cents.” I hand her a dollar. She hands me three cents back. Neither of us can quite believe that just happened.

There are now trees at the Christmas stand I photographed on Tuesday night. Here is a tiny one. (This is probably the top of a larger tree, isn’t it?)

I’ve done the math! Two years ago I researched all the dental plans available to me and went with Delta Dental. I did the math on all the plans and I figured with Delta, if I got a lot of work done I could potentially save $500 a year. Of course, like every insurance company, they always find some reason to pay a little less or not at all so usually at best you break even.

Delta Dental just announced that they are raising their rates to $94.94 a month. That amounts to $1,139 a year and the most they will pay out in a year is $1,200. That reduces the potential savings to $71, and given their history, I know they will never actually pay out the $1,200. Even with the free yearly cleanings they throw in the arrangement will always benefit them.

With health insurance at least, you pay and pay even if you never get sick because you’ll need them for that day when you do. With dental insurance, when that day comes, there’s a limit and a million codes for why they’re not going to pay up to the limit anyway.

Needless to say I’m going to cancel the policy and just start putting that money aside myself.

Coffee table kitty.

I was walking home from choir rehearsal last night, in the pouring rain, and I noticed that the Christmas tree stands are up! (They’re on the left in this photograph.) If I walked by today I’m guessing there would be trees there now.

The question is: will I brave the Black Friday sales tomorrow? I’ve never participated in anything like this before. I hate shopping and I especially hate shopping when there are crowds. But I need jeans and apparently I can get them at Old Navy for $15 tomorrow. How is that even possible? $15 jeans?? It seems irresponsible to pass them up. Sigh. Being on a budget is a lot of work.