Talk to your back about timing...

...but before I explain why, be sure to pop on over to Chris' Cap Collection (see the click through on the right) to check out what I got for father's Day.  CCC has fun stories about not only the collection, but how I got them and the cap's own story if sufficiently interesting.  More than just a dry hobby board- but not too much more.

Our main story begins Monday afternoon when I got in the car to come home from work.  My lower back was stiff all of the sudden and started hurting.  I was hoping that a night's rest would help it, but no such luck.  Tuesday morning, I was hoping a day's rest would fix me up, and took a day off.  Still bad this morning, so today I called in, explaining I would go to the doctor.

So I call my doctor, and the phone nurse said since it happened at work (even though I explained I didn't rightly know WHAT caused it) that I'd have to go to Occupational Health on East State.  But... Uh.. okay, thanks a lot, I says, and go back to bed for a little bit.  I look up the address for OHC and the address that came up was not only wrong (because OHC had moved down the street and was replaced a PT and health branch (all of these under the Parkview aegis, including my doctor), but listed with an Angola zip code, so when you searched the address, google maps couldn't find it.

After arriving at- and getting directions from- the health place, I arrive at OHC only to find out that they wouldn't see me because I hadn't filled out an accident report (Hello, I was in the car going home when I felt it!!!!) so Arden wouldn't authorize.  So I stepped outside and called our HR person, who said a) no AR, no authorization, and b) no return to work slip, no work.  Now mind you, she wasn't being rude with me, she was just caught in the "rules" like me.  So I called my doctor back, and the phone nurse said that workman's comp rules wouldn't let them see me because I was honest enough to say it MIGHT have happened at work.
Let this be a lesson to all of you- honesty is the best policy except when you deal with insurance.  Thanks tons, Barack! 

So I called HR woman back, because, phone nurse suggested faxing an accident report to OHC for me to fill out.  And HR woman said that probably wouldn't fly, and would take a while to prove that because the Company Veep was there and they'd be screwing around in yet another round of unending meetings today.  I suggested just coming back in tomorrow and saying the hell with it, but she said now that I'd opened Pandora's honesty box, I was back to step b) above.

That meant, REDI-MED.

So, calling Laurie- who had conveniently for me gotten sick this morning- to confirm where the nearby Redi-med was, I arrived.  By this time, Mr. back was really complaining, because sitting up (like I'm doing as I tell you this story, so you better appreciate it) made things worse.  Pseudo-doc at RM looked me over and gave me off till Monday along with Naprosyn and a muscle relaxer.  So I hit a Walgreens along the way.  The girl that took my scripts asked all the usual questions- including my birthdate- and told me  fifteen to twenty minutes.  Five minutes later, she called me back to drop off to "verify" my birthdate.  Ten minutes later- or, as soon as they could build up a line at the checkout- they called me up to get my drugs.  First thing checkout girl asks is, "I need to verify your birthday, because the pharmacist never wrote it down."  WTF?

Finally, I decided that after all this, I'd get a jump on the "take one at bedtime" muscle pill.  And just as it was about to knock me out, Scrappy decides to apparently walk in his sleep and pees on me.

Lesson here- Talk to your back.  Tell it, the time to let you know when you've hurt it is WHEN you've hurt it.  Either that or keep a fax machine and a collection of accident reports in your car. Or, just lie when asked where it happened.  Not something I'd recommend, but it sure beats driving all around town, making it worse the whole time, just so everyone can be sure I won't take the money I don't have and sue the company for a workman's comp claim I had no intention to file in the first stupid place.