June 8 -- A Visit To The Big City

Okay, I'll grant you that The Big City is good for some things: the conveniences of having a grocery store and gas station just around the corner, a fully-equipped hospital that doesn't require a helicopter ride to get to, your choice of places to eat that don't require major planning to get to, etc. I get it. For comparison,  living in Portal means the closest decent-sized grocery store is 50 miles away, gas is about 25 miles in New Mexico, the nearest hospital you'll get to via helicopter is about 140 miles to the west, and there are only 4 places to eat within 25 miles. And those are all one-way miles, not round-trip. These and other reasons are why living in what is not only a rural area, but also somewhat isolated, isn't for everyone. And when you go into The Big City, you try to get as many errands done as possible, since things back home aren't just around the corner -- or in your town, for that matter.  

I'll be going on a trip to Peru later in the year; it will be my first "birding" expedition out of the country. I'll be going with friends and fellow Portalites Lori and Mark, along with Martin and Eileen, other good friends formerly from the South Bay of Los Angeles (expatriates, I guess you can call us). But going to Peru requires immunizations against yellow fever, and tablets to ward off malaria and altitude sickness, so while back in Portal I talked to a travel nurse for Kaiser who said she'd put in the orders and once I saw the doctor at the Fairfield office,  the doctor would sign off on the orders, and I'd be able to get the shots and pick up the prescriptions for the tablets while I'm in town. Easy-peasy, right? Well, the best-laid plans of mice and men... The appointment was for Wednesday the 8th. I arrived at the Kaiser Fairfield facility, and it was much smaller than the Harbor City one where I'd worked for nearly 34 years, and blissfully had plenty of parking. And look at those clouds -- 

I checked in about an hour and a half early, just in case...And it was a good thing I did. Kaiser in the south, where I was a member, doesn't "talk" to Kaiser in the north, so I had to get a new medical record number for the Fairfield visit. I checked in with the receptionist at the front desk -- and she said my coverage was terminated. What? "Yes, your southern California coverage shows you've been terminated." So I went over to membership services, where after a 20 minute wait the representative checked my coverage and said it was active. "Have her call me if she has any questions." So I checked in again -- and I was still terminated. The receptionist made a few calls; meanwhile, the check-in line was getting longer and longer. I could feel people's eyes boring through the back of my head. I always brought a book in case I had to wait in line -- why didn't they think of that, too? After about 10 minutes -- boop! -- my coverage became active in the computer. "What's my co-pay?" "Nothing." Well, that made the hassle worthwhile!  So I was called in when the appointment time came up, went to the little exam room, the doctor came in, introduced herself, sat at the computer, checked my orders -- and they weren't there. Nada. Not a thing. The travel nurse said she'd put them in, and the doctor would just have to sign them off. There was nothing to sign off, because there was nothing. I told the doctor what the travel nurse said she'd do -- she called me twice to make sure I understood what to tell the doctor, but perhaps I should have reminded her what she had to do on her end, too -- and the doctor excused herself and disappeared for about 10 minutes, saying "we'll get everything straightened out." But when she came back, she said nothing had been straightened out. They couldn't get ahold of the travel nurse who'd arranged everything, and if THEY couldn't get ahold of her, then I certainly couldn't. The doctor at least was able to put in an order to the yellow fever vaccine, but everything else was up in the air. I went to the injection room to get the vaccine, chatted with nurse during the injection, left the office -- and later read that I should have been given "a stamped and signed International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis (yellow card) for proof of vaccination to enter certain countries, otherwise I may end up being detained for up to 6 days to make sure I'm not infected before entering Peru. So as of today, Thursday the 9th, I have had only one immunization -- granted, the most important one --, no tablets for malaria and altitude sickness (one of the Peru destinations is at 12,000 feet), and no certificate proving that I had the yellow fever vaccine, which would invalidate getting the immunization here in the first place. I think at this point most people would go nuts; me, I have this weird feeling that everything will eventually be taken care of . I left a phone message with a Kaiser representative (there's that word again) stating what happened, and what I still need, and to give me a call back on my cell phone at any time to let me know it there's any response. I only have until this Sunday before I head back to Portal and yes, this is another instance of what happens when you're not living in or near The Big City. So what are the pluses of living in "the sticks"? Perhaps I can at least partially explain that in photos. Here's the view from my hotel room here in Fairfield, which is not in the most scenic part of town, but the hotel is within easy reach of this places I need to go --  

An empty field across from the hotel, full of trash. A street full of auto, smog, and tire stores. A homeless person camped across the street.  I won't go so far as to say it's not safe walking the streets here, but I certainly wouldn't want to walk 'em at night.  And back home in Portal? Well, here are some recent views, all taken from my property --

The conveniences of The Big City? I think I can live without 'em ....