Dear So and So

[Owlie]

<raises hand>

Guilty, as charged.

(only because my eczema is totally stress-and-gluten-related and disappeared completely when I cut it out)

I actually wasn't aiming at you, or even anyone here. There's a couple people on another board I'm on who just rub me the wrong way about a lot of things. I know they're trying to be helpful (maybe), but they frequently proclaim all things gluten and dairy to be the cause of all evil in the world. Or pretty darn close.

Dear self--
Yarn money, or new-bike money? You really need to find some cheaper hobbies. Or a job.

Dear Alma mater--
Stop asking for money. I don't have any money. Why? You took it all already. I wiped out most of my savings to pay for my education. Not that I didn't enjoy my time or education there, but the simple reality is that I'm not giving you any money.

[tangentgirl]

Dear Skunk Smell Under the Bathroom: Dissipate, already. You're too far under the house to clean out. Oh, and you're gross. I'd like my bathroom back.

XOXO,

TG

[Crankin]

Dear Clients,

Why do you not show up when you're "having a bad day?"
This is when you are supposed to come for counseling.

[tulip]

Crankin, do your clients get charged for the session even if they don't show up? When I was seeing a counselor, that was a huge incentive (aside from the fact that I'm considerate of other people's time and keep appointments!)

* * *
Dear Self, again,
Congratulations on continuing to be so proactive on this personal finance stuff and really starting to dig yourself out of your hole. January's been really good, and you are ready for February! Yay!!

-tulip

[indysteel]

My therapist charges 70 percent of her usual fee for sessions cancelled with less than 24 hours noticed, but she does offer her regulars one free pass a year. I've only ever cancelled at the last minute because of bad weather. I'm usually more than happy to avail myself of her services. But I also don't really have a mental disorder, minus some infrequent and episodic mild depression. I would suspect that certain populations aren't particularly compliant.

Good job with the financial stuff, Tulip. I'm glad things are looking up!

[Crankin]

Tulip and Indy,
My clients don't get charged, because I "work" in a clinic. You can do the "no show, you still have to pay," thing when you are in a private practice, whether it's an individual or group practice. As an intern, I only see clients on Mass Health; some, who are working, pay a $20.00 co-pay and they don't often miss sessions. The people I see vary in level of problems, but they are not seriously mentally ill, as it's an outpatient clinic. But, some of them have very complicated lives, with all kinds of issues, poverty, domestic violence, substance abuse. This is just a problem in the medical field in general, more in mental health than physical health, but still.
I am very proactive in calling them and getting them back in, as I need a certain amount of hours to get my credits from Lesley and for my license. And, the ones who "forget" are the ones who need to be there the most. My supervisors, both at school and in the clinic would say I am enabling them, but if they get that picture of me "reminding" them to come in and they start coming regularly, then we can build enough of a relationship, so that they don't miss sessions. I guess I spent so much time calling parents to tell them their kids didn't do their homework, that making the calls doesn't bother me.

[Owlie]

Not-dear pharmacology department--
Your website is ridiculous. It's contradictory and hard to navigate, with key pages missing, or the links are wrong. First you tell me to fill out a form, then you tell me the form is "closed" and to fill out the application, then you tell me to fill out the form anyway. The form is kind of crappy and hard to follow.
There's an option to submit recommendation letters online, but you tell me to mail them. You tell me that if I submit the application online, there's a fee that I can pay online. Then you tell me that I'll need to send a check directly to the department. HUH? Oh, and you want a degree verification. Why? I graduated. My transcript has the date my degrees were issued. At least it's free, and I can request one at the same time I request the transcript.

They weren't kidding when they said this institution was ridiculously bureaucratic. This is the sort of thing I expect from Undergraduate Studies, but their website didn't contradict itself, just made things extraordinarily difficult to find!