shopping, and disability/medicare update

I went to REI today in search of a fall-weight jacket. I now have a jacket that will do, but that I am not delighted by, so I may try another store or two next week. The new jacket's fit is OK but not great, and it's black, so it can easily get lost among all the other black coats in that closet. I also bought a pair of gloves; again not great, but I've given up on finding gloves I actually like.

My retroactive disability benefits were deposited in my bank account a couple of days ago. It's more than I expected, because I'd forgotten that the lawyer gets a percentage "or $7200, whichever is less," so instead of 25% he got about 15%.

I'm spending a bunch of time looking up different Medicare Part D (prescription drug) plans. ( cut for length )

My next project is to compare the available "Medicare Advantage" plans. The disadvantages of those plans are that they limit my choice of doctors, and require referrals for some doctors. Possible advantages are that I think I'd have a smaller copay per visit, that this may be the only way to get them to keep covering telemedicine appointments with my regular doctor, and one or more of those plans may cover something else I would use. Basic Medicare will stop covering telemedicine for most people at the end of 2024 (the exceptions are a few specific medical conditions I don't have, and people living in rural areas).

(no subject)

I got email today from one of my old freelance clients, asking if I was available for a copyediting job in the next two weeks. Rather than saying "sorry, retired," I wrote back and said I'm not available then (which is true) but I had a colleague or two who might be, and would she like a referral.

She said yes, so I asked a few people, and just sent her a name and email address.