I hate our medical system so very much.

Gud, if it's not that much, I guess you could consider the value of your time and if it's worth fighting them over it. I dunno: I hate to see them get away with soaking people, but your peace of mind is worth a lot.

I don't think I could fight them, after I contacted them and gave them my address so they would actually send me a bill, they kept sending bills with different amounts. I don't think anyone could determine what amount was actually supposed to be paid.

I think if I ever got involved in politics it would be for a ballot initiative to make it that out-of-network third-party providers in hospitals had to negotiate their fee with the insurance company/hospital if the hospital was in-network for the patient and the patient paid one bill. I think some states have something like that.

Good to see you, Gud! Even during a bad stretch you are a welcome sight here.

Rick - I can't even with people arguing that in-person teaching can be replaced by online. It's ridiculous. You need a seminar structure with the teacher carefully/subtly guiding the conversation, pulling people in, engaging the room. It's vastly different. There are so many more cues given off by both student and teacher in person.

I mean, I love stand-up comedy specials, but even a pretty-good comedian in person is generally so much funnier. Because it's all about timing and they can modulate in real time to the room.

Teaching a large class on Zoom is like being the DJ in absentia for a party you can't attend. You just aren't present enough to feel the room, to see what's working, and to move the experience forward for the participants.

Rick, I don't teach large classes, but wow — this really hit home for me.

Gud, that's so annoying. Agree that medical billing and insurance are RIDICULOUS

Jesse, I would actually recommend buying two of the smaller instead of one of the bigger anyway--that way you only open one at a time and it lasts longer?

Emergency room bills are the worst. They get to decide how to change after service is delivered.

Tried to buy potting soil today, but the enormous line discouraged trying at all. Bummer!

Hey, tomorrow is my 22nd wedding anniversary. Add the seven years of living in sin and it's 29 years of cohabitation. How cool is that? Nerd love rocks.

Happy anniversary, Katerina!

Gud, I really love seeing your pixels here, too. And I'm sorry for the ER bill. There's an expression in Hebrew that can be translated as "works method" - literally "successful method" (shitat mtz'lee'ah). Comes from a joke about a restaurant that's charging extra for "works". When asked why, the answer is "because it sometimes works" (that is, charging extra anyone who doesn't bother question what is the "works" article, knowing it'll cost time and effort to figure it out). It's a scam and it's terrible. I'm sorry it's happening to you.

Teaching a large class on Zoom is like being the DJ in absentia for a party you can't attend. You just aren't present enough to feel the room, to see what's working, and to move the experience forward for the participants.

Not a teacher but a student, and I felt it hard two days ago when I had to present a project. I have no idea how you're doing it. It's exhausting, just hoping everyone gets what you say without any human feedback.

Yes! Or I could buy a pint, actually...

I was gonna say, it comes in pints!

I hate online teaching. It's all of the tiresome busywork of teaching without the fun of the theatrical performance in front of an audience, and the personal contact with people who have just decided that they like to think (admittedly, a minority of students at a large research university).

And really, so much more of the tiresome busywork. I normally spend about 30-40 hours a week working between my two gigs. Now it's more like 60 or more, a lot of it handling student contacts that normally could be done in a couple of seconds with a brief chat in class or office hours.

Teaching a large class on Zoom is like being the DJ in absentia for a party you can't attend. You just aren't present enough to feel the room, to see what's working, and to move the experience forward for the participants.

So much this. The people who most need a little extra encouragement tend to be the quiet ones in class, which means you try engage them as you teach. It's impossible to get people to actively participate when you can't see them.

When we started this people were saying that it would make us all see the benefits of online instruction. But I think I have learned that the in person lecture is sadly underestimated by education theorists. It's a group experience the students can't get by watching yet another video on a screen. On the little screen, we just can't compete with the alternative of cat videos, trick shots, or dumb guys slipping on ice. I don't think its the best thing for most students.

It's also not just the group experience that's lacking, but the loss of structure afforded by the system for students who don't have a lot of self-discipline (like I didn't). Having a schedule matters.

Certainly online sessions can be scheduled, but that said, one thing that has struck me is the number of students who have had their own schedules upended at home or work. Many of my students are pulling extra shifts at work (a lot have part-time jobs in health care fields), or are just having to take care of younger siblings who are stuck at home with them. Some have contracted the virus. My adult students have it even worse. Many have thanked me for not scheduling things to a strict timetable so that they can arrange their own schedules to handle other resposiblities. Meanwhile, some students who could benefit from the structure forcing them to do things at a certain time are letting things slide. Usually, when students take an online course, they have a good idea what they're getting into. This is different. Students were forced into a system that may not be the best for their needs.

This doesn't even touch on the fact that many students would never take on online course because they don't have reliable access to broadband (some faculty, too). Many only have access to publically available sources, like on campus or in a library - all closed for the duration. A phone is a terrible way to take a course.

The provost of the CT system told the press that the transition to online teaching was "seamless," which is total shenanigans. Too many assumptions were made about what resources students and faculty had available for use. We are losing students to this, and at least in Connecticut, we will be doing it again for the summer.

Sorry for the rant.

Happy anniversary, Katie Bee!