Approaching Lift Off

One more day of work, then 24 hours till the rockets blast my gallbladder out of my body...lol.

After I get off work on Sunday morning I shall be scooting to Fredericksburg to get Mel and back here..visiting and counting hours till 0630 a.m on Monday. Not sure how my body will react to being gallbladder-less, but I guess I shall find out. Not planning much for Tuesday, a lot will depend on doctor's orders. But I hope we get out and drive around some, window shop, pick up some movies during our week together.

I did not blog about it, ( because I was incredibly upset and frothing at the mouth) but yesterday morning was me doing my version of a bomb blast. I duly called Doctor's office and Unum as directed to tell them last day of work. In the process of that, Unum decided to tell me they had not received the proper paperwork and FMLA( Family Medical Leave) would be denied. Oh..yeah...I went ballistic, a shooting rocket in a desk chair. After weeks of me playing phone tag, taking paperwork to doctor's office, and following up that everyone had what was needed, they declared war on my continued employment. How? Call out's are points at my job. I am currently in the black, negative points, very good. However, calling out for 5 days, and several of them weekend days which are doubled, and that would have put me on the brink of being fired. I was not a cursing ninny, but you better believe I got my point across pointedly and with a growled undertone. I was seriously pissed off.

I stayed up way too late, and had explained to them that I had to sleep prior to working last night...called them back twice before crashing...and when did they call me back? At 2 pm when I was snoring.

" We need to have a conference call" was on my voice mail when I woke up. (again cursing)

Following that a message from my Dad with advice on how to deal with Unum. And lastly a phone call from Unum stating "Oh Gee! We found the missing paperwork on the fax machine that came over at 10:30 a.m. That was 3 hours prior to when I was still battling them.

Please explain to me why a benefit which does NOTHING but insure that you still have a job to come back to would jerk people around as much as they do??? The short term disability was separate and had received all the correct paperwork. It was the simple and needed word

"FMLA" that my work needed to excuse my absence. What possible profit would they have in denying me an excused absence???? Who makes the big bucks when they deny? And why is it that it all has to be so complicated and buried in paperwork? Why can an employer not simply have a doctor's note stating that time off is required for surgery to be sufficient to keep your job?

Bureaucracies are a bunch of people placed together to guarantee that no one can understand what the procedures are without them defining it, their controlling it, and then dealing their version of justice. All very unnecessary, just something to battle over when you already feel like poop. I so needed that additional stress yesterday, yes indeed. Top that with the doctor not renewing my pain meds, and it has been a fun week. So this is why I am celebrating the removal of my gallbladder so to speak, it's an end to pain in many ways.

Catch you all likely Tuesday when all is finished,

the wounded warrior,

k