Gather Little by Little

Nothing like a broken finger to make you appreciate our health care. I visited a hand surgeon earlier this week in Asheville, NC. The news thus far was good. He said it was a very bad break, but at this point didn’t look like it would need surgery. I have a follow-up appointment next week where he said we would know for sure.

In the mean time, I am wearing a splint that goes from my elbow all the way down my hand and covers all but my index finger and thumb.  This contraption makes it impossible to type with my right hand, so I’m a one handed typist for the next few weeks! Considering I use a keyboard for about 95% of my day job and 100% of my blogging  job, it’s a huge impact to my productivity.

I start physical therapy next week as well so that I don’t lose the movement in my finger. Right now I can barely bend it and when I do it really hurts. Not looking forward to physical therapy at all!

This whole experience has really made me appreciate my health care though. Just browsing through my receipts, my broken finger has cost my insurance company well over $2000.00. Cost to me in co-payments is only about $100.00. Of course that isn’t considering the fairly significant monthly premium I pay, but still overall a huge benefit.

Having decent health care available from my full-time employer is a huge benefit, especially considering I have a son with type 1 diabetes. His needs alone make me very thankful for it. I can’t imagine having to dish out the $500 – $1000 per month for his insulin and supplies.

Important Stuff

Just a few quick things:

• The M-Network’s 12-days of Christmas personal finance style series wraps up today. If you haven’t read all of the articles, you can find them on my introduction post. This has been an awesome series this year with some really great writing, tips, and ideas. Make sure you check it out.
• The M-Network’s Money Saving Tips for the Holidays free eBook has gone over very well. I’ve had almost 30o downloads from here since it was published. If you haven’t downloaded it yet make sure you do. Remember you can distribute it free, so make sure you send copies to your friends and family if you think they might enjoy reading it.
• I’m hosting the Carnival of Debt Reduction #170 on Monday, so make sure you submit your debt reduction related articles! The deadline is 5pm on Sunday. Quest for Four Pillars is the host of this weeks carnival of debt reduction, so make you check it out and read over all of the great articles.
• One last thing. I’m starting my Christmas vacation next week. Due to many readers traveling for the holidays and since I’d like a little downtime, I’ll only be posting 2-3 times a week until after the first of the year. Just wanted to make you aware.

The Gathering

Now for my favorite personal finance articles from my blogroll:

• a little something on the side? @ Plonkee Money
• Over a Year and Where Am I Now? @ Oh My Aching Debts
• The Get Out of Debt Roller Coaster of Emotions @ Frugal Dad
• Are You Having a Difficult Time This Christmas? @ Being Frugal
• Did You Move in 2008? Uncle Sam May Pay for Your Moving Expenses via Tax Deduction @ GenX Finance
• 10 Unique Gift Ideas for Christmas @ Cash Money Life
• Charting Usage To Determine Appropriate Stockpiles @ Paid Twice
• Christmas Gifts for the Blogger in Your Life @ Mrs Micah
• Figure Out Your Miles Per Dollar Instead Of MPG. @ My Two Dollars

Photo by: Teleyinex