Queercents

“Take calculated risks. That is quite different from being rash.” – General George S. Patton

Newport Beach had an earthquake two weeks ago. It was minor at a magnitude 3.1, but we still felt the jolt for two seconds. Being from the Midwest, tornadoes were always my big fear when it came time for natural disasters. Show me gray-green skies during a summer thunderstorm in northern Ohio and I was bolting for the basement.

But for some reason, earthquakes have never really bothered me living in California for the past decade. I’ve experienced plenty of tremors and what felt like a really big one while staying in the desert south of Joshua Tree. I believe that eventually the “big one” will happen. Read the rest of this entry »

I know this may not be a popular post, based on the fact that a lot of people tend to hate State Farm(and most Insurance companies) due to their Katrina handlings. However, I have had to file two separate claims and have had good luck with both.

I think most of the animosity towards State Farm is due to the fact that they tend to have the largest market share in their areas that they cover. When you have more customers and a disaster hits, you have more people going through the recovery process. This, obviously, results in more people going through the process and more opportunity for things to go wrong. Read the rest of this entry »

Last week I talked about Navigating the Health Insurance Waters as a self-employed individual. While the waters may never totally be clear or calm I am at least moving toward some clarity for myself (at least for now). In the process I spent a lot of time attempting to understand a relatively newer form of insurance that seems to be gaining in popularity, the High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) with Health Savings Account (HSA).

If you are new to this conversation like I was just a few weeks ago, you might be asking, what the heck is a High Deductible Health Plan and HSA? They are actually two different things, but work in conjunction. Here is the cliff notes version to what’s what. Read the rest of this entry »

I hate going to the eye doctor more than the dentist. I’m sure it helps that my dentist has a liberal policy with the laughing gas, but eye appointments are never fun. I don’t like the puff of air being shot in my pupil, the pressure of picking which is better (”number three… or number four?”) or the fact that they always try to dilate my pupils with those horrible drops.

I also don’t like paying upwards of $200 - $300 for glasses at the end of the experience. I’m fine with using my contacts 99% of the time, but there’s always things that can go wrong—like when you accidentally scratch your cornea or get a hideous sty infection. In those cases, contacts are out and it would be nice to distinguish shapes from a distance.

After complaining about it to several people, someone finally suggested I buy online. Online glasses cost less because the lenses are cut outside the US and no brick-and-mortar means less markup on frames. The pair I got was $50 and the only reason they were that expensive was that I needed a special strength on my right eye.

Here’s an overview of some of the ins and outs. Read the rest of this entry »

While I have been flying solo in my business full time for a number of months now, the time has come for me to find health benefits. I knew it was going to be a complicated process, but the last few weeks have left my head spinning in a way I haven’t experienced since my first big party weekend as a freshman in college.

In the past for me the choices were simple: what does the company’s flex benefits offer and which one is the furthest from an HMO because I refuse to be told who I can and cannot see for my personal care? Now, I have the same myriad of choices but with more complex details and of course a far heftier price tag since I am insuring myself and not part of the corporate herd. What makes the choice even more anxiety producing are the horror stories you hear about from Michael Moore’s movie Sicko (while he does tend to the dramatic there is a lot of scary truth in there) and from some firsthand accounts from personal colleagues. How’s a savvy self employed woman to choose? Read the rest of this entry »

My hair has never been more than an inconvenience for me— but when it started to rain from my head like confetti, it rekindled my interest in hair products. As a single gay man (with an arguable appreciation for beauty) there were few things that could darken my romantic prospects more than going bald.

I knew I wanted to keep my hair, but I was concerned about the cost and effectiveness of the different options out there. Fortunately there are treatments and… if you know what to get, they cost less than some designer shampoos.

Don’t be fooled by gimmicky products

Much of the non-prescription treatments advertised on television do little more than darken thinning hair (kind of like mascara) or tint the scalp (kind of like spray paint). There are a lot of snake oils out there aimed at getting your money and preying on customer desperation. Knowledge is power: talk to your doctor or look for customer reviews in hair loss forums before buying.

There are, however, a couple things that are proven to work… Read the rest of this entry »

I’m so happy to be returning to Queercents this week! I’ve been recovering from knee surgery and am coming out of the pain-haze. For the past three weeks I’ve been taking my new health insurance policy for a spin. The coverage I chose seems to be sufficient and I’ve been able to visit excellent doctors. As the explanation of benefits come pouring in my mailbox, my PPO is covering what I anticipated. My out of pocket costs have not been shocking.

As I may have mentioned in the past, my father works in the insurance industry. My family values the benefits of being insurance. A Wiki respondent said it concisely “You transfer your risk to an insurance company in exchange for a premium.”

That said, you can purchase insurance for just about anything. It covers basics like health and property insurance. It can also be unconventional like “star employee insurance” which covers business owners against loss of a great employee or “animal immortality” for highly trained performing animals. Read the rest of this entry »

Laurie Flynn is a Financial Advisor with Smith Barney and is a supporter of Queercents. She’s written a few posts these past weeks on the topic of insurance and investing. These are her words…

What steps should I take to protect my partner or myself if one of us is hospitalized?

Empower Yourself
Hospitals and doctors will typically turn to family members in medical emergencies to make decisions about care. Some medical professionals will not recognize a same-sex partner as a family member. If you or your partner is hospitalized, a properly drafted health care proxy will enable each of you to make medical decisions for the other in the event of incapacity. Read the rest of this entry »