(I’m being generous in designating them “seemingly uninterested” instead of “maliciously incompetent.”)

Our veteran is a man who served his country, and came away with an injury that will only continue to get worse over time. He would have been a sailor forever, but that first blown disc resulted in his medical discharge. Over the years more discs have blown, only one correctable by surgery, which he paid for that out of his own pocket.

He’s refused the mountain of drugs thrown at him by VA doctors hampered by budget, training, or simple indifference, opting instead to live with the pain and be a father and husband instead of a semi-human lump. He’s undergone years of physical therapy and pain mangement education, yet still the discs continue to bulge and the pain increases. Laser surgery is an option, but at 20K per disc, not one offered by the VA. So he endures, knowing that someday he will no longer be able to work, and that he has a family for whom he wishes to continue to provide.

With that in mind, three years ago he embarked on the process required to update his disability rating. It is currently 10%, the same rating he’d been given on discharge, over 17 years ago. Every disabled vet knows what came next: months upon months of MRIs, Xrays, and hellishly painful examinations.

Finally, after three long years, the updated rating came in the mail: no change.

None.

The Veteran’s Administration had bureaucracied him. He failed to include the ream of records from the intervening years of treatment and visits from discharge to claim update, therefore the injuries were deemed not service-connected.

He was given one year to appeal.

All records were collected, from both cities were treatment had occurred, despite one city “losing” the original request. This took five months.

An independent physician was paid an exorbitant sum to conduct another hellishly painful exam, review the ream of records, and write up their own opinion. This took another few weeks.

An appointment for the next month was made with a Disabled American Veterans advocate, then rescheduled by the DAV for three weeks later. Two more months gone.

Finally, with the help of the DAV representative, the appeal was submitted.

Today he discovers the DAV representative in St Petersburg has no record of the submitted appeal. Nor are they listed as having service-related power of attorney, as he had requested many months ago, which would have allowed them to use official channels to contact the VA directly to query the status of the appeal.

There are no phone numbers for the St Petersburg office, you see. But there are plenty of armed guards and a very advanced-looking security system.

So now he has two months until the appeal window closes, and he cannot contact anyone to determine what exactly is going on. The national Veteran’s Administration contact attempted stonewalling, then finally allowed they could contact someone in the Communication office, who would in turn send him an email response…in three weeks.

For those of you playing along at home, this leaves him exactly six weeks to redo his appeal, if they’ve mysteriously “lost” the original ream of records and paperwork.

He is my husband. The bravest, strongest man I’ve ever met. The way our veterans are treated is utterly disgraceful. And it absolutely must stop.

**UPDATE, from Husband**

I thank you all for your input.  (This is the guy she was writing about by the way)

Update to the story is this:  I contacted the VFW guy who works at the St Pete regional VA office yesterday afternoon.  I figured that since they somehow had him as my point of contact instead of the DAV, I would give it a shot.  He had no notifications, nothing entered into the computer, no hardcopy reports, nothing at all showing that the regional office had even received my appeal paperwork.  So he got irate and said he would check on it, in person, upstairs in his building where the paperwork is processed, this morning.

I got a call from him about 3:30 today.

It seems that there are so many boxes and tubs of papers that the people who work in the office up there couldn’t even tell him which general area of the room to start looking in.  Let me rephrase that.  There are so many boxes of backlogged envelopes full of veterans’ paperwork of all varieties, laying all over the office with no apparent order, no apparent system of filing, and no apparent date stamping, that even the people whose job it is to handle the intake of mail from veterans asking for help can’t even begin to say where to start looking for any individual veterans correspondence.

So my VFW guy, great guy on the phone by the way, tells me this: fax to HIM personally  (not the regional office) the form to say I disagree with the VA’s finding and will supply corroborating paperwork.  He will then WALK IT UPSTAIRS PERSONALLY to hand-feed it to the clerk, who will time/date stamp it, enter it into my computer system, and therefore I will beat the August deadline, regardless of when they clerks actually find my already-submitted paperwork.

So, thank your VFW.  Thanks to all of you.  Thanks to Glenn for linking this on his site.  And to any reporters who want to bring this to light, thank you as well.  I have always been a private person, but I am at the “willing to talk to the press” stage or at the very least wish someone from the press would get into the office in St Pete and ask them what exactly they think we the people are paying them to do.

Dear Client

Due to our recent Security Upgrade we require you to sign in your domain name, username and password and update your Control Panel to avoid unauthorized access to your online Cpanel and FTP account Log In and verify your domain for this security check. Failure to confirm your domain within 2 business days may lead to suspension of your domain if we observe any unauthorized sign in and may lead to total remove of the domain name from our system.

Cpanel Management

Looks pretty scary, doesn’t it? Well, except for the spelling issues and the random capitalizations. But hey, if spammers hadn’t been shite at school they wouldn’t be spamming for a living, ya?

You’d have to actually view the source of the email to see it’s sent from some crappy ISP in Italy:

Received: from User (173.234.157.125) by smtp201.alice.it (8.6.060.15) (authenticated as rino.tiani.1c25@alice.it)

And you’d have to pay attention to the URL it sends you to, which is an exploit uploaded under some noob’s unsecured WordPress installation:

http://xxxxxxxxxxx/wp-admin/cpanel/cPanel%20Login.htm

Here’s a couple of hints:

• Legitimate folk will never ask for your login. (Unless it’s an actual helpdesk and tech support is convinced you’re doing something stupid and need to check it from their end.)
• You shouldn’t click links in emails, unless they’re from people you know. And even then, if it isn’t a funny cat picture/video, just don’t.

Fucking spammers should all be hung up by their taints. Don’t be a statistic!

Characterized by their obnoxious honking call of “that’s Morpheus!” whenever the commercial for any Playstation Game airs, the Font Geek is incapable of actually being affected by advertising as they are more interested in the font choices involved than the actual message. The Font Geek refuses to use Times New Roman for body text, EVER, and will doggedly use Verdana or Tahoma instead, due to their lack of small pointy things. At least until it becomes easier to embed fonts in HTML, that is.

The Font Geek has over 1000 unzipped fonts sitting on their hard drive. They can only unzip a few at a time because the repetitious use of WinZip causes their brains to twitch and they invariably pass out, therefore it will be the latter part of this century before they are done. Perhaps then there will be an operating system in existence then that can handle more than 150 fonts at a time without slagging.

The Font Geek’s fondest wish is for a freeware program that will both organize their massive collection of fonts and install them to their chosen program, without any interruption in their workflow. The key word here is “freeware.”

The Font Geek is well known for it’s devious nature. At one time the Font Geek was heavily recruited by the CIA, but every single Font Geek agent they sent overseas never came back. Research has since determined that when Font Geeks encounter fonts in unfamiliar languages, they lose all small motor control and wander around aimlessly until struck by lorries. Sadly, many rare and beautiful Font Geeks were lost this way.

It is sad, but true, that some Font Geeks will actually turn to the streets to satisfy their uncontrollable cravings. You can see them on street corners, their gaudily painted faces reminiscent of Edwardian Script ITC or Engraver’s Roman Bold BT. This is the Font Geek at it’s most pathetic, a sorry, scrabbling version of the proud creature that once roamed the halls of Design Schools across the world. Do not heed their pitiful cries of, “please mister, I’ll do anything for some Elphinstone!” or, “come on, just one sans-serif, I’m really hurtin’ here!” for you will only contribute to the dissolution of this noble species.

Nothing can be done for the Font Geek turned Font Whore, they must want to help themselves to make the recovery. So few of them do.

If you encounter the Font Geek in the wild, approach with caution. Take special care to not be wearing articles of clothing with any visible logos and/or slogans lest you agitate the Font Geek and provoke them to attack. The attack of the Font Geek is truly terrifying, usually involving art markers and, occasionally if very unlucky, gouache. It is best to approach the Font Geek bearing some sort of offering. Chocolate is highly recommended.

Just make sure it doesn’t have any words printed on it.

Can we add more hours to the day plsthx?

Of course I know how to self-promote. Been doing it for years, first as one of the initial purveyors of custom designs for those newfangled things called “blogs,” and then as a visual/fiber artist.

But this is different.

I’ve written words. A story has actually emerged from my brain, been poked/prodded/edited and sent out into the world.

Perhaps I’m indulging in a wee bit of overdramatization, but that’s a big thing for me. A very personal thing. Words are important to me. I hoover them up in vast quantities, collect them like a weird old cat lady, and dispense them with great pleasure. And, apparently, stinginess. I must have a dozen half-finished ideas, stories, and nascent books. Making the time to finish them is an issue, and just being un-scared enough to let the words come out is definitely another. But those are things I’m working on. And this is a nice, big, encouraging step.

Published authors – the annoying ones – on the Twitters are fond of saying things along the (wildly paraphrased) lines of, “If you ain’t published, then you ain’t a writer.” Well, today I am a writer!

The evidence:

There are so many things wrong here, where does one even start?

You’re carrying your shopping but it’s HURTING YOU OMG THE PAIN.

Did they force you to carry more than your skinny little ass can bear? Or did they make you use those special S&M bags, with the capsaicin-coated spikes in the handles? Or did a particularly irate bag boy chase you to your car/the bus stop with a whip?

The response from Tesco was funny and hip. You experienced immediate buttus hurtus at being so publicly – and politely – pwned, and called them “RUDE.” Rude? Just so we’re clear…your “fuck you tesco” tweet was the verbal equivalent of a lifted pinky at tea time?

Son, you have so many issues, not the least of which is your HYSTERICAL profile picture. Hint: heroin chic went out in the early 90s. I pity your mother, your significant other (if anyone is so foolish as to commit), and pretty much anyone in your immediate vicinity.

Also, if I lived in the UK, I would immediately begin shopping at Tesco.

How to Avoid Huge Ships

Some people may tell you video games are bad for you. I respectfully disagree. Contrary to popular belief, video games do not encourage violent behavior in children. In fact, many self-respecting video game corporations make it a point to undercurrent messages about self-sacrifice, leadership, and other valued traits.

Morals aren’t exactly the first thing you expect to learn–if you expect to learn anything at all–when you buy the typical RPG style video game. Each time you play one though, whether it is Dragon Age, Portal, Skyrim, or anywhere in between, sometimes you have to ask yourself questions that can greatly alter the storyline, mostly having to do with your character’s morals, which reflect your own. It’s up to you to make a choice, and sometimes you might not be able to tell if it’s right or wrong. I’ve had an experience like this myself when I played Dragon Age: Origins. There is a mission where you have to get the support of an Earl’s army to fight a horde of mindless demon-like creatures aiming to destroy the land. When your character gets to the Earl’s castle, though, it’s overrun by walking corpses controlled by a demon inhabiting the Earl’s son. You are given two choices: kill the boy, or kill the mother and use her life force to send your mage companion into the boy’s head to destroy the demon without killing him. It doesn’t matter what you choose, your companions still disapprove and it slightly alters the overall outcome of the game. But if you really get into a game and attach yourself to your character, you’re emotionally affected as well. These games teach more than just making a difficult decision, though. Portal teaches you to think laterally to solve problems, but also patience and timing. Even in games like Call of Duty there’s a lesson. There are plenty of missions in the Call of Duty series that have you protecting or rescuing people. Not all video games are all about the violence.

While learning right from wrong is important, so is having fun. Video games can help you forget real life for a while, just slip into a new world where your problems don’t matter. Sometimes you might need a virtual punching bag, and that’s okay. Bottling up your emotions isn’t healthy, nor is stressing over things you can’t fix. It’s easy to fall into the rhythm of a game and just forget your problems for a while. It doesn’t make them go away, but it gives you time to cool down and look at it with fresh eyes. As human beings, we seek solace in the little things. Whether it be feeling accomplished after beating the Water Temple level in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, understanding a reference to another game or movie hidden in the game you’re playing, beating Orphan in Final Fantasy XIII after a month-long ragequit, or even finally finishing the Final Fantasy VII trilogy, it’s the small pleasures that anchor us and keep us sane.

Another advantage to playing video games is developing faster reaction times and furthering your ability to think on your toes. A study in 2005 showed that surgeons who play action video games make less mistakes in the operating room and are more likely to see something about to go wrong before it does, giving them time to correct it. In many cases, this has saved lives. I used to take forever to decide on something, and I didn’t work well under pressure. Now I only have to have a minute or two to think about a big decision, and I don’t crack as easily under pressure. Video games also help recalibrate gut instinct. When you’re playing a game like Sly Cooper, you have to think on your toes to avoid guards, lasers, and pick out the best route before running out of time if the mission is on the clock. Just like in Portal, everything has to be timed perfectly if you want to advance.

Those who say video games melt your brain have obviously never played either of the Portal games–which deal with timing, strategy, and ingenuity–nor the Fallout series which sheds new lights on human nature, good and bad. You can learn life lessons from video games. The people who say video games make you lazy have obviously never enjoyed playing the Final Fantasy games in all their 32-bit to CG nerve-wracking glory. Those games have made people want to learn how to wield a sword, learn a martial art, or any number of skills the characters possess.. Those who think people who play video games have no social lives could not be more wrong. Comicon takes place around the world for otakus–gaming, anime, or comic–to congregate and cosplay, sharing their love of the digital arts together. There are innumerable online forums filled to the brim with gamers discussing one game or another. Whole communities can and have been built because of a game’s influence. Friendships have been made on MMO games during dungeons, PVP matches, and building things in a sandbox server. The world of the gamer is full of endless possibilities, and more people would do well trying to understand it.