I get by with a little help from my friends

Today I received an email that made me smile. This isn't the first time I've received the email -- a similar message comes every month. And every time it makes me smile. The email is a notice from Kiva that another portion of the microloan I made a few months ago has been repaid.

Photo from Kiva.

This is Hawa Afia. She's 60, a widow and lives in Ghana. She's a fishmonger and sells used clothing from a shed in the local market to help support her family and send her children to school. With the microloan she received from me and about 20 other people, she'll be able to expand her business and buy more fish from the wholesaler.

I was familiar with Kiva for a long time before I decided to make a loan. I don't know what was holding me back. If you've been considering it (or even if you've never heard of Kiva until now!), I encourage you to just do it. It's easy to create an account and you can loan as little as $25. Once the loan has been repaid, you can loan the money to someone else. And every month you'll receive an email with an update on your loan repayment. :)

Michael Jackson remembered in Vienna

I was chatting with my sister earlier today and she asked me whether everyone was going crazy about Michael Jackson in Vienna like they were in the U.S. I said that there was a mass moonwalk planned in the city this evening. So if that's what she meant by going crazy, then yes. He was an icon and made a huge impact on music, so it's really no wonder that the world is reacting to the surprise of his death.

I think I would have gone into the city to check out the mass moonwalk for myself had I not had other plans. But thanks to YouTube, I can still see a bit of it. I don't know if there was much moonwalking going on, but it looks like Thriller was a hit.

On socialized medicine

I know that health care reform has been a hot topic in the U.S. for a while. While I know that a lot of people are a bit terrified of the thought of social healthcare, as someone with a chronic illness I have to say that private insurance in the U.S. only works for people who are healthy. When it came time to find private insurance, there wasn't a single option open to me. Even plans that covered diabetics were unavailable because I have Type I diabetes. My options in the U.S. are to work for a company that provides health insurance or to go without health insurance.

Since March, I've been on the socialized health insurance in Austria. (Prior to that I had traveler's health insurance, which met the insurance requirement to get residency in Austria, but didn't really provide me with an benefits.) Since I'm considered self-employed, I have to opt-in by paying a (rather large, in my opinion) monthly fee. Here are the benefits I've taken advantage of since March:

• Visit to my endocrinologist (diabetes care doctor) = 100 euros. Oops, he's a private doctor, so he doesn't accept health insurance. However, he gave me the information for a clinic that he and a colleague run at the hospital were I should go in the future to receive the same care for free.
• Visit to the family doctor = free.
• Test strips used to test blood sugar = free.
• Supplies for insulin pump = free.
• Insulin = $10-$15 co-pay for a three-months supply
  

So far, I've been quite pleased with the system, but there is one thing it is lacking -- convenience. When I was paying for everything out-of-pocket, I only needed one prescription per year and I could pick up test strips and insulin at the pharmacy around the corner. But now I need a new prescription every 2 to 3 months when I need more supplies. Then I have to take the prescription for insulin to a regular pharmacy and the prescription for test strips to a special distribution center -- and there are only two in the city, both of which are only opened until noon most days. But I'll only have to do that 4 to 6 times a year, so hopefully it won't be too bad.

So, that's my experience thus far with social heath care. I'm very grateful for it because I wouldn't be able to do what I'm doing if it weren't available.

On Father's Day

Earlier today I looked through my photos to pull out a few of my favorites of me and my dad from my childhood. But I couldn't find a single photo of my dad from before about 2000. I'm not sure how these photos didn't make it to Austria with me, but I hope I have them stashed away somewhere in the U.S.

Had I found the photos, I would included a picture of me showing off the fish I had just caught on one of the many times my dad took me fishing. And I probably would have included the photo of my soccer team that my dad helped coach. And I don't think I could have left out the photo of my dad and me sitting in the bluebonnets. What child who grew up in Texas doesn't have at least one photo sitting in the bluebonnets? But instead I will just include this photo from my parents' visit to Vienna earlier this year.


I've always been a daddy's girl. We have many of the same interests and the same taste in movies and music. One of my favorite memories is when we went to see Paul McCartney in concert together for my 22nd birthday. I love it that we like so many of the same things.

Happy Father's Day, Pops!

Craigslist

If you like Weird Al or The Doors, I think you'll enjoy this.

A taste of summer

About a week ago, I decided to give up diet coke for the rest of the month. This is pretty crazy for me since I practically live on diet coke. But it's been a week and I've resisted the overwhelming temptation to give up on this little exercise. A friend suggested adding lemon or lime to the water to give a little flavor and I've really enjoyed that. I've also tried adding others like a couple of cherries or a splash of orange juice. I like it because it just taste like summer.

I've also been trying to eat more fresh foods this season. This is something I put together last week which is likely to become a favorite summertime lunch. A piece of naan, brushed with a little olive oil, topped with sliced tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. Pop it in the oven for a few minutes then add a splash of balsamic vinegar. Yum.


Naan pizza before it goes into the oven.
I think I have tried naan in the past at an Indian restaurant, but I've never searched it out. I was planning on buying pita bread to make little pizzas, but when I spied the naan I decided to go with it instead. If I decided to use pita bread I would add some herbs, but the naan already has herbs in it.


Out of the oven, before adding the balsamic vinegar.
I've also tried it without the balsamic vinegar and it's good. But it's so much better with the vinegar. Just trust me on this one. It's also a little messier, but it's worth the trouble.

Out for a (st)roll

Well, I guess you guys don't bake cakes or quick breads. Or maybe you just like to keep your recipes top secret. Because only one person gave me some suggestions. But that's all right. I'll get by.

Onto other things -- my favorite topic, Sharkdog. He has a lot of endearing habits, but this is one of my favorite. (Oh, who am I kidding. They're all my favorite.)

Sometimes when we go for a walk, Sharkdog will sniff around in the grass until he finds just the right spot. When he thinks he has found it, he's gives it a test by rubbing his head in the grass.


Once he's confirmed it's a good spot (and it's almost always a good spot), he goes to town.


Oh, just look at him go. He loves to roll around in the grass.


Ok, I guess that's enough.


But then again, maybe not.


Nope, he still has a bit left in him.


There we go. It's time to leave. Of course, we normally only make it a few feet before Sharkdog finds another good spot and starts to rolling again.