Paper + life
So! Mostly working on the UCDs paper, discussing some issues with Steffen Mieske (ESO-Chile) and Iskren Georgiev (AIfA). Now, apart from some small things the text is homogeneous and I can go on to the next section.
Friday an almost non-science day. Had to go to the doctor with Fernanda who will have to stay on medical leave for 2 more weeks. No problem, just precaution.
In the mean while reading some paper that might be important to the UCDs paper. I love smartphones with acrobat! :-)
Labels: hcg_ucd, life
Double checking
Double checking info on the UCDs paper and working on the figure, before going on.
Labels: hcg_ucd
On the fight!
So, monday as usual, fighting with the health insurance to get my bills paid!
Believe me when I say RUN FROM MAWISTA! RUN FROM MONDIAL ASSISTANCE!!
Also filed an official complain about the insurance issue at Mawista.
Weekend was more productive than today. Answered the questions from Christophe Adami (Marseille), about the OV_WAV and finished some issues on the UCDs paper. Some stuff on a figure to be worked and the end of the paper to be drafted.
Today we recorded an interview with Murilo Fischer (Garmin) for the
Radio Corsa podcast! Very cool talking to a top professional cyclist!
Labels: hcg_ucd, health insurance, life
Paper mode: ON
Short day for personal house reasons.
Working on the paper, updating references, mostly.
After getting my (usually) delayed bus and missing (as usual) my commuting subway, I read the following headline on a newspaper "bus and subway: Munich is number one in Europe". Ironically funny on a first moment, scary after it ... if here is number one I'm sorry for people in other cities!
Labels: hcg_ucd, life
On paper
So! Still on the paper.
Finished my modifications to the existing text, now gotta organize the references, modify some figures and write the missing text. Getting in the writing mood.
Some training, even though another part of my home trainer broke ... somethings seem to have a defined life time :-) I've got some reply from Elite (the manufacturer) on how to walk around (it's not a repair) of the previous problem. That was nice, I'll do it tomorrow.
Also got a reply (after calling the guys a couple of times) about cable connection in the house. The building has no TV antenna, so signal should come by cable. There's only one cable company allowed to provide services in my building (and mostly in Munich, as far as I could understand). This is the German capitalism. They work on monopoly basis ...
This company doesn't do collective contracts. It won't provide cable to the building as a whole Each one must make an individual contract with them. In Brazil, at least, if 40-50% of a building want to have the same cable company, they give you lots of things. Better price, top quality decoders, upgrade on packages, ... here, there's only one option, so why bother. Why make it better is we can provide the same crappy service for a higher price??
Tried to get an antenna. No one at the store was able tell me if any further equipment was needed. There was no signal on the TV ... luckily here you can give anything back within 14 days, only one question asked "is it broken or you just don't want it?", so that they know what to do with it.
Also trying to contact O2, my mobile operator, about the firmware upgrade for our Nokia N97's. I need the upgrade so I can use iSync and get more from my phone and it's only possible with the new version. O2 has to make the upgrade available, and it didn't. I don't wanna have to "hack" my own phone to make it better.
If you're considering buying a smart phone, Nokia N97 is the WORST option. Slow, no skype version YET, firmware upgrade is a nightmare, 'cos it has to be authorized by your operator, no "Missing Sync" version, software is rare ... bad choice.
Labels: hcg_ucd, life, mobiles
700!
Post 700! It's a lot of posting :-)
Hope I had better science to post today.
The day could be summarized as "it never ends".
Reading the UCDs paper. Finish my "on paper" modifications and comments, now gotta implement them organizing some stuff on the text and then write some new text.
My back aches a bit, so no training.
Gave back Miguel's flat.
Up to now, all as it should.
Also received some important documents from a friend in the USA. The absurd part is that DHL delivered the envelope WET! Yep! Not humid, not a bit wet, REALLY WET!
The more absurd was the delivery guy that said the only thing he could do would be take it back, repack it and bring it again (I don't need a dry pack, a need a dry content), and when I got the envelope and noticed that it was actually WET, and asked "but that happened now!", he looked at me and said "yes! you better open it quickly to try to save the content" as he turned around and went away.
Tried to call DHL and the phone that is on the webpage gives a message something like number unreachable and the e-mail I've send, not even an automatic reply "we received your message". To this I might say "welcome to Germany, the land of (bad)service".
The documents got in one piece, but heavily tainted by the water. Not the most desirable quality to important papers for the government.
Going to the post to complain tomorrow ... it was CLOSED today. Carnival ...
Labels: hcg_ucd, life
The usual
So! The usual.
Some work in the UCD's paper, some fighting with the health insurance ... hehehehehe
By parts.
Fernanda called the insurance, who asked us to write the story and send them ... germans love paper ... poor trees. I'm also rushing anything that has to do with this insurance to get rid of it asap. Also stating a formal complain at Mawista and, in case they insist on being dishonest with those bills or any of the other bill I'm sending, getting a lawyer.
As I say, researchers coming to Germany, Mawista now works with Mondial Assistance, RUN FROM THEM! Sorry for Mawista, nice and good company, but with bad friends.
Reading the UCD's paper, putting my comments. Today starts the part of putting them into the file (can't correct a paper on the screen), arranging bibliography and fixing figures.
Last section of physiotherapy also. At the end of the day my good friend Miguel Verdugo (MPE) needed help. He was leaving his flat and going to Chile to observe. When he's back, he'll go to a new flat. Bad combination, work trip with removal ... helped him with the "removal". Got a huge and heavy bag ... my 5 weeks of physiotherapy got lost hehehehehe Miguel, I'm gonna kill you when you're back hehehehehe
Mostly that!
Labels: hcg_ucd, health insurance, life
Week summary
So! Fernanda is back home after the surgery and the week was mostly taking care of her.
Some science was done, also :-)
Finished reading and correcting Lucas Schubert's (Computer Science Uni-Goettingen) thesis.
Now on reading and putting my part on our UCDs paper.
Basically that.
Hint complementing health insurance from my
previous post. If you're coming to Germany, or changing insurances, RUN, RUN FOREST, from MONDIAL ASSISTANCE. They are definitely not a serious company. After all they did on the case of Fernanda's surgery, now they sent back the medical bills from Matheus, claiming pre-existence of his skin infection ... they just forgot to check that we had insurance by Mawista-Science, back on the beginning of the problem, so ... no pre-existence.
The summary is the ALWAYS look for a way not to pay your bills. I have private insurances before, their job is try not to pay if they don't have to, but MONDIAL does it on a CRIMINAL way.
Monday I'll talk to them and eventually with a lawyer, because I'm fed up with their crap! I'm fed up of having to call them for them to do their work.
Also complaining officially to Mawista about their bad choice and "incomplete" information on the web page.
Still on the cranky mood ... in latin languages we have two different "to be"'s, from latin "essere" and "stare". The first is an intrinsic state, it can't be changed, "you're tall" "you're a man" and so on. The second is a not permanent state, "you're alive", "you're tired".
Well, I'm cranky in both senses :-))
Snow is back in the city. You hear the people here talking about snow, on summer, and you have the impression they live in Finland! Well, it's not that much snow, but it's annoying since the city services don't do anything about it. My street still have a lot of snow, even though there has been any new snow for already 2 days. I won't mention the sidewalks and the fact that you're not able to cross, since all the snow moved goes to the side and makes a wall between the sidewalk and the street.
Another discovery of the week. Buses run under Murphyan mechanics here :-) Back home they don't have a time table, they leave the start point in a certain time and arrive when factors like traffic allow them to. Here they have a schedule in each stop, but in Munich it's useless.
If you're soon on the bus stop, it will come very late. If you're on time, either it comes late, or too soon, so that you seen the bus passing while you walk to the bus stop. If you're late and hope the bus will also be late as usual, it comes right on time ... :-)) Murphy is unbeatable!!
Labels: hcg_ucd, health insurance, life
Fine after surgery
So! First information is that Fernanda's surgery went fine, she's recovering fine and will be back home tomorrow.
Getting to it was a nightmare, so I decided to write some stuff here that may help other foreign researchers that are coming or will come to Germany. I hope that can help them on health insurance. BTW, some keywords so it shows up when someone google it.
Health insurance for foreigns in Germany, health insurance for researchers in Germany.
So, the story so far. We needed a health insurance for transition, between Fernanda's insurance in the Max Planck in Goettingen and the new one in the TUM in Munich, first one was private and the second one was "public" (gesetzliche). So we've got one called Mawista-Science.
It has worked well while we were in Goettingen, since Mawista hires insurance from someone else and for northern Germany is hired on Wurzburger and it worked fine (no big requests). In the south is hired on Mondial Assistance and those guys failed us twice.
First failure was the lack of respect for the human being that pays for it. They tried to find technicalities not to pay for the surgery and took them 4 work days to decide to pay for it. That means they called the doctor with the authorization less than half an hour before the scheduled time for the surgery. That's a huge lack of respect in my opinion. We were ready (doesn't mean we could do it, but someone that has good friends doesn't die alone) to pay privately for the surgery.
Second failure is related to a market "war" between two parts of this "industry" (namely physicians and insurance). Here in Germany, I don't really understand how that goes, but it seems that medical services and material have a fixed price that can be multiplied by a factor.
First time I saw this as a problem was on a dental treatment, where my dentist was charging a 3.5 factor and the insurance top was a 2.7 factor (or something like that).
Turns out Mondial/Mawista approved surgery but with a 1.8 top factor and the doctor would charge 3.5, i.e. they would pay for about half the prince. According to the doctor, 1.8 is about the price this surgery costed in the 1970's ... and even though they put in their webpage, on the coverage part "SURGERY - 100%" ... not really true ...
The main problem in this war is that it's not a fair market. If you're not happy with the price of milk, or beer, you just don't buy it. When a doctor tells you, "we need to operate you or you'll die", you're not really in a position to discuss prices ...
At the end we were very lucky because the card from AOK, Fernanda's public insurance, arrived the day before and they quickly agreed to pay for the surgery without restrictions.
In a nutshell, we were betrayed by our private health insurance.
Summarizing insurances in Germany:
- Public health insurance (gesetzliche krankenversicherung)
+ Pay the things they have to pay without complaining
+ Charge a "handling fee" (10 Euro each time in go to a doctor in a trimester, unless you're being transfered from another doctor - like, you go to a general doctor because your leg hurts and he sends you to an orthopedist, you just pay the first one)
+ If your work gives you that, the law obliges you to have it
+ They don't pay several things or limit kinds of treatments (like dental, fillings must be made with amalgam, abandoned in most of the occidental world many years ago)
+ They don't cover medicines
- Private health insurance
+ Pay medicine
+ No handling fee
+ Pay several treatments (like resin fillings)
+ Sometimes come out with a disagreement in "price factors"
Hints:
- Specifically ask about payment factors for doctors and get it written, before contracting the insurance.
- Ask about the timescale for authorizations for large procedures.
- Get clear the procedure, if you're reimbursed or if they pay the medical bill directly and what are the limits. You don't want to have to pay a 1K Euro bill and then be reimbursed.
Basically that. If something else occurs to me I'll complement this text.
Science the last few days ... not much. A lot of reading on the subway on the way to the hospital and back.
My neck and my back are much better also!
Labels: health insurance, life
Is this a joke?
So!
Several jokes lately.
Health insurance looking for technicalities not to pay Fernanda's surgery, which will be on wednesday. Their part is to get our money and not to pay us when it's needed. My part is to make them pay, even if that means taking them to a court. Let's see.
Not enough having a back problem, Fernanda needing surgery like this, since the weekend I also have a terrible pain in the neck, what made the pain in the back "disappear" ... not even the physiotherapist could make it better ...
Gathering on the weekend was just great! Too bad it lasted only a couple of days. It's great to spend good hours with old and good friends.
Finished checking and redoing the failed models. This part is over. Now finish the analysis and write the paper (that easy).
Labels: hi-z morph, life
