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Mind, Body, Soul
A Sheriff and Two Elder Women
By Mona Lease
Greetings, Gals!! So - I wake up last Wednesday to a computer
voice...male...telling me that he is Detective So-and-So from the US
Government Social Security and that they have suspended my Social
Security number. Did ya'll hear me laughing?? I'm supposed to call
"him" back at 404-???-????. Now, I know two things: (1)The Social
Security phone number is 1-800-772-1213. (2)The only way anything
happens to your social security number is when you die. Even then it's
never really fully "retired" - as it were. Your record - as connected
to your social security number - jobs, loans, any trouble, etc -will
always be available. The social security records still exist from when
social security was first put into use and the first penny extracted
from the Working Joe's paycheck. And this will always be available.
And this one is most interesting. I recently called Apple Support
regarding my Apple iPad. Two days later I get three - 3! phone calls
from a guy - speaking in broken English. The calls were about 45
minutes apart and he left messages on my answering machine. It seems I
need to return his phone call. I do not do that, but I answer on
his 4th phone call to me in three...3! hours. I ask him why he has
called me 4 times. He told me, "I call you a hundred times to fix
this problem." He tells me I need to let him help me. He says someone
in Russia is accessing my Apple computer. I say, "If you know it's
coming from Russia, why are you calling me, why don't you call them? He
said he was protecting me and not "them." I was supposed to get on my
computer and let him show me the "problem" to which he was referring. I
think NOT. I hung up the phone. He called me back half an hour later -
so my caller ID said. Biggest thing here?? The Apple Company protects
no one. They sell you many products and applications. "Protection" is
up to you through various anti-spyware, malware, and the like.
I call Sheriff Toby Spencer and speak with him personally. He said:
"He can not answer every phone call personally. He has many other
duties to perform and is a busy man. If you have caller ID - and you do
not recognize the number - do not answer the phone. If you do not have
caller ID and you answer one of these phone calls - politely say you
are not interested - and hang up the phone. Do not argue with them. Do
not be rude. Just hang up the phone. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES do you ever
give out any of your personal information...not a social security
number...not a banking number...not your address...not your driver's
license number...nothing. Nor do you give out any family member's same
information...or your neighbor's same information. We live in a
technologically advanced age so that phone calls do not always come
from within the USA. Sometimes phone calls will come from a number that
looks "local" and you think you might know the number. Be careful. (I
received a phone call from 000-000-0000!). Sheriff Spencer says: "Just
keep doing these things until you hear differently."
And this one's for us, gals. (Guys too, if you fit the following):
A gal I know is currently going through - "What do you do when a parent
(or any loved one) has to make life-altering decisions?" We're talking
moving to a nursing home or in with another person because they are no
longer physically or mentally able to see to their needs. I spoke with
a couple of ladies whom I know - for a fact - took care of their
parents. The following is their combined advice:
"Have a living will made. The one woman dealt with having no will
- which led to her making all of the decisions and signing the
required paperwork. This situation also leaves open for debate...who
does what when...and for how long?? The other woman dealt with a will
already in place...which made the whole process much easier. She
strongly urges..."Have a will made." Both agreed that it is not
about you - it's about the patient. What do they want? One woman's
Mother said, "No more surgery. I'm done. Let me go." The other woman's
Mother said, "Keep me comfortable." Both of the ladies with whom I
spoke were with their Mothers when they passed. Both of these
care-giving women said you have to look past yourself. Both of these
care-giving women were sleep-deprived when "the end" came. (This
situation is not for everyone. Some just can not handle
this...and it takes a lot). Both of these care-giving women said they'd
do it again willingly. One woman commented: "She gave me life and I
gave her peace...in her death...with no more pain/suffering...by
letting her do this her way."
The best is yet to be!!
"Sometimes all you need is for someone to just be there, even if they
can't solve your problems. Just knowing there is someone who cares can
make all the difference." -
sun.gazing.com MONA
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