Uncategorized

It's been more than 18 years since I penned my first column for this newspaper. The response from readers has been phenomenal; I've hardly ever made a trip to the store without running into someone who wants to talk to me about their pet. Because of this, I've never had a shortage of topics. We've talked everything from dermatitis to dementia, indigestion to insecurity, even laryngitis, lick-sores and leptospirosis. Your letters have fueled my fire and made this column easy to write. And I'll always be grateful for that.

If there is one thing the average member of the public doesn’t understand, it’s the hospital billing and accounting system. That’s not surprising, based on the number of billings, insurance rejections, submittals, re-submittals, various write-offs, adjustments, and communications they receive – sometimes with notes in obscure codes. However, thanks to California’s Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development (OSHPD) – and the site truecostofhealthcare.org that assembled and analyzed the financial records of 387 California hospitals over a nine-year period (2003-2011) – it is a little easier.

For Shane and Natasha Hewitt, Christmas came early this year.

At the end of every year, certain federal tax breaks face a sunset. Some are renewed, some expire. As 2014 will soon start, here is a list of some of notable tax provisions that may go away next year - offering some opportunities that you may want to take advantage of this year.

There is no doubt that gun ownership is very controversial these days. The anniversary of the Newtown massacre and continued gun violence across the country have led to calls for tighter regulation of firearms, such as the recent legislation passed in Sunnyvale. Others counter that their Second Amendment Constitutional rights not be tampered with.

Previously, we talked about one of the most interesting actions in bridge - bidding for slam, which is definitely a whole level higher and even more exciting because the stakes are very high. In order to bid and make slam (six-level bid) you need a total of 33 points between your two hands - or a really fantastic distributional fit. Since it is unlikely one hand will hold 30-plus points, the key to slam bidding is communication between the two partners.

Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital opened the first floor of its new Women’s Center last week and also delivered its first baby.

With just days left in 2013, I’ve been ruminating on the past year and wondering what the future may hold. Personally, it’s been a tumultuous year and a half and I’m hopeful the winds will begin to shift come 2014.