Yes, they finally got a picture of the Ivory Billed Woodpecker . . .

But will they ever find the Death Worm?

Erg.  Is it just me or to coffeeshop denizens get more annoying by the week?  Who is this guy who sits around all day in the local dimly lit coffee shop with his 20″ Apple iMac G5?  What compels him to lug this desktop thing in here every day and park it?

If I were half as cool as I think I am, I’d one-up him one day by lugging in and plugging into a serious machine.

If you’re not too particular about the holy wars in which you enlist, you might have a go at this one:

Unleash the Rebel Within, May 8: Why is it that we often live a life of mediocrity when deep inside God has wired us to live a courageous life of adventure? Discover how to unleash the rebel within by examining how to experience the wild life that Jesus intended us to live. . . . The Star Wars movies reach across generations and reveal remarkable Biblical truths,” says Aaron Kazmierczak, Director of Creative Arts. “Luke Skywalker was pulled from an average, insignificant life into one of risk, mystery and destiny. A rebellion was underway and there was a hero inside of him waiting to be unleashed. Luke’s life was transformed when he discovered his place in the story. Our mission at Epic Church is to challenge people to discover their role in God’s epic story.”

Via the Revealer (one of our favorites, here at TDQ).

Another epic struggle: How to organize an orgy.  In case you’ve been wondering.

I’m now engaged in an epic struggle with my dentist’s office, over whether I owe them $87 for getting my teeth cleaned a few months ago.  The appointment was scheduled as a follow-up to another procedure (a “deep cleaning”).

The follow-up cleaning seemed sort of unnecessary, so I asked if it would be covered under the University insurance.  “Yes” said the scheduler.  “Are you sure?” I asked, “I know they’re making some changes soon, so I’m not sure myself.”  The scheduler again told me it would be covered.  So I scheduled the appointment, correctly supposing that one’s teeth can never really be too clean. 

But of course the appointment wasn’t covered by my insurance, and pretty soon they’re billing me for around $120.  I call and complain.  The manager explains that since my visit, management has warned staff about making claims re insurance coverage.  She removes charges for maybe $30 dollars worth of fluoride.  But for the rest of the balance, I’ll have to call corporate.  So I call corporate, where someone named Tabitha tells me that this sounds pretty unfair and that she’ll take care of it.  I don’t hear back from her though, so I call a while later, and she tells me it’s probably been taken care of, but seems a little evasive.  After this I never hear from Tabitha  again, despite leaving a bunch of voice-mail messages for her.

And then last week I get a “final notice” threatening collections unless I pay up by the 30th.  Which astute readers will note, was yesterday.

I guess I’ll need to run pay Monday to try and avoid credit damage if possible, but I’m none too happy about it.  I mean, there’s no way I’d have paid for these “services rendered” if they’d been correctly represented.  I didn’t even really want to go in for the stupid cleaning.  So this is just . . . rotten?  If you ask me. 

Am I wrong here?  If not, any advice for dealing with these nefarious dentistos?

Oh and also:  I’ll probably run out of money (again) this month, since I’m paying for the stupid dentist and the co-pay for my throat-stretching adventure.  So you’d think I’d know better than to have just ebayed away a big chunk of cash on this sort of thing.  But you’d be wrong . . .