Because some twat at a local CVS refused to fill a prescription for the morning after pill for moral/religious reasons, I now refuse to bring my prescriptions there based on the fact that I morally object to someone getting paid to do his job and then NOT doing it when someone brings a prescription in.

Whether you’re pro or anti-choice doesn’t particularly matter in this case, as abortion is not a factor in this debate. I know plenty of people who are on birth control for reasons unrelated to contraception.

It’s official: Americans can no longer take prescription birth control for granted. Yesterday, Monday, July 25, anti-choice representatives in the U.S. House made it clear that they support pharmacies that refuse to fill birth-control prescriptions - and that women have no right to birth control.

The House Small Business Committee held a hearing on whether pharmacies should be allowed to refuse to fill women’s prescriptions. Anti-choice Rep. Steve King (R-IA) told a witness, who had been denied birth control and emergency contraception by her pharmacist, that she had no “right” to her prescriptions - she only believed she did. Anti-choice Rep. Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO) told a witness whose prescription had also been rejected by a hostile pharmacist, that her “minor inconvenience” - that is, risking an unintended pregnancy - was nothing compared to the “conscience” of a pharmacist.

The right’s anti-birth control campaign doesn’t stop in Washington, DC. Across the country, the radical right has engaged pharmacies in its campaign to block women’s access to birth control. Women like Julee Lacey, a 32-year-old married mother of two and first-grade teacher from Texas, are being turned away by vigilante pharmacists who think it’s their job to dispense morals instead of medicine.

Now, as many as 20 states officially protect pharmacists like Karen Brauer, president of Pharmacists for Life, who says she’d lecture women customers to get off the pill. Other states are pursuing an even more aggressive strategy. Just last month Wisconsin passed a bill to block state universities from filling birth control prescriptions.

What you can do
Tell your Member of Congress that you expect him or her to stand up for you - not right-wing pharmacies that oppose birth control. Click here to send a message today.

I think that if I were to be denied my nuvaring refills for any other reason other than “we don’t have one in stock right now” I’d make such a stink in the Walmart that they’d need to call security on me to get me to leave the store, and even then there would be hell to pay. Not everyone believes in antidepressants and drugs of that nature, but I’ve yet to hear of a pharmacist who’s refused to fill a prescription based on the morality of those drugs. True, we have no right to any of the drugs we’re on, and we really only get that right if we can afford them, but I’d love to see the fallout if some pharmacist refused Viagra or the drugs they put my grandmother on to make her comfortable while she was going through chemo last year because medication isn’t a right.

Seriously, if I want a lecture on the morality of the drugs I’m on, I’ll discuss them with my father.

It’s Friday! Woot! It’s just too hot to do anything today.

I’m sitting here in a ratty pair of panties and a black shirt, drinking iced tea out of the container, while Edie watches a Harry Potter movie that he swears he’s never seen. I drove him into work because I wanted to be able to take the car and get my prescription transfered over to his store’s pharmacy. Around lunchtime I drove down to the nearest Cingular shop and got my mother a new phone, which thrilled her when I gave it to her later in the afternoon. My prescription was transferred over without a hitch, and I got an extra $15 taken off the cost because I changed pharmacies. So this month, even without insurance, my cost was only $3 more than it would have been with the insurance. Of course, next month it’ll be $38, but I’ll worry about that at in a month. After I got my prescription and we took off, we headed out to get some groceries and I told Eddie all about how I horribly pathetic I must look when putting in the BC ring, which entails a squatting position and about 5 hands, otherwise the not-as-flexible-as-it-seems slimy ring will fly out of my hands, requiring me to get up, find it and rinse it off, and try again.

A pleasent visual, is it not?

I also get the lovely priviledge of going back to the doctor’s again next week, this time to go over my bloodwork. I’m not too thrilled with this, since I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that they’re going to tell me that I’ve got high cholesterol and/or I’m diabetic, both of which run in the family.

After being in this neighborhood for almost 4 years now, I finally had an extended conversation with a neighbor - the guy across the street. A conversation during which I learned the following:

• he doesn’t like Comrade and thinks he and his wife are assholes
• when I sit at my desk wrapped in a towel after a shower, I look topless from his living room
• he’s seen Eddie walking around naked
• he’d much rather see me naked and see Eddie as often as he has

I’ve got to ask Mom if Wal*Mart employees can use their discount on prescriptions so I can get my BC refilled next week. I’m hoping it’s not going to cost some insane amount of money for it because I’m pretty happy with it and the complete lack of side-effects.

Today we pick up Mom and Brian at the airport. Eddie wants to eat lunch at the airport. We’ve got to bring both cars, and we’ll probably drop Ed’s off at Wal*Mart and just take one to the airport to avoid paying twice for parking.

I spent so much time in the car today that I’m sunburnt on only my left side. It’s about 80 or so right now, low humidity, and it’s going to be hella bad tomorrow.

Last night Eddie decided to get all frisky with me, which he seems to do every month at the most unsexiest time. There I am, pinned on my back with my hands on the pillow over my head, when he zones onto my left boob and starts doing this quasi-sucking/knawing on the underside.

“No hickies!” I whine. “She’s gonna do a breast exam tomorrow!”

“So can I make a bunch to spell out ‘Hello, Dr. V____?’”

My visit to the doctor’s office was uneventful. I told her it was my first time and she went easy on me, getting out the “newbie speculum”. She warned me that the pap was going to be uncomfortable, but I didn’t feel a thing. Then we had a fun conversation about genital piercings and KY lube. When all was said and done I walked out with a shiney new birth control prescription. I’d decided against the Depo shots this week after reading some horror stories and went with the Nuvaring, which the doc agreed is an excellent choice and the patients she’s got using it love it. Yay for no more condoms! I also have to go and get blood test done on Monday because she wants all sort of cholesterol and stuff done, which is easy enough to do. Blood tests don’t phase me anymore, not since I was 5 and telling the nurses how to do it.

Monday I’ve got to call CCRI to figure out exactly what the fuck kind of balance I’ve got there. I haven’t taken classes there in 6 years, and even when I registered while unemployed in ‘99 we weren’t supposed to be charged because we were out of work had should have had the fees waived. The last time I was in there I’d tried to get the waiver and they told us (me and Chris) it was too late so we told them to unregister us and forget about it, and we never saw another bit of paperwork from them. Now they can’t register me for my CNA pretest because supposedly I’ve got this6 year oldbalance with them.

Eddie’s cooking sausages and we’re drinking Sam Adams Summer Ale, and it’s a good day.