Yesterday dawned early for me. 5 AM found me flinging borrowed garments into a bag, feeding sleepy goats along with bemused dogs, and waking an ornery child from a deep slumber. Time to go!

My 6:30 AM cattle call 45 minuets away meant the Starbucks run would have to be crammed in there somewhere. Drop off kid. Drop off dogs. Coffee. On my way.

The destination: A park up in Miami Gardens...

Last week our hospital received a terse letter from a client complaining about her $600 dentistry bill. “Outrageous,” she wrote. The owner had left in a rush without picking up her estimate, waving it off with an “I’m sure anything you need to be done will be fine with me. I trust you.”

So much for trust. Our fault, of course, for allowing her the privilege of running away without an...