infinite wisdom

a thermometer on the forehead. a clamp around each wrist to measure heart rate. a blood pressure cuff inflating at regular intervals. a monitor on the finger to measure oxygen levels. a brace locking my elbow in place. the i.v. slowly dripping. a tube shoved in my nose for more oxygen. a blurry doctor comes in, "so we're extracting your bottom right wisdom tooth today?" and he starts to pump in the anesthesia into the i.v. as he talks. just like that i was out.

i can probably count on one hand the amount of surgery i've had in my lifetime. i'm sure i had something done when i electrocuted myself when i was four (walking example why you should cover wall sockets), and i know i had oral surgery when i was in 6th grade to correct an upside-down tooth (which has since perished). this is the first time i can remember actually going under. or at least the whole process before and after. it's just crazy to me that i wake up jaw numb, tooth gone and absolutely no recollection of the whole event. there's no foggy memory. no residual feelings of pain from the operation. just 30 minutes of my life unaccounted for by my brain.

i'm going to disneyworld

this time next week i'll be in sunny florida enjoying the company of the mouse. disney in a day? is that even possible? aaron thinks it's unbelievable that we're even going to try. dana assures me it can be done. we'll see what the photos have to report.

busy weeks ahead. i leave wednesday for florida. aaron leaves next sunday for washington state while i return home, maybe we'll cross each others paths at the airport. brian and irina arrive the following friday. mom, dad and aaron arrive/return the 23rd. christmas, new year, oral surgery, academy...the list goes on.

yes, more teeth drama. yesterday i went in to see my orthodontist. after wearing my retainer for extended periods what i thought was my jaw was locking up. come to find out, it's the muscle around my jaw, kinda like a crook in your neck. culprit: my wisdom tooth. it's erupted and causing my teeth to misalign. he ground down the tooth and it was immediate relief. he recommends i get the tooth pulled, otherwise it'll continue to bother me. if it's not one thing it's another. so now i have to plan a tooth extraction sometime before the 18th of january. what a way to ring in the new year!

the tooth diaries

a power chain, an additional metal chain, new arch wires and another rubber band. <-- in case you were wondering what this means, i've included a visual representation.

an unflattering photo, i know. my orthodontist informed me i have less than 6 months left in these bad boys. i will have a definitive answer september 24. september 5 will be my 2 year anniversary. i can hardly believe i've been wearing them this long. i've come a long way, oh yes, a long, straight way.

left incisor is the devil tooth that received the root canal. it only took 20 minutes, i could hardly believe it myself. drilled a hole in the back, scrapped out the pulp and infection, sealed it temporarily up and i was out of there. been nursing it with vicodin and antibiotics since. heading back september 10 to have it permanently sealed and internally bleached. $700 for, perhaps, an hour of work. i'm definitely in the wrong business.