Pain and Bling: A Visit to the Dentist

I went to the dentist today. Since we have insurance until the end of the month and I needed a crown, we decided to go forward with it. I was booked for a 90 minute procedure. It took almost twice that long. By the time it was over, much of the anaesthetic had worn off, although then it was just pushing and shoving rather than grinding or drilling, so it wasn't terrifically painful, just annoying.

As it turned out, the tooth– or what was left of it– is tightly wedged into a pocket between two others and the normal temporary crown wouldn't do. So the doc used a solid gold temporary, which is apparently quite rare these days. My mouth has bling. Fortunately it's not terribly visible bling, it doesn't show clearly when I smile, so I can still do job interviews without looking like an idiot.

Omaha says I have a file in my head, just one, under "I" for "I might need this someday." At one point, the doc and the tech were talking about the patient after me, discussing which teeth were going to be removed and replaced and so on. I said, "But those are his two front teeth."

"You know that?" the doc said.

I shrugged. "I pay attention to what you say. Like, the difference between a lingual and a facial, or the mesial versus distal."

"And earlier, you were asking about my using the same needle for multiple passes of anaesthetic. You should give up software and take up dentistry."

"I don't think I have the patience for it."

I'm home now. Exhausted from all that time in the chair, the body tension, and the imminent threat of pain. There's only some soreness in my mouth, along with the lingering numbing that always seems to last longer in the lips than the jaw. I'll be okay, I guess. I have an interview appointment to set up for Monday, and then I'll have lunch and maybe go lie down. I owe Omaha about six hours of art and programming, but I don't know if I'm up for it right about now.