Friday, August 26, 2011

Toof and Tooth

School has officially started. The park lots are bursting like bloated stomachs. Students crawl or outright run to reach their classes in time. The weather is sweaty with torrents of rain in the afternoon. I'm buried deep in lesson plans, new assignments, and my own writing goals. I can barely breathe through the cracks in the pile. But there's something nice about being back too. I love unlocking my office door and shutting out the hallway noise. Sitting at my pumpkin-colored cubicle, I glance at the photos and illustrations tacked on the walls. I remember what had inspired me through my first year of grad school.

With the return of clustered classrooms and red pens comes, of course, the annual doctor appointments. I had ambled through my visit with the dentist and came out with the unsettling knowledge that I had another cavity. And worse - the cavity was on my wisdom tooth. Irony. Irony. Irony. I couldn't help but laugh.

I mean... who gets a cavity there?

I found out quickly that I wasn't alone in my ignorance. I told my friends, complained to my family. And they all said something along the lines of: "Your wisdom tooth? Don't those things just get yanked out?"

Hmm... don't they? I've been lucky enough not to have to get my wisdom teeth pulled. I think it's lucky, though I've heard that the longer you wait to get them pulled, the more painful it is when they do leave your mouth. I kind of wish that parting with one's intelligent teeth would be a more peaceful procedure. I imagine the four teeth wiggling out of my gums, as painless as climbing out of bed when you're wide awake. They'd pack their bags, wave goodbye as they jumped off my lower lip, and set off for a journey of continued enlightenment. But no, it's not like that, is it?

So yesterday I stepped into the very chilly dentist office, read some gossip magazines, and tried not to shiver when I left the left side of my mouth go numb. I got my shot (the dentist was pleasantly surprised when I didn't whine) and watched the metal instruments as they got passed along above my nose. The drilling, the buzzing, the red light - it didn't frighten me. I was riding a wave of relief, thankful that, for once, I couldn't feel a thing.

A little shaky and smiling awkwardly, I left the dentist and headed home to wait for the numbness to dissipate. I was worried that a sudden and intense pain would emerge, so to keep my cool, I found a wonderfully ironic blog to look at: My Milk Toof. I've been a huge fan of this lovely blog for quite some time. Inhae Lee, the talented artist who runs this blog, creates relaxing, whimsical stories and scenes with her two milk teef, ickle and Lardee.


Aren't they adorable? When I read Lee's new posts, I tend to remember how nice it is to actually love your teeth. And pretend they like to watch pancake syrup drip. If there's one thing you have to do after reading this post, it's to check out this blog and coo over it's awesomeness, haha. The numbness lifted with only a minor headache and no tooth pain. Maybe my wisdom tooth used it's x-ray vision to read the blog too. It settled down and went back to sleep.

10 comments:

  1. I had my wisdom teeth out the summer before I started 8th grade. I barely took any pain meds at all- it was awesome.

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  2. @elfarmy17 O_O That's impressive! You must have had an excellent doctor! My brother got his wisdom teeth pulled last summer and he couldn't talk very well for a few days. But he wasn't in too much pain, so I think it worked out :)

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  3. Awww, I <3 My Milk Toof. It's always good for a smile. And I haven't read it in months! I'd forgotten about it - shame on me!

    I think this is the first time I've heard of someone getting a cavity on their wisdom teeth! Who knew?
    Some people keep their wisdom teeth their whole lives. It's not as common as it used to be, I think people generally get them pulled to avoid any possible issues. It's possible you'll make it to a ripe old age with your wisdome teeth still intact!
    But me, I have had no wisdom since May. :(

    ;)

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  4. I had my wisdom teeth out in '09. It was a terribly painful ordeal :P.

    The blog looks adorable! Thanks for sharing :)

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  5. First of all, I love how the first half of your blog is written in the style so many of your stories begin. I started to get into "reading" mode before remembering this was a post :)

    Oh, cavities. Bleck. Glad you were able to make it through the nasty ordeal! You have reminded that I have not yet gone in for my 6 mo. check up, and that if I don't so it soon, I may just end up with a cavity or two myself . . .

    Your friend's blog is adorable! I love the pictures and I can imagine how clever her stories must be.

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  6. I'm reading this anthology called Welcome to Bordertown (which is AMAZING), and there's this poem in it someone made into a song. I'm listening to it now, and it reminded me of some of the stuff you include in your Tidbits posts.

    Yeah, that doctor is pretty great. I've had to go back to him twice since then for other stuff, and the pain levels were pretty non-existant then, too. Last time I just sat and watched Firefly all day and made my dad get me more ice cream.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceeE6_I4ZIU&feature=player_embedded#!

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  7. I do hate the doctors, ironic since I have one type of appointment or another every few weeks, my body is just too sensetive! I have never had a cavity (proud grin) but I did get my wisdom teeth pulled (all four) last Summer. It wasn't pleasant but not unbearable either. It did take a while to heal up though, more than usual. But that just meant more time on the couch reading and relaxing :D

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  8. eek, sounds painful! but the way you've written about it is quite clever :)

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  9. Many people have problem with their wisdom teeth and that's why it is extracted quickly before it gets worse. It is good thing to know you were relaxed during the treatment and also happy to know that you had no tooth pain after the treatment. Yea, I have read My Milk Toof blogs they are really amazing.

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  10. I got my wisdom teeth extracted right before college. The pain during the procedure and one week afterwards was hard to forget. However, it was all worth it considering the days and nights of constant pain prior the extraction. You are right, the blog 'My Milk Toof' is truly entertaining.

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