Perfectly circular, powerful Hurricane Celia spaned hundreds of miles over the Pacific Ocean in this image from June 24, 2010. Rough-textured clouds surround the storm’s distinct eye. Farther from the center of the storm, spiral arms appear thinner and smoother. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer, or MODIS, on NASA’s Aqua satellite captured this true-color image of Hurricane Celia at 1:55 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time on June 24, 2010. Just five minutes later, the U.S. National Hurricane Center classified Celia as a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds of 135 miles per hour. Image Credit: NASA
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And I’m not even 40 yet …
December 14th, 2009
When I tell people I’ll be 40 in March, the reaction is almost always the same: “Oh, no! The body starts falling apart at 40!” Yeah, well, looks like my body doesn’t procrastinate like the rest of me! 
Beyond the ongoing battle with the swine flu/its complications/aftermath (it’s Day 36, in case you’re keeping track — I must be up to H10 N10 by now), something else happened on Friday evening — something I needed like a hole in the head. To be succinct, my tooth took on a piece of toast — and lost.
The little cartoony tooth to the right is a rough sketch of what my 3.6 looks like. (The 3.6 is located bottom left, sixth from the front, in case you’re wondering.) Because I have a long-distance dentist on speed dial, I took a most unusual self-portrait to show Dr. Munchkin (AKA Little Sister the Dentist). I’m proud of my photography skills (I took it in one shot), and because I know that there’s at least one person out there going, “Oh, I wish I could see the real thing” (and you know who you are), you can click the sketch for a picture of the real deal.
Anyway, yeah, it does hurt, but I was able to subdue it enough with Tylenol and a MacGyvered “filling” made of orthodontic wax so that I could attend a Christmas party with the staff of the school where I used to teach. It’s liveable.
I have an appointment with my new dentist on Thursday (one recommended by Dr. Munchkin, since she lives too far away now for me to see), and I’m sure I can tough it out until then. Especially since the swine flu/whatever it is now has made such a stunning comeback and I’m spending the day in a Benadryl-induced daze, watching the same replays of the WISE/Delta II rocket launch over and over. I’m beginning to understand germophobes, and will be researching not going out in public without a bubble!
Oh, and here’s a public service announcement: If your dentist recommends you wear a bite plane at night because you’re a clencher, wear it! Especially in exam season! That’s all I’m saying.
Enjoy your Monday. I’m going to go eat some more Jello.
Posted in This and That
One Response to “And I’m not even 40 yet …”
Eeeewwwwwww, I just HAD to click on your thumbnail pic!!!
*laughing here, in spite of it all*
What am I gonna DO with you, KJ?!?? Now, you’ve got a broken tooth?!
You’ll have to sing that old Christmas song, “All I Want for Christmas is my 3-6 tooth”.
Seriously, please let us know when it gets fixed, okay?
Rosa