It’s Like Pulling Teeth

I don't understand the old saying "It's like pulling teeth." I was under the impression it mean a job was painful and difficult. However, I just had two teeth pulled, which brings the total teeth in my mouth down to 13 and 1/2. The process was neither painful nor apparently difficult. Those teeth came out without any problem.

I have another appointment on August 29 to have more teeth extracted. I'm looking forward to going to the dentist and the process of having my teeth pulled. Eventually the dentist will pull all my teeth, which is what happens when one doesn't take care of their teeth in their youth. I'm also looking forward to getting several poems out of this experience. I may also put the experience in a story.

The doctor give me a prescription for pain medication, I took one last night before going to bed. So if there was pain, the pill worked and I slept well. This morning there isn't any pain in the part of my mouth he pulled the teeth. There is a slight pain in another tooth, which may come out next time, especially if it keeps bugging me.

I'm 61 years old and I don't remember every looking forward to a dental appointment or having teeth pulled. That in itself, should be an intriguing subject for a poem. I tried wrote a poem yesterday about having the teeth pulled, but it didn't turn out the way I expected. I'm going to have to write another poem, maybe try comparing having teeth pulled to something else besides a lost love.

I'm going to have all my teeth pulled, dentures put in and I'm looking forward to the dental appointments. I can't get over the fact that I'm not stressing out over the process, this is probably something I should explore in my off line journal.

Writing after a long and difficult night

It is early Tuesday morning. The sky is still black velvet waiting for the approach of dawn. I did get a little sleep last night, but I am not sure how much. It was a long and difficult, actually I should say painful, night. The problem is that I have only about 16 1/2 teeth in my mouth and because of this; I cannot chew my food properly.

Since I cannot chew it properly, it does not digest the way it should. In addition, I have a tendency not to drink the proper amount of water. The results of these two things sometimes causes pain and I spend the night wondering if I am going to live. If I had health insurance then I would go to the ER during these episodes, but I have no health insurance. Since I do not have health insurance or teeth, I have to be miserable during these episodes.

I am going to get teeth in August, the dentist is going to pull all my teeth and put in a complete set of false teeth. I am looking forward to that. In the mean time, I will be more careful to chew my food carefully or as carefully as I can without a full set of teeth. I will also drink more water.

I am also going to continue to blog about the experience of not having a full set of teeth and the problems it causes. I write, so what is the use of having an experience if I do not write about the good or the bad experience. Maybe I will also write a poem about it, this depends on what else inspires my muses today.

Sleepless
I toss and turn
attempting to find comfort
from the pain of my own foolishness.

Life without a full set of teeth
makes everything difficult
and does not encourage good health.

Perhaps I should look deeper
then the obvious reason
for not taking care of my teeth
when I was younger.

How do I say good-bye?

Kamál (Perfection), 7 Rahmat (Mercy), 165 BE – Monday, June 30, 2008 about 5:36 PM PDT

I went to the dentist today. I am going to have all my teeth pulled and a complete set of dentures put into my mouth. Actually I think the word the dentisted used, when he advised me concerning my teeth was "extracted".

I am going to have all my teeth extracted. I do not have very many teeth left in my mouth. I have 4 1/2 left in my lower jaw and about 10 or 11 left in my upper jaw. The dentist begins extracting them on August 6, 2008. For the first time in my life, I am looking forward to going to a dentist. For the first time in my life, I am looking forward to having teeth pulled.

How do I say good-bye to a set of old friends, which have been with me 61 years? How do I apologize to them because I did not take good care of them? I cannot apologize for not taking care of them; it is too late for that. I can only say good-bye.

How do I say good-bye? Do I write a poem or a story about them? Do I blog about the importance of keeping your natural teeth? I know what I am going to do with my new artificial teeth.

When I get my dentures, I am going to take them out for prime rib. Yes, I am going to celebrate getting my new teeth. I will go out, for the first time in over five years, with a full set of teeth and eat a prime rib dinner. I will have a baked potato, with sour cream and butter. I will have raw horseradish with the prime rib and I will have coffee.