Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Root Canal Update
Cowards die a thousand deaths, and I had imagined all manner of unpleasantness during and after my scheduled root canal, but it was painless! What a surprise!
I had based my expectations on past experiences and was reluctant to believe the assurances of my brother that it would be a walk in the park.
My Doubting Thomas attitude prevailed even as I sat in the dental chair reading a paper describing the pitfalls and failures of root canal procedures, then signing my name giving the dentist permission to proceed.
At home afterward, I was anxious as the hours passed thinking the discomfort would begin at any time. I had to rely on 'frozen medicine' (aka vanilla ice cream), to alleviate tension, but the hours passed and so did the next several days without a single hint of pain!
What a nice ending to one of life’s most miserable conditions, toothache.
I had based my expectations on past experiences and was reluctant to believe the assurances of my brother that it would be a walk in the park.
My Doubting Thomas attitude prevailed even as I sat in the dental chair reading a paper describing the pitfalls and failures of root canal procedures, then signing my name giving the dentist permission to proceed.
At home afterward, I was anxious as the hours passed thinking the discomfort would begin at any time. I had to rely on 'frozen medicine' (aka vanilla ice cream), to alleviate tension, but the hours passed and so did the next several days without a single hint of pain!
What a nice ending to one of life’s most miserable conditions, toothache.
Saturday, November 23, 2013
American Dream
What exactly is the 'American Dream'?
The phrase has been bandied about in recent years, but it seems to mean different things to different people. When I was a child, it meant that I was a citizen of the United States of America, a country that was governed by a Constitution which promised life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to its inhabitants.
I think it was taken for granted that we were living the 'American Dream' even when the country endured difficult times like the first world war, the great depression, and WWII. We retained that belief, and counted ourselves lucky to live in the USA.
During the dust bowl and depression the country experienced such extreme poverty that welfare of the populace became paramount. Social programs were instituted to alleviate the suffering and growing dissension. Social Security, (referred to as an entitlement program), thought of as a helping hand when first inaugurated, has become a life line for millions today and is regarded as a main ingredient of the 'American Dream'.
Although new 'entitlement' programs added ingredients to the dream, the idea of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness no longer seems to be enough. Being a citizen doesn't seem to be enough either. The current meaning of the American Dream seems to be the goal of achieving wealth and gain of personal privilege, even at the expense of others. We seem to have lost something in the national psyche.
The phrase has been bandied about in recent years, but it seems to mean different things to different people. When I was a child, it meant that I was a citizen of the United States of America, a country that was governed by a Constitution which promised life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to its inhabitants.
I think it was taken for granted that we were living the 'American Dream' even when the country endured difficult times like the first world war, the great depression, and WWII. We retained that belief, and counted ourselves lucky to live in the USA.
During the dust bowl and depression the country experienced such extreme poverty that welfare of the populace became paramount. Social programs were instituted to alleviate the suffering and growing dissension. Social Security, (referred to as an entitlement program), thought of as a helping hand when first inaugurated, has become a life line for millions today and is regarded as a main ingredient of the 'American Dream'.
Although new 'entitlement' programs added ingredients to the dream, the idea of life, liberty and pursuit of happiness no longer seems to be enough. Being a citizen doesn't seem to be enough either. The current meaning of the American Dream seems to be the goal of achieving wealth and gain of personal privilege, even at the expense of others. We seem to have lost something in the national psyche.
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| Statue of Liberty |
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Root Canal
I'm scheduled to have a root canal. I'm not looking forward to it.
At this time in my life, I've already exceeded my misery quotient and I need another bout of misery like a hole in the head... or a drilled hole in a tooth.
This all came about when I experienced a mild tooth ache while eating supper several weeks ago. The discomfort seemed to come and go, but persisted over several days so I made an appointment to see the dentist. I was told that the toothache was the type that would come and go but that I actually needed a root canal.
As I left the dentist's office, I was undecided on my next move, but in the back of my mind I knew I'd end up having the root canal. Of course I tried to put it off for as long as possible. The big decision was when to have it, before or after, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
I like eating holiday meals and I didn't want to start the new year sitting in the dentist's chair, so the only logical decision was to go ahead and bite the bullet, so I made the appointment. Thank heavens I'll have time to summon up the courage, and if all goes well, I'll enjoy Thanksgiving dinner.
At this time in my life, I've already exceeded my misery quotient and I need another bout of misery like a hole in the head... or a drilled hole in a tooth.
This all came about when I experienced a mild tooth ache while eating supper several weeks ago. The discomfort seemed to come and go, but persisted over several days so I made an appointment to see the dentist. I was told that the toothache was the type that would come and go but that I actually needed a root canal.
As I left the dentist's office, I was undecided on my next move, but in the back of my mind I knew I'd end up having the root canal. Of course I tried to put it off for as long as possible. The big decision was when to have it, before or after, Thanksgiving and Christmas.
I like eating holiday meals and I didn't want to start the new year sitting in the dentist's chair, so the only logical decision was to go ahead and bite the bullet, so I made the appointment. Thank heavens I'll have time to summon up the courage, and if all goes well, I'll enjoy Thanksgiving dinner.
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| Dental Tools |
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Mega Hurricanes
The latest hurricane Typhoon Haiyan has caused such catastrophic destruction in the Philippines, one can hardly grasp the enormity of the event. The death toll and the suffering of survivors is beyond measure.
Since the declaration of national calamity issued by the Philippine government, aid from around the world is beginning to arrive, but the scope of destruction is so vast its difficult to deliver it where needed.
If we are due to experience catastrophic events caused by climate change, we won't have to worry about nuclear proliferation and the threat of nuclear weapons. Mother nature will have solved that problem.
Since the declaration of national calamity issued by the Philippine government, aid from around the world is beginning to arrive, but the scope of destruction is so vast its difficult to deliver it where needed.
If we are due to experience catastrophic events caused by climate change, we won't have to worry about nuclear proliferation and the threat of nuclear weapons. Mother nature will have solved that problem.
2013 Some of the Natural Disasters of the Year
- 2013 extreme weather events
- 2012–13 North American drought
- Chelyabinsk meteor
- January 2013 Northwest Pacific bomb cyclone
- February 2013 nor'easter (Winter Storm Nemo)
- Late March 2013 North American winter storm
- 2013 Madagascar locust infestation
- St Jude storm
- October 2013 North American storm complex
- Typhoon Haiyan
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