new experience in anxiety...

I broke a tooth for the first time.

I was enjoying my home made chili at lunchtime on Monday at work, when POP...there was this huge sound inside my head.

I swallowed reflexively before I could find the bone chip that was lost in the chili meat....and then I felt the pain.

That unmistakable nerve pain of a tooth in distress.

Uh oh.

I felt around with my tongue, and realized instantly that I was dealing with a cracked molar. I could feel the crack, on the inside, by the tongue.

I only have 4 bi-cuspids (aka: pre molars), and this was the front molar on the lower left--so, for me, the middle tooth on the left side. There was a distinctive crack on the inside surface. And it felt very, very unpleasant.

So, I put my lunch away, after eating about a third of it, and called Dave.

While I gently flossed and brushed around all of my OTHER teeth, he called around, and was able to find a dentist office that took emergencies, and accepted our insurance.

I was there by 2.

I was utterly terrified. At almost 49 years old, this was my first experience in breaking a tooth.

I was literally shaking like a leaf--the fear was unbelievable...I was in a strange place, surrounded by strangers, with no one in any waiting rooms offering me moral support.

This was big girl stuff!

Got dammit!

The assistant took a slew of x rays, and then the dentist came in, did a quick, excruciating exam, and told me that, between the exam, and the xrays, he had determined that the break was clean, and that the tooth was still in good enough shape that I did NOT need a root canal.

He said they would do a crown, and hopefully, it would be decades before I would need anything else on that tooth. And, Oh, and by the way, the tooth above it is too sharp and long, so he would grind that down a bit, too.

He ordered the anesthetic, and the temp crown material, and left.

Then, the assistant put a unilateral tray in my mouth to take an impression. "Bite down, hard...harder! Harder" It was excruciating on my broken tooth...and I had to sit there for 5 minutes to form the impression.

And, when she said "Okay, OPEN...OPEN..." and I struggled to open my jaw, separating lower from upper in the gluey mess, I felt my tooth come apart.

Oh. My.
God.

My mouth filled with blood. "It's okay" she said, as they suctioned the blood out of my mouth, and tried to retrieve the broken piece of tooth from the impression material.

This was not, at all, fun.

I felt faint and nauseous, but I maintained.

I figured out at that moment that the reason that tooth had been previously sensitive, on occasion, was possibly because it was already cracked a little.
Perhaps on the back, since the portion that had lifted out with the impression was the inner, back quarter of the tooth.

Then, a little while later, another person came in and gave me three shots of novocaine. Three.

After that joyous experience, I sat there alone for almost an hour while the entire left side of my head went numb.

Eventually, the dentist came back in, and he ground everything down. The smell of burning bone came out of my mouth and went right up my nose. He ground the tooth above....a bit further than I felt necessary, but what are you going to do? Glue it back on?

Again, I felt nauseous and faint...but I maintained.

Then, he gave me instructions on how to deal with my injured mouth (my gums were torn to shreds, and there were cuts and abrasions under my tongue from the bite wing xrays, and their tools), the temporary crown they were going to put in, and that he'd see me in 3 weeks.

The assistant came back in, and she was the one who did the rest of the work.

All in all, I was in the chair for almost 3 hours. It was horrific.

That night, when the novocaine FINALLY wore off around 8 pm (5.5 or so hours after the shots), I was in misery.

I couldn't eat, but I was STARVING, so Dave went and got me a milk shake. I can't really have dairy foods, but since I hadn't had any for several days, it was okay.

That milkshake, eaten carefully with a spoon, was like heaven.

Yesterday, I was in such misery! My jaw muscles felt torn, there were wounds inside my mouth, not just the gum around the injured tooth, but everywhere....and I was in throbbing pain all day. I took prescription strength ibuprofin.

I could eat, very slowly and carefully, and only soft, cooked foods.

I felt as if I had been beaten by thugs.

Today was better....the jaw muscles have recovered a bit, and chewing is less uncomfortable. I have medicine to put on the wounded gums 5 times per day, and have been religious about it.

This has been a very unpleasant experience. PLUS, I got to pay $400 for it! Wheee!~

Just in time to be trying to save every penny to buy a fucking house! What. The. Fuck.....

Sigh.....

Moving.....forward......

So, the inspections on the house we hope to buy were this past Friday. All went exceptionally well for an 84 year old house.

There are some issues that are small and manageable after we move in, and there was nothing major that caused us to withdraw our offer.

The main thing is that the house does still have it's original, from 1927, wiring. This has passed inspections for the past however many sales this house has gone through, and has never been an issue.

The thing we might do is call an electrician in to put grounds in all of the sockets.

The breaker box and riser ARE new, and the inspector said everything looks pristine and perfect.

The crawl space was completely dry, there was no sign of there ever being termite damage, and the roof and plumbing were sound.

All appliances, water heater, and the heat and air were all in perfect, mostly new (2006 and newer) working order.

So, I think the only thing to do now is wait for the closing, which is scheduled for 4/27, the day before my birthday!

Then, we have our lease through May, so we can continue to live here for a month while having access to the house, so we can get in there and paint and clean, and move stuff over gradually, and then do the big move on Memorial Day weekend.

I despise moving, but this will be well worth it! Not to mention, MUCH easier than my last move!

I will post pictures when I can get some!

Oh, and we got a VERY good interest rate, too.

In other news, I have been terrified for a long time now that my being a land lady would hurt us financially, via income taxes.

The rent my tenant pays to me is income, and I CAN'T claim my mortgage as part of the expenses I pay to own the stupid place.

SO--even though it costs me about $200 more a month to own that place than she pays me in rent, because I can't claim the mortgage, I was worried that the IRS would see the whole thing as PROFITABLE for me, and therefore TAXABLE.

BUT, since I CAN claim the association dues, and the taxes and interest, that is what saved us.

For all these months, I have been holding my breath, uncertain if I would have to come up with hundreds, or maybe even thousands of dollars to pay taxes....and we found out yesterday, we actually get a refund.

I have been taking huge, gulping sighs of relief for 24 hours now!

(just wish I could have slept last night....ass hat neighbors were at it again....gawd, I can't wait to get out of here!)

Happy vernal equinox, everyone!

offer made.....

It's a very interesting house. The windows are like those in craftsman bungalows, and the floor plan is bungalow....however, the high peaked roof and double topped chimney are like the homes that are called english tudor down here.

It's wicked witch green on the outside, with red accents around the windows. It is frame, and english tudors here are brick. So it's very unique.

The interior is immaculate, and the story is, the plumbing and electric have all been re done, and the roof is only 7 years old.

It has hard wood floors, a pedestal bathtub, and a large laundry room built on the back. No garage, but a one car car port.

They have until 5 pm today to respond to the offer. If they accept it, we will get going immediately on the financing changes (we are several thousand over our original self imposed cap), and the inspection.

If they reject it, we have a couple of far less cool houses to bid on that both have garages, and more room, but have zero personality or character.

So, we'll see!

Busy busy busy

So yesterday, after Dave's haircut, we dropped off the recycling, and mailed the bills, and then spent a couple of hours driving around looking at the outsides of houses we had found on line.

Our realtor had us do that in order to reduce our options, since we had found so many homes to consider on line.

We narrowed it down to 5, called him, and he made the appointments for today.

Then, we stopped off for some lunch, then went and did all of our errands, and got home right at 5. Reheated left over Mexican chicken soup for dinner and collapsed on the couch.

Then, this morning, my pre shower projects were making yogurt, and getting a batch of chili into the crock pot.

I am really digging my new pans. This chili has a bourbon reduction added into it. Had to deglaze the beef browning pan, after all!

Those two things will slow cook all day, and this afternoon, we meet the realtor to see those houses, and maybe a couple more, if they are vacant.

And tonight, I am going to make a Julia Child recipe for saute of beef with mushrooms, shallots, and cream. I have been eyeballing this recipe ever since Christmas morning, when I cracked open my new copy of "The Way to Cook."

I have been pretty exhausted lately, between the anxiety of this concept of house buying, not sleeping well, not feeling well (spring allergies down here are HORRIFIC), and not having any down time.

Also, in other news, my sister in law has invited me to participate in her blog for health and wellness. I am very flattered and excited about my eventual participation in this new on line community.

I have been invited to write about massage therapy and Reiki, and have offered to write about western herbology, and dance as fitness, as well! We'll see what unfolds.

You can find it at www.wellnessdharma.wordpress.com

Please go check it out. As it grows, you may find some health and wellness related answers for your own issues and concerns!

hunt

so...the house hunt begins this weekend.

Gods help us..... *wink*