Tooth Pain Finally Meets its Demise

 

The Jump's Do pre-XMAS CMH

Let myself sleep in until 540am. Soon downstairs for exercise which consisted of sit-ups, windmills, and push-ups. It was warm - 48 degrees warm, and expected to climb all the way into the mid 50s for the next three days. Also expecting heavy rain. Of course the bright spot for me was that it would allow me to study/cram all weekend without feeling a sense of loss for lack of ski time.

Poured coffee and headed to my desk. Played on my PC until 620 before giving a look and see at my work laptop. Sandwiched in between was the delivery of Mindy's coffee. Said she was tired. She coughed many times through the night. Jacob was in much better spirits before heading out the door to school. It was the last day of school before Xmas break and he was counting on getting his phone back later that evening. I told Mindy that I thought it was a mistake to give it back so soon, but would support whatever she decided.

I planned to leave for a run before 7am to ensure that I'd be ready to head off to my endo appointment around 915am (actual appt was set for 945am). Due to the freakish warmth, I didn't bother with hand and ear covers, though I still wore a winter weight compression wicking shirt and jacket. I used the zipper for airflow control. Like most Friday's, I ran just 3 miles. Felt good, too. Ran strong. Gone were almost all of the ice obstacles throughout the subdivision save for the very back of the three cul-de-sacs I encounter on a daily basis.

Ran up a really good sweat. No doubt, I could've gotten by with a lighter-weight shirt. Wasn't sure if Mindy would still be home when I returned but she was. Not for too long, though. Said our goodbyes while heading out with the pug. Bella was excited, this her last day of school prior to Xmas break. Her bag of gifts for teachers and bus driver were waiting by the door so she wouldn't forget. Mindy made eggs. Bella and I each had one. First time Bella's had eggs in several months. Bella asked if I realized that her mother went to school in PJs. I did. She went on to share how much it would embarrass her if she were there at her mom's school. Hoped she remembered to wear a bra. Too funny!

We headed out to the bus stop at 755am. Prior to that, I worked on a report I typically put together each Friday AM. Little snow remained on the ground, only a few piles were the sun doesn't hit. I tossed a couple snow balls above Bella and Makayla who stood near neighbor Trena's garage door. Ryan, the kindergartner, who lives just down the road picked up on my misbehavior and tossed some snow at me. Only problem, Ryan picked up chunks of hard ice and sent them hurtling my way. It hit my right hand just right effectively poking a small hole n my third finger which bled profusely. His mom thought I was kidding at first, but I wasn't. It hurt too. I plunged my hand deep into a shoveled snow bank still hanging on at the edge of Trena's driveway. That helped some but the bleeding continued. The bus showed up near 8am. I was little disappointed in Bella, the way she handed her bus driver her gift. She didn't even make eye contact, handed it to her as she passed, as if to day, hey, here, but not from me.

Back home, I washed my finger in the kitchen faucet then wrapped it tightly in a paper towel. Around 830am I headed for a shower. It was still bleeding. Thankfully, though, by the time I was out of the shower and dressed it had finally stopped. The wound itself was tiny. Must have hit me in the perfect spot for excessive bleeding. Spent time working until it was time to leave. Left the house for my root canal at 920am, an appointment that I was very much looking forward to.

Arrived at Jennifer's office early. Had to be before 935am. I sat in their cozy lobby for a few minutes before they called me back. I sat in the dental chair for no more than 2 or 3 minutes before Jennifer came in with one of her assistants. Discussed where we last left off a month or so prior. Took her a few to recollect the facts. Discussed what's changed and my suspicion of it being my upper left canine. Before proceeding, as any dentist worth their salt would do, she ran a few tests and took a new X-ray of the entire tooth tip to tail. Aside from the extreme sensitivity there was nothing unusual. Agreed to proceed with the root canal after I shared the occasional knife like pain in my left nostril (sinus cavity). Said that was a tell-tale sign of trouble with the canine. Great. Let's do this thing!

Jennifer numbed me up which I felt just a little stick. Let me sit with a magazine for maybe ten minutes while the numbing meds took effect. I was a tad nervous. Said she purposefully didn't numb the roof of my mouth. But as it turned out, there was no reason to be nervous. I didn't feel a dang thing. To boot, she was done with the actual procedure in less than 15 minutes. Impressive. Explained what she was doing each step along the way. Jennifer had a way about her that's very relaxing. I could've napped, it was so easy.

After the root canal. Jennifer patiently reviewed the follow-up care, and shared that I could likely expect swelling and discomfort, like a bruise. She gave me prescriptions for both an antibiotic as well as Tylenol #2 with Codeine. I wouldn't get either if I had my way, but I guess time would tell. I gave Jennifer a hug before leaving. I was surprised to see that it was only 1016am when I was in the Accord and heading for home. For some reason, I thought my entire morning might be shot and then even some of the afternoon due to pain. Though still locally numb, I felt great. I was back at home before 1030am and quickly at my desk and back to work.

Compared to most others, it was a pretty easy work day. Given that it was Friday as well as the Xmas season, I was very grateful for that. Warmed into the 50s by midafternoon. Some light rain during the afternoon too, but nothing significant. Expecting heavier rain by Saturday. We had our last official staff call of the year at 230pm. Nothing too heavy covered, just the typical year-end stuff as well as a reminder to set our out-of-office to our back-ups if applicable. Aside from Xmas day, I am scheduled to work each day next week.

Jacob was home from school just ahead of 3pm. As expected, he was in excellent spirits. Not 10-15 minutes passed before he was downstairs asking if he could go out and play. I asked if he had completed all his assigned tasks. Said he had. I let him go. Another hour passed before Bella was home. She was in a great mood as well. Mindy around that same time. She was on her way home, too. Talked for a while. I think it was close to 415pm when she actually arrived home.

Mindy, Bella, and her three amigos from the island planned to decorate Xmas cookies before Bella and Jacob left for the weekend with their dad. They got busy with all that while I put the wraps on my work day. It was after 5pm before I was ready to declare it the weekend. I spent the last 45 minutes of my day scheduling my certification test for Monday. In preparation for the exam, I planned to study all weekend, which is why I wasn't too bummed with the ugly weather forecast.

I popped in to check what the girls were up to. They were having fun decorating cookies and made one heck of a mess. It was largely contained to the kitchen table, however. They asked me to judge for best looking cookie. I took the easy way out declaring them all winners. :) Jimaken showed up around 530pm. They asked him to judge too. He picked perhaps the ugliest one of the bunch, which was decorated by Bella, though he didn't know it a the time. I later learned that Mindy had told Bella how bad it was and hurt her feelings. It was more a case of Bella not following directions, I think. Not a big deal.

Mindy and I planned to visit Barley's. We also had tentative arrangements to hook-up with neighbors Pat & Lisa, plans we sorta put together via text on Wednesday. Mindy still needed to shower. Since it was pajama day at school, she opted to wait and shower after school Ewh!

It was 645pm before we left the house. Over the past couple of days, Mindy's developed another ugly cough. I'm quite sure that it hasn't been even a month since her last cough/cold. Barley's was full. Parked in the back 40. No bar seating available but the high community tables had several stools available. We took a couple of those. I ordered a St Nick's nitro. Takes a good 5 minutes to pour and then have the head settle. Mindy went with St Joan's. Said she'd likely only have the one due mostly to her not feeling 100%. Said she'd drive.

Mindy passed out several small gift bags to our Barley peeps. She made a special one for Justin. They all contained a $10 Starbucks card, candy and an ornament. Justin's some additional cash. I think she gave out 8 or 9 in total. We have some at home for our CBC peeps. Plan to deliver those Saturday night. Once the Buckeye Sports Bulletin guy left the bar area, our friend Rick, who was sitting talking with him came over and joined us. Not to much time went by before Pat & Lisa showed up. They'd already had dinner with others. Rick very much enjoys Lisa's company. Remembers much about her. He's like that - strong memory.

Perhaps midway through my 2nd beer I caught a glimpse of Jeremy & Courtney slipping out the door, presumably after having dinner at one of the tables in the back. Holy smoke! Didn't know that they were home. I quickly alerted Mindy and insisted she go after them. She stopped whatever conversation she was in and bolted towards the exit to intercept them. The rest of us soon joined. Turns out they are in town for a few days for Xmas. Had both kids with them, Porter and Ella, who are 6 & 4 respectively. Talked for a while. Mindy & Courtney exchanged phone numbers so we can keep in touch and possibly even hook-up while they're in town. Recently moved from Boston to Ft. Lauderdale. We knew they moved to Florida after seeing something on FB, but weren't sure of the city/town until Friday.

About 30 minutes went by before Mindy got a text from Courtney sharing that they were coming back without the kids if we were gonna be there for a while. Heck yeah! I sent Bob & Mary Ann a text sharing as much and hoping that they could stop in too. M.A. responded promptly that she was working. Jeremy & Courtney were back a couple minutes later. I think his brother, who lives in Grandview, agreed to keep an eye on the kids.

Bob I. showed up a few minutes later, right about the time that Mindy was drafting him a text. She apparently didn't realize that I had already done so. Said he couldn't stay too long, just one beer. The dogs were waiting patiently out in the minivan. Wanted to stop in and see everyone before heading home for Xmas. Glad he stopped in. Funny thing occurred to all of us while hanging out. Pat & Lisa are from Norwalk, Jeremy & Courtney from Willard, and Bob & Mary Ann from Wadsworth. All from the Greater Cleveland area.

Bob stayed through one beer but ordered wings to-go. I ordered wings, fries, and onions straws for the table. Chelsea was our server, by the way. Turned out, the lone guy sitting at the table when Mindy and I originally walked up was none other than her new boyfriend, David. He was very quiet at first but eventually warmed to all of us. Not too much of the food I ordered was eaten by anyone other than me. I was hungry and knew that I really needed to eat. I had three of those St. Nick's over the course of the evening which spanned about 3.5 hours. Called it a night just before 11pm and crated our leftover for home. What a good time. Good to see all of our friends in one happy place.

Mindy was more than surprised to find that it was 11pm. As agreed earlier, she drove us home. Once there, she quickly headed for bed. I stayed up a few extra minutes reading and responding to a couple emails from David who was trying to book our Tahoe accommodations. I wanted to make sure we were booking the property that he and I agreed on earlier. From email it was difficult to decipher, at least with certainty.