Shelby Cass’s Weblog

Here we are again, talking about my teeth.  Really the only annoying ongoing problem post MMA (aside from the numbness, but that’s not really too annoying).  Why a problem?  Well, I personally like symmetry.  I like to chew my food equally on both sides.  If I have M&Ms or something small like that, I eat 2 at a time.  One for each side.  Symmetry, OCD, call it what you will, I prefer to chew that way…and since my surgery, that has not been able to happen.  grr.  argh.

When I first got my braces off I commented on the unequal feeling back in molar-land, and my ortho said my teeth would likely still move a little and not to worry.  So I didn’t.  But it’s been awhile now.  A too long while for me to be satisfied…and so I angst my irk here.  For you.

Here’s where I am in orthodontia: The retainer they gave me for the bottom had hooks that looped over my teeth to hold it in place.  Those hooks, unfortunately, started pushing my teeth apart and I got little gaps.

I’ve already been wearing the new retainer to correct that for a couple weeks so the gaps are not as pronounced.  In case you can’t see it in these pix, it’s where the bubble of spit is on the left picture (so rad, I know). :)  sorry.  In other words, the gaps occured between the teeth that some would call canines (though mine be none so pointy anymore) and the first molar-y looking ones.  What did you want me to say?  Eye tooth and first bicuspid?  Okay I said it.

So they made me a new retainer.  This one actually encases all of my bottom teeth within one piece of plastic with springs to pull the teeth back together.

While I was in getting this retainer, I commented (again) how my back teeth didn’t touch on the left side.  Once again the little pieces of carbon paper were inserted and once again I was instructed to chomp chomp chomp and grind…and I was assured that I was crazy (okay she didn’t say crazy)  and that my teeth did touch.  I also mentioned the numbness I am still experiencing in my gums and teeth, and then that was blamed for my crooked feeling.  But I know that’s not true.  I mean, yes, I am crazy…but no, my teeth do not touch at all evenly on the back left.  Here, judge for yourself and tell me how the carbon paper touched…I’m pretty sure it didn’t.

I went to see Dr Steve my dentist (he looks a little like my boyfriend and has a Shelby of his own) who was about to do the carbon paper thing for me (I felt he was unbiased but skilled in the carbon paper test) when he put the cute little dentist mirror back there and said, “Uh Shelby, I don’t need carbon paper.  Those teeth don’t touch.”  SEE!  Told you!!!  So I’m feeling miffed…but I do have to say that I didn’t peek back there before getting the new retainer so things may have changed.  HOWEVER: they do not feel different.  So I think this is how it has looked all along and I am … irritated?  Yes, that.

But from the front all looks good, and maybe that’s all people really care about (unless they are me and craving a meetup between upper and lower molars).

ta-da  (Just don’t try to chew on that back left side)

I’m also experiencing a little clickity clickity in the right jaw joint which I think is occuring because I chew everything on the right and non-purposely try to make the left molars touch by moving my jaws around (which doesn’t work, but for some reason I notice sometimes I am doing it and I stop when I notice, but still…it happens).

Okay have I ranted enough?

Here’s a little non-ranting story:  Dr. Steve wanted to make sure I was flossing and I told him I have a huge bag of those pre-flossed picks and I floss while I am driving.  He broke in and said “I’m glad you’re flossing but I can’t condone practicing oral hygeine and driving…”  I said, “I don’t look in the mirror or anything and he said “Oh…” and then I thought, did he think I was driving with my mouth open, chin back, and eyes on the rearview mirror peering into  my mouth?  I suppose I could have been.  But no, I just kind of mindlessly use that little pick thing… Geeze, now I feel like a bad driver…but I swear I’m not distracted!  I think I’m more distracted putting on chapstick (and no I don’t look for that either).  I’ll stop now before the non-ranting story turns into a rant.  Wouldn’t want that.

Next entry we’ll talk numbness.  Everyone’s favorite subject.

I know you missed them.

http://web.me.com/cidstrom/Sleep_Apnea_Surgery/Day_1.html

It’s been 2 years and 2 months since my surgery.  Absolutely amazing.  Just looking back at these pictures it’s extraordinary where I was and where I am now.  I feel like I got the gift of life…  I’m not a different person.  I’m still the same old Shelby.  But I think I am the better non-sick version and that is something I didn’t even know was going to happen going into this.  I just thought I wouldn’t look like Gonzo at night anymore.

As I write this I am at my sister’s house in Dublin (no, not Ireland) taking care of her two kids for a week…more than a week actually.  I moved in on Thursday afternoon (it’s Wednesday night right now), they left Friday night, and will be home (from Belize) this coming Saturday night after midnight.  In a million years I could not have imagined taking care of a 3 1/2 year old and a 15 month old for a week+ on my own…I couldn’t imagine having kids of my own would be really all that possible with how crappy my immune system was and how tired I was even on my best day.

Now, I’m not signing up for the baby wagon just yet.  I think my clock is unplugged or on mute, and that’s just fine.  I mean, after all, I just started sleeping.  Why would I voluntarily give that benefit away so soon?  I hear it takes a long time to make up sleep debt…and I have a lot of it.  Sweet, sweet sleep.  I owe, I owe, so off to sleep I go!  However, big drawback to finding out what a good night’s rest REALLY is?  Take any of that away and I am a GRUMPMEISTER!  Steer clear of the modern-day sleep-deprived Shelby.  Now she KNOWS it could be better…and you will PAY! 

Sleep well!

smac

Thing-A-Day Day 6 I’m really liking this project simply because it makes me loosen up on my heavy self-critique.  No time for that!  Of course, I still do some…but it’s nice to start finish and let something go in a very small period of time.  I think that I have always looked too far ahead.  Regarding most things.  I think of something I want to do, then I think of everything I have to do to get to the end, and I am tired already!  Now, it’s almost as if I cut out the envisioning stage…I mean, I envision the thing in my mind…thing being anyTHING that I want to do but now don’t take as much time doing it once in my mind, just act.  It’s quite liberating.

In case you don’t want to look at the thing-a-day site, here’s what I made today:

Padparadash Swarovski Drops - the hard part was making the other side!

Yesterday was kind of rough since I had to go to Honda AGAIN…  This little click clack bang bang sound in my car when I started it and hit the accelerator…that was very annoying and not very little even though I said that first.  I have been to Honday 4+ times in the past 12 months and spent altogether too much money on my Nick (Nick got his name because within 24 hours of getting him, I had nicked the back bumper putting Jeannie’s new bike in and then gotten a rogue rock ding on the windshield on Wolfe Grade which is still there).  So when I went in yesterday for the blinking oil light and the very annoying rattle, I was PISSED.  And I was as much of a heartless bitch as I could muster…which means not much.  But I did manage to say this: “When I came in the last 3 times there were valid problems that were addressed, but the rattle never went away, so I don’t think I should have to pay a diagnosis fee for something I paid you to diagnose 3 times prior. “  Whew!  I felt so mean saying that!

So the guys were afraid of me and my wrath (NOT) and said they’d try to figure out the rattle in the morning (I told them it was worst in the am when the car was cold) but also noted that in the past year I had not gotten an oil change (!!).  I guess I’d been to the shop so many times, in my brain I thought there was oil changing and basic maintenance happening…  So I got a call this morning: definitely oil and filter change needed, and they found what they are presuming to be the cause of my knock knock who the bleep is there rattle.  Here it is:

I got a rock

Really?  A rock?  Here’s a pic for size reference:

THIS?!?

I am taking bets.  Who thinks this was the problem all year…under or on top of my heat shield.  They replace my exhaust manifold and an oxygen sensor…where exactly is my heat shield?  I’ll let you know if the clacking is gone tomorrow morning.  Keep in mind: There was a definite rattle for exactly 1 second on my way home from the rock-ectomy.  Well, at least I got my oil changed.

OH!  Did I mention: I was going to check my own oil when the light started flashing…Reached down, pulled lever and:

I think it's not good when this is sitting on your passenger seat

Not good.

They wanted $200 to restring the cable since you can’t just glue this back on…when he told me that on the phone I busted an F-bomb and he cracked up.  He apologized for laughing but said it was unexpected.  He showed me how to use pliers and pull the cable without the lever…yeah me.  Have pliers will travel.

On my way home from the shop, some dude in a truck honked at me and said “I can fix those dents on your car” and I was in a well populated area that I knew so I pulled over in the Wells Fargo Parking lot and let him look at the dentage on poor Nick that I refuse to get fixed because each dent “incident” is considered COLLISION and therefore would raise my rates and cost $250 deductable EACH minimum (if Allstate was nice it would be $250, otherwise it would be comprehensive and $500 deductable each).  I think that’s how it goes.  In any case, I had 2 major dents on the passenger side of Nick from parking lot FAILS.  None of them mine directly…indirectly my fault because I had the stupidity to park my car.

The first one happened in a school parking lot while I was chapperoning a Great America event for Jeannie when Nick was still a baby.  The second one happened when I pulled into a spot and some old jerk in a huge SUV backed out of the spot to my right with his wheels curved to the right and kept going even as Nick crumpled with a sound similar to crushing a can until he (the jerk) couldn’t move any more.  Then had the nerve to look at my car and say it wasn’t that bad and look at his and there was no damage so we should be ok…I was speechless.  I got his name and # on a post it…and lost it.   And a certain boyfriend of mine has been disappointed in me ever since…  Long story…but you’re used to that aren’t you?

The dude in the truck (the truck was labeled something like Dent Doctor) said he’d fix both big dents on the spot for $300.  I really don’t want to know if I got ripped off.  I just know it didn’t cost me $500-$1000 and I didn’t want a perfect looking door (since I park at Yahoo! where the spaces are so small even motorcycles have to worry about getting dinged) because I would only be hugely depressed the next time I parked at work and got another ding.  So I did it.  And there’s turtle wax on it right now so I can’t see HOW lovely Nick is minus dents, but when he’s clean, I’ll look and be happy.  So there.

I’m ready to conquer February!  How’s that?  I was in LA talking to my friend Cindy who told me about this project called Thing-A-Day.  You make something every day of February and post it to their blog.  I finished my first project just before midnight on the 1st and spent a little too much time trying to photograph it…but here it is:
My Day 1

I’m pretty excited about it, so I hope you don’t mind…I just might post here too with whatever I decide to create.

For now though…off to sleep…starting Feb off with bad sleep hygeine is probably wrong.

night night

Holy cow and a half!  Okay it’s been a while.  Since I last wrote I have gained weight (ankle fail), hired a professional organizer (consequently got a horrible upper respiratory cold due to *cough* dust *cough* - but kept on breathing), took a mini vacay to Half Moon Bay with step mom Anne, was spontaneously invited and spontaneously accepted trip to Hawaii for a week before Thanksgiving, had two Thanksgiving dinners (=more weight most likely), skipped out on the NECE in Vegas going on right now (National Ergonomics Conference and Exposition), and put Mochi kitty on a diet.  I’m sure there are more things that happened, but those are the highlights…now let us look at the breathing part of those highlights.  Did you notice?  If ANYTHING was going to test the efficacy of the last roto-rootering of my throat, it was that cold.  Dr. Li for the win!  Party on Wayne!

Oh.  I also had a birthday.  12th Annual 24th.  I had my party at Caprino’s down the street.  There were over 40 people in attendance and I had an absolute ball.  I even hooked up with a cake gal and got myself (in addition to a wonderful raved-about opera cake) a special Shelby cake.

I have now spent about an hour trying to upload photos.  Mood = bad.  Need heat (thought I turned it on–evidently not enough) and food.  TBC.  Sorry!

Saw Dr. Li yesterday.  This will be a boring Dr. Li entry because I was not my usual peppy self, but rather a sleep deprived grumpy scratchy throat version that no one wanted to be around, including myself.  I did manage to ask “What’s the difference between me and Toni that she feels better enough to go back to work today?”  To which he had a one word answer: Tonsils.  Okay.

To make myself feel better I have been eating 1-2 tsp of frosting a day.  Better than a cake a day, right?!?  Guh.  I tried eating stuffing but that started to pull my own stuffing out, so I had to stop.  Imagine having to stop eating stuffing after like 2 bites!!!  Torture. Pure torture.  I’ve taken to heating up cheese soup minus the extra cup of milk so it’s all goopy, then adding avocado and taco sauce.  It’s pretty num.  I also stopped at Safeway today after bringing boyfriend iced latte and taking stroll around Goose Poop Lake.  I bought deviled egg potato salad, artichoke dip, split pea soup, and creamed spinach.  Dr. Li says I can start eating real people food tomorrow but it won’t be like a nut party or anything.  Just softish real people food…so I stocked up.  Also, I’m allergic to some nuts, so that would probably never be a good thing.

This morning was nice though.  I woke up to modest kitten:

and a package arrived at the door!  I was immediately accused of online shopping since the box was from one of my favorite sites (thinkgeek.com), but I plead innocent!  Turns out, it was a GIFT for ME!!!  From my dear dear friend Nicholas.

Can you not hear it?  Let me turn it up.

Oh yeah, that’s right.

Have I mentioned how much I love my friends?  My friend Cynthia sent me a get well soon gift on itunes…Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog…OMG.  Can’t stop watching!!!  With my freeze ray I will STOP…the world.

It has been brought to my attention that there has been a dearth of photographic evidence…and so I show you some things.

First, the recovery.  And my trusty nursemaid Rira and troublemaker Mochi…

Mochi takes over the couch:

Then awesome boyfriend bought fruit section of store.  I *heart* him and I *heart* living in California.

Later on, pizza arrived at house…I did what I could to indulge…

There you have it.  Still eating with the little spoon and a straw.  Cheers to you chewers out there.