Last night, while eating rice, my temporary crown came off. "Damn," I thought. I want to be a good patient. Did I do something wrong? I got the distinct impression on Thursday, the day I had the temporary put on, that it was loose, so I'd been treating it gently. But rice? I wasn't eating taffy or chewing ice or doing any of the naughty things I was told not to do, so what happened?
I debated contacting my next-door-neighbor because it was almost nine o'clock and I didn't want to bother him. I wasn't in pain; I had temperature sensitivity with the tooth core exposed, but I could manage. What I didn't know was if it was hazardous to the tooth to be exposed like that. I could chew on the other side and go in on Monday to have it reglued, but would that cause trouble and a possible ill-fit with the final crown? I just didn't know. So I texted my neighbor.
He said it was fine and he'd go get some glue at his office tomorrow and he could re-cement it back for me. "Wait, but, no" I thought. I didn't want him to drive into his office (a twenty-five minute trip) just to get some glue for my tooth. I could wait until Monday. He apologized over text and said it wasn't my fault. I told him to please not go to the office just for me and that I was fine waiting until Monday and that be assured, I wasn't in unreasonable pain or really that much discomfort.
Today, we had a board and staff retreat at our house. Thirty-six people were here most of the day and I didn't have time to think about my tooth other than to note that even luke-warm water feels like a huge temperature differential when you have tooth nerve exposed. In the afternoon, I got a text from my neighbor saying he'd been to the office and gotten the glue and some tools. I really hoped he didn't go just for me.
I texted that I was available and he came in from playing with the children outside to mix some cement on a piece of newspaper and clean my tooth. We talked about the type of pain I was experiencing and it appears that I've got a healthy nerve, but almost certainly a cracked tooth. And alas, that means a root canal. But that's okay, I don't mind because I've had one before and after that, there is definitely no pain or discomfort.
He put the tooth back in place under the light of his kitchen table and we went back outside. I spoke with his wife a bit later and told her I really hoped he didn't go in to his office just for me. She said he was on call and was surprised he wasn't called in, but that also, he had to take some pictures of his office without cars in front. She also said he said he wanted to make sure my tooth was taken care of.
What a nice guy. What a nice neighbor. What a nice dentist.
The Big Boy Update: We sat outside at the restaurant for lunch yesterday and it was windy. My son picked the placard holder stand up from the middle of the table and removed the card it was holding. He then held up this piece of metal with a ring at the top and said, "I got a thing to stop that wind." We're not sure what super powers he had to stop the wind with a six-inch piece of metal, but then again, we don't have the minds that toddlers do.
The Tiny Girl Chronicles: She loves our neighbor, Bryna. She remembers her name and asks about her all the time. Yesterday when we were leaving to go to the store, she saw our neighbor's garage door was open and said, "Where's Bryna?" I think very soon Bryna is going to have an honorific added to her name because our children love her as much as they do their family.
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