Since Dr. Daby took x-rays of my mouth and poked around my teeth last week, I've been determined to find a way to cut down the estimated cost of all the work I need done, which, without insurance, was standing at around 2,600 bucks. Sadly, that's just a paycheck less than a fourth of my total 2010 income. I'm certainly no Scrooge McDuck, but I also want to have healthy teeth in my skull, so hence I had to bite the bullet (pun intended) and find a way to make this affordable.
Drum roll... Delta Dental.
Affordable is still a stretch, but it's doable.
I forked over a 100 bucks today for enrollment, picking a new dentist from the D.D. directory, and once I get my official membership card, I'm free to make an appointment with Brian Steele, DDS. This guy, it seems, has a very polarized set of clients, some hate him and some love him. Yelpers tend to be overly dramatic, I think, so I'm willing to give the guy a try. Out of the short list DD gave me to choose from, he had the highest star rating (4 out of 5, in fact), and so I figure I've got a 50/50 shot of a good experience. All I need is some novacaine, a little drilling, composite resin and a lecture about flossing. Can't be that hard, right?
So there's that.
On a more cheerful note, Jenny's Family Visit Time is going well. Her mom and little brothers will be around until Thursday and I think they've had a pretty good visit to the Golden State, so far. It's been great to be a part of it, to see graduated, young-adult Jenny hanging out with her mom, showering her little brothers with love at every opportunity with hugs and kisses. Makes me value more the time I spend with my own family. Yesterday we all went out to Folsom to some neat little suburban oasis and played around in the swimming pools with diving boards and water slides and inflated obstacle courses. Gave me time to hang out with Jake and Zach and during the drive I got to talk to Jenny's mom about dental work and the Peace Corps. We both agreed that Jenny looked very cute and classy in her old-school bathing suit. Afterward, it was hotdogs and hockey games at Justin and Megan's house where Boston defeated Vancouver in game 6 and baby Joe gave me a big unexpected hug. It was a pretty quick visit because Jenny and I were sun-soaked and lazy, so we drove back to Sacramento around sunset and passed out early at her place.
Otherwise, summer is here and the weather is clear-skies and high-eighties. Shaun met his Portland friend face-to-face and spent some time with her over the weekend while keeping his Colorado plan intact. Jessica was all giddy today because her new crush, Carlos, called her "his girl." She also told this really horrific story to Greg about a car accident she witnessed last Halloween that I don't even want to repeat, but it goes to show that eavesdropping can be a dangerous activity. On Sunday, a woman named Susan brought a box full of delicious chocolate-covered strawberries to Old Soul. Today, "Cappuccino-on-the-House" Richard told me that you don't really feel like a grown up until you're 35, and it's funny he said that because just the other day I realized I don't quite feel like a grown up, yet. I'm only 24. If age was a gas-tank, I'd only be a quarter empty, which means I've still got a lot of mileage to burn through. Drew started a new job at the Comcast Call Center and "realized the error of his ways" and wants to go back to grad school and become a teacher. We high-fived. Also I don't know if I want to move anymore. I really do like my little room and its location is ideal and moving in the summer sucks and if I actually monitor my spending, I'll be able to pull it off. I guess I just like change. But why fix it if it's not broken? I was admiring the garden today and felt really proud of all the new growth we brought to that patch of earth, and that's just one other positive facet of this house that I don't think I'm ready to give up. I guess there was a shooting near R15 on Sunday night. Zoe got hit by a car on her bike, knocked her off the road or something, Greg said, but she's okay. I did a little reading about the TESOL program I've otherwise blindly gotten myself into and found out after the grad school and the Peace Corps, roughly three years from now, I'll have Masters of Arts in TESOL, which sounds pretty neat and also basically opens the door for teaching English overseas wherever I want, unless I want to stay in the United States, though I'm predicting that I won't. After I graduate, Jenny and I have plans to meet up at the Eiffel Tower, so maybe I'll end up teaching in France.
Who knows?
- Left to Fry
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