It all began with a fear that my teeth would turn to mush without my daily dose of Fluoride in the water. I've been flossing like a fiend, and tooth-pickin' like they grow on trees. It worried me incessantly for the last 6 months, so when my supervisor asked if I'd like a free teeth cleaning, paid-for by the school, I said, "yes please".
The dental office was nice, it had the standard waiting room, and the individual rooms followed the usual combination of soft coloured and inoffensively patterned wallpaper. I was a little excited: yet another broadening experience into Korean culture.
The hygienist came in and gave me the universal ball-chain necklace and Creight paper bib, and then called for the dentist. Turns out I have 3 cavities and could potentially spend a couple hundred dollars to fill them with gold, but it wouldn't likely make me look any cooler, so I'll have it done at home when I get back.
Before the cleaning began, the hygienist educated me with the proper way to show that I was in any kind of discomfort. I thought that it was unnecessarily thorough, as a wince or grimace would surely indicate any kind of pain, but I just assumed they were being overly cautious about my delicate foreign gums.
She got out a kind of towel with a hole in it, and had me lie back so as to place the thing over my face. She lined the hole up over my mouth and began. I felt like I was being prepped for an execution, and was hoping for a cigarette or at least the chance to give my last words. I was unsure with which device of torture she would begin. She started with with the usual vacuum thing that makes my teeth cold, but nothing I couldn't handle.
Expecting another familiar device, I was then assaulted by what I can only assume was some kind of angle grinder that operated at warp-speed. As it made contact with my molars, it squealed like brick saw whilst rattling my brain stem. The sound would have been something similar to what I might have tried to make but, unfortunately, I was drowning in the pool of water squirted at my teeth to keep them from bursting into flames from the friction.
I think I know why the face cloth was of a towely material, though. If I were to cry it was right there to sop up my tears.
As I quietly tensed and writhed in pain, I could only imagine the carnage wrought in my mouth. Teeth lopped off, gums shredded, etc.
She then said the sweetest words to be heard at that time: "I'll finish with the scraper". Perhaps she could see that I was uncomfortable by the ruts I had trenched into the seat, or maybe it was the parabolic arch my spine had formed by the tensing of every muscle in my body. I forgot about the hand signal.
I happily welcomed the sound of the rough side of that hooked utensil scaling my teeth, compared to the scream of that torturous grinder.
She finished a few minutes later and the rest was wholly uneventful. I thought I'd share my pain to perhaps brighten up your life. I hope you enjoyed it as intensely as the agony I experienced whilst that instrument bored through my jaw bone.
I shan't return to the dentist for at least another 6 months
unless, perhaps, it's free.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Thursday, June 12, 2008
smell my face
I didn't think this was blog-worthy but it's been happening a lot lately..
I have a student, her name is X (for confidentiality-- I wouldn't dare breech the Hippocratic oath, entrusted mainly to kindergarten teachers in Korea).
X is probably about 8-or-so years old here, so younger at home. This particular girl has made it a habit of rubbing my face. This may sound strange, but it happens a lot and I completely understand; it's prickly and fun, I often rub it myself. The thing is, when she thinks I'm not looking, she smells her hands. It's usually a two-handed affair. I can even see her shoulders roll back as she draws in air: we're talking a serious haul.
She must enjoy it, and I can identify with this. I have a certain appreciation for odd smells myself. Who can say with honesty that they don't enjoy the musk of their pillows in bed? (If you can say you don't, you are either lying or perhaps lacking in olfactory ability)
Is this weird?..I wouldn't think it strange to suggest that my face smells nice-- intoxicating even. I think she's just one of the lucky few who've realized its potential.
I may make a lesson on odour appreciation to give her the proper language to describe it, and ask her about it.
hope that wasn't too gross
Evan
post script:
A former student gave me some "thank you" cacti in an ornate ceramic basket. On the Teacher Scale of Goodness that's like an 8 out of 12. I know it's not as good as say an arrangement of ferns or decorative trees but it's better than a bouquet of carnations.
I'm moving up in the ranks.
I have a student, her name is X (for confidentiality-- I wouldn't dare breech the Hippocratic oath, entrusted mainly to kindergarten teachers in Korea).
X is probably about 8-or-so years old here, so younger at home. This particular girl has made it a habit of rubbing my face. This may sound strange, but it happens a lot and I completely understand; it's prickly and fun, I often rub it myself. The thing is, when she thinks I'm not looking, she smells her hands. It's usually a two-handed affair. I can even see her shoulders roll back as she draws in air: we're talking a serious haul.
She must enjoy it, and I can identify with this. I have a certain appreciation for odd smells myself. Who can say with honesty that they don't enjoy the musk of their pillows in bed? (If you can say you don't, you are either lying or perhaps lacking in olfactory ability)
Is this weird?..I wouldn't think it strange to suggest that my face smells nice-- intoxicating even. I think she's just one of the lucky few who've realized its potential.
I may make a lesson on odour appreciation to give her the proper language to describe it, and ask her about it.
hope that wasn't too gross
Evan
post script:
A former student gave me some "thank you" cacti in an ornate ceramic basket. On the Teacher Scale of Goodness that's like an 8 out of 12. I know it's not as good as say an arrangement of ferns or decorative trees but it's better than a bouquet of carnations.
I'm moving up in the ranks.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Shanghai in 3 days
I have just returned from my whirlwind journey to Shanghai, and I would say it was a success. I decided to go on a whim, and I was given 4 days off and couldn't think of a good enough reason not to go. So I went.
I found a relatively cheap flight, and decided to skip the whole hotel/hostel scene and did some couch surfing. For those who don't know, Couch Surfing is a social network website that allows you to find people willing to let you sleep on their couch in exchange for stimulating conversation and worldly wisdom. My host was great and the apartment was really nice.
So the journey began on a cold and rainy Thursday morning. I have a wonderful habit of losing all sense of reality when I wake up, especially when I need to go somewhere. I think I woke up at about 6, in a panic that I was late for my flight (which left at like 1pm), but remembered the note I had prepared for myself the night before that said "wake up at 8, idiot", and happily went back to bed.
So I got up at the proper time, and was on my way. I got to the airport and was at my boarding gate in less than an hour. So phase 1 was a success.
The flight wasn't very long, and served a perfectly edible lunch so it wasn't a bad experience either. I was told to take a shuttle bus into the centre of the city, and again, I found that with ease and was on my way about 10 minutes after I got out of the airport. As we were driving down the highway (at least a half hour into our journey), a fellow traveller realized that we weren't en route to Terminal 2, but to the city centre. He caused a big fuss and told the driver and those who were trying to translate that it was at least 4 other people's fault because they told him this was the bus to Terminal 2. The bus driver ended up turning around for the guy and driving him back to the airport. He did not apologize for the inconvenience, nor was he very thankful. He actually had the bus driver drive him to Terminal 2..so I guess it was the bus after all. Once we were free of that lot, we went back to the city. Phase 2: check.
Once in the city, I wandered around for a little, to find a toilet and then decided to locate the couch on which I would surf. I had a map and the streets were clearly named, so I found it in about 20 minutes. As I was walking, a woman asked me if I needed help, which I didn't, but I asked her if she would follow me until I did. She laughed but declined. I later managed to ask a woman who knew no English to use her phone, and I called Jen, and met her roommate as I waited. The apartment was quite nice. It was new, clean and was inhabited by a Chinese girl, a Swedish fellow and an American. All were very nice and willing to show me around and bring me out to their various social appointments. It was pretty solid. I didn't really do any intense sight seeing though. I saw a garden and I saw the Bund; 2 big ones. I mostly just wandered the streets, which I think beats being herded along the tourist paths anyways.
It was a proper thunderstorm yesterday afternoon, so we didn't go out til later. Jen took me to a really nice area of back ally shops and trendy restaurants where we met some of her friends for dinner. We then proceeded to a little show of a few different bands and drank cheap beer. I thought it would be a wise idea to not sleep as my flight was to leave at 9 this morning. So I think I ended the night according to my plan, but somehow I was woken up (in a similar state as when I went to bed) but managed to get to the airport by 8:10. By the time I got to the check-in counter, boarding had closed and I couldn't get on my plane. Not sure if anyone's experienced this before, missing a flight in Shanghai, with only 280 Yuan (about $47) and no international bank card or credit card (both of which were safely hidden in my apartment in Seoul). So I was told to wait standby and boy did I wait. I was lucky to get a flight at 2, so I got into Seoul 2 hours later. It cost just what I had, which again, was lucky. It was a luck-filled trip.
Anyways, it was a lovely little journey and I think I'll go back some time soon.
Hope you're well
I'm going to sleep.
And remember: baby turtles and alligators may seem like a cute idea for a pet-- but they grow up.
I found a relatively cheap flight, and decided to skip the whole hotel/hostel scene and did some couch surfing. For those who don't know, Couch Surfing is a social network website that allows you to find people willing to let you sleep on their couch in exchange for stimulating conversation and worldly wisdom. My host was great and the apartment was really nice.
So the journey began on a cold and rainy Thursday morning. I have a wonderful habit of losing all sense of reality when I wake up, especially when I need to go somewhere. I think I woke up at about 6, in a panic that I was late for my flight (which left at like 1pm), but remembered the note I had prepared for myself the night before that said "wake up at 8, idiot", and happily went back to bed.
So I got up at the proper time, and was on my way. I got to the airport and was at my boarding gate in less than an hour. So phase 1 was a success.
The flight wasn't very long, and served a perfectly edible lunch so it wasn't a bad experience either. I was told to take a shuttle bus into the centre of the city, and again, I found that with ease and was on my way about 10 minutes after I got out of the airport. As we were driving down the highway (at least a half hour into our journey), a fellow traveller realized that we weren't en route to Terminal 2, but to the city centre. He caused a big fuss and told the driver and those who were trying to translate that it was at least 4 other people's fault because they told him this was the bus to Terminal 2. The bus driver ended up turning around for the guy and driving him back to the airport. He did not apologize for the inconvenience, nor was he very thankful. He actually had the bus driver drive him to Terminal 2..so I guess it was the bus after all. Once we were free of that lot, we went back to the city. Phase 2: check.
Once in the city, I wandered around for a little, to find a toilet and then decided to locate the couch on which I would surf. I had a map and the streets were clearly named, so I found it in about 20 minutes. As I was walking, a woman asked me if I needed help, which I didn't, but I asked her if she would follow me until I did. She laughed but declined. I later managed to ask a woman who knew no English to use her phone, and I called Jen, and met her roommate as I waited. The apartment was quite nice. It was new, clean and was inhabited by a Chinese girl, a Swedish fellow and an American. All were very nice and willing to show me around and bring me out to their various social appointments. It was pretty solid. I didn't really do any intense sight seeing though. I saw a garden and I saw the Bund; 2 big ones. I mostly just wandered the streets, which I think beats being herded along the tourist paths anyways.
It was a proper thunderstorm yesterday afternoon, so we didn't go out til later. Jen took me to a really nice area of back ally shops and trendy restaurants where we met some of her friends for dinner. We then proceeded to a little show of a few different bands and drank cheap beer. I thought it would be a wise idea to not sleep as my flight was to leave at 9 this morning. So I think I ended the night according to my plan, but somehow I was woken up (in a similar state as when I went to bed) but managed to get to the airport by 8:10. By the time I got to the check-in counter, boarding had closed and I couldn't get on my plane. Not sure if anyone's experienced this before, missing a flight in Shanghai, with only 280 Yuan (about $47) and no international bank card or credit card (both of which were safely hidden in my apartment in Seoul). So I was told to wait standby and boy did I wait. I was lucky to get a flight at 2, so I got into Seoul 2 hours later. It cost just what I had, which again, was lucky. It was a luck-filled trip.
Anyways, it was a lovely little journey and I think I'll go back some time soon.
Hope you're well
I'm going to sleep.
And remember: baby turtles and alligators may seem like a cute idea for a pet-- but they grow up.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)