Late yesterday I had the displeasure of having a not so insignificant chunk of one of my lower left molars breaking off in my mouth! I contacted the base dentist office and they suggested that I go to the ER to have it checked out since it was after dental office hours. Foolishly, I complied. I should have known that they would be able to do nothing other than prescribe some pain killers and a trip to the dentist’s office this morning. Since it didn’t really hurt that bad, I opted to forego the meds. This morning I got up at 0500 so that I could get to the Pentagon dental clinic by 0715 for dental “Sick call”. Upon arrival after my hour-plus long commute, they informed me that I could either sit there until 1000 before they could see me, or come back at 1300. I opted for the latter and drove an hour to Reston to spend some time at the office. Upon return, the dentist completed a temporary pot-hole patch on my tooth and scheduled me for a long-term fix on 12 Dec. She told me that the breakage was likely the result of grinding my teeth in my sleep, and that fortunately the tooth was otherwise intact and strong. I hate getting old!
This morning Karen’s parents left for Vermont. They called us later this evening to let us know that they had safely arrived at their destination after a long, traffic-laden trip. We really enjoyed their visit even though it was only for a couple of days. Ben and Delaney really enjoyed seeing Grandma and Grandpa LaGrange. Grandpa LaGrange brought an early Christmas present for Ben…..an HO scale model train that he has owned for some time. Tomorrow we intend to get a large piece of plywood on which to mount the track. Ben is really excited!
Tonight, we went to see a movie. Ben and I wanted to see Flushed Away, but the girls opted for Santa Claus 3, the Escape Clause. In retrospect, I think Flushed Away would have been a much better choice! The Santa Cluas 3 was too juvenile, predictable, and tacky for even the kids to enjoy. It was almost as bad (in my opinion) as Nacho Libre. On top of that, the theater was absolutely freezing! Despite it being 40 degrees and windy outside, they were still pumping the air conditioner full force inside the theater. It was distractingly uncomfortable. It was so bad that the theater gave EVERYONE free tickets to come back to the theater for another movie of our choice. We may go back tomorrow and see Flushed Away with our free tickets. Then again….maybe we will wait until they get their HVAC fixed!Â
On Sunday, I leave for Las Vegas. Despite suggestions by Mr Papa and several coworkers…I have NO PLANS to ride any of the thrill rides atop the stratosphere hotel! Hopefully my trip to Las Vegas won’t be quite as adventuresome as Mr Papa’s recent trip to Langley, VA!Â
The Penguins play in San Jose late tomorrow night, so look for another update soon! I am hoping for another win to keep their sizzling hot streak alive.Â