I guess what is amusing is the break down. They are charged $325 for two of my teeth as “partial bony impaction” (I guess the lower ones) then $195 for the other two as “surgical extraction,” $325 for 30 minutes of anesthetic, $95 for the x-rays, and $45 for the exam. Yeah, $45 for him to look in there and go, “yup, let’s take the teeth out!”

Well, I don’t know why it’s amusing… but it sure is great to only have to pay $124, especially when I was expecting $1200!

Well, now it’s over. Except for the healing process, of course. I just hope it’s a speedy process. I have many projects I have to get done, some by this Sunday. I don’t feel like just sleeping, I can’t fall asleep right now, but I don’t feel like doing anything of any value, either. I’m just sitting here playing Packrat and thinking about switching over to The Sims 2.

Elijah had his ENT appointment at the same time I was getting my teeth out. My mother-in-law had to take him, if we didn’t take this appointment, he wouldn’t have gotten in until September 19! His tonsils are still huge but they don’t seem to bother him much. They’re scary looking, though. So the ENT (which is the same one that did his tongue last year) gave him three more medicines and wants to see him in another month. I guess then if they’re not down, they’ll come out.

So that’s where we stand. I can’t stand tasting blood all the time like I am but putting the gauze in really gags me. So blah. I hope it heals soon. They said I wasn’t bleeding a lot, the nurse kept acting like it was good.

But it was so weird. Before today, I’d never been put out for anything before (that I’m aware of). The last thing I remember was looking at the ceiling, feeling some, like, popping in my head (like when you stand up too fast), then I woke up in recovery. I kept trying to lay down and go to sleep and they kept holding me up. I was really dizzy and my face numb. But I think I was pretty coherent. Apparently when the nurse mentioned they’d give me antibiotics, I told her I wanted a Diflucan, too. I don’t remember that, but Steve says I did. I am bewildered though, that I walked to recovery, because I don’t remember that, either!

So, once again, I’m very glad it’s over and I’m praying I recover quickly!!

– Elijah’s going on week 3 or so with tonsils the size of Texas. He’s been to the doctor twice for them. He got his usual antibiotics the first time but stronger ones later. He goes in for follow-up again on Friday and I can tell you what’s gonna happen. They’re gonna schedule us for an appointment with the ENT (ear, nose, throat doctor) and he’s going to end up getting his tonsils out. He says his throat doesn’t hurt but he also has a hacking cough (but then again, so do I). Poor kid. First his ankyloglossia, that tooth, and now his tonsils in less than a year’s time.

– A friend of mine called me Saturday and asked if I was open to shooing her co-worker’s wedding this coming Saturday. The woman called me tonight and it looks like it’s all set. The wedding’s at a winery, too, looks nice. I’m really excited, but also a bit nervous. But I know I’ll do a good job. They’re really just paying me for gas and time, I’m going to give them the originals on CD and let them print them themselves. I kind of prefer it that way, actually. I still need to find a standard copyright release form and a standard model release form…

– And I’ve already decided that I’m buying this with my pay, heh. (The rest is probably going to go towards paying on other things and maybe I’ll get the remote, depending on how much, maybe maybe a speedlight.) But yeah, my camera did come with a case but I’ve had issues with it since I got it. Granted, it’s a nice bag, it’s got more than enough room, but it’s just cumbersome for me, I have a hard time shouldering it around and such. I already have one of these (for my old camera) and I love it but I can’t even get the D60 with one lens in it, let alone the other (I tried!). Granted, they’re more expensive than what I’d normally spend (heh, my purses typically fall in the $10-20 range) but they’re durable, comfortable, etc., I just really like the products.

– As embarrassing as this is… My wisdom teeth are in and they haven’t hurt in a long time, but there’s just not room for them so here come the first real cavities I’ve ever really had (my first ever cavity happened when I was 17, dentist said it was caused by my braces). Well, the top right one is the worst and the other day… it broke. Scared me enough I immediately made an appointment to get them removed, so that’s next week. I’ve been putting it off for so long because I’m a big baby who does not put herself in the way of needles if at all possible. Not to mention I’ve never been put to sleep before, so that is scaring me. Someone needs to come hold my hand… and drive me home, lol.

– Had an eye test last week. Did you know that they can do the glaucoma test without the burst of air? I’m SUCH a blinker. So while this didn’t cause me to blink any less, it sure was a bit more pleasant. They put some drops in that – heh, are yellow – and then you look at a very close blue light and I dunno what all they’re doing but there’s no air in the eye! It was really weird though and my eyes did burn a bit later at the end of the day but no air! So my glasses came in and I got them today which is faster than any other time (I’m really liking this new office and our insurance — a lot cheaper than last time). So, anyway, if you wanna see…

– Um… I got more but somehow this post sat stagnant for an hour now, so… guess it’s time for bed. :) It seems to be an epidemic, anyway, how I can just go on and on about absolutely nothing. It’s been a problem since I was little. :)

It’s bothered me once since I last posted about it.

But if the stuff happening with S’s job does indeed happen, we could end up with dental insurance and that would be awesome.

So I wait…. and until then I continue to pop the Ibuprophens.

Ouch. :ouchie:

My mom, busted by the Secret Service.

Now that’s funny.

Um, in other news these past couple of days… (skip to bottom for “pain… great pain”)

Sunday:
I feel like I totally screwed up. I made so many mistakes directing. At one point I put camera on the screens too early because I misread the schedule of events. I didn’t start the 2nd VTR when I was supposed to. And because of that, for all the music, there was no sound going on the monitors throughout the buildings, just video. (Who would have thought, it was just the stupid little ‘record’ button.) I had three camera guys: one is experienced, but tends to zone out and let his camera show it; the other was a kid; the other is kinda new. I could have had B, but the director had already chosen the other three guys and they all showed up. So basically, I am used to having at least two guys (who were out of town) that take initiative – they get their shot, you use it, they get another one. While this would irritate many directors (as my old boss used to say: ‘the director is god.’), I find it useful for a beginning director, especially when there are so many other things to worry about not typical to directing. So anyway, I had to keep telling the three exactly every little thing to do and it just was one more thing I had to worry about. Arg. I know the director will be like, “it’s okay.” But I just feel like I screwed up so bad.

The shower:
Was okay. I mean, I felt like I was on a yo-yo with that. First I’m told, no games, just door prizes. Whatever, I say, people expect games, me and G will come up with a couple of them. Then it’s still – no games. Okay no games. Then we’re started and it’s – hey got any games? We just did door prizes. And then I guess I was a little too loud when I complained for two seconds to Sheila and my mommy-in-law and I guess my step-grandma heard me. I didn’t mean to hurt her feelings (if that’s even possible), but I was so stressed out. So then I attempted to cover, not sure how well it worked though.
I guess it all-in-all was alright. M didn’t seem to mind too much. And then we were even out of there by about 10 after four. So that wasn’t too bad.

But then when my great-aunt got there, she says to me, “I have something for you.” I’m like, “Me????” So she took me into another room and gave me this envelope with my name on it. And she’s telling me that it’s not a big deal but she didn’t want to ‘rain-on-M’s-parade’ basically and that she’s been in the process of doing this for all of the great nieces and nephews. I’m thinking this is going to be an old photograph – probably the one that was still at the farmhouse a while ago, that no one knew who it was, but I figured it out. I borrowed it and copied it sometime ago. But then I open it and there’s money in there. And I’m all, “You guys don’t have to do this you know.” And she’s all, “Yes I do, I want to, get yourself something you want, or do something fun. You can share it with Steve and the baby… if you want to.” I kinda laughed. But I was crying, too. Because the thing is, I guess she thinks that she’s dying. Recently they found out that her ovaries are about the size of pecans, when at her age, they should be much smaller. I don’t know if they know if they are cancerous or not yet. But even if they are, it doesn’t matter, because they can’t operate. Her emphazema is just too far, the doctors won’t authorize an operation. So she was explaining that to me because NO ONE EVER TELLS ME ANYTHING and then she’s all, “oh now they’re going to want to know what I did to you to make you cry.”

She said I could tell my mom but not the other kids (lol), so I was talking to mom in the parking lot later and she said, “Well how much did she give you?” I hadn’t even looked at that point, so I did, she had given me $50!

Yeah, so that $50 ended up being the remaining $50 we needed to pay Steve’s truck insurance.

Some fun that was, wasn’t it?

I don’t know what to think.

But I do know that if my aunt finds out where the money actually went, she won’t be too happy about it (“do something fun…”), so I guess I will have to make up for that next month.

You have to understand, too, some things…
My aunt had one sister, my grandmother, who died in 1963. That made her an only child. Each of them had three children of their own, two girls and one boy. On our side, her great-grandnieces and nephews number a total of 10 (4 boys, 6 girls), one great-great-grandniece, one great-great-grandnephew (Elijah), and one great-grandniece that died in 1992. On her side, she has four grandchildren, one boy and 3 girls. Her son doesn’t have any kids. Her mother, Elijah’s great-great-grandmother is still living, she’s in a home not too far from here – she has Alzheimer’s and has lost the use of the right side of her body, she doesn’t know any of us anymore, only my great uncle it seems.
I just want to make her happy.

Okay I think I’m just rambling now and not getting to any points…

Then after all of that, M and I went up to Garden Ridge to pick out some flowers for her bouquets. We ended up getting orchids and lilies. Okay, not we, but she. I was just there to help her figure out what kind/colors and tell her what she needed. She ended up spending like $64, which isn’t bad, but it’s more than I thought they were going to be because some of them ended up not being 50% off like we thought they would be. But they are all really pretty and I told her that if she needed help putting them together to get me and I’ll come up there (I did mine).

Then I went home and Steve’s family came over here for Elijah’s birthday. They wanted to come on Sunday instead of Monday because Sarah was leaving Monday morning for camp. This is totally wierd. A week without Sarah. He got a Cat in the Hat (real not Mike Meyers) ball, that he always tries to stand on now, a set of Bob the Builder books, and some bath/pool toys. He didn’t get any cake though, we don’t yet trust him with that. ;-)

Monday:
I can’t remember Monday, lol. I must not have done anything interesting.
Oh Elizabeth did come by and bring Elijah his present from her, some little Star Wars books.

Tuesday:
We just went over to swim at Steve’s family’s house. Steve laughed at me said, “Valerie skipped seeing the President to go swimming.” LOL We’re still trying to get E good and used to that water for the float trip on August 14th. Which I have yet to pay for. *sigh*

Pain… great pain…
Okay so I have three of my wisdom teeth in. However, the fourth, lower-my-right, has been bugging me since Sunday – all day every day. I think it might be impacted? Or maybe that’s not the right word? Either way, I think it’s pointing the wrong direction and it HURTS. The others, although there’s really not room for them either, did not really bother me. I didn’t feel the top two coming in at all. But it’s not really the tooth itself that hurts as much as it is the part of my gums that which it is hitting.
This only stresses me out because this is now the fourth day of this, usually it’s only a day or two. And because I really can’t afford getting them out right now (or I might have already done it). And because the pain is stretching farther up my mouth than it ever has before.
I kept eating all these marshmallows last night over at the in-law’s because it was like the only thing I could eat and not feel at all.
So I don’t know what to do. We don’t have dental insurance. And of course, my readers out there already know about all the other medical bills we have.
Do I wait and see if I can put off the surgery any longer?
Or should I call now?