I Survived Gum Surgery…But the Post-Op Stinks

If you’re over forty, you know that aging is not for wimps. Just ask my receding gums.

(Please note that while I complain about all this, I truly am grateful for good health and great dental care! This is not a bid for sympathy. I’m in almost no pain. This post is just a good excuse for me to laugh about the delicate art of aging. What’s that old saying? When life gives you gum drama, make gumballs. Or write a funny blog post.)

Why do gums recede? Lots of reasons. I am a teeth grinder (and I wear a night guard to counteract it, but apparently grinding can tamper with gums). It may be partly hereditary. It may be due to that important force called gravity.

As I said to my sister a few years ago, gravity is never a woman’s best friend. Yes, I knew that as I age, certain body parts would relocate themselves a few inches lower than where they started. I can’t say I accepted that with grace, but I knew it would happen. But my gums?

Surgery itself wasn’t bad. It happened on Valentine’s Day, which is not a super important day for Hubby and me. We do a little something for each other but it’s not sacred to us. Still, he cooked my favorite dinner and dessert. I appreciated his thoughtfulness and mumbled my thanks as I iced my face.

I have been the recipient of gum surgery three times in the last six years. The first time was an invasive surgery for the receding gums behind my lower teeth. The second and third surgeries were far less invasive due to a different technique, and this was for the receding gums in front of my lower teeth.

The bad news is that with my swollen chin I looked like a cross between a Garibaldi and Popeye. Not the look most ladies aspire to on Valentine’s Day, but as you know, I like to do things my own way.

The good news is that if you buy nine gum surgeries, the tenth is free! (Kidding.) I knew that gum surgery is not a permanent fix, but even the dentist was surprised that I needed it only two years after he did it before. (To be fair, it’s not an identical surgery. He did the right side and middle before, and this time it was left and middle. And don't worry--this dentist is not swindling me. We've gone to the same practice for more than a decade and they are awesome.) I guess my aggressive brushing style didn’t exactly help the gums to stay put, but in my defense, I thought a gentle brushing style would not do the job.

Anyway, the surgery was okay but the post-op “lifestyle” cramps my ways. I’d forgotten that for six weeks following surgery there is:

• ·         No big smiling. WHAT???? I’m an expressive person. I’m not a robot. This is going to be hard.
• ·         No crunchy or sticky food. EXCUSE ME? Soft foods? What am I, an infant? The best foods are crunchy and sticky. I’d completely forgotten the “No-no” list from two years ago. Sigh.
• ·         No side-sleeping. Again, major problem. I have been a side-sleeper my whole life.
• ·         No big laughs, no looking at the gums, no pressing or touching them, no facial massage.
• ·         No eating on the left side. No opening wide. (Eating takes a lot longer now, as you’d imagine.)

The dentist recommended that I take Arnica to reduce swelling. I ran out so I popped into Sprouts to get more. Immediately all the crunchy and forbidden foods in the store called out to me, taunting me from behind an invisible barrier. Granola? Nope. Nuts? Sorry. Caramels? Forget it. Corn on the cob? Not yet. Apples? Try apple sauce. I actually did buy some cashews in bulk and later I’m going to try making cashew butter. But on principle I’m miffed that my eating and sleeping options have been altered. I’m not in much pain but the swelling makes things awkward and the lengthy list of stuff I can’t do has me irritable. Still, it could be worse, and I’m grateful that my teeth and I have coexisted happily for decades. So if we cross paths over the next five and a half weeks, you’ll see me delicately placing tiny bites of food into the right side of my mouth, using a long fondue fork. But once I pass the six week mark I’ll be smiling and laughing a lot, just because I finally can, and I’m going to eat crunchy foods and sleep on my side and shout as loud as I can. So if you have gums that behave, appreciate them. Give a big smile and laugh big and go eat a caramel. Do it for me….

Feathered Fun

I may have mentioned my obsession with flamingos once or twice before. A while ago I began sewing a dress out of some darling flamingo fabric but I ran into a problem I didn’t know how to fix. So I put the dress aside--for two years. That seems silly now but let’s not dwell on it. Recently I took that dress out and told myself that I was going to finish it, and I did. It’s not perfect but then again, I’m not building a piano. The design is my own creation—something with touch of a 1950s or ‘60s vibe. I dig it! Obviously, a photo session with a midcentury feel was in order.

 

I wanted to experiment with making some of the photos black and white. It adds to my vintage theme. On the other hand, it deprives everyone of seeing how delightfully pink the flamingos are, and gray flamingos just don't bring it.

I decided to make a killer headpiece to go with the dress and a cute pair of flamingo earrings my friend Roxie gave me last week. Every Monday should be this fun!

 

 

Flock of Flamingos Comes Home

Are you a collector? Some people amass sizeable collections of Pez dispensers, vinyl records, baseball cards or shoes. There are many kinds of collections; some are used and others are purely for decorative purposes or for sentimental value. 

I have a fondness for flamingos, but I had never considered putting them together as a collection. In truth, I didn’t consider my assortment big enough to be called a collection. I only had a handful of flamingos. But recently I have been thinking of ways to display my flock. I want it up on a wall so that it functions as a piece of art, rather than taking up space on a horizontal surface (which is quite limited around here as it is!).

Today while trying to organize my art/sewing studio I spotted a box of paint and instantly I knew it was going to house my flock of flamingos. I’ve been using this box for only a few months, since the Wednesday I grabbed it off the top of a neighbor’s garbage can on trash day. It was perfectly usable, not something that needed to go to the dump, and I saw its potential. It was a drawer, a rather small one (maybe 9 by 14 inches, and 6 inches deep). The moment I saw it I knew I could use it.
 

I love repurposing something and giving it a new life. It tickles me to use things in unexpected ways. Oh, I’m not the first person to use an old drawer for something but I’m excited because this is my first time to give an old drawer a new look and purpose. Plus, I’d been unsure of how to display my flamingos and now I have a solution that is a little more imaginative than simply putting them on a display shelf.

I took the shelf paper off the bottom of the drawer and painted the raw wood inside the drawer. I painted it white so that the flamingos would show up well inside the drawer. I added a shelf inside the drawer so that I could display more flamingos. (Maybe as my collection grows I will have to find a bigger shelf in my neighbor’s trash can!!!) I love the effect, and I love that the idea came to me unexpectedly. Sometimes it’s good to grab something with potential for future use. Even if you don’t know what you’ll use it for, you’ll have it available for the moment inspiration strikes.

Here is the drawer before it reached its full potential:

Here is the drawer after I transformed it into a welcoming aviary:

Over the last week I have been making more flamingos! Once I had a home for them, I felt an urge to add to the collection. I had all the supplies in my craft stash, and creating these pink, wiggly-necked creatures was made me happy. Would you like to know what I used to make the flamingos? I was hoping you’d ask. I used fabric, tulle, felt, a shell, buttons, hot glue, bamboo skewers, wire, pipe cleaners, paint, foam, Duck tape, parts of ornaments, feathers, Sculpey, sequins, beads, paper clips and Shrinky Dinks.

The drawer was free, and it only took me two hours to paint, hang and arrange my flamingos display case. No longer are the flamingos sitting on my studio window ledge, peering down at me, wishing for their own space. My flamingos now have a home of their own.

 

Think Pink!

The flamingo is my favorite animal, hands down. So you can imagine by ecstatic face when I spotted flocks and flocks of them in the sky recently.

Look how cheery they are with their bright pink color and their wacky, wiggly necks. Of course, I pulled over to take photos so I could share this happy scene. I think flamingos are a good reminder not to take life so seriously (and believe it or not, I need reminders like this). In a world in which much of nature is shades of green and brown, a cheerful pink anomaly is a squawk that halts me in my tracks, prompting me to laugh and to appreciate the fun things in life.

Have you hugged a flamingo today?

Dressed for Spring (May 14, 2011)

This is a brooch I made yesterday. (Note: the word 'brooch" seems too old-fashioned for the 21st century but maybe that's a topic unto itself and deserves its own blog entry.) I realized recently how many talented crafters exist. Blogger alone has an enormous number of people posting their imaginative crafts. I felt inspired and decided to make a flamingo pin out of felt and beads and feathers. This pin is approximately 4 inches tall and very lightweight, unlike a lot of brooches. Flamingos are my favorite animal and it was really fun creating one out of fabric. I may post photos of how it looked in its various stages but for now, here is the star of the day, the playful, colorful, always fashionable flamingo!

Feathered and Festive (Dec. 21, 2010)

You may know about my obsession with flamingos. Holiday time is no exception. The only thing more fun than a flamingo...is a flamingo decked out in holiday decorations. Flamingos love to celebrate. After all, they are festive 365 days a year. They wear flamboyant pink feathered costumes every day. If that doesn't scream "party animal," I don't know what does.

It's Finished!!! (Oct. 6, 2010)

Announcement! Announcement!

This fabulous flamingo is finished, finally!

Well, 99% finished.

This is a victory, actually.

I started this project at least 3 months ago and in the beginning I had a lot of momentum, as I always do with creative things. But when I got to the tedious part (grouting), I put it aside for a while. Weeks and weeks, if you must know. But a few days ago I gave myself a mental slap across the face and decided I had to finish this ASAP. Finishing something provides a satisfaction, especially when you feel like your life has a lot of loose ends, as mine does.

In case you're wondering, the first photo shows a sketch I did in crayon over the summer before busting out my hammer and a mountain of tile and plates. (Side note: crayons are awesome. There's something very grounding about using them. Is it the waxy scent or how they instantly take you back to childhood, when life was simpler?)

I'm a multi-tasker so it's normal for me to have several projects going all at once. I'm the same with books--I often read more than one at a time. I like the variety and the excitement of starting something. Of course, having an unfinished project can weigh on me, so reaching completion today feels terrific.

However, don't ask me anytime soon if I'm doing another mosaic of this size (32" high x 18" wide) and detail (hundreds of pieces). This one took a lot of time (I didn't record how long it took, as I sometimes do, but I'm guessing between 35 and 50 hours. This is stretched over 3 months, mind you!).

Now I’m off to start one of the half-dozen projects I’ve had on my mind. Cycle? Repeating!

A Work in Progress (Aug. 5, 2010)

Here are two photos of a mosaic piece I'm working on. I designed it myself, and it features my favorite animal: the flamingo. I love this creature for several reasons. They are pink (a happy, beautiful color). They are so different from many other birds with their curvy, long necks. I love their one-legged stance. If you hadn't seen them with your own eyes, you'd think they were the creation of a cartoonist because their anatomy is so exaggerated--almost comical!

Usually I don't show a piece of my art until it's finished. I'm sure it has a lot to do with wanting to show something at its best. But I'm challenging myself to be less concerned with peoples' reactions/approval. Showing something in progress is a baby step.

I also wanted to see if I could post 2 photos in the same posting. I'm in the Fred Flintstone-era when it comes to technology. In case you haven't watched an episode of the Flintstones lately, at Fred's work there is a brachiosaurus who lifts things up on his head. Isn't that how you "upload?" Yeah, my reference point is not exactly cutting-edge. But ALL BY MYSELF I figured out how to upload more than one photo per post. Yippee! Progress, baby!