'Nuf Said

Merry Christmas Y'all. Here's to a momentary pause in the chronic legislative dysfunction endemic to our US Senate.

The Golden Age

All around me, people are turning 30. Coworkers, friends, ex-roommates and semi-acquaintances are fearlessly crossing this age threshold a la Girl Scout Brownies 'bridging' to the Cadet phase of their lives (that which boasted a more tonal, yet equally ill-fitting uniform and perpetual cookie sales). This landmark transition is fast approaching in my life, and I am growing to embrace optimism about the upcoming decade. Yes, more wrinkles will line my face and my already busy sleep schedule is likely to grow, but I fear not.

The thing is, I think I've lived my 20s backwards; late twenties have outshone my early- and mid- twenties by leaps, bounds, football fields and national park spans. If I continue on this upward trajectory, my 30s will be outrageously wonderful. Allow me to engage in a verbal Venn Diagram, if you will:

Professional Life

- Blogger Age 22: Living to work and feeling like a professional failure.every.day.

-Blogger Age 29: Working for passion, minor victories-though few and far between- exist

Week Days

- Blogger Age 23: Early to bed, early to rise to lesson plan and attempt to breath through the day. Norah Jones calms my frazzled nerves on the drive through urban sprawl to work.

- Blogger Age 29: Still early to bed. Less stressful sleep. Walk the historical path through Boston to my new, slightly upgraded work building.

Weekends

- Blogger Age 23: Early to bed, early to rise to lesson plan and attempt to breath through the day. Norah Jones calms my frazzled nerves on the drive through urban sprawl to work. You may notice this is the same as week days, this is due to the fact that I NEVER STOPPED WORKING throughout the middle part of this bizarre 00's decade.

- Blogger Age 29: Sleep IN! Enjoy the company of good friends and (not-so) good wine. Dance frequently.

I could go on and on.

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, all signs point to 30 being no big deal, right? RIGHT?

Sactify THIS New York

My recent Twitterfication has enriched my life greatly. And by enriched I mean taken over. A few gems that I've found, that I would not have known about in lieu of my new social networking medium include.

- A new, awesome John Mayer song: http://jhnmyr.tumblr.com/post/267496218/ive-been-thinking-of-a-way-to-say-thank-you-for

(John Mayer, it should be noted, takes ample breaks from breaking the hearts of famous women in order to tweet his life away.)

- A notice that Lou Dobbs is 'too soft on immigration' by the radical right:

http://blogs.abcnews.com/george/2009/12/lou-dobbs-now-too-soft-for-hard-right-immigration-group.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

- Lo Bosworth's post-Thanksgiving return to spinning class.

By far the best thing I've seen in weeks (Twitter or no Twitter) is NY State Senator Diane Savino's address to her senatorial colleagues regarding the Marriage Equality Bill. In 7 minutes, the witty, genuine leader spoke to the inconsistencies among the anti-gay sanctity of marriage arguments, gay rights as a matter of fairness and the troublesome nature of love in general (and the need to embrace love wherever we may find it). I am so proud to be from a nation that has such leadership.

Savino for America!

Oral Health and Other Things I Thought I was Good At

One unfortunate morning a couple of months ago, while my office mate and I were busily type-type-typing away at our respective desks, I suddenly stopped mid-word; I was stunned to inaction by a loud, persistent squeak emerging from our radiator. The little mouse that inevitably was discovered within scurried off to a place unknown, but that squeak persists in my memory as one of the Worst Sounds in the World.

That squeak was emulated by the water squirty pick thing at the dentist this morning, except this time the squeak was COMING FROM MY MOUTH.

My renaissance with oral health was spurred by a public health report that noted, among other things, visits to dentists as an indicator of good health. Never wanting to lie below the median in that which I can control about my health, I set up an appointment for the following day. The questionnaire I completed was simple enough- allergies, emergency contact, last dental visit...LAST DENTAL VISIT? I sheepishly scribbled in 2007, with full knowledge that my last foray into the reclining seat world of a dental office occurred more in the 2005 range. 2007? The hygienist asked me. And like a good catholic girl who only goes to confession in order to complete the checklist required to be confirmed, I lied to her face and said- yes, 2007. What is a few years between friends (one wearing a lead vest- ready for x-rays, the other wearing a mask- ready for some serious gum disease)?

Buzz. Squeak. 2007. Buzz.

The good news: my oral health is great. Turns out that manically flossing really is a good idea. For all of you readers from whom I've asked if you happen to have floss on your person when you were out...HA! Told you so. And yes, I have some in my purse AND on my desk right now.

The bad news: Turns out the every 6 months dental visit actually carries some merit. I have a cavity that is so developed that I need an EMERGENCY FILLING tomorrow else risk the chance of some serious nerve-cavity-induced pain. Dammit. The Gentle Dentist (not to be confused with Gentle Dental (of which I've heard terrible things)) told me that he **thinks** he'll be able to do just a filling. If not, I'll need a ROOT CANAL. With those two words, everything I've believed about myself flew away on the wings of the Evil Gingivitis Monster.

Dr., did you not hear about my manic floss habit? Are you not aware of my love for all things fluoride-enhanced? I am a DENTIST'S DREAM.

Except, of course, that I avoid the dentist like I do country music or Filene's Basement around the Running of the Brides. Except that. And apparently, that exception is enough.