Santa Anita icon Trevor Denman wins Eclipse Award

Trevor Denman, the long-time voice of Santa Anita Racetrack (along with other Southern Cal tracks) has been awarded an Eclipse Award for Career Excellence. If you don't know, the Eclipse is horse racing's version of the Academy Award.

 

From the linked article:

 

“I am so honored to receive this award and will treasure it forever. I wish to thank Alan Balch of Santa Anita and Joe Harper of Del Mar for giving an unknown kid a chance to call at such prestigious tracks back in 1983. I also thank all the fans for their tremendous support over the years. Thank you all!”

 

Notwithstanding his distinctive accent, Denman broke the mold of traditional race callers with a welcoming and innovative style. While most American announcers stuck to the basics of calling the specific order of the races and lengths in front or behind horses during points of call, Denman incorporated commentary and analysis into his race calls...

 

And he created a signature stamp at the gate break for each race with “And away they go.” 

 

At one time, Denman was calling the races at Santa Anita, Hollywood Park, Del Mar, and Pomona (Fairplex) during a prolific annual schedule.

 

Denman called races for more than 50 years. Besides his extensive Southern California stint, he worked at tracks in the Bay Area and on the East Coast, as well as calling the Breeders’ Cup races when ESPN had the TV rights to the championship event. Additionally, he provided the calls in several racing movies and dozens of television shows.

 

Yep, he has an imdb entry! 

 

Born in South Africa, Denman made his Southern California debut at Santa Anita's Oak Tree meet in 1983. He retired from Santa Anita in 2015. He continued calling at Del Mar until announcing his retirement from racing in 2025.  

 

Here's a great example of Denman's calling ability - the 1988 Santa Anita Derby, won by future Kentucky Derby champion Winning Colors (one of only three fillies to ever win the Run for the Roses):

 

 

Someone on YouTube put together a collection of forty of Denman's calls.

 

Congratulations to Trevor Denman!

 

Apocalyptic Now

The view from my balcony late yesterday afternoon. I'm about 9-10 miles south of the Pacific Palisades fire, where this smoke is coming from:

 

 This morning:

About what I was expecting. Our air is brown. If I have to go out, I'll be digging out a mask from the COVID days. Also, the wind is kicking up again, which is bad.

I'm fortunate to not be in any of the fire areas, but it was terrifying and depressing to watch one fire after another crop up and explode yesterday and into the evening. One started in Eaton Canyon above Arcadia and wreaked havoc on Pasadena and surrounding areas. The Palisades fire has wiped out almost the entire town then headed into Malibu and apparently has destroyed blocks of homes on Pacific Coast Highway right on the beach as well as a number of venerable businesses including the Reel Inn and Malibu Feed Bin. It's also caused evacuations in north Santa Monica.

I've also heard there have been two fatalities, but considering how fast these fires spread, I won't be surprised if there are many more.

There's already been discussions online about how our state and local governments have handled water resources, forestry management, and budget cuts to local fire departments, but there will be plenty of time to examine that later. I'm sure there's plenty of blame to go around, and even with the catastrophic winds, I'm guessing that better management and funding of resources may not have prevented the fires themselves from spreading, but I'm thinking it didn't have to be this absolute carnage. I can't even bring myself to pull pictures and video for this post. When all is said and done, this is going to be destruction of historic proportions, and I feel so awful when I think of the thousands of people who have lost their homes and businesses. I don't know how much more people can take.

 

Updated 1/10/25: Just found out a friend lost her house in Altadena because of the Eaton Fire. This is just so brutal and awful.

Going to press

Very happy to announce that I received an acceptance email today for the short story I submitted to this year's Sisters in Crime Los Angeles anthology, Angel City Beat.

 

 

My story is called "Unbeatable" and involves an undefeated racehorse, a dead jockey, and a pet psychic. It takes place at Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia.

 

It's been a while since I got an acceptance email, and I was thrilled to see it. I'm usually confident when I submit that the story is solid and meets the theme, and therefore I'm usually surprised when my story isn't chosen. In this case, I doubled up on the theme (Angel City Beat...hoofbeats and an unbeaten racehorse) but I wasn't sure if the story would be thrilling, or read like a giant mess. I felt like what I was trying to write wasn't coming across on the page and that's always frustrating. In addition, since we only have one editor this time around (we usually have three, but the chapter scored genre legend Barb Goffman to edit this baby) we were capped at 12 stories as part of Barb's participation (we usually have 15-17 stories in our anthologies), so acceptance was even tougher. And yet...

And yet I got in. I'm so thrilled. I'm thrilled to be published again, to be in yet another anthology from SinC LA, and to work with Barb Goffman. And I hope everyone who reads my crazy story about a genuine pet psychic, a crooked jockey, and a big rugged horse who may or may not be a four-legged mindless himbo loves it as much as I do, and apparently as much as our judges/readers did.

I'm very grateful and can't wait to publicize the heck out of this anthology. SinC LA usually releases their anthologies in spring of odd-numbered years, but in order to make this available for Christmas and also eligible for awards next year, is fast-tracking this publication for December 2024. 

Fast food: False hopes, musings, and memories

Yo Quiero Whut??? OK, it turns out this headline is slightly misleading, but it did give me hope for a few brief, glorious moments: Taco Bell is Officially One of the Healthiest Fast Food Chains. 

 

Before we all get too excited (as I did), the article doesn't really cover the more popular items (*cough Mexican Pizza cough*), burritos, or even the regular tacos. It pretty much says if you eat just a few select items you're probably choosing decently, especially compared with other chains. It also doesn't spend much time addressing things to avoid like the plague, like the hideous looking nacho cheese-like sludge and anything that involves the words "Mountain" and "Dew". Also, how is this article about Taco Bell and not El Pollo Loco, which has to be healthier? And that's coming from someone who, unfortunately, loves Taco Bell. But I do think that if you make a run for the border and have a couple regular tacos (or the periodic Mexican Pizza) with something other than poison sugar-water to wash it all down, you're probably okay if you don't eat fast food often.

 

Almost two decades after Super Size Me, I would hope we understand that fast-food has become one of the unhealthiest things we can consume. Back in the dark ages when I was a kid, fast food was not something we ate on a regular basis, but was presented to us as an occasional treat, and we only went if our parents took us. We rarely were allowed to go on our own until we were well into our teens and were driving. But it seems like that's definitely changed - when I lived in Arcadia a couple years ago, if I was in either one of the shopping centers on the north side of Foothill at 2nd Avenue, I could watch the students from Foothill Middle School just up the block head for the McDonald's on Foothill en masse. I wonder how often they eat there. My guess would be several times a week and that's not good.

 

Not to mention fast food served when I was younger was probably healthier than it is today. And often it doesn't taste as good as I remember. I've had many experiences (especially with McDonald's, which I used to eat tons of but rarely do these days) where I have certain expectations of the food as I remember it being unmet by the food served today. Whatever changes they've made in the name of economy and efficiency, they are unfortunately noticeable and not an improvement. 

And don't even get me started on McDonald's replacing their awesome deep-fried apple/lava pies with the current sawdust crust versions. Boooooriiiing. Also, way back in the day when I worked at McDonald's in my teens, they had the best brownies I've ever had. EVER. Chewy and fudgy with thick chocolate icing...just the best ever. We used to eat them right out of the walk-in, because something about them being cold made them even better. I don't know if they still do this for employees today, but back when I was one of Ronald's flunkies we got half-priced food and free soft drinks and I would wash those fabulous brownies down with Diet Coke. I can't remember when they discontinued the brownies, but it was ages ago. 

 

My point is if you're going to eat junk food, eat good junk food and enjoy it. Just don't make it a regular thing.

Naughty, dirty restaurants of Los Angeles

Okay, this is the one that made me decide it was time to do another L.A. County Restaurant Closures post. Comments/observations are mine, all other info is from the County's online list.

People, it says dirty in the name of the restaurant!

Dirty Soul Food Buffet, 8101 Long Beach Boulevard, South Gate

Date closed: 12/13/22

Date reopened: 12/21/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

 

I've been wanting to head over to The Grove. May have to re-think my dining options.

The Gumbo Pot, 6333 W. Third Street, Los Angeles (Farmer's Market/The Grove)
Date closed: 11/2/22

Date reopened: 11/5/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

 

A couple big names:

Louise's Trattoria, 232 N. Larchmont Boulevard, Los Angeles

Date closed: 1/9/23

Date reopened: None

Reason for closure: Vermin Infestation

San Antonio Winery, 737 Lamar Street, Los Angeles

Date closed: 12/23/22

Date reopened: 12/26/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

 

What the heck is up with IHOP? Also, fun fact: I have lived in both San Dimas and Arcadia and never ate at either one:

International House of Pancakes, 903 W. Arrow Highway, San Dimas

Date closed: 12/29/22

Date reopened: 12/30/22

Reason for closure: Sewage discharge

International House of Pancakes, 1113 S. Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia

Date closed: 11/28/22

Date reopened: 12/14/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

International House of Pancakes, 755 Pacific Coast Highway, El Segundo

Date closed/reopened: 12/7/22

Reason for closure: No working toilet facilities

 

More chains!

Burger King, 4410 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles

Date closed: 12/29/22

Date reopened: 12/30/22

Reason for closure: Sewage discharge

 

Del Taco, 1834 E. Route 66, Glendora  

Date closed/reopened: 12/27/22

Reason for closure: Sewage discharge 

 

Sbarro The Italian Eatery, 1608 Montebello Towe Center, Montebello 

Date closed: 1/4/23

Date reopened: None

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation 

 

Subway, 15794 Bellflower Boulevard, Bellflower

Date closed/reopened: 12/8/22

Reason for closure: No working toilet facilities

 

Subway, 9238 Slauson Avenue, Pico Rivera

Date closed: 11/29/22

Date reopened 12/1/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

 

Jersey Mike's Subs, 26510 Bouquet Canyon Road, Santa Clarita

Date closed: 12/8/22

Date reopened: 12/10/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

 

Church's Fried Chicken, 1118 W. Jefferson Boulevard, Los Angeles

Date closed: 11/17/22

Date reopened: 11/21/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

Yum Yum Donuts, 13501 Hubbard Street, Sylmar

Date closed: 11/9/22

Date reopened: 11/12/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

Not gonna lie - this one hurt. Thank God it wasn't the one in Burbank.

Bob's Big Boy, 8876 Corbin Avenue, Northridge

Date closed: 11/7/22

Date reopened: 11/10/22

Reason for closure: Vermin infestation

Happy chowing!!!

Farewell Family Curio Cabinet

Sadly, I had to say goodbye to my huge, beautiful curio cabinet earlier this week. It had been part of the family since my Dad bought it for his house in San Dimas in the 80's. It was a gorgeous piece (about six feet high) with glass on the front and sides, glass shelves, a mirrored back, and lights. My Dad never bought cheap or lightweight furniture and this thing was a beast. A big, beautiful beast.

 

When he moved to Hawaii in the 1990's the cabinet went with him. After he passed away in 2011 I brought it back to California when we cleaned out the Kona house, and there was a spot in my previous Marina del Rey apartment where it fit perfectly. Since then, it moved with me to Arcadia and then back to the beach last year. Although huge - it was bought for a large house - I'd always found ideal spots for it in the three apartments I had it in.

 

A couple of days ago I knelt down to polish the base and realized the wood had begun separating at the front corners and along part of the front of the base. Not sure what caused it, but the thing was old and I decided it was time to retire it. Because of its size and how much of it was glass, I was concerned that if the base gave way and the cabinet collapsed, I was looking at a major catastrophe.

Here's where I plug the awesomeness of 1-800-Got-Junk. The Brother and I have used them numerous times (they come in handy when you have to clean out the home of a deceased relative, or if you just have a piece of furniture that has reached the end of the line). I was going to wait until after Christmas to deal with it, but my paranoia about the potential for collapse got the better of me. I was able to get them out the next day and they were in and out of here in about fifteen minutes. It was also cheaper than I was expecting (they charge you by the amount of room your stuff takes up in the truck, and because it was a tall slim piece, it actually had a pretty small footprint, so I made out there. 

 

Still, it was sad to see it go and yes I'm feeling nostalgic about an inanimate object. But there's a big empty space in my heart apartment where it once stood. After the New Year I'll be shopping for a replacement that's a little smaller and more manageable for the space and my needs. 

The damage:

Right corner. This scared the crap out of me when I discovered it.

Right side of front base. Starting to separate.

Left corner. Not as bad as the other side, but starting to separate...

Left side of base (which wasn't yet showing signs of damage) for comparison with the right.

After I got everything out of it...a sad, empty vessel:

 

 

And then...

It's been a couple days and I'm still sad about having to give it up. But you know what they say, nothing lasts forever. 

First world problems, appreciating the little things in life, moments of joy, and the importance of gratitude

When I took my shower this morning I had this weird moment of utter joy as I watched the water draining properly instead of backing up and pooling in the tub. This will be a rather lengthy setup, but bear with me:

A couple weeks ago the management of my apartment building sent out an email reminding us to be careful what we put down toilets and drains - grease, various paper products, the usual. They also mentioned hair.

Because my hair is naturally curly and brushing it out turns it into a fuzzy, frizzy mess, I'm not in the habit of brushing it regularly, so it naturally sheds on its own and a lot of it comes out when I shampoo my hair. I catch as much as I can but a certain amount unavoidably ends up down the drain and eventually builds up, and Liquid Plumber doesn't work in large buildings. So because of the email, I decided I needed to be a little more proactive in preventing my hair from clogging the drain. 

First, I bought these hair catchers. Check it out, they even come in beach themes! So I installed one and the first thing I noticed is that the tub wasn't draining as usual. The water pooled up and I figured the hair catcher was probably impeding the drainage, but on the other hand it would help keep the drain from clogging, right? And the tub did eventually drain, so I figured it was a trade-off.

Saturday morning I was getting ready to take my shower and discovered that there was still water in the tub. Not a lot, but it clearly hadn't drained from the day before. I had also gotten these things at Home Goods last week that are basically pipe cleaners on steroids that are supposed to help clear drains, so I poked around with one of those to no avail. Oh, and before doing that, I pulled out the hair catcher to discover that in the week or so it had been installed, it hadn't caught any hair, but by now it was obviously that it wasn't what was clogging the drain, the timing was apparently just a coincidence. 

Luckily I actually have a small, second bathroom in the apartment that I use for storage. I haven't used it as a bathroom at all, because I simply don't need it. It has a small stand-up shower, so the good news was that after hauling a bunch of boxes out of there, I was able to take a shower. After that, I discovered that the shower in the master bathroom had finally drained. I didn't want to deal with it over the weekend, so I figured I'd just use the spare shower and put the service request in Monday to have the drain in the main bathroom cleared. 

On Sunday morning I was in the master bathroom when I discovered that there was some water in the tub again and that's when I realized it wasn't just a case of my drain being clogged - this had something to do with the building and possibly other apartments around me, and probably something I shouldn't put off. So I put in the service request and around 11:30 a couple of really nice maintenance guys showed up at my door and went to work. 

At one point one of the guys left, then came back and I mentioned that it looked like a bigger job than we'd thought. He told me that I shared drainage with an adjoining apartment and that we were both clogged. Eventually they got the situation resolved; when I asked if there was some way I could be more proactive about prevention I was advised that it was just something that built up over time, not anything that anyone did. These buildings are old - Marina del Rey was developed in the 1960's and I think my place was built in the early 70's - but unlike all the other old apartments in town that have been torn down and replaced with modern behemoths, this place is so nice they can't justify just flattening it, although major renovations to update the guts and interiors are planned a few years out. I've always taken into consideration that being in an older building means issues that I'm willing to deal with.

So what all this drama led to was my shower this morning, and how giddy I was to see the water draining. And that got me thinking about how fortunate it is to live in a modernized society. Not everyone does. There are people in the world for whom any running water is something they can only wish for. There are people who don't have enough food to eat. There are people who live in squalor. Right now, there are American citizens in Afghanistan living in constant terror for their lives, in absolute fear of death from second to second, wondering when their leaders will get them to safety, wondering why this didn't happen sooner and if it will at all before they're slaughtered for no reason at all in a third-world hellhole so far from home.

And I'm here doing the happy dance because my tub is draining properly.

Right now I'm sitting out on the patio in the early morning coastal haze, enjoying my new patio furniture and my coffee, listening to a young squirrel in the tree next to my patio adorably chirping up a storm, sounding like a cranky old man who wants the kids off his lawn. Sophie is out here too, and like me seems to be quietly soaking it all in. It's just so nice and peaceful, the kind of morning I moved back here for. The kind of life I wanted and am so lucky to have, regardless of what I might want but don't have.

This stupid issue with plumbing served as a reminder of how fortunate I am to be here. I love my apartment, I love the layout, I love the patio and the fireplace and how luxuriously pin-drop quiet it can be (when the delivery and trash trucks aren't parked right in front of my place). I love being close to the beach and to water, and I really, really enjoyed the mild summer weather here as opposed to the high-90's/100 degree days the past couple of years in the San Gabriel Valley. 

It was something as simple as water going down the drain to bring all this on. I can get easily irritated by little things and I think the message I was sent this morning in the shower was not just to be grateful for everyday things that are so easy to take for granted, but to remember to have, to experience, to truly feel immense gratitude for what I have in life, at this moment. It was a humbling reminder that made me stop and think, rather than just going through the usual motions.

Now I'm off to get my hair done and to have a wonderful day. I hope you do the same.

Cool plates

Didn't get a chance to take pics, but yesterday going to and from the store I saw a trio of really cool license plates.

In the parking lot, one car had VEN BCH. I wonder how long they've had it. My late godfather, an Arcadia, California historian, had the plates ARCADIA and OAK TREE on his and his wife's plates. Not sure if she kept them after he passed away.

Just a few spots down from VEN BCH was a car sporting plates declaring I LV NY (California plates - the classic gold lettering-on-black, no less).

Then driving home I saw a car sporting DLVR BBS. It took me a few seconds to realize what it meant...deliver babies!!!

And just to top off the automotive experience for the day, the Oscar Meyer Weinermobile was parked out in front of the hotels down the street. 

This was right after the rest of my patio furniture arrived! So just a good day all-around.

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood

It's a scorching 100 degrees today and tomorrow at my old apartment. It's a cool, gorgeous day at the new one.

Seeing boats out in the Marina del Rey channel always makes me want a boat. Talk about getting away from everything. Also, pardon mah fingers.

This is either a heron or egret in the pond at my apartment complex, I'm not sure which. But it was very cool.

Hope you're having a beautiful day!

Recent reading: "Los Angeles Noir"

Los Angeles Noir (Edited by Denise Hamilton)

Part of the Akashic Noir series, this collection includes contributions by the likes of Michael Connelly and Naomi Hirahara. One of the stories, Susan Straight's "The Golden Gopher" earned an Edgar Award. Two additional stories, Connelly's "Mulholland Drive" and Robert Ferrigno's "The Hour When the Ship Comes In" were included in Best American Mystery Stories 2008. 

For me the standouts were "Mulholland Drive" with its double-whammy of a twist regarding the protagonist and some serious karmic retribution, Hamilton's "Midnight in Silicon Alley", set near my old place in Arcadia, "Kinship" by Brian Ascalon Roley, and "What You See" by Diana Wagman. 

There is also a Los Angeles Noir 2 featuring classic stories by legendary L.A. writers including Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain, James Ellroy, Ross MacDonald, and Walter Mosley, also edited by Hamilton.

Back to the beach!!!

Great news - I'm moving back to the beach in a few weeks!

Back to the same apartment complex, in fact. I haven't been this happy in months, the past few years even, as you probably noticed if you caught the full-blown meltdown blog and social media posts that I would periodically put up and then take down later when I'd calmed down a bit.

It's a huge, beautiful apartment and I'll also have an office, plus I'm walking distance to the channel and the beach! And in good news for both Sophie and I, we'll have a fireplace again! So you can all look forward to many, many pictures of Sophie camped out in front of the flames. Those have been missing since the last move. 

We can all also look forward to the return of beautiful sunrise and sunset pictures, now that I'll have access to unobstructed views again. 

Other things that will be resuming are writing and cooking. I haven't been writing much since the beginning of the year due to stress and here's the story on that and not cooking: This will probably sound stupid to most people, but I've had a cricket infestation in my kitchen that wreaked havoc on my bug phobia. It wasn't the reason I moved back to the beach but it accelerated my plans (I'd originally been aiming for summer). So, silver lining and all that. But still, not fun or conducive the preparing food.

What happened is that just before Thanksgiving, I found four crickets in my kitchen within a week. Then it stopped during the holidays. I had a great Christmas and New Year's Day with plans to be busy and productive at home in the new year. Then on January 2, the crickets returned. Even after having Orkin out twice to spray, I was still getting them at the rate of about four a week. It got to the point very quickly where I stopped utilizing my kitchen. I'm a trained chef and I didn't want to go into my kitchen. How sad is that? Finally, in mid-January, I decided fuck it, I'm out of here. I started looking at apartments in Marina del Rey and last weekend I found my new home. 

It will be so nice to lose the stress and be able to focus on writing, plus I really want to start cooking again. I'm looking forward to just being able to make a damn sandwich without freaking out about something gross jumping out at me. And I can look forward to just being happy and healthy and enjoying life. Even before the lockdown, I'd always been a homebody, so my home (and being happy and comfortable in it) is really important to me. And now I will be.

Pretty much the only downside is that it's been really nice to live within a half-hour's drive to The Brother's place. He's not a beach person so going out there to hang out isn't something I can dangle like a carrot to make him do that drive, plus it was convenient when I needed a big strong man's help around the apartment, especially when he became my go-to Dead Bug Disposal Team. But we'll make it work.

I'm so grateful to be going back home. I'm grateful to my leasing agent who was so patient while I looked at God knows how many apartments until I found just the right one. I'm especially grateful for The Brother who was so understanding and encouraging when I delivered the news that I was going back to being at least an hour away again, because I needed to go home. 

I've gone from spending the first couple of months of this year feeling plagued and on edge to feeling so damn fortunate. And I will not be ungrateful again. This is truly a new beginning and I'm not going to screw it up.

And now I've got to get back to packing. 

Life is good.

Well, this sucks

What I want:

What I've got:

What I feel like doing:

I am such an idiot

I hate excessively hot weather. I just melt in it. I can't function in it.

With that in mind, here's my current home's forecast versus my previous home's forecast.

One of these things is not like the other. For starters, one only costs half as much...but as I'm fond of telling other people, you get what you pay for. Maybe one day I'll take that advice myself.

There's no way to say this tactfully, but if my current apartment had become available a few months later than it did...I wouldn't be here. It was 103 on the day I moved. And that was just the beginning of the move-related issues.

*Sigh*

Expecting a little rain, are we?

The Weather Channel.com doesn't care about your feelings. Or your plans for this weekend. Or your plans for next week. Or your plans for next weekend. I'm beginning to notice a pattern here.

If April showers bring May flowers, I wonder what March showers will bring? Hopefully an end to this Corona virus madness and we can go back to living in a world that is merely crazy and not off-the-charts bonkers.

Wowza. Looks like we're finally getting some rain in the Southland.

Been a long time since stuff like this popped up on the forecast:

That's a lot of weather. Looks like we're going to have a rainy Thanksgiving.

Drive carefully, Angelenos!

Success!!! (of the non-writing kind)

Today I had the first major procedure on my teeth since I was fifteen years old when I had a quartet of teeth pulled (two molars and two wisdom teeth). Outside of braces and a few cavities, my mouth had been relatively drama free since then despite the fact that I haven't always been on top of regular cleanings.

Last month I learned I had receding gums and was told that if it wasn't addressed eventually my teeth would start falling out. Luckily, they have a fix for that. They basically cut the gum and pull it away from the teeth, and insert donor tissue (you can also use tissue taken from the roof of your mouth, but then you have an additional site that has to heal), then stitch the gum back up over the new tissue. Not only does this cover the area exposed by the receding gums, but it also prompts the surrounding tissue to regenerate, creating even more of a buffer. And since other than the gums my teeth appear to be in great shape, this should prevent potential tooth loss going forward.

One of the things that really got my attention during the diagnosis is that I assumed it was due to age, but both the dentist who caught the condition and the periodontist who performed the procedure told me that it was more hereditary than anything. My Mom had serious dental issues for at least the last twenty years of her life. Part of the problem is that her previous dentist apparently wasn't really on the ball and by the time she got a good one a lot of the damage was done. She lost countless teeth, had multiple root canals, had to have partials, and was limited to what kinds of food she could eat. And even with all the treatment, she had constant complications as her teeth continued to crumble. Keep in mind that the dentist and periodontist who treated me never met or treated her, so they had no way of knowing how bad her situation had been. My Dad also experienced significant tooth loss the last five or so years of his life, so this stuff definitely runs in the family.

I'm looking at a total of about four weeks to complete recovery, and today was only the top and bottom of the right side. I figure I'll have them do the left side (which isn't nearly as bad) after the first of the year. Luckily the front teeth don't have a problem but I'm guessing if I didn't address the situation, those would have been affected eventually as well.

I've been home for about an hour and while the numbness is still pretty bad, I can tell it's starting to wear off. I'm stocked up on soups, soft food and stuff to make smoothies, so I'm all set for the weekend!

Don't neglect your teeth, people! Given my spotty dental care record, I feel like I may have just dodged a bullet.

By the way, if you're in the Arcadia area and need a periodontist, hit me up for a recommendation. The doctor and his staff were just wonderful and what could have been an extremely stressful experience for me ended up going about as well as I could have hoped for.

8/10/19 update: Okay, so the swelling has started (one side of my face is much fatter than the other, and that's saying something) plus once the numbness wore off I could poke my tongue over there to see what it felt like. It felt sore and pulpy and gross. Guess this is going to be a little rougher than I anticipated, but still not as bad as when I had four teeth pulled at once. Also, I did a bit of a rewrite on the original post, which showed signs of the sedation drugs not quite having worn off when I wrote it :)

Happy Birthday, Mom

Today would have been my Mom's 77th birthday. My brother suggested we "celebrate" by going to lunch at one of her favorite restaurants, and I agreed with him that she would have loved that idea. What could have been a tough day ended up with us watching a car chase and having a really nice lunch (because let's face it - you can't go wrong with North Woods).