Bloggulating

I came to be a blogger only because I received such nice encouragement from my friend who was already blogging at http://gregkaspar.com/gfk-pad/. I looked at his site, read his incredible writings and viewed the results of his photography skills. I certainly was not the photographer that he was nor was I as creative and diverse in my writing style, but I love to write so decided to make the effort. He helped me set up the site (which has since moved) and gave me some pointers. I decided to write every other day as I didn't want the blog to become a chore (and it hasn't). I knew that I had my journal to fall back on for ideas plus I began to pre-write. I am now ahead about six blogs, which pleases me as I like to look back over the writing before I publish. My writings are not deep or challenging -- they are my ideas. I love playing with words as you may have noted in some of my titles, and I love to write about what the reader may have thought about but never seen expressed in print. Thank you for being my readers, whoever you are. Please leave a comment sometime.

Dentalphobia

"You must have gum surgery" or even just, "You need to have that tooth pulled." Anything regarding a trip to the dentist or the othodontist wreaks havoc with my nervous system. It seems to me that I heard eons ago about painless dentistry. What happened? Where is it? Why do we still sit in a chair and listen to that piercing drill and that grinding sound, the same sound you would hear outside with someone drilling cement. Where are the earphones with music playing to keep our minds preoccupied so that we can ignore some of the activity going on in our mouth. I had gum surgery recently. The doctor was capable; the two assistants were very helpful and professional; the job was done. But, for thirty or forty minutes, I was as tense as someone who is facing execution. I prayed for the orthodontist, asking God to give him wisdom as I was certain the procedure was never-ending and might even be fatal. I'm extremely grateful for the dentists who have worked so hard in order to give me chewing capability and a nice smile, but please come up with something to occupy us during the ordeal that takes place in a dental chair.

At Sea with Thom

I have never considered myself an avid cruise ship traveler, but then I have only done three cruises: one to Greece and the Greek isles; one around the Mediterranean starting and ending in Rome; and this last one in the Caribbean (St. Thomas, St. Lucia, Barbados, Granada, Tobago, Aruba and Curacao) from which I just returned yesterday. I learned on this trip that it is not so much where you go but with whom you are traveling. The Caribbean islands, although each has unique qualities to offer, become pretty much of a jumble of scenic memories. It was my traveling companions -- eleven of them, all from Kenosha, Wisconsin -- who made this adventure at sea on the Celebrity Constitution most memorable.