Dentist, antigen test, and packing

Several hours from now, I'm getting my COVID-19 antigen test done. It's finally hitting me that I'm about to travel.

Packing is going well. I'm nearly done, although I feel like I'll miss something.

My dental appointment went well. My teeth are great. They feel so clean.

Copycat diva, night guard, and two years being single

I returned to work yesterday. I dislike dealing with a diva who can't word things herself and can't think for herself. She actually copied and pasted two sentences of mine in her e-mail aimed at two other people, and copied me on it.

Wow. Such a jerk. 

My call was correct. I didn't even bother waiting for her e-mail to be sent out to seek confirmation from others. I knew what to do. She didn't.

I am picking up my night guard later on today. I'm looking forward to it.

Today marks two years since the ex broke up with me. It has taken me a long time to heal. I am finally there after kicking him to the curb and telling him not to contact me. I am proud of myself for being the one who didn't want him in my life in any form.

Napping and appointments

I did a lot of napping on Monday. I enjoyed it.

I spent the last hour consolidating my tea collection. I have both looseleaf and bags in different areas. I put them all in one big storage area. I'm pretty pleased. We'll see how it goes.

I was supposed to get a confirmation call from my dentist. As expected, it never happened. It's for 10:30 am later today, but the woman said that it would be between 10 am and 10:30 am. The uncertainty is annoying.

Tomorrow afternoon, I get my winter tires swapped out. It was a good call to take the day off.

Clean teeth and thoughts about coughing up funds

I have clean teeth.

Before getting my teeth impressions for my night (mouth) guard, my dentist noticed some "potholes" in a couple of molars and patched those ups. You could see a bit of the dentin, which was scary. It was a cost that I wasn't expected, but I managed to have enough in my emergency fund to handle it.

With my nightguard, the office wanted a deposit for $200. I told her that I didn't have that much. Instead, I managed to put down a deposit of $68 dollars. It costs well over $400 for it. I frankly feel that the restorations and cleaning are my down payment, along with being a patient for nearly two decades.

I'm not a fan of paying up first. I frankly feel that the office is making sure that it gets paid immediately and inconveniencing customers. I learned that I don't need to file the claim myself -- that the office still does it. It doesn't jive with the woman's explanation when I pressed her about it last week. She said that the office was short-staffed. Yet, you can still file claims on behalf of your patients. Interesting...

I dislike policies that only make sense to a business and don't benefit patients.

Safe dental appointment and a day off today

My dental appointment went well. I felt extremely safe. There were tons of safety precautions in place. I ended up sanitizing my hands four times!

The insurance procedure was better explained to me. The dental office asks that you pay for services upfront. It files a claim on your behalf instead of filing a claim yourself. Nice!

I am fortunate that my dental appointments are uneventful. I thought that not having been to the dentist for a year would require a ton of plaque being scraped off my teeth. Nope, my hygienist said that I've been doing a pretty good job in that department.

Today, I have a day off. I'm taking my car in to get my winter tires installed. I then have to run an errand. Other than those plans, I have the rest of the day to casually figure out what else I'd like to do.

Dental appointment

It has been a year since I visited my dentist. I finally go in for my appointment in a few hours.

Things will be different. In the past, the dental office filed my claims on my behalf. With the pandemic, I have to pay upfront and file it myself.

The downside is that paying upfront isn't cheap. However, my insurance does have a quick payment turnaround. Funds from any claim that I file directly goes into my chequing account.

I have to call the office from the parking lot. I also have to wear shoe covers that the dental office will provide.

It's definitely a change going to the dentist's office.

Flu shot, dentist, and Somebody Feed Phil

On Saturday, I'm getting my flu shot at my local drugstore. During this pandemic, you must book an appointment online for your flu shot. In the past, you could just walk in.

In a couple of weeks, I have a dental appointment. I haven't been there for a year. I was supposed to have my appointment in June, but it was rescheduled, as it needed to prepare its safety protocols. We'll see what happens.

It's the weekend. I am currently watching new episodes of Somebody Feed Phil. I enjoy it.

Night guard to help with grinding my teeth in my sleep

I grind my teeth at night while I sleep. As of late, I wake up with a sore jaw. It's likely due to stress and not working out as much as I should.

I decided to haul out my night guard. I got it from my dentist over a year ago. It still fits! I wore it last night and noticed a huge difference. My jaw wasn't all that sore when I woke up.

Luckily, the weekend is within reach. Yay!

Rescheduled dental appointment and relaxing

I was supposed to have my bi-annual dental appointment next week. My dentist's office is still closed. Instead, my appointment has been rescheduled to sometime in November.

I am relieved. My electric toothbrush that I've had for the past three months has been doing a great job.

On Sunday, I spent the day cooking and relaxing. It was great.

I'm relaxing now before I head to bed. I got a bit tense last hour. I'm still trying to figure out what is making me anxious. I'm now thinking that it's not work-related.

Predictable dentist's appointment and recognition at work

My dentist's appointment was predictable. I got x-rays done on my teeth. My teeth were cleaned. I have no cavities. Predictable is good.

On Monday, I went to an all-employee meeting at work. My manager rolled out a project that our team has been working hard on for several months. He had a slide recognizing all of us by listing our names.

For the last 1.5 months, I have been working closely with a developer to document a new way of installing software. We worked well together.

Well, his manage had a slide that listed only software developers on his team. He didn't put me on it. It didn't sit well with me.

On Tuesday, this developer sent me a recognition e-mail, which is a part of our internal program, saying nice things about working with me to get these steps documented. I appreciated it and responded back. My manager saw this recognition and also acknowledged it.

It's nice to be recognized from time to time.

Busy packing, going to appointments, and working

I spent some time packing for my staycation. I am pretty late with this task for my standards. I have been trying to wrap up work.

My doctor's appointment went well. I have another appointment today. I then get a bit of a break before I have a dental one in a couple of week.

Ah, the excitement... haha!

Dentist, dry mouth, and Internet connection problems... fun!

On Tuesday, I had a dentist appointment at 9 am. I had pointed out to my team that I would be away for roughly 1.5 hours and then would continue working from home.

I typically have a one-on-one meeting with my manager every other Tuesday at 10:30 am. He sent me an e-mail, asking if he needed to reschedule. I said no, which should have been implied that I would make it home in time.

My regular teeth-cleaning and exam appointment has been fairly uneventful for a few years now. Sure, I have had three different hygienists (not my fault), but my teeth not having any issues have been the constant.

Sure enough, my appointment was over just after 10 am. I drove to Starbucks to get an iced black tea, and then drove home. I was home well before 10:30 am.

I have dry mouth. I am not sure whether I have mentioned it in my blog, but I have had it for over a decade. Going to the dentist makes the condition worse for a bit, as you have your mouth open for most of the appointment and the suction tool that is used doesn't make things better! It's the usual thirty-minute wait after you have your fluoride rinse where you can drink anything.

By the time I got my drink, I could consume it. Yay!

Anyway, I got home and noticed that my connections to various servers on my laptop had died. I also didn't have wifi on my phone. Sure enough, my modem-router needed to be rebooted. I knew that I would be down when 10:30 am hit.

I have our corporate messaging app on my phone. I dialled into my meeting that way, so I was on time.

My manager is constantly late. Today, I hoped that he truly was late. Someone was on my side. He was late by fifteen minutes.

I rebooted my laptop. My wifi was up and running. All was well. I dialled in through my laptop, which was essential for me to share information on my screen with him.

My manager finally got to the office and dialled in. He asked again whether we should reschedule. I said no. We could do our meeting in thirty minutes.

The last one-on-one meeting was horrific. He was in a foul mood. Today, he was much better. He said that there should be more employees like me. I took that compliment, as it is rare for him to dish it out. I hope that he stays nice for a while.

X is for Xylimelts

This post is by far the most challenging to write about. It is tough enough to find a word that begins with x that is not scientific. Sure, I could have chosen xylophone. I played one for kicks in elementary school and loved it.

Naturally, since my blog primarily describes my spanking experiences and thoughts, you would think that I would go with x-rated. I just don't feel like it.

Instead, I am in search of Xylimelts. In a roundabout way, this post is about oral health and how I have managed to give blowjobs while suffering from dry mouth. How is that for a blog post!

Years ago, there were anomalies with my blood test results. I ended up being diagnosed with Sjogren's syndrome. Despite most people getting such a diagnosis well into their forties, I got mine a decade earlier, in my early thirties. My case is considered mild. My doctor says that many people lead normal lives, with mild side effects.

The only major side effect that I experience is dry mouth. I compensate by drinking plenty of water, sucking on sugar-free candy, and using products such as Biotene that help produce saliva.

The funny thing is that whenever I give my guy a blowjob, I have no issues with saliva production. At first, I thought that the oral flavoured gel was helping me out. However, when I do not have oral gel with me, my saliva production is fine. My guy has never complained that my mouth wasn't lubricated enough.

I recently visited my dentist. The first time was for my routine cleaning. I went back there last week to have a cavity redone. Sure enough, my mouth was dry after both appointments.

My dental hygienist is wonderful. She always keeps me in mind. She recommended trying Xylimelts. You basically stick one of these tablets on your gums at the back of your mouth and it dissolves over time while helping to produce saliva.

She said that I could get it from most major drug stores. I have tried Shoppers Drug Mart, Rexall, Target, and Walmart, and have not found it. I am not sure whether this product or something similar is available in the States, but I will be there soon to do some retail research. It looks like I can order them online, which I am grateful for.

I am looking forward to giving this product a shot and see how things go.