My Dental Visit Reveals Something Strange

“Oh, I’ll have to show you something really unusual that the x-rays have revealed,” my dental hygienist, Krista, happily announced, today, as she was taking x-rays of my teeth.

I thought, “What could be unusual about my teeth?”  And I wanted to turn around and look at the x-ray images on the computer screen behind me, but I had several devices hanging from my mouth at the time so I couldn’t turn around to look.

Krista said, “As soon as we finish up with the x-rays you can take a look.”

After a few minutes she said, “Here, look at this.  This is really interesting.  You have a wisdom tooth that is growing sideways.”  I turned around in the chair and saw the image on the screen.  Sure enough a tooth, embedded beneath the surface of the gum, was positioned sideways, rather than up and down.

Krista said, “Typically, this only tends to happen in those who suffer from serious genetic maladies or occasionally, in strange, aberrant, single-celled life forms.  Or…” she added, “in very rare instances, it’s been known to occur in werewolves.”

She was kidding…of course, and we both laughed.  Although, seconds later, she did dash from the room crying and loudly screaming: “Run for your lives!  There’s a bizarre FREAK in examination room #2!!!”

Now, I’m the one who’s kidding.  She didn’t make fun of me or run from the room.  (Not during today’s exam.)

I asked, “Is this something that could potentially be a problem?  Or become extremely painful?”

She said, “Does it hurt?”

I said, “No.”

She said, “Then it’s probably not a problem.”

When my dentist, Dr. Bob, came in the room we got started talking about other things—important stuff like the scientific correlation between grey hair and wisdom—and I forgot to ask him about my “sideways wisdom tooth”.

But I have a feeling that everything is fine.  Yep, I just have a feeling that things couldn’t be better.

….Although, I’ve noticed some unusual twitching, lately, accompanied by a patch of hair growing on my forehead.  And I feel a strong urge to bark at the moon.  But these things happen to EVERYONE, at one time or another.  Right?

Well, I’ve got to go.  I just saw a cat walking by outside and I can’t help myself, I have to go chase it….

This is one of the nice

 staff persons at

Dr. Bob's office.  

She is holding up

my file in a state of 

fear and terror.