Thursday, January 26, 2017

An Adjustment, A Conference... And A Lineup

We headed of for Los Algodones, Mexico at 8:00 AM precisely for my 11:00 AM appointment. We made it to the office at 10:30 with a little time to spare. I was not happy with my partial plates and hoped they could adjust them to fit better. Well, the denturist looked at them, the dentist looked at them and they both decided they fit as well as they could ever be expected to. They sent them out for some grinding down and shaping and when they returned they did not feel any better. I simply hate the f*&%#g things and will not be happy with them. Period.

The main job of the upper and lower partial is to fill in a two tooth on each side space at the back of my mouth where I have not had teeth for many years. I am quite used to this empty space and have learned to chew just fine without those teeth. In my mind they are not necessary and are certainly not worth the trouble of carrying two partial plates around in my mouth thank you very much.

The other job the upper one does is to fill the gap where my right eye tooth used to be before it broke off at the gumline and was extracted. They could not include this tooth in the bridge they built because it would have made the bridge to long (large) so they put it on the partial. The solution is a single implant which cannot be considered until the extraction has had at least 3 - 4 months to heal.If at that time I still want it, I need an MRI of the area for $150 to make sure the jaw structure is strong enough for it. If it is they will do the implant for $900. Then I wait for six months for all this to heal and then get the implant crown for $400. Then I am done. Like they told me, I have to wait for the implant and maybe I will get used to the partials. Don't hold your breath!

By now ir was about 1:30 PM and the lineup to get back to the US was about two blocks long! The border guys are trying to impress their new boss and are making it difficult to cross the border! It took us two hours to get to the front and I then fully expected the agent to say, "Aren't you the guy who called Trump an asshole on Facebook?" I am not sure how I would have answered that and thankfully he did not ask it. He simply asked what I was bringing across and grinned when I pointed to my teeth and waved us through. Phew! Made it again!

10 comments:

  1. I'm convinced that the objective of the customs at the Algodones crossing is to impede rather than accommodate. Seriously?! Funneling large numbers of people into two gates? Especially during the seasonal period when snowbirds are going there. How about making the custom folks park across the street like everyone else and expanding the entry to four or six more in that parking area next to the entry building.

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  2. Yeah, partial dentures can kinda suck, but you do get used to them. And that line at Algodones sucks too.

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  3. Years ago we spent over 2 hours in line a few times, now we try to go over before Christmas when not so many people. Good luck with the teeth.

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  4. Wow, my brother and sister-in-law were there yesterday too. They said the line sucked and it took 2 1/2 hours.

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    1. I didn't notice one Muslim in line. If there had of been it could have been days long.

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  5. It was nice to finally meet you, have been enjoy your blog for quite some time now and thank you very much for sharing your life and thoughts.

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  6. Croft, your teeth are gorgeous! (I'm sure the rest of you is too, but I wouldn't know about that. Ha!). I'm just catching up on all my back reading; Beach and I have been roaming the Caribean islands for about three weeks enjoying shorts and t-shirt weather. Beach brought back a bad head cold for a souvenir.

    I kind of agree with you about the tooth implant if your bone density and structure will allow it. However, if you can identify exactly the particular places in your mouth that is bothering you the most with the plates in place, maybe your dentist can do more adjustment or prescribe a topical numbing medication for those areas until the healing is complete. It's the same medication "Numbs It" we rubbed on infants' gums years ago when they were teething, but pediatricians don't allow parents to use that medication anymore on infants.

    Dee
    Summerville, SC

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    1. Thanks Dee but it is not pain I feel just the annoying, uncomfortable feeling of having a large foreign object in my mouth all the time that I have to eat and talk around.

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    2. Croft, I certainly understand the talk part; when Beach got his plate, he sounded like he had been drinking one too many beers or like kids with new braces on their teeth. But, it looks like your dentist did a beautiful job.

      Dee

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