Let us put by some hour of every day for holy things...

I will not doubt, though all my ships at sea
Come drifting home with broken masts and sails.
I will believe the Hand which never fails,
From seeming evil, worketh good for me.
And though I weep because those sails are tattered,
Still will I cry, while my best hopes lie shattered:
I trust in Thee.
--Ann Kimmel

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines, the labor of the olive shall fail and the fields shall yield no meat, the flock shall be cut off from the fold and there shall be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. Habakkuk 3:17-18

Friday, February 10, 2012

Pain and Its Effect on Creativity

Listing to the Muzak,
Hearing people scream,
Sitting in the waiting room
Reading cr--py magazines
With a toothache...
This is it, pal....
ROOT CANAL!

(Weird Al Yankovic)


For the past week I've been having intermittent episodes of jaw pain, getting worse as the days progressed.  I have no idea what brought it on. I went to far as to look up TMJ on WebMD, and to make an appointment with the dentist for next Tuesday.  Then yesterday, the whole situation escalated and it was all I could do to function.  I attempted to keep busy with projects in order to keep my mind off the agony, but once you see this crazy teething doll I produced under the influence of jaw torture, you'll see I wasn't terribly successful!  Moral of story, don't waste time or materials when feeling rotten, unless you like the sort of surreal results that occur.  Fortunately, Benita (at 5 1/2 months) will not be too discriminating!

This ghastly little toy features skinny, floppy limbs for chewing and grasping, crinkly cellophane in the body for making interesting noise, and a squeaker in the head for Exciting Biting.  Ugly as a mud fence!  I must try again after I'm somewhat recovered.

Meanwhile, I managed to reschedule the dentist's appointment and my husband drove me down for it late this morning. It turns out it's not my jaw at all that's the problem, I have an infection under a molar and have to have a dreaded root canal.  As the patriarch Job said in rather different circumstances, "That which I greatly feared has come upon me."  I've heard such root canal horror stories!  But after a grim night of nonstop pain (lying on my side with a bag of frozen peas draped across my face!) and two days of being able to eat little more than yogurt or pudding, I'm ready to beg for the privilege of being of going under the knife..er, drill...whatever!

The dentist sent me home with three prescriptions--penicillin, some super-duper ibuprofen, and Vicodin, if needed, so I can sleep. Supposedly, 24-48 hours on the antibiotics will alleviate most of the pain, praise God. And I'm finding the super-advil renders me more or less sane and functional, as long as I don't sneeze or try to chew anything.  But I can sure tell when the dose is wearing off!  Speaking of which, another five minutes to go before I can take the next one!

Okay, enough about teeth.  


Two pleasant bits of news:  Last night I sold my crocheted  retro TP poodle on Etsy!  As fun as it is to sell vintage items, it's even more satisfying to sell something I've made myself.  Pink Poodle Girl is going to adorn a vintage fifties camper/trailer in Texas. Her new owner sounds like a most delightful individual!

Another interesting crafty happening was a fabric find I made at the Goodwill. It's by Daisy Kingdom, usually purveyors of ooze, as far as I'm concerned, but this 3-yard remnant is so bizarrely ugly I couldn't resist it.  I've found out it's called "Elinor's Dolls" by a cloth doll designer named Elinor Peace Somebody-or-other (I've forgotten her last name) and it came out in the mid to late 1990s.  I gather it's a rare find.  I've only found one other piece of this fabric for sale on either eBay or Etsy, and it's just a small 24" piece.  Hopefully I can find a buyer. The print reminds me of Cirque de Soleil, or maybe the Beatles' song, "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite".  Very creepy-carnival, Mardis Gras grotesque.  Here are a couple of quick pics:


Okay, I can't take this anymore and must go pop some meds...  Bye for now!


2 comments :

  1. Oh, I've heard many easy-peasy root canal stories and I hope you will be another. Surely the dental pain that went into the creation of Benita's teething toy will aid in her own relief! Best wishes on your recovery.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ouch! Hope you feel better!
    I just added your new toilet paper poodle to my favorites on etsy :)

    ReplyDelete