The Drill Press
Parenthetically Speaking
Posted on May 20, 2008 by Brad Hall
Back again with some notable changes to the site. First and foremost (if you’re reading this, that is) is the official naming of the blog: The Drill Press. We test drove a couple other options and that one felt best…though I hope using the word drill isn’t too harsh. It’s not a word that’s even spoken in our office and very little in the profession. We call them handpieces. It’s of course an attempt to remove or soften language associated with a potentially negative perception. Heck, in our office (like I’m sure in many others) there are a lot of words that just never get spoken (some of which might surprise you).
Shot: This is uber-taboo. It’s an expletive for me no matter what end of the syringe I’m on. (We deliver local anesthetic.)
Drill: The noun to us as I’ve already said is handpiece, and we’ve got several types. We substitute the word prepare when we need it as a verb.
Cavity…...
You know what? This is really not even fun to break down. It has to be excruciating to read. So to summarize and move on: The blog has been named and we don’t like to use words that scare people…next.
OK. I’m glad that’s behind us. Let’s talk about something fun. First, congratulations to Jon Lester who threw the 18th no-hitter in Red Sox history last night. It was just 21 months after he was diagnosed with Lymphoma.
Jon is from Tacoma, Washington but has hung out in my neck of the woods a little thanks to his friendship with current Red Sox AAA farmhand and Buena Vista native Chad Spann. Chad is currently Buena Vista’s most famous resident. He was drafted by the Sox in ’02 out of high school and by virtue of making it to the minors’ highest level is now a big league injury away from the show. He just got married (I make no comment on that fact’s affect on his chances to make it to the bigs other than this parenthetical head nod/eye brow raise), and we all continue to root for him. The fact is, Chad, we root for you as if we were rooting for ourselves because we are. I, like my Dad, and many others from back home check your stats daily and live vicariously through you. Don’t ever give it up…
You’re right. This blog is getting ridiculoso….more tangential than a Larry Stubbs geometry lesson.
You know what, though…sometimes you’ve just got to ride it. Hang on guys, we’re gonna power through (Miss Carol, you were right, I’m gonna start eating breakfast. My sugar’s a little low).
Hey…how about my niece and nephew. When last we left them on the blog, Macy was poised to perform (eh hem, star) in her dance recital and we were going to get to see Jordan play baseball for the first time this season. Needless to say, neither disappointed. Macy did not let her creativity be stifled by some formulaic regimented (some might even say cliched) line dance. She instead performed an interpretive piece that I believe was an artistic commentary on the subjugation and isolation of the unique, the invariable loss of our innocence, and probably both a protest and a case for the war. Jordan on the other hand hit the ball hard.
Dr. Rockman came and gave a great talk on ways to improve communication with patients. I believe it was well received by the study club and the other Athens area dentists in attendance. He and I had the best day talking about cases and MLB.
The big office news is that I haven’t changed the mix on the IPOD in about six weeks and I think Susan is about to mutiny. She actually brought in her own mp3 player. I have not been as vigilant as I was initially about changing the rotation and I got to thinking….this might be the mix I’d take on the desert island. I think I might have actually dialed it in for myself…probably not, but it’s pretty close. Feel free to make suggestions for song additions to our mix in the comments. I will consider them….(Jordan, no Toby Keith please).
I’m reluctant to comment on the Braves for fear of jinx. Smoltz went on the DL shortly after my last post about him. I will just say this. We (obviously) have got to improve our road record and play well against our division. No better time to do that than now. Glavine makes his first start against the Mets since he came back home today. We just need to get healthy and play to our potential (I’m talking to you Mark Teixiera).
I hope everyone has a safe and happy Memorial Day. We will be honoring our fallen service men and women by taking care of patients (sorry Jeff).
If any of you have any blog topics you’d like to discuss, post them in the comments. (Warning: Blog tease coming up) Next time I’ll relate a life lesson taught to me by Kim utilizing Zell Miller as a model for two sides of the same coin.
See you in the chair.
Tagged: drill press, jon lester, red sox, braves, chad spann, buena vista, larry stubbs, dr rockman, athens area dentists
Comments
I can't believe I posted today without commenting on the most important news of the day....Dad, congratulations on getting your braces off. Hopefully I'm now a little less deep in the Dog House. Also, the blog didn't do Jordan justice on how awesome he's been playing. A couple of 3 for 3's and an unassisted triple play in the last week. I'm anxious to see how high he goes in the June draft ;)
Please wait…