Well aren’t we about to have a Lovefest here. What a pleasant surprise it was to wake up yesterday, kind of pissy and stuffy-headed from a cold that’s kicking my ass, to read such a lovely comment. I’m also not a writer. Never have been, and never have been confident that my writing was anything special. Heck, I’m still not sure of it, so when you described how you relate to my words (much more beautifully and eloquently than I ever could have,) you made my shitty cold disappear!! So thank you, thank you, thank you.

And I’ll add that your description of your own experiences so perfectly captures many of the feelings I had for so many years– in a way I could never have described myself. I think you have a knack for writing yourself. I briefly checked out your site, and will go back there after this. I’m fascinated that you saw a problem with dentistry and created a solution for it. What a great need you are filling! So then I’m left thinking how did you ever come up with this idea? Are there others that do this? Amazing!

Anyway, I’m off to check out your site. Thanks for spending time here and leaving your mark. Oh- also, you might check out Barry Polansky and his blog http://taoofdentistry.com/blog/ He loves dentistry, but often talks about the state of the current model and how much it can be improved. He’s also a Pankey-ite and wrote a book called The Art of the Examination. You might find his writing interesting. Oh, and girl/dental crush reciprocated.

Oh That’s right…..it was the 10 reasons your dentist hates you too. I was writing a post for my oral health blog, because I too am a retiree from the clinical world and have gone over to the wellness side of things, but as an oral health coach instead of weight loss.

When that post first went viral, I remember reading it, chuckling about it and thinking YES….someone’s speakin a language I understand, finally someone authentic is showing up! The first time I saw that post it was early morning and my day had just begun, but tonight I was ambly writing on two topics while somewhat floating thru cyberspace and the blogitty blog world when there it was again…..and all of the replies that followed. So of course I did what anyone else would do, I looked around to see who this mysterious person was….and low and behold it was a cute, young woman…..in my minds eye you were a man with a dark, full set of hair??

By career or hobby, I am not a writer…..I am a 19 yr dental profession jack of all trades turned hygienist, but as fate would have it, I’ve been given the task of content creation for my new and oh so wonderful business venture. I have been writing for about a year or so, and am just starting to get a small feel for what it is that I am doing. It didn’t really even hit until just a few weeks ago when I went to the New Media Expo in Vegas. There I saw thousands of people that blog for…..passion?! I left inspired, ready to craft my story differently, passionately, purposefully, soulfully.

Why do I tell you all of this? Because the words you write flow beautifully. They sink into my pores and get into my veins. I feel comforted and uncomfortable at the same time. I want to continue reading. I laugh at the things you say, because I too have lived them. I have had a love hate relationship with this career, mainly because the experiences I have experienced.

Like you I am grateful that I learned how to communicate and help facilitate positive changes with people. This has come through years of shoving my foot down my own throat, and stepping on toes. At one point in time like everyone else in the dental world, I wanted to save the world one toothbrush at a time. I proved that jumping in front of people yelling look at me, look what I know, isn’t it great really didn’t work on people, and that “should”-ing on people didn’t help them whatsoever. People go where they feel understood and validated, learning this has helped me successfully help many people become independently healthy in regards to their oral wellness, which to me is the greatest gift I can give. It saddens me that the current model of dentistry holds patients hostage instead of giving them the freedom to be healthy…….and THEN I read that you are a Pankey-ite…..girl/dental crush confirmed.

Forage on fellow renegade, I think I like your style!!

Yeah! As soon as I started to read the post, I understood that! But as you said, there is a lot more not just weird but crazy stuff out there… 😀

Thanks, Ganesh. I must make it clear that it was not me in that picture! I was amazed that I was actually able to find that photo on line. I mean, who does that?? But then again, there is a lot more weird stuff out there.

Lots of material there! Miss you too! Sat may just be a possibility. Is it at 12 or 10:30? The meetup says noon.

It’s all yours!! 😉

‘Whet the Bed’ – I am soooo stealing that ’cause you never know when I might decide to write foodie porn 🙂

Laura, I actually couldn’t wait for you to see this title! Thanks. I’ve obviously thought about it a lot, and I think there are so many factors that come in to play here. I think sometimes people don’t realize the sacrifice it takes to really make the changes. They think it’s going to be easier than it is, and the temptations can be so great that they lose the will to fight them. They also don’t realize that the changes are for life and that it will require constant work, or at least a change in mindset.

Thanks for your thoughts, and I hadn’t thought of the “‘wet’ dream” thing. That’s funny. Though my spell check kept wanting me to say “whet the bed” instead of “wet the bed.”