Old in New Beginnings

I saw myself as an old man recently. I don’t mean like I had a vision or a dream or something abstract in either of those manners. I went to take a makeup dental appointment. It was supposed to be in the summer, but COVID-19 put all that on pause. I was reminded when I started experiencing a metal-like taste in my mouth. I went to my reschedule appointment, and they wanted me to fill out some additional paperwork since my insurance had changed. I filled it out on a tablet, and it required me to take a picture of myself. When I accessed the photo app, I saw myself on the screen, and I looked old, senior citizen-ish, even. I presume the effect was a combination of the angle, lighting, and screen quality, but no matter how I tried to adjust those elements, I couldn’t fully mitigate the result.

I don’t look like that when I see myself in a mirror. At least, I don’ think I look like that. I take care of myself and do the best with what I got. I go to the gym. I do cardiovascular exercise. I’m being more diligent about doing my resistance training. I hope I age gracefully. At the very least, I hope I look better than I projected myself looking.

The results of the dental appointment didn’t assuage those insecurities. As I’ve mentioned before, I have periodontal disease. I’ve kept the disease in check with a nightly routine of brushing, flossing, rinsing with mouthwash, and utilizing a water flosser. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, that routine has lost its effectiveness, and those pockets in my gums have started deepening, mostly around my back molars. The dentist has required me to come in every 3 months for a cleaning, otherwise, those teeth may eventually have to be pulled. I’m wondering if I should just have them pulled and get dental implants anyway. I don’t mind the extra visits, it’s just when the clean, the hygienist inevitably scrapes too low, and it stings like Hell. Ever since that visit, I’ve felt a pain in my upper, right-side molars that continually nags at me. I don’t know if they aggravated something or did something careless that somehow caused an infection, but absolutely sick of this bravo sierra.

My knee is getting better. To put it more accurately, it’s feeling better. I’ve started doing some Muay Thai shadow boxing drills I copied from YouTube. The impact is much lower than that of running. It’s even lower than elliptical running. I don’t think I’ll be doing too many flying elbow or knee strikes, but at least I’m doing something. I watched an interview with 1980’s martial arts action star, Cynthia Rothrock, who apparently has no ACL left in her knees. At one point, her doctor did some tests to see how she could still kick, let alone walk, with her knees in such a condition, and they’re apparently supported by an overabundance of muscle in her quadriceps and hamstrings. The point is, there’s hope for me yet.

I had my first student success story. One of my students, Gaby, is graduating this semester, and she’s been working as a server for about a decade. She mentioned to me that she was looking for a new job where she wouldn’t have to bar tend any more. I had an employer who was looking to hire a prospective graduate. I thought Gaby might be a good fit, so I had her send me her resume. I also sent her one of my old cover letters, so she could use it as a guide in writing her very first cover letter. I tuned them up a little bit to highlight all her great qualities, and submitted them to the employer in question. I never heard back, but I found a local CPA firm that was looking to fill an entry level position. I had Gaby update her files for the new employer, and she got an interview. I gave her a quick prep on the interview process: what type of questions the interviewers would ask, how she could best answer them, what questions she should ask, and what mannerisms she could display to impress them. She aced the process and was immediately invited back for a second “visit” (as opposed to a second interview) that Friday. On Monday, they offered her $2k more than what she wanted. Now, she no longer has to spend her nights and weekends grinding her feet into the floor serving drinks to rowdy, grabby, obnoxious drunks. Instead, she’s a business professional working a more standard 9-to-5 in a part-time position with benefits. She has her nights and weekends free for the first time in years upon years, and she even has her own office! She’s the first student I took from the entry level ACCT 1100 course to a graduate with a professional career. I’m so proud of her; it feels great!