Smiles

So I was at a party tonight.
And people smiled.

People smile with their teeth showing.

I don't.

I take alot of photos, yo?

So I see alot of smiles. 

Mine always look, uh, hesitant. Or, um, controlled. 

I am very aware of my teeth.

Which, yes, are straight. (Thanks for some dentist deciding, back before I had boobs, to remove 12 permanent (adult) teeth from my mouth so there wouldn't be 'crowding'.)

But. 

Gums.

And bad roots.

And discolouration.

And aging.

And small mouth, no lips.

All of this equals me being a nob about my lower facial region. 

And now? I'm going to have another permanent tooth removed?

Will it cause all the others to shift?

Will I end up with a huge gap in my tooth-line that everyone will see?

I did some experimenting. To see for myself.

In the end, after all that self analysis, I put my usual smile back on and drove over to the party:

Also. 

I think it's time for a new phone cover. 

Three things I'm thankful for:

1. Half of the cost of getting that tooth extracted, a bone grafted (bones come from a bone bank. Human bone dust, swine bone dust and bovine bone dust EWWWWWWWW), a peg implanted and another crown plunked on top is covered by my dental plan. STILL. Is a tooth worth $2500?

2. I have older friends who are showing me the way. The way to age. The way to do family. The way to have friends. The way to smile. 

3. iPhone cameras. 

Shalom,

xo