Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas everyone. I hope you all had a great day/ weekend! I sure did. Well for the most part. I sure did miss my friends and family. It was really hard not being with them. I could not even call them cause I would have just cried. Well enough sadness...

I love male wrapping. It is the best! This is a pic of my gift from Dan. It is precious to me! There is about 100 yards of packing tape and the wrapping paper is pieced together. I love it! It meant so much to me.

This is what Portland looked like on Christmas Day. We have had record snow. Notice the street that is not plowed. That is how most of the streets are here in Portland. They just dont plow the side streets. I live on a major street that connects to the train/bus system and gets you East and West bound on one of the freeways so it was plowed. But the snow was pushed in front of the driveway so deep we barely made it out. And since the town never gets snow there are no snow shovels. So I shovelled our walk with a garden shovel. It sucked. You can see it a little in the pic. Well it was annoying.

This is the same shot today Dec 28. Yesterday the temp did not get below 37 and it rained all day. There was some serious floods. Anyway, It is amazing that all the snow under the cars and on the street is almost completely gone. It is crazy to me. No wonder the city does not have snow shovels if it melts this fast all the time. Anyway this is just another manifestation of the difference between OR and UT.

So if you are dying to know what was in the box....Dan gave me the best gift ever. It was a flat cast iron pan for tortillas or big pancakes aka crepes. I love it! I have needed one for about 5 years and have not got one. Now I do and I am so happy. I hope you all got exactly what you needed and wanted! Need to go work on my New Years plans....what to do what to do.

Winter Wonderland

Yesterday Portland received about 8 inches of snow. Then in the evening it started to rain and the wind started to blow. The result was freezing rain and a cocoon of ice around everything. Here is a pic of the bushes in my back yard. I had to wade through knee high drifts to get this picture. There was a crust of ice on top of the snow. It was great.

Here are some more leaves.

Poor little tree and cherry fruit things...see the bark on the trunk of the tree; yeah it is ice.

This is not a class room door window in an old LDS church it is my bedroom window. The outside is completely frozen. The wind blew the rain and it froze there. It looks just like frosted glass all bumpy and old school. I love it!

This is my truck. I can see the completely perfect layer of ice on every inch of my truck it is hard to photograph but you get the idea.


It is cold here in PDX. I hope y'all are keeping warm and dry where ever you are!

Good News

I finally have good news!! Last night at 6:36 pm Dr Mueller called me and offered me the hygiene job in his office downtown. I am so excited about this! This is the job I have been wanting. Dr M has taken his sweet time in deciding who he was going to hire. I am just so stinking happy it is me!!

Today I had to commute to McMinnville over an hour away in the snow...not bad since the news told everyone to stay home. Anyway when I got there I discovered that the office had a flood. Last night a pipe broke in the fire sprinkler system and backed up into the office. All the ops were damaged...except hygiene. So I worked 3 hours. Then my next 2 pts were new and since all xray machines were wet and shorted out we called the pts to have them reschedule. The Dr felt so bad about my day being shot but what can you do? So I came home early and now get to celebrate with my cute boyfriend!

We are celebrating because of his grades....found out yesterday and my job! I wonder what we will discover...

Let it Snow

I have heard of cities shutting down because of 1 inch of snow....I call that city Las Vegas. But Portland??? We are in the Northwest. There is snow here, snowboarding is huge. So why is the city unprepared for snow? I am not sure. Anyway, we have church @ 1 pm. At 9:43 a voice mail was left on my phone telling me that church was cancelled. I was surprised. Dan was not. I got up around 7 this am for a potty run and noticed the light dusting of snow. I went back to bed because I really really wanted a sleep-in and Dan actually turned his phone to silent so I could (he has tried to get me to sleep in with him but his phone vibrates every time he gets a text or email so it never fails on sleep in mornings it goes of btn 6-7 and then I cannot go back to sleep). So I go back to bed and sleep for about an hour. I rolled over and still being attached to my snugly husband I grabbed my book and read while he slept. I got up again about 9 am and there was about a whole inch of snow. Our bathroom clock has a thermometer in it and it registered 48 degrees. So I turned on the heater...we only have electric heat and since we are poor we try to keep it off as much as possible but 48 is freaking cold. So I run back to bed and snuggle my warm husband who wakes up because I am all sorts of chilly! We snuggle for about an hour and then get up. So during that time we both received several calls telling us church was cancelled and that Portland city was requiring all people to have chains on their tires if they were driving around etc. I was laughing I mean an inch....Dan turns on the tv and the news is broadcasting non-stop about this storm.

There is footage of people sliding down the bridges that go over the river etc. It was kind of funny. I mean who does not know bridges are pure ice during snow storms because there is freezing air under the road? Anyway, Dan bundles up and goes out to see if the beloved 4-runner will start. It struggled but quickly came to life so we went for some fun in the snow! There were not many people around. We did donuts in the church parking lot and had a good old time!

Now we are home and chicken enchiladas are cooking in the oven. It smells all cozy and wonderful in here. Dan is playing Halo and I am blogging:) Now you are updated on our minute to minute details.

Still no word on the downtown job. So currently I have been offered a job in Lake Oswego at the high end dentistry place for 2 days a week one of which is Sat. I don't want this job but will take it if I have to. Then I have been offered a job in McMinnville 1 hr 20 min drive for 41 miles for one day a week...Thursdays. I am still waiting to hear if I get the job downtown which is Tues, Wed, Thurs and one Fri a month. I work there again on Tues So I am hoping that I will get the job! I really want it. Now if McMinnville will change their day to Monday I will be set and can tell Lake Oswego no thanks. That is my dream! Well other than that I am hunkering down for this 'Artic Blast' storm we are having and I am kind of glad I do not work tomorrow for Albertsons. Now I can just stay inside and let everyone else commute in the crazy weather! Well, hope you all are keeping warm and loving life....I am!!!

(pic....first one is from the front door looking at Dan's Durango, second is from the back door of the 4-runner and my Tundra, third is our backyard....)

PS. Dan is soooo like my mother when it comes to snow. She loves to be out in it and slide around etc. Dan was so happy when we were outside playinig in the snow. He was like a little kid! It was so fun to be with him!

My Mess

This is the view with my back to our front door. Dont you love the wall hanging half on the blinds and half on the wall....Dan and I are Martha Stewart wanna be ha ha ha.

This is the view of my living room from the computer chair in the other pic. We are true decorators....I do have a nativity on the tv but you cannot see it...

This is our kitchen from the doorway of the living room. I need to do the dishes ha ha ha. But notice the flowers....

Dan gave them to me just because! I am so lucky! I personally do not have any vases so I had to steal an empty Amoxicillin bottle from the pharmacy.....one day I will have a grown up vase!

Here is our door. Dan does not have a stocking...so sad so I made him one at work today!

The pharmacist Christie thought I was the most cleaver girl in the west! I personally just thought Dan might get a kick out of his Viagra, Cialis and Levitra Christmas stocking made from a brown paper bag with 'do not drink alcohol' 'take with food' 'keep in the refrigerator' stickers on it and cotton from drug bottles....I am pretty proud of it myself. Dan has not seen it yet since he is still at work. I'll let you know how he feels about it:)

Still no word on the job front....except I have no hours next week for Albertsons! that sucks big time. I need every penny I can earn right now! I guess I have to stay in OR for Christmas:(

My working interview....

So the interview went alright. I worked 8.75 hours. I cleaned the assistant Pavel's teeth...yup the office in downtown Portland has only one assistant. He rocks though. I had 1 no show and 1 cancel. But Dr Mueller said stay on the clock visit with the staff, read a dental magazine, do whatever. That attitude alone made me want to work for him! He is younger than I am but I am ok with that. He is very laid back. He is conservative when it comes to restorations and I really really want this job. I really hope I get it! So 'Becky' is on his schedule to work next Monday but it does not say working interview it just has her name as working like it does tomorrow with the temp working. So I dont know if Becky is having a working interview or just working. Does not matter anyway, Dr M told me he would let me know before Friday if I had the job or not. There is a temp on wed and thurs and a working interview on Friday so I am thinking that either Dr M is crazy....or I got the job. I really hope I got the job.

Becky episode 2

So back to Becky. She told me that is required to do SRP on any 4mm pocket. So she does a lot. She does not like it but does it because Bob asked her to. Have I mentioned Becky is a year out of school? Well Becky was seeing this man who had dumped $25,000 into his mouth at Bob's office. Then when a lower anterior bridge failed he was pissed. So he wrote this letter to Bob explaining that he had been keeping his teeth clean and that it was Bob's fault the bridge failed. The patient even said...your hygienist said I am doing good and bumped my recalls to 6 month. Now all of us RDH have done this. We think a patient is doing good. There is no pocketing there is no inflammation there is no calculus so after a year of this we bump them to 6 mo recall. Well Bob flipped his lid. He gave Becky a formal warning and wrote her up etc. She was devastated. She wished Bob had just explained that you dont do this and she would not have done it again. But instead Bob called her into the office and said that he was cutting her hours and hiring another RDH.

Crappy huh?

Well, I was looking at their schedules when I was there and the hygiene schedule was very very low. During the last 3 months there was not one full 8 hour day. Becky told me that it was common to only have 3 pt in one day and be expected to come in for those 3 hours and then leave. So I am not too keen on this job and being expected to clock out all time especially since I live 30 min away. I am not feeling good about this job offer.Well I have my working interview tomorrow and I am going to get that job!!! I want it and I am going to go get it! I'm gonna jet and go check out the Max (light rail) schedule so I can take it downtown to work tomorrow and not pay $8.75 for parking plus gas and traffic issues.....I'll keep you posted...

And FYI tonight my house is too small....I cannot get away.....Help me.....

Our House

This is our house. It is so little! It is a one bedroom house. This is the front view.

This is our back door. The house has a little kitchen, little living room, and really tiny back porch area where the washer and dryer take up the whole space. When going in the back door you have to slink inside because the door does not open all the way due to the washer being in the way.

This is the front corner of our house. The two windows are our bedroom. Notice the clear sky....

This is our back yard. It is still green! It is so cute and tiny!

This is my roommate! He is pretty cute too but not so tiny!

I love him to death. I am so glad we found each other! I do not like thinking about my life without him!

Job offer #1

I had my working interview yesterday at the high end dentistry place in Lake Oswego. It was interesting to say the least. There is a 3-D CT scanner there I was telling you about a few posts ago. It only costs the cash patient $230. Amazing. This 89 year old woman came in with her husband. She was interested in getting new dentures because the current set were sliding around a lot and due to bone resorption she thought it was time for a new set. So she got one of these scans. I was surprised. I guess I am used to 89 year old people being on fixed incomes and not being able to afford many extras. Then I found out that Lake Oswego is where the rich and well to do of Portland live. Who knew....so I am in this hoity toity office feeling out of place in my tennis shoes that have mud on them from my walk into the parking lot and my mentality of dont rip off 89 year old women! Oh well. She seemed happy and excited to get a new set of dentures so I should let her spend her money any way she wants to.

The office has the Visiscope thing used to check for oral cancer. They use it as part of the initial exam which is good. They charge $39 for that and $35 for a fluoride treatment. which is not a tray but me wiping fluoride gel on their teeth. That is not helping....It needs to be at least on a tray and in their mouth for 4 minutes. Also the office does not have a cavitron. They have a piezo. Cedar Dental Center had both so I am familiar with the 'P5' but their tips suck!!!! I am going to have to get them to order some new ones. So I got the job for 2 days a week one of which is Sat. I dont know how I feel about this job. I do know how I feel and it isn't good. Here is a story...any advice is welcome.

The current RDH (lets call her Becky) is working full time for this Dr (lets call him Bob). Becky has been working for Bob full time for 1.5 years. This month he tells her that she is being cut back to 3 days a week and he is hiring a new rdh for the other 2. She is not happy. She likes working for him and likes working 5 days a week. Becky has been out interviewing for other jobs even the same ones I have. I got a working interview from the downtown Portland office and she did not. So I am wondering if she is a 'weird' rdh or if the dentist is a jerk or what. Is Bob trying to get her to quit? Is Becky a bad RDH? Why are her hours being cut? These are the things I want to know. I am going to call Becky later today and see if I can find out. We could not really talk much yesterday during work...too many ears you know. So I will update you asap. But I have a job...good or bad I have a job.

3 down 0 to go

Today was the best interview yet! When I saw this job posted on Craigs list I had this feeling. I know it sounds cheezy but the feeling I got was this is why no one else has called-I'm supposed to work here. I believe that more that before! This office is in straight up downtown Portland. I have to park my car in a parking garage and the office is on the 7th floor of this huge building. It is small. It has 4 ops. The Dr is young. He bought the practice 1.5 years ago. There are about 600 patients on file. Not many kids--Yeah!!! He needs a RDH Tues, Wed, and Thurs with the chance to grow as his practice grows. I think I am going to like how he diagnoses, and treats patients. He believes in gold crowns. He gives the patient 2-3 treatment plans with all the different options and lets the patient decide what they want. I like that. I really really like that! I also personally like gold. Gold crowns are so much more well adapted to the tooth and the tissues are so much healthier. I know gold is not cool cosmetically but as far as longevity and durability and health I think they rock. Now you can criticize me all you want. I personally have a porcelain crown...I hate it. I wish it was gold just because of the margins and my gums cause I now have a 4mm pocket! ARGGHH. The only downer is that he does not have digital and all notes are in charts...not the computer-weird cause he is young and should be all into the technology. Anyway, I really really want to work for this dentist!!! Then if I am lucky I can still work at at the high end place in Lake Oswego and work 5 days in hygiene! I hope anyway! That would be perfect. The one yesterday was in McMinnville which took me over an hour in commuting...The Lake Oswego takes me about 30 minutes of freeway (not stop and go) and the downtown one takes about 13 minutes mostly freeway. I pray I get this downtown job! So wish me luck!

2 down 1 to go

Today I woke up at 5:30 am to drive 1 hour and 10 min to a working interview. I worked 7 hours. One of which was an interview with the front office manager. Needless to say I saw only 5 patients today. It was kind of weird. The office does things a little different and Eagle Soft is weird....Sorry WSU! What is weird is that the Dr was so nice and personable and she diagnosed very well and respected the patients wishes like waiting to do a crown and not doing xrays today- that kind of thing. I liked her a lot. Plus her I-pod played Rob Thomas and Matchbox 20 like 9 times today so that rocked!

There are 2 assistants. They too were great. They took me to lunch. We had a good time and chatted about live, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It was nice. But the vibe just was not there. My patients loved me...of course right ha ha ha. I did not get offered the job and do not think I will. Not sure why. Not sure I care.......It was a great office with great staff and great patients and maybe it was just too great? I don't know. It is just not meant to be my office. Well one more tomorrow @ 10am only about 7 minutes from me; Yeah!

1 down 2 to go

So interview one is done. I drove up and the office looked like many of the buildings around it. It did not look particularly nice or anything. So I was surprised when I opened the door and there was this posh office. There was leather cushy seats in the waiting room with a gas fireplace. Above the fireplace was a flat screen tv playing info about vaneers etc. Then in the corner was this huge leather massage chair. There were 3 soothing water displays placed around the room. Anyway the office looked really nice and very professional. I waited for my interview for 17 minutes. I was trying not to be irritated but I was. I had left work at Albertsons to run down to this interview and the Dr who did not have a patient....was wasting my time. Finally he came out and said oh I thought you were a patient not my interview because he said hello to me after I had been there 5 minutes. I was not impressed. So he takes me into his office which has a big flat screen tv/computer monitor and really nice furniture. He proceeds to ask me questions. He wants to know about my last offices perio program. He wants to know about my speed and accuracy. He wants to know if patients like me. He wants to know what I expect in regards to pay. I answer everything and think I'm doing alright. Finally he asks me to come back for a working interview on Tues. I tell him I already have a working interview that day. He said ok how about Thurs. I say I am working at Albertsons Pharmacy for the rest of the week. So he decided on Sat. He said he would really like to see me work blah blah blah because I seem like I am a normal person. I said I am normal. And then we joked about how some dentists and hygienists are not normal. It was great fun. So I guess I am going back for a working interview on Sat.

It should be a real experience. He has the latest technology. There are 9 ops and each has a huge computer monitor behind the patient and at least a 36 inch flat screen in front of the patient so you can show them xrays, and their ct scan. Yeah, like I know what that is....It looks like a pano machine and it takes a 3-dimensional image of your head and measures bone. So you look at this jaw and you can see exactly where a furcation is and exactly where the nerves are buccal and lingual. It was really impressive. Kami would flip out for a chance to use this stuff with her students! Then he has 'rats' which are mouse for your feet. So you control your cursor with your foot and that is how you do probe depths. There is going to be a learning curve for me and a challenge to get all this high tech stuff down. It will be great. I am pretty sure I will get offered the job. I feel that the dentist liked me and now just wants to see what I can do and produce.

It is a high end dental office. He does a lot of IV sedation, vaneers, implants etc. I am afraid that he is going to pressure me into diagnosing perio when there is no perio. I am going to do my best to be a good ethical and correct RDH. I had better brush up on my classifications of perio though!

Well I have a working interview tomorrow. I have a 90 minute commute. I should be in bed but cannot sleep and so I'll be trashed tomorrow. But what can you do? I already don't want the job tomorrow just because of the commute. It is only 35 miles away but with traffic and since there is not a highway I have to go through town and that means stop lights. It is going to suck. But at least I have one more chance at a good office and that will be on Wed when I have a regular interview in a downtown Portland office...only 7 min from my house. I am keeping my fingers crossed for that one! Well, I guess I should try to go get some more sleep....I really hate insomnia!

Danny Fanny

This is Dan's rear end, his hind quarters, his butt, his bottom, his derri air, where the good Lord split him, his keister, his rump, his heinie, his tush, blah blah blah. Anyway he dared me to make this post so I of course I had to do it! I mean how cute is this butt? It is pretty cute to me and honestly that is all that matters. So here is to Dan's butt.



I am reminded of a song Tamara taught me.....'I see your heinie so white and shiny. You'd better hide it before I bite it." It was sung to a baby who had the cutest little cheeks ever that you just wanted to bite them!



Here we are buying auto parts.

Here Dan is working on his 4 runner

Still working on the 4 runner.

Squatting changing out front speakers on the 4 runner.

Dirty butt from working all day.

Leaning into the 4 runner and a closeup of the hole in his pants :)

Last but not least...going to U-Pull It which is a huge junk yard that is all organized row by row numbered etc and you tell them the car model and year and they tell you what row etc. You then pay $2 to go in with your own tools and pull the part you need. So we were looking for cam shaft gears this day for the 88 4 runner. The parts cost $5.24 so it is worth going to get it yourself. Anyway, the 4 runner has had a hard week and is not feeling better. It has new brakes, master cylinder, cam gears, spark plugs and wires, steering fluid pump, side mirrors, and head rests. So now that Dan has worked his butt off maybe she'll run for a while and treat him good!

No Tryptophan hang-over!

Well, I just had my first Thanksgiving being married. It was good. We did not do anything. We tried to sleep in...I did not do so good with that so I got up and started dinking around. about an hour later Dan got up fixed a bowl of cereal and then started his day. Since breakfast was done...I made myself a German pancake. It is one you bake in the oven. It was really good.

By now I had received several texts from friends and family wishing me a great Thanksgiving. It was sad to talk to my family. I almost cried. I was missing all the fun! My nephew was doing cute things and so they took a pix of it and sent it to me. I am so glad they had fun! After lunch of bacon cheeseburgers--I made them, we went on the hunt for auto parts for the 4-runner Dan is trying to fix up. We did not have much luck. Just a little so we went back home and put the hoses on and tried to figure out the front brakes. Dan thinks it is the master cylinder. I just have no clue...Then we went to a movie. We saw 4 Christmases. It was pretty funny! Great holiday fun! After that Dan played Halo and I make Crummy Chicken for dinner. I was the only one who ate it though...don't know what is up with that. So I followed it up with some peppermint ice cream and called it good. Dan still played Halo so I finished reading my book. So while my Thanksgiving was not full of turkey and pie or the zoo it was a good one. I enjoyed relaxing and being with Dan. I am so thankful for the chance I have to be married. I am thankful for the interviews I have next week. I am extremely thankful for family and friends. I hope your Thanksgiving was wonderful as well!

3 count them THREE interviews!!

I finally have some interviews. I have one on Monday, a working one on Tuesday, and another one on Wednesday. I really want the Wed one. It is 3 days a week, and really close to me. Tuesdays is an hour commute and Mondays is every other Sat. I dont mind working some Sat but I just do not want to be locked into every other one. But then again I was planning on working @ Albertsons pharmacy every Sat so might at well work hygiene. Bring on the burn out:) Not really. I am aching to clean some teeth! I want to get into that calc and give it a good scrape! I am sick...what can I say. Well, Thanksgiving is going to be very non-traditional for me. I am not sure of the final events so wait for the next post....

Missing Patients...

I have been a pharmacy technician for 8 years. During those 8 years I have done a lot of things. I have worked in a lot of pharmacies and for a lot of different pharmacists. I have met and worked with lazy techs, super ninja techs, so so techs, stupid techs, funny techs, etc. I have taught a lot interns. I have learned a lot from interns. I have been jealous of interns and the amount of money they make when I am doing all the work. But all in all it has been a fun ride. I have enjoyed being a pharmacy tech. I love the patients and hearing the funny stories. From boob rashes to sex changes to morning after pills following a rape, to how a certain med makes a certain male appendage go limp, to anti rejection meds following life saving transplant. It has been a wonderful experience and I have loved most of it.

Here in Oregon techs are not allowed to counsel patients on over-the-counter medication. In Utah we are allowed to if we feel comfortable. I did to the extend of my knowledge. If I did not know I asked the pharmacist. It wasn't a big deal for me. Well here I am having a hard time breaking that habit. It is hard for me. I have worked with one particular annul pharmacist who listens to every conversation I have with patients. She says I cannot tell them to get Ibuprofen or Tylenol. I can only show them where it is on the shelf. So here I am with a line of people and the person I am currently helping asks what is a good decongestant. I have to say I don't know let me as the pharmacist who is freaking busy on the phone or helping other patients so I have to sit and wait for her to come over and say....phenylephrine. I mean like I did not know that....If I was in Utah I would have said Pseudophed or phenylephrine and then sold it to them and moved the line along. Here in OR pseudophed is a class V narcotic and available only by prescription--Utah you can still get it over-the-counter. That is why Utah has a meth problem. Oh well. So far in Oregon I have not counted a CII medication, or reconstituted an antibiotic, counseled with a patient, or checked out someone all by myself. In OR the pharmacist has to counsel each patient when they have a new prescription and the computer required their fingerprint before I can finish the transaction. It is time consuming but good.

So I am adjusting to the rules of OR but it is a bit hard. I feel so useless. I miss treating patients. I miss the interaction and bonding that occurs between health care professionals and their patients. I really need to get a hygiene job. Luckily I am a newlywed and have other things to occupy my life:)

too funny

So today I came home from working pharmacy all day and there was a postcard addressed to Mary Ann Jones...then forwarded to Oregon. It was a postcard reminding me that it was time for me to schedule my dental cleaning. I laughed so hard. That is awesome! I am so glad that it came today. I have been missing my friends in Cedar and it was nice to know that someone cared enough to send me my reminder card. Ha ha ha.

I finally passed...

I finally got my Oregon Dental Hygiene license!!!! I am so happy. I have been stressing this for so long. I do not have the actual license but it is online--and baby that is all that matters!! I am so relieved that I passed that bugger of a law test! Failure is so hard to deal with. It feels like so much rejection and personal attacks. But passing is wonderful, marvelous and stupendous!

Portland the Great

So tonight I was driving home from working at Albertsons Pharmacy. It was 6 pm at night and so traffic as you know---good. It wasn't too bad considering it is a big city, Utah's traffic is a lot worse. It only added 10 min to my time. Anyway I was sitting there being all homesick for my friends, family and familiarity of Cedar City when I looked around me and noticed that I live in a
beautiful city! So i wished I had my camera with me. Then after another few minutes I realized I had my phone. So here I am on I-5 southbound going to merge onto I-84 eastbound while going over a huge river--Willamette River. It is amazing how the freeways wind and twist and bridge over this great river. It is beautiful. So here is a pic with my phone....you can see my side mirror in the bottom right corner.

This next picture is of the traffic under one bridge but in reality we are merging to go on top of the bridge you see at the top of the pic. Weird I now. Anyway, I have only been lost twice and both times Dan has saved my life and gotten me home safe and sound. Bless his heart. He has had to be so specific with directions. I don't have the mountains to tell me which way is East and I cannot see the sun to try to figure it out myself...so I am pretty much directionally challenged. I cannot say I am getting better but I am trying. Also drivers here are so nice and awesome. I now understand more fully the statement that Utah drivers suck! Don't be offended but it is true....

Well I feel better, not so homesick now. I have a wonderful husband who made me dinner all last week, met me at the airport with roses, washed, folded, and put away all the laundry, assembled bookcases and a computer desk, went grocery shopping (the first one so it was huge), he leaves me THE cutest messages on the wipe board. I am so lucky! Now if I could just pass my jurisprudence test for dental hygiene. I have failed twice already! I hate this feeling! I am not an idiot! I know the law. So this last time I called the Oregon Board of Dentistry and they helped me out. They said that even though I would never do what the question was asking but unless it specifically states you cannot do that you can. So weird. So I had to change my way of thinking. It is hard to try to know what the Board of Dentistry wants. I start second guessing myself and then those darn true/false questions I can talk myself out of both answers!

Anyway, I miss cleaning teeth. Weird I know! Well Portland is a beautiful city and I am trying to find my happy place here so my heart will stop yearning for Cedar City.

Mr. & Mrs. Dan Faust

On Nov 1,2008 I married Daniel George Faust. We totally eloped. We went to a judges condo. The judge was adorable. He made the ceremony quite comical. Anyway, here are some pics of Dan and I. I am totally biased but he is one attractive man!!! Friday night Emily came to Portland and we went out to dinner to some Italian restaurant that I cannot remember the name of. I was kind of freaking out that night. I was so nervous. I was questioning everything. I was doubting my choices and doubting my decision to move 1,091 miles leaving everything I knew and loved. I mean what the hell??? Anyway I am not sure if the doubts were normal but I made it through them and survived. Dan was a bit nervous seeing my reaction. During dinner he leaned over and asked if we were getting married in the morning. I scared him.

Eventually I calmed down after having a long talk with Dan. He is so good at calming my fears and helping me see what is a fear and what is just stupid girl thinking. I am so lucky to have him. So Friday night he dropped Emily and me off at our hotel and went home. Sat morning he was late picking us up. Dan is not a late person. So I was kind of nervous. Well he comes into the room and I can tell he is nervous. I am calm as a cucumber. It was funny to see how our emotions changed. Now that we were getting married in less than an hour he was freaking out. He was so nervous. I guess I had gotten all my cold feet out the night before. Also I had the comfort of the Holy Ghost. I know that sounds cheezy and lame but it is true. Heavenly Father helped me move and marry this man so much. I am truly grateful for my knowledge of God and our eternal purpose!! So even though I disappointed myself by marrying a man outside the temple I have the hope of a promise that I will be sealed one day. I pray everyday for that dream to come true.

Here is a side view shot of Dan, me and our judge. He was too funny. He called Emily Bula. It was great comic relief. We needed 2 witnesses and since Emily was so wonderful to come all the way to Portland from Yakima we only needed one more. Luckily the judge stopped one of his neighbors and he was our 2nd witness. I do want to take a moment to say that I know all of you who read this blog would have been at my side if I had just had the common courtesy to tell you I was getting married. I know each and every one of you would have been my 2nd witness and would loved to have been there to support me. And because I have this knowledge I did not feel I needed to ask you to come. It is the thought that counts....I know you all would have been there for me if I had just asked. But I wanted to do this as small and without hoopla as possible. I know that sounds cold and heartless but I am old and did not want the typical 20 year old Utah wedding with the dresses, flowers, cake (which you don't eat), decorating a gym in a church etc. I am sure you all know what a headache I just avoided:) Well anyway, I am happy. Dan is wonderful. Saturday he and I went back to the hotel and did not surface for a long time. When we came up for air we walked around downtown and went to a movie--Rocking Rolla. It was hilarious. Then we drove around Portland looking at the great contrast in leaf colors. The colors were bright yellow, orange, red and green. It is so beautiful here. Dan was trying to orient me so I can navigate my way around, but I was distracted by the scenery. Saturday was a wonderful day and I am so glad to be married to Dan Faust. If any need my address let me know and I'll email it to you alright.....

Elopement...

So by the way I got married.....Nov 1,2008. I decided I want to spend my life with Dan. I need this chance to grow. I love him and so I did it! Emily Adams was our witness. Thanks Em! I know so many of you would have been there if I would have told you I was doing this. But you see.....I am too involved with loving Dan i cannot think or see anything else. I will write more later with pics but thought y'all should know I am now Mary Ann Faust...

No more Power Rangers

Sold my little green ranger on Monday. I was sad and happy to see it go. It is nice because I only have one truck to insure and one truck to drive to Portland. Sad because of all the memories I had in that truck. I went everywhere in that little guy. It was such a good little truck and I will miss it....until I climb into my new big one!!!

About 4 years ago I was living on Dewey Ave in Cedar across the street from my dear bro Dave. He had 3 roomies each of them had a Ford Ranger. So when we would park on the street my green one, Kody J red one, Kyle's maroon one, and other kid whose name is gone from my mind....well he had a black one. So we called ourselves the power rangers. It was a lot of fun and a great memory I have of Dewey Ave with Ron the parking ticketing Nazi! Good times....

Opening and Closing Doors.

It is official. I gave my 2 week notice today. My last day at Cedar Dental Center will be Oct 30. I am then leaving from the parking lot to move to Oregon. This is going to be a very hard thing for me to do. I have many people who I want to say goodbye to. The last 14 years of my life have been here in Cedar City. I have made many many great and dear friends. I am aching from the fact I have to say goodbye to my beloved Cedar Breaks. I will miss the red cliffs at dawn. I will miss the Shakespeare Festival, humbug lollies, Melling Drive, the smell of the milk plant, the wind, the dust, the freshly cut alfalfa, the college radio station, the dental office and all the patients I have grown to love and care for, the pharmacy and all the patients I have grown to love and care for. I will miss so many people--so many of you have impacted my life for good and I will truly miss you. I will miss the sunsets, the lazy summer evenings sitting on the lawn, the fire pit and chocolate marshmallows--I'm sure they don't have them in OR:). I am tearing up now so I am going to talk about something else...

So Oregon is going to rock. It is so green there. I really think I am going to love it. It will be a great adventure for me and Dan. It will be so wonderful to be in the same town as Dan. I look forward to seeing him everyday. I am slightly nervous about navigating the city but I'll figure it out sooner or later....probably later and after I have been lost a few times. But what a great opportunity for me to learn the ins and outs of another city. I am sure there are some great hikes I can go on and I'll fall in love with the city and the surrounding areas. While today I love the rain I may become sick of it. I think it will be a while though because I really like the rain and the smell and the coolness it gives the air. I am also looking forward to seeing the historical stuff like the Oregon Trail stuff. It will be great to learn more about that part of history.

I guess that I am pretty happy to have a door opening after closing such a beloved door. I will miss you CC!!!!

A Great Flashlight Holder

So I went to Portland again this weekend...sorry for not calling Emily! I admit I could have made time for you but then when would I have kissed Dan? I just don't know why or how you came in second. Anyway, I was in Portland for 5 days. It was a lot of craziness. I LOVE being in Dan's company. When I am not around him I start freaking out. I get all nervous and start doubting my feelings and his feelings and stuff and stuff.

I went to class with Dan at Portland State Univ. It was weird being back on a campus again. I missed it a little but then when they were talking about tests and projects and papers I was really glad I was finished--well for a min. Oregon does have the expanded RDH and the restorative RDH and the Limited Access Permit (practice RDH w/o dentist supervision ie nursing home) and so I know a girl who is going to be checking into those and probably taking a class or two.

For the weekend we went to Hermiston to Dan's parents place and worked on cars all night long. Yes you heard me ALL night long. It was so cold I thought I was having a seizure. And since I am the pro at intricate auto workings I got the important job of flashlight holder! I felt so productive and useful-yeah right I felt like a clueless Barbie doll. Anyway we worked all night until about 11 am when we loaded all the metal and took it to be recycled and then we came home showered and slept. THEN woke up worked some more then slept and woke up @ 2am to get me back to Portland to fly out by 8:30am. So pretty much the entire weekend was sleep deficient for Mary Ann. It was rough. I am a very grouchy person when I am hungry and tired. So Dan got to see a little glimpse of the cranky me..although I held it in pretty well and managed to earn the title of 'best flashlight holder ever' bestowed by his friend Caralee who has mad mechanic skills. She was so nice and did not make me feel worthless or intimidated while she worked her tush off with the rest of us.

So while things are going well in Portland I am still trying to listen to everyone. It is hard to be objective because I want to be with Dan so much. I feel it is a good decision. BUT there are a lot of people out there who are scared for me and don't want to see me get hurt. To all of them I have to say....The only way I will not get hurt is to not try something new. I don't want to get hurt either but I cannot live in my little basement apt for the rest of my life either. I need to grow and if getting growing pains is required then I need to learn to take the good with the bad. I am not sure what the future holds. I just hope I can take the downs with all the ups!

How Blind Am I??????

World, I am ready to introduce you to Dan. He is all I think about right now. Just some quick stats...He lives in Portland---that's in Oregon. He has 2 daughters, he is a student @ PSU. He is in the National Guard. He is a skilled auto mechanic. He sings along to the radio. #11 is malpositioned in the cutest way! He has scared the shit out of my father. He makes me smile. He is a GREAT kisser. He opens my doors. He gives me flowers. He has made my phone minutes increase from 741 one month to 4800 this month and still have 12 days to go--thank heaven for Verizon!! I know you're dying to know how we met---online. Scary huh? Almost all of my friends and family are scared of him. I'm not. What can I say except there is a saying about love and blindness....hmmmm. I think I fit this saying. Well that is all I'm going to say for now....and even this might be too much. I will probably wish I had not said anything, but I have held it in for so long I just wanted to share. Feel free to express your true feelings and warnings. I really could use the dose of reality. We are all still friends right?

Time after Time

Time is a funny thing. Sometimes it goes by really fast and other times it creeps along. Time is wasted and time is taken for granted. Time is never made up and is always lost. Time does not stop for us mere mortals. It is one of the true constants in our lives. So why does time mean so much to me and not so much to someone else? I want time....how do I get it? I am pretty sure Wal-mart does not have it for sale in their clearance isle. So can I order it online? Nope. So can I make time? I try to that a lot, but have been unsuccessful. I guess I will be frustrated and frustrating until I figure this time thing out.

I will leave you with one of my all time favorite quotes..."So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time we are given"....Lord of the Rings

Y

So today I am super mad. I am so frustrated with good and evil. This weekend I found out that yet another friend of mine is going through divorce. I am super pissed. What the Hell? What is wrong with men and women today? What is the point of being married? Is there no security in any relationship? What have I been looking for all these years? I'll tell you....I have been looking for a man who can handle me and all my weirdness and greatness--and can give some good... Now I have realized that the odds of achieving this are very small, minuscule, obsolete.

So this realization of my odds make me question my whole spiritual foundation. I mean if a person loves the Lord and follows the commandments to the best of their ability and understanding and yet no eternal marriage is achieved what hope do I have who am flawed and fail at commandments. I really feel like jumping off the deep end and breaking a few commandments on purpose....could be fun could break my heart who knows. All I know is that I am frustrated with the hope of ever having a healthy relationship.

Bring on the Pain

When did I become a mean hygienist?

Today I realized I was being more aggressive than I needed to be. This patient of mine had not been to the dentist for about 15 years. He brushes 4 min each day. His tissues are healthy-no inflammation and only a few 4 mm areas. He has all 32 teeth! His third molars were really clean. There was not much subra-gingival calculus so I figured it had to be sub-gingival--nope. He did have some don't fool your self but as I was digging and digging and he was just laying there taking the abuse I realized that I was being quite aggressive and I wondered...when did I become that kind of hygienist? I used to believe it was alright to leave a piece of calc here or there if it got the patient to enjoy the experience and come back. But somehow I have changed. I guess I am so worried about leaving a piece of calc that I just cannot be the gentle hygienist I used to be. Now tonight instead of worrying about if I left a piece of calculus I worry that I wont see this patient again for 10 years---and he was so cute! He did the cutest thing. You know when you are working on the lower anterior teeth and the patient tenses up their lower lip muscle and it knocks you off your fulcurm? Well I am in the habit of holing my left thumb there to protect my patient from knocking me off. I dont want to slip and cut them!! Well I felt this patients lip tense up and then relax then tense up and then as I applied more pressure to counteract his tensing he would relax again. I could tell it was a conscious effort for him to do that. He also was very concerned about where his tongue was. He was the most conscientious patient I have ever had---he is married---Now I understand him a bit better (I know him outside of work). Anyway, how do you not be the mean hygienist and yet remove all deposit?

When Dealth Comes Knockin...

Death is such a weird beast. It is also dominating my life recently. As many of you have heard about the plane crash that took 10 members of Cedar City. I knew them. I know hundreds of people who are deeply touched by this loss. Then today a patient told me another member of Cedar passed away this morning from pancreatic cancer and then at lunch I got a message from my mom. My mom does not call during the day and by the tone of her voice I knew something was wrong. Sure enough my uncle died in his sleep. What a surprise. My dad's youngest bro. gone. game over. peace out.

Anyway it was not an expected death and I am not sure how I am feeling about it. I have mixed feelings. I see the good and I see the bad. Luckily I know I will see him and everyone else who has passed on again. I am comforted by that fact!

Too Close to Home!!!

I just found out that a Cedar City dermatologist and his staff were killed in a plane crash yesterday. I am freaking out. I looked online to see who what listed as deceased and my friend Megan is not listed but I have not been able to get in touch with her to make sure she is alright. Megan was an assistant at my office and left to work for the dermatologist. They make weekly flights to several of their clinics in small towns. I have now heard that Megan was not on the plane and that she is alright. She made other arrangements so someone else could take her spot. Man, what a hard situation. I am going to miss the Dr and his staff. I know them. I have filled prescriptions from that clinic for 8 years and talked to them a lot. I am sick to know that their families are hurting! I feel so helpless!

Introducing....

World, I would like to introduce my brand stinking new truck. It is a Toyota Tundra. It is 'slate' aka charcoal grey/blue. I love it. I have not named it yet....any suggestions?

I have been wanting one of these trucks forever and finally got it. Now I know some of you will think I am spoiled but who else is going to spoil me??? Co-workers from the dental world were jealous and called me spoiled and co-workers from the pharmacy were jealous and congratulated me on working hard and getting a super nice truck. I wonder what the difference is. Could it be that the pharmacy crew knows me better and knows I don't spoil myself or is it the general personality of the pharmacy to be happy for others. Now I do want to clear something up. There were a few girls at the dental office who were excited for me and only a couple who thought I was spoiled so I should not label all dental peeps that way. I just focused on the negative feelings...my bad. So anyway, I love my truck. It is a crew max and my 6'3" brother can sit very comfortably in the back seat w/o his knees touching. It is a beast of a truck and I love it!

Patient Void

My Soy milk man is moving!!! One of the first patients I had in private practice was this hot man who is manager of quality control at the soy processing plant in Cedar. He has the most tarter ever!!!! I have convinced him to come every 3 months for adult prophy. His insurance pays for 2 a year and he pays for the other 2. He is willing to pay the cash just so I do not have to pick and pick so much. How nice is that?!? I know he is doing it for himself but hey a girl can dream...Anyway he is moving and will not longer grace my operatory! I am super sad. This sucks. I vow to never get personally attached to another patient again....ha ha ha! He was so nice to say that I had been a great hygienist and that he was going to miss the fun we had together every 3 months. Mr Soy I will miss you too! He said he would have his replacement come to the office just to fill the void! Again how sweet!
Adios Amigos!!!!

Music Update

It has been a long time since I have written about music. I will remedy that today. Right now there are three songs that really speak to me. Whenever I hear them I blast the radio and sing along. They are great songs. And since I am not cool enough to have music on my blog you will have to read about it and click on over.....

First is Avenged Sevenfold's 'Afterlife'. This song speaks to my inner rocker! I love this song and have for about 7 months. The video is HOT. The lead singer wears a lower arch grill for part of it and I just about melt with how sexy he is. He is all tattooed up and pierced. Both guitar players are amazing to me as well. Their piercings and tattoos are amazingly hot and lets not forget their mad skills. So I just cannot be bothered to post pics of them so if you are curious here is a link....Avenged Sevenfold. Thanks AS for producing such a great song that speaks to me!

Second is The Airborne Toxic Event's 'Sometime Around Midnight' (http://www.myspace.com/theairbornetoxicevent). This song is amazing. I have heard it the first time on July 3 on the way to Delta. It touched the sappy love strings in my heart. I am in love with this song. Since July 3 I have heard it on the radio 6 times. Every time I hear it I ask everyone around me who sings this song. No one knew. Finally I recorded part of it on my phone and was on my way to google the lyrics when the radio station finally told me who it was! I was so happy. I listen to SUU's radio station and since it is summer the computer is playing songs and there just is not a DJ there but they have taken the time to record who sings that song and play it with the song. I am so happy! So right now I am listening to other songs by this group from England on U-Tube. Check out this song I know you will love it. It has only been posted for 6 days and only has 531 views. I want to change that. It is a great song. Trust me. I am also digging 'Does this mean you're moving on'.

Third is going to have to be Staind's 'Believe' (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMZF1v0Y7DY). This is also a great song that touches me! I am made for chasing dreams!!! I need to remember that when I am feeling down about myself and lack of boyfriends. I mean I am cute-a little chubby; but dang it I am worth dating! To all single males out there...man up and ask me out!

Well that is my blog on songs. They are dear to me and my heart. Thanks for reading....


ps. I must give props to Seether and their song 'Rise Above This' (http://www.seether.com/dashboard/dashboard.asp). During the vedio the lead singer looks sideways at the camera and just about knocks me on my feet. His brown eyes and lip ring are to die for! The song is also noteworthy. It is hard to rise above doubt. I doubt myself everyday while cleaning teeth. I LOVE the line 'I'll mend myself before it gets me' To me it is saying that we are all messed up and all have issues but that he is trying to get over the helplessness and rise above this! And if he can so can I!

So Ut is SWEET

On Thursday I had the opportunity to attend the Utah Shakespearean Festival and see 'Two Gentlemen of Verona'. It was great. I enjoyed the costumes, stage and of course the acting. I had a blackberry tart and humbug lolly. It was such a peaceful night to sit outside and watch this play. Then on Saturday I went to St George to see 'Les Miserables' performed at the Tuacan amphitheater. That too was amazing. The actors sang their hearts out and brought tears to my eyes. I love how Tuacan uses the natural beauty of the red cliffs and rocks to accent every single play they perform. I really love Southern Utah especially during the summer! Cedar Mountain is one of the best places on earth, Panguitch Lake is great and Red Cliffs is super fun! So all in all So Ut is my flavor....

We are the 6th Ward Frogs....

I have recently returned from Girls Camp. It was my first time going as leader. What a chore. But it was a fun chore. I got lots of pics and will only bore you with a few. This first one is of the leaders in our 'kitchen'. For those of you who have not been to Girls Camp before know this....it is the poshest camp ever. We had to have a kitchen, living room, dining room etc. All were covered by EZE-UP shades and all had tables, cupboards etc. It was so organized and just like home. In my opinion it was a lot of work for only 4 days, 3 nights. Oh well. That is the joy of Girls Camp!!!

Out theme was MLB (Mormon League Baseball) We were the Frogs. So a few girls caught a frog. It was quite the scene... anyway it was a fun camp and I am really glad to be home and clean!!

Before Girls Camp I was coming home from a wedding reception up Cedar Mountain and hit a deer. It was so sad. My first road kill-but I am not sure I really killed him. It did a bit of body damage. I was not hurt and either was the bride's mom who was with me in my truck. One day 4 years ago I was at a UDHA convention in Park City when someone hit my truck and dented the back door. So the guys at the Ford Dealership/body shop told me it was consistant with the damage caused by the deer and that I could get the insurance to pay for it. I declined and said, 'I know the damage is consistant and I really want to tell you that but that dent has been there for 4 years. I really want it fixed though so would you fix it and I would pay for it.' A few days later I got a call telling me the insruance adjuster came and said since I was so honest about the back door that I could include it in with all the other repairs. I was so happy! It just proves that 'honesty is the best policy' ha ha ha!

Burn or Build Bridges

As many of you know I am a very loyal member of the American Dental Hygienists' Association (ADHA). I am president-elect for the Southern Component of Utah Dental Hygienists' Association (UDHA). I attend every meeting we have. I pay my membership dues and pray all RDH's everywhere do the same. So my friend and co-worker Candice is an alternate delegate for UDHA. As such she attends board meetings in Salt Lake City which is 3.5 hrs from Cedar. She too is dedicated to our profession. Wednesday she reported what was discussed at the board meeting at our Southern Component meeting. She stated the Monty Thompson (president of Utah Dental Association-UDA) was in attendance. Now I need to give a bit of background. As a So Component we organized (ok Danyelle did) a Spring Seminar the same weekend as the UDA spring seminar in St George. We had 2 speakers and offered 6 CE credits. It was pretty well attended. We had communications with Mr. Thompson and he was very cooperative. He did everything in his power to give us free advertising and helped organize it. He was so helpful. We as a Southern Component appreciate him and his efforts. We also noticed that this years UDA meeting had several dental hygiene oriented speakers. I thought that was amazing. While I was not as enthralled by Ester Wilkins as a lot of people the fact that she was there by invitation of utah dentists was amazing.

From my point of view the UDA has been very accommodating and communicative with the RDH of Utah. I have a respect for this man and think he is doing a great job. I guess I am the one of the few. At this UDHA board meeting the leaders of UDHA did not find him to be open to communication, helpful, etc. He mentioned that the dentists of Ut do not like the new dental hygiene school (UCDH). Now this is another can of worms...in short it is a private school who is graduating about 50 students every 18 months. He brought up a suggestion that the RDH and DDS and DMD get together and go to the Board of Regents and see what can be done about closing the school. The UDHA board was not interested which brings up confirmation to me that they have been integrated by UCDH. I have felt that UCDH played everything very well. They opened the school w/o talking to the RDH or UDA just the Board of Regents. They then ran for offices on the UDHA board and so now when the UDA wants to discuss the future of dental hygiene and the flooded market no communication is had.

I am sadly disappointed in this. I know I should have run for office on the UDHA board but I live so far away and felt that I would not get the votes because everyone votes for their friends...popularity contest all over again. So I am doing my part by holding together the So component. We are embarrassingly small compared to the other components in UT and our percentage of member RDH is small. I feel that when the UDA wants to open communication lines and try to end the animosity between the two groups we should let them. I know there are some strong opinions in the Salt Lake and Northern components. I know they have had to fight for some serious things. But I also know now is the time to mend the broken bridges NOT burn them to the ground. These of course are my feelings and I would welcome any dialog on the subject. I feel being a RDH is essential for the oral health of the world but we need to work with the dentisits. I also feel that we need to govern ourselves and not be under the thumb of the dentists. I guess there is a fine line and I am just learning where I stand.