Conundra

I have a nice problem, and an odd one, too. They're not the same.

First is, I have stuff to read all over the place. I have the latest issue of The Economist, and of Fine Homebuilding. I have a Christmas gift, The Man in the Arena, which is a collection of the writings of Theodore Roosevelt, as well as Team of Rivals. I picked up The Rocking Chair Reader - True Stories of Celebration and Reunion, and The Number - What Do You Need For The Rest of Your Life, and What Will It Cost? at Borders the other day, and today I got two library books - Barry Eisler's The Last Assassin, and Work From The Inside Out - 7 Steps to Loving What You Do. There are a couple of books on the shelf that I picked up at a local used book store a couple of weeks ago. And then there's today's Washington Post, and a newsletter on financial planning that I get from my company (it was the source of that depressing advice regarding retirement age). So, after I get through browsing through various news feeds from Feed Demon, or just cruising around via Stumble Upon, I ponder: What to Read? It's a nice problem to have.

Second, the odd one, is this: the guy who is going to do my dental surgery, putting implants into my upper jaw, told me in November that he thought my blood sugar level was too high for him to feel confident about my healing capabilities. Okay, fair enough -- it was high -- about 12%, by my rough calculation. I got it back down, which means I can call him and say So, are you ready?

The thing is, I'm not sure I'm ready. I am not apprehensive about having the implants put in, and not about the extractions that are going to precede it -- I'm apprehensive about How long will I have no effective teeth in my upper jaw? I know there will be a period after the extraction before the implants and corresponding bone grafts can be done, and a longer period before the implants can be fitted with the framework for my bridge. I'm guessing the first period will be about a month, and the second will be about four months. I know that for some of that, I'll have a temporary upper bridge, much like the smaller one I have now, but spanning my entire jaw. The question is, how long will I not have it? How long will the period of eating only food that doesn't need to be chewed be? And how much of a dork will I feel like?

I talked this over with my wife, and once again, she came up with reasonable advice. Take it slow. You know whats coming, and what needs to happen. Just take it as it comes. Relax. Breathe. Okay, she didn't say that last part, but it was of a piece with what she did say. Though she didn't have any advice about what to read first.

Oh, and that title? Apparently, I'm not the only one who wonders what the plural of conundrum is.