LAYING DOWN ROOTS

My endodontist called this morning. I never thought I'd write a sentence like that. Hell, I didn't even know what an endodontist was until yesterday. The worst thing about moving to another country is that you no longer have access to the whole string of professionals you have carefully sifted through, chosen and cultivated throughout your entire life. For example, my dentist of 20 years in Charing Cross Road, who would see me, I know, within seconds, should I turn up on his doorstep or call him at anytime. He knows my whole life story as intimately as the contents of my mouth. He offered to come and 'hold my hand' when I had to have my wisdom teeth extracted by someone else. I hate to get all sentimental about dentists but then you move to another country and suddenly you're back to the yellow pages (only they're white here........)

Then of course it's not at all simple, because, having found a 'dentist', you find you've gone to the wrong person and suddenly you're being flung across town to something called an 'endodontist', with the dollars clocking up by the second. This is not how I run my relationships - I'm in debt to a stranger for $$$ dollars and he has my home phone number and is using it, before I've even had time to google him! Some weeks are just like that - by Monday you know you've totally lost control and the week is just going to do whatever it likes.

Having said all that, I was in horrible pain at the weekend and ms dentist did do a good job in sending me to mr endodontist who managed to root-canal it all away yesterday, which frankly, was worth any amount of dollars. Incidentally, he added this morning that I can't eat on the tooth till I see him again next Tuesday, (which is a bit much coming from a man who didn't even give me any decent drugs as a food substitute.) As this tooth is right at the front, it's pretty much impossible to eat at all therefore, so I am now officially inventing the 'root canal diet', and as this is America, I am planning on making a fortune out of this diet by next Tuesday. And hence will be able to pay the endodontist.