See ya later, grill!

It has been 17 months since the orthodontist in Vernon stuck a wire and hunks of porcelain across my top set of pearly whites and 16 months since he did the same thing, only with metal brackets, on the bottom set.

And now, after a year and a half of wire changing, short-term pain, and "F" slurring, I'm happy to report that I have only three more sleeps until these monstrosities are wrenched off my chicklets.

What will I do when they're finally off? I don't know...because I've done a lot of stuff I shouldn't have with braces on. I'm eaten toffee, I'm chewed candy, and I've munched on chicken wings and ribs (discretely and only in the comforts of my home, surrounded by my closest friends and family). I'm not planning to run out and sink my teeth into an apple, but I AM looking forward to the day when I can pick up an ice cream sandwich and just bite the damn thing (the same goes for sandwiches).

Other items that have proved difficult to consume since early 2008? Strawberries, salad (or anything with lettuce), apples, peaches, nectarines...the list could go on.

I am SO looking forward to WEdnesday afternoon when I finally don't have to worry about having lukewarm water by my side if I'm eating something that requires a "direct bite".

People have said that you can't psyche yourself up for the appearance of your teeth post-braces, but I don't care, I'll just be happy to have the damn things off. While I'm grateful that I didn't have to put up with a full mouth full of metal and hot-pink elastics for a year and a half, I did have to endure months upon months of corporate meetings (while in a brand new job). It'll be nice meeting people who may actually think I have some level of experience and credibility instead of them thinking I'm just a 14-year-old grade nine student who's there to "job shadow her mom".

That does bring me to the one thing I WILL miss when I'm brace free, and that's being asked "Who's younger, you or Kelsey?".

Second place? Yes please!

While driving to work yesterday, I heard about one of the craziest—most dangerous—radio contests ever.

Now that a day has passed, I can’t remember what you had to do to win, but it was the prize itself that was most concerning. What would the winner take home? A $1,000 Tim Horton’s Gift Card…accompanied by a “Front of the Line” pass! This pass would allow you to march right up to the front counter, bypassing the entire line. Now I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the typical Tim Hortons-goer, but up here in Fort McMurray you’d be putting your life in your hands if you decided to play your Front of the Line card.

Seriously…can you honestly imagine walking past 15 (or more) 250-lb. shift workers who’d been standing in line at least 20 minutes?

The Front of the Line card sounds like a Meet Your Maker card to me.

This is one contest where I’d gladly take second place.

My intro to FMM

Many people have heard me talk about the crazy welcome mat Fort McMurray laid out for me last April, but I wanted to support my claim with photographic evidence.

This photo was taken April 20, 2008 at 11:47 a.m.

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Supervising

I'm just making sure these boys do everything correctly while installing struts and swaybar links on my car.

Another day in the garage, no big deal.

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Blue screen of death

This is never a good thing.

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