reading: a clash of kings george r r martin
listening: mirrorball sarah mclachlan
surfing: brand x

1999 july 07

toothsome

the dentist put on my permanent crown yesterday afternoon.

it is conspicuous only for its lack of fillings. if i open my mouth really wide, or presumably if i yawn or guffaw without covering my mouth with my hand, you used to see a gleaming line of silver running down the centers of both the left and right bottom teeth. now there is a vast expanse of ivory, virgin tooth, although i know that there's plenty of metal hiding underneath the porcelain finish.

gold, to be exact. the whole time the dentist was cementing the thing in place i was thinking about the german concentration camps of world war 2, wondering if anyone would ever pull the false teeth from my mouth to get the minuscule scraps of gold. when i was a kid, i used to plan on where i would hide my jewish friends should the holocaust come to my neighbourhood.

it would appear i haven't changed all that much.

i almost forgot to talk about the butterflies.

monday gene and i went to a butterfly exhibit and stood in the middle of a giant hothouse while hundreds and hundreds of butterflies fluttered by our heads and bodies and landed on our fingers and shoulders. it was magical, like being in a fairy tale. an airborne ocean of color: emerald greens and burnt oranges, butter yellows and royal blues, midnight blacks and snow whites.

i started taking these gorgeous closeup photographs but after the third or fourth one i remembered i had loaded black and white film in the camera. what an idiot. still, i am hoping they come out, even in black and white you should be able to see the wonderful patterns on their delicate wings.

chomp chomp chomp, flutter flutter flutter, claire

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