GETTING CROWNED IN CORONADO

Here's to having another positive dental experience in Panama with Dr. Wong who practices in the Coronado Plaza.  There are four dentists (I believe one is an orthodontist) in Clinica Dental Coronado http://www.coronado-bay.com/poi/clinica-dental-coronado.html which looks like it is on the second floor of the plaza, but it is really considered First Floor, #14.  The ground floor is called Planta Baja which is what I would consider just the first floor.  Well, Dr. Wong remembered me from the time I walked in with my veneer in a ziplock bag and he re-cemented it for me all the while recommending a crown in the future.  Yesterday, a few minutes before my appointment time of one pm, Dr. Wong walked through the front door of the office (I am used to dentists and employees slipping in side or back doors).  He was carrying to go bags of lunch.  He dropped off his lunch bags at the back of the office, and then he approached me to tell me that he had had only five minutes of lunchtime, so he was going to just grab a quick bite and would bring me right back.  I appreciated the time he took in telling me this, and also that he came out to tell me.  I also wanted him on a full stomach and happy, not grumpy, when he was treating me.  This is what I remember most about working for a dentist in the US:

The dentist works through lunch everyday.  The same two dental assistants have to then split up their lunch time.  Everyday the dental assistants don't enjoy the lunch hour together.  Everyday the patients are kept waiting for their appointment times thirty minutes to one hour plus (and they waited!).  Everyday the dentist runs through lunch time.  If there is a continuing education meeting planned or staff meeting planned, that is definitely a day that there will be not be a lunch hour for the dental assistants.  And with running behind, the patients weren't really ever told to come in later, reschedule or what was going on with their appointment time.  Pretty much sums it up for most lunch hours in an office I worked in, and while it didn't affect my lunch hour, it did affect the mood of the office.  

A few minutes after one pm, I was seated in the bright orange chair.  There wasn't a kitten to be seen in this operatory.  Dr. Wong came in and agreed with me (not Ray) in that while the composite veneer that was done by the dentist in Bejuco on emergency "I swallowed my veneer and am going on vacation tomorrow" basis was very good, an accident could happen again and that composite could break, and it wouldn't necessarily be a clean break.  He then confirmed the fee that he told me last August, and he proceeded to give me anesthesia.  He allowed the topical gel to sit on my tissue for several minutes, and then he dispensed the anesthesia slowly. 

 Lesson in dental anesthesia coming up here--it is not the feeling of the injection that causes the most soreness and pain (contrary to popular belief), but it is the pressure and the volume of the fluids being dispensed that cause the pain and burning feeling and also soreness later on the day. 

I told him he did a beautiful job!  No pain at all.  He prepped my tooth for the crown (the lab had already made my temporary crown, since an impression was taken a little more than one week ago), and then he excused himself to check the water.  He kept calling out "Luz, agua", and the rest I hadn't a clue as to what he was saying to his assistant.  It seems the handpiece was lacking water.  I was paying attention just a little bit at this point in my relaxed state, and I couldn't really tell.  He then moved me to the pretty blue chair.  It was then I could tell that the handpiece wasn't allowing enough water to flow out.  He didn't have an assistant.  He would call her name every so often, but he never had anyone on his left hand side.  He was very proficient, and he hummed a little.  The same procedure went forth as in my office except the part about the lab making the temporary crown (this was a case by case basis in the offices I had worked in).  Bluish-purple impression material, the same gun used to squirt the material around my tooth, biting on wax to show my bite, and then cementing my temporary crown were all part of the procedure.   He and the assistant also double checked the shade together.  I kept hearing the word "blanco".   The appointment time took one hour and fifteen minutes.  The one thing I do notice here in Panama is they don't seem to give too many breaks to rest the jaw!  I was again open a very long time with very few chances to close.  And once again, I was happy that I knew the procedure, and I was comfortable and relaxed in the dental chair.  I was almost asleep.  I will be called in seven to ten days when my permanent crown is delivered to the office, and no money was exchanged at the appointment.  I am to pay at my final visit.

My impression with temporary crown there with the same set up as in the US.

Once my dental visit was over, I enjoyed being numb for about one more hour, if that.  I was happy he only anesthetized my bottom front six teeth and not the whole left side of my jaw.  I had Girls Night Out to attend and didn't want to drool over my Sangria.  I never really got to the Sangria though, because while walking with Thea and two other friends to the pool, my thermos was bumping my hip along the way making a great mess.  I didn't need to drool to make a mess afterall.  Never mind that though, GNO was another success with meeting a few new women, but mostly reconnecting with some women I don't see too often.  We were there in celebration of the woman that started the event a few years ago.  She passed away suddenly last week.  She was too young (53 years old) and too much of a presence to be gone from us so soon.  She was one of our first friend's here, and I was hoping to get to know her more.  She was always cheerful and so inviting with us in conversation.  She always asked about us and about our daughter.  She read this blog and would comment to me about what we had going on in our lives.  The event was held at her condominium building in Coronado, since this is where the first GNO party was held two and a half years ago.  There was also a celebration for her this past Sunday that her husband and children threw for the community.  This wonderful lady had her plans laid out a year ago with her husband as a  "just in case, this is what I would want to happen".  Ray and I checked in on her husband and met her children at the celebration.  It was good to see the community coming together donating the venue, food and everyone pitching in to contribute to the day and to charities.  

This past Sunday was also my daughter's birthday, so we facetimed in the morning.  She opened the present I had wrapped for her while home over the holidays, and we caught up on the weeks events.  Virginia has had some icy and rainy days, and she was able to sleep in a little more on the two hour delay days, and there was a day that the schools closed altogether.  She had a wonderful birthday weekend with her friends, and my sister took her out for her birthday dinner.  One year ago, Ray and I were establishing residency with our lawyer in Panama City.  On our daughter's birthday, we arrived back to Northern Virginia with our temporary residency card in hand.  To think of all that our daughter has accomplished in just this one year alone along with what we have accomplished, while no easy feats, they are great feelings of accomplishments to have behind us! 

Since out trip to Contadora, Ray and I enjoyed another meal at Bluwater Bistro with Greg, Thea and another couple that recently returned from a four month backpacking tour of Europe.  Thea made sure there would be four pork chop entrees waiting for us.  They were amazingly good again!  We also stopped by Picasso's to listen to a singer that sounded just like Frank Sinatra, and this past Friday night, we spent time at Hotel Trypp chatting with a Canadian couple that I met at the gym, comparing notes about houses we have seen for rent and to buy, and meeting another Canadian couple along the way.   We enjoyed great conversation with our realtor and were introduced to a few more people.  We did not partake in karaoke, but there are quite a few talented singers in this community.

We also spent another day in the city with Greg and Thea running errands, shopping again at PriceSmart (we decided there were things we didn't buy last week but now we "needed"), trying out the burgers at Rockburger (nope, not me), shopping at the huge Riba Smith grocery store in an area of Panama City called Costa del Este and buying all five of the bottles of poppyseed dressing there.  I needed two bottles for my salad recipe that I was making for Girls Night Out, our Riba Smith no longer carries the dressing, so I did the best thing I knew to do--buy all the bottles I could at one time.  Just like with the hair color at Arrocha.  I bought two boxes while there, because they had the color I liked and I saved close to $5 buying it there and not in the grocery store here.  Have to save a little here and play more there.  And the best part of Saturday was that while I needed to just have my bangs trimmed, Thea also applied the color to my hair for me while I enjoyed the amazing view from her balcony.  And I could watch her mix up this product (we translated the directions from Spanish to English, and it was all normal to her, since this was her field for over twenty years with Redken), so I know what specifically to do with this brand the next time.  And there is an Italian hairdresser I am hearing great things about with the cut, shampoo, and blow dry being $25-35.  Eventually, I will have him cut my whole head of hair.  I can bypass Wandita's the next time as suggested by my stylist in Virginia.  

With our Amazon Fire, Ray and I watched the movies "12 Years A Slave" and "Wild".  While testing out Thea's amazing pressure cooker once again and enjoying dinner at their condo, we watched "American Sniper".  Fantastic that we can see the same movies that are playing today in the US here in our family room in Panama!  Back to the gym for me this week, and today, we are off to the beach!  First stop to Machetazo Cafe to load up "to go" boxes of lunch.  Now that we have tried out the pressure cooker again, and we have used our new Swirlio (another item we felt we "needed" from PriceSmart the other day) to make frozen desserts, it's time to test out our new beach umbrellas and backpack chairs.  The lazy days of summer in Panama.  Okay, lazy days in general in this thing called retirement.