Scooter Chronicles

Last Day of Work
So today is my last day of work. Well, at least at my current employer. I will miss some of it. The fellow employees were really great. Very helpful when they needed to be. Very friendly when they needed to be. And it was really cool working for my supervisor, seeing that he has the same taste in beer as I do, and is a hockey fan (he’s Canadian, so it goes with the territory).

However, I am looking forward to going back to my new/old employer. I really enjoyed working with quite a few people there, and even went out to dinner from time to time with two of them (though on separate occasions). And I really am looking forward to being busy at work again, and with things that are really exciting and challenging. But first, two days off. Probably going to take Nigel to the zoo on Monday.

The Tooth
No, I am not quoting Dr. Yueh or Leto Atreides from “Dune”. I am referring to my tooth. The one that I had the root canal on about four weeks ago. Yesterday I had to have another procedure on it before getting crowned. That was a crown lengthening.

Essentially they remove part of the gum around the tooth, exposing more of it to get the crown on it. Sometimes they need to grind away bone beneath the gum. Yep, I needed that, too. Though quite honestly, it was a more pleasant experience then the root canal. (Though NO dental procedure can be called “pleasant”.) However, the pain after is a whole other story.

NHL Playoffs
OK, so I haven’t followed the NHL nearly as close as I have in years past, but am keeping an eye out on how things are progressing. As it stands now, the Flyers are up 2-1 on the Capitals, while the Wings are now tied 2-2 with the Predators in their first round series. The Caps surged into the playoffs, winning their division, the weakest in the league. It is a bit surprising that they have played so badly the last two games, losing both to the Flyers. Though at this point I think the Flyers are going to end this quickly. As for the Wings, well …. though my favorite team, and the best team (by record) in the league, I still have my doubts. I think they will rid themselves of the Predators, but obviously not as fast as expected now that the series is tied. I also still don’t see them winning the Cup. (Remember, I picked the Sharks at the beginning of the season, though they have been shaky in their first round series with the Flames.)

Speaking of Hockey
I started reading a book yesterday while waiting for my prescription to be filled at the local drug store. I didn’t expect to get far into it, especially considering that another book was scheduled to be delivered that I was going to read right away as part of mine and David’s Mini Beer and Book Club. The book is the first in a fantasy series that is geared to the young adult market. But I got a good laugh at a few of the characters.

The main character is the youngest of 13 kids, and his name is Ven. Three of his brothers were introduced in the first chapter. One was named Nigel. (Rather obvious why that caught my attention.) But the other two really got me going. Their names were Osgood and Vernon. For those of you that aren’t Red Wings’ fans, those were the last names of the goalies for the Red Wings from 1994 to 1997 (Osgood is currently a member of the team again), both being members of the team that broke the 42 year Stanley Cup drought. I know the author, Elizabeth Haydon, is originally from Michigan, but that doesn’t mean anything. Somehow though I don’t think it’s a coincidence.