follow up from yesterday

So as I mentioned, I needed a wisdom tooth pulled because it was growing in and causing a lot of discomfort and swelling.  I told my director I wanted to see the dentist asap so she walked me (across the hall) to the dentist office and spoke to them.  After about 10 minutes of conversation in Korean, my director translated "they'll examine your teeth tomorrow at 9:30am"

SCORE!

So at 9:30am today my director and I went back across the hall... and it went something like this:

1. take our shoes off ( it's apparently more sanitary to be in socks or a pair of the used sandals at the door)
2. a minute of korean conversation
3. show my alien ID (insert extraterrestrial joke here)
4. a minute more of korean conversation
5. sit on dentist chair
6. receive extra large blue bib
7. dentist looks at teeth for 30 seconds with little tiny mirror

8. director translates: "they want an X-ray"
9. "take your earrings out, stand on your tippy toes, hold onto these bars with your hands, stick your head in this machine, bite this awkward thing-a-magjig, wait while i align these lazers on your face, perfect!"-(all spoken in korean)
-"oh that was fast, we're done? -me *moves head*
"!!!No...don't move you #%!# english-speaking moron!!!" -thankfully, in korean

10. x-ray takes 30 seconds
11. back to dentist chair
12. dentist and I both look at x-ray for 30 seconds
13. I think i've spotted the problem- "wow that tooth looks out of place"
14. Dentist identifies the problem... points to opposite side of the X-ray pic...
15. me- ah yes, that's what i meant... *ponders reverse x-rays* (doubt starts setting in)

16. my translator: "they'll pull it right now, ok"
17. whaaa...umm... like later today.. or like right now, right now?
18. "now"     *smiles at the stupid American girl*
19. feeling scared and pathetic I asked: "uhh.. are they going to give me pain medicine?"
20. "yes they will write you a prescription after."
21. "ohfuckohfuckohfuckohfuck"
22. dentist goes in my mouth with what i assume is the tool to yank the tooth from my face
23. suddenly the pain is dwindling
24. "ahhhhhhh that feels better, you ARE giving me the good stuff, you tricky korean dentist!"

25. I burst out laughing to the point of crying for like 3 straight minutes while the numbing stuff comes to full effect... just thinking about how comical this whole morning has been... everything happened so quickly... then I took some pictures and the nurses started laughing too... (I continued laughing long after they had stopped)

26. time to get to business... Dentist puts my chair back... i slowly open my mouth and say a silent prayer that they pull out the right tooth... but then i continue laughing in my head and figure... oh what the hell if they don't... gotta feel better than it has been.

27. dentist gives a few tugs and i wonder if she's going to be strong enough... "must be a pain to pull teeth out"-me thinking
28. dentist get's serious... puts a cloth over my face with a hole just for my mouth... obviously blood is going to spew everywhere in a matter of seconds.
29. 2 (long) minutes later it sounded like she cracked my tooth... which i was oddly really happy about... (progress...)
...but to my surprise the cloth came off and the deed was done!

My evil tooth didn't hurt at all on the way out, and for that, I was very grateful.
I sat in the waiting room still giggling to myself, still stunned by the lack of a lengthy American-like process.

In retrospect, at this next part, I should of made an effort to seem more in pain in front of my director- she walked in and saw me with my gauze-filled cheek acting drunk and commented: "you're very smiley!"

I very wrongly assumed I'd go home now, but then she said "well you're supposed to rest for 2-3 hours but your first class is in an hour and we don't have any extra teachers... so... you'll be okay?"

I love how that was posed as a question by my boss who pretty much owns my life in this foreign country...
my smile faded... and soon, so did the numbness...
i was prescribed a random assortment of pain medicine, but I wasn't allowed to take them until after lunch.

I created these very hi-tech signs and went into my morning classes with a fresh piece of gauze and a "i may or may not be DYING" facial expression... poor kids. haha

After I ate and took my meds, I felt much better, with only a small headache to show for the whirl-wind-of-a-day.

ps. my FAVORITE PART: for the on-the-spot tooth removal and pain meds... my bill was $11.70
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! uh-mazing.
I was so confused so my director was said, "why, is it free in america?" bahahah <3