[Super Duper Fantastic] ISFP/INFP. 4w5. World Explorer. Super Hero. Rose-colored Glasses.

Here I thought it’d be smooth sailing through surgery since everything was scheduled. Not so! After a very long pre-op appointment with the hospital [It went overtime!] and then later the surgeon’s office, I found out that my surgeon had been overbooked. On the day of my surgery, he also had twelve other appointments to keep. So he took the easy way out and asked that I have my surgery date changed. Only thing is, the next available surgery date isn’t until the very end of this year. Literally. On December 30th [since New Year's Eve is a holiday], I’ll get all of this done.

I only found out after I had to make two molds, answered a bunch of duplicate questions from earlier on in the day – all on an empty stomach.

This is after finding the perfect job to let me go at the right time. This is after coordinating with my insurance company, so that my benefits don’t change on me halfway through. After countless calls to the schedulers, you’d think they would get it right and schedule me for a time that is actually available on the surgeon’s schedule.

This is after I set aside time for a party to stuff my face at. I’ll still have the party this weekend, but it just won’t have the same meaning as if the actual surgery date was right around the weekend.

:-/

I feel like after all that preparation, I’ve been let down. I am annoyed, upset, UGH. There’s just not much I can do about it though. Worst of all, it’ll still cost a shit ton, which hopefully insurance will still cover. So annoying.

I seem to have disappeared off the face of the blog. It’s been less than a month, but if I don’t update for a few weeks, I start to feel like I’m forgetting to document everything that’s going on… not that it all has to be documented, but anyway!

The biggest thing is that I have a job! I started on Wednesday of this week, and so far it’s going well. I’m very happy with everything, and at the end of the three month trial period, hopefully I will be converted to a full-time employee. I technically work full-time now, but I’m under the recruiting firm’s payroll, rather than the actual company. They want to see how it works out before committing. The interview process was such an arduous one [I met with them five times!], and their search was essentially to fill the role in the long-term. I guess their last person wasn’t so great, so they’re taking a safer route now.

Before starting work, I spent a week in DC on the #AYCJ pass. I stayed with a friend [Matt] in his corporate housing and spent the days wandering around DC, Arlington, and Alexandria. I was basically all over the place, but I would’ve explored more if I wasn’t there by myself. There are a lot of areas that people advise you not visit, so I would stick to the areas that I was certain about. For the other places, I’ll have to wait for RV to accompany me to DC! Promise I’ll be updating with photos and lists of the places visited soon. They’re just sitting on my camera…

On the Metal Mouth front, I went to the orthodontist for the last time before the surgery! They put the hooks in, so basically when surgery is over, the oral surgeon can just wire me shut on those… I am so not excited about this. My pre-op is coming up next week!

As many are aware, I’ve had to cancel quite a few of the trips I’d planned due to unforeseen circumstances! I haven’t had time to talk about those circumstances on the blog, so here goes: I may start working again, which would cancel my weekday travel, and I have a surgery and post-op date, which happen to fall around the time of travel also. Fantastic, right? Luckily, when you book tickets at the last minute, they’re extra expensive, so I will get my money’s worth from the one trip I’m taking this coming week to Washington D.C. I just have to make sure I cancel/reserve according to the 3-day policy, and I’m set.

Today was my first #AYCJ encounter! I didn’t even have to leave my own city.

RV and I caught up with @redelvis, @sawyouonjetblue, and @Michele_Pacheco to cross the Golden Gate Bridge. We ended up thirty minutes late since brunch ran a little overtime! We caught up around the end of the second half of the bridge. After taking some quick photos, @redelvis stuck behind with us and spent the remainder of the stroll across the bridge teaching me binary!

Yep, another one off the list:
050 – Learn the basics of binary.

While it would probably have been easier to grasp if we actually wrote numbers down, he did a great job of explaining. I learned not only to count, but also to convert decimals to octal and then to binary. So I think I’ve got the basics!

Okay, not quite. But guess what?! I have a surgery date! Rather than just call me back to let me know, I received a letter from the hospital telling me my surgery date and my pre-op date. THANKS. At least it’s sooner than I had anticipated.

So here’s the dealio. I’m not really getting a NEW face, but my profile might change a bit because the jaw surgery affects both my lower and upper jaw. I will mostly look the same… I’ve had a severe underbite for my entire life, and basically what they’re doing is saving me a lifetime of trouble. In the long run, I’d have problems with eating if I left everything as is. They’re going to knock me out with anesthesia, take apart my upper and lower jaws, reproportion the bones [cut some out and put some back in], and then they’ll put me back together. They’ve done it for many years, so it’s not uncommon.

Recovery time is between a week and a month [more like 1.5 months!]. I won’t be able to eat really. I’ll have to relearn to speak with my new mouth. Liquids will be my friend. Side effects may include loss of feeling in the face. If I’m drooling away while talking to you and not noticing, you will know why. For the first few days, I’ll look completely swollen and gross. I am NOT looking forward to that. That’s alright though. I’ll probably just lock myself up in the house with my pain meds. ;-)

So YES, a surgery date’s been set. Hooray! Rejoice! Another one off the list.

021 – Schedule jaw surgery date.

I am back from the Playa! [Update: Photos - here!]

Burning Man was an awesome experience, and while I had a lot of fun, I am definitely glad to be back. There was a lot going on prior to the trip, and after about a week taking a mental vacation [No cell phone or internet does wonders!], I am ready to move ahead at full speed. For most of the week, we took things fairly easy. We didn’t try to do everything just because it was there to be done, but just proceeded at a casual pace. We’d take walks or ride our bicycles around when the dust storms weren’t too terrible. At night, we’d go dancing, jump on art cars, hang out at the bars, or check out art installations. We didn’t stay too long after the Burn itself, and I’m actually back a day earlier than originally planned. We were there from the beginning, so it was just time to pack it all up and make the long trek out.

I think that it is a different experience for everyone who attends. You take what you want from it. Some people try to do too much at once and get burnt out pretty quickly. Others undergo some revelation or spiritual experience that they tie to the burning of the Man and of the Temple. For me, the highlight of the week was spending time with RV. Sure, I already see him every day, but I think having to live in Black Rock City for the week, dealing with dust storms, crazy winds, heat of the afternoon, and cold of the night, brings out another side, and it seems that even with those extra colors showing, I like him just the same, if not more…

Other fond memories:

- Art installation hopping. I’m certain that we didn’t see ALL of the art installations, but there are just so many! They pop up all over the Playa at different times; one day all you see is dust, and the next day something amazing is in that very same spot.

- Full moon party on Friday night. That was pretty much the only event that I was adamant about attending all week long. It was a great reminder of all the parties I’d enjoyed in the past, and of course, it always feels awesome when you’re sharing great music with friends and dancing your legs off.

- An older gentleman dressed in a suit and carrying a briefcase approached us and asked if we would like free money. Considering that there is no currency in Black Rock City, we weren’t sure what to expect when he placed into our hands something folded and told us not to open our hands up until he’s at least ten feet away. After waiting for him to step away, we opened up our hands and found in our palms $50 each… :-o

- One event I attended on the Playa involved ripping apart various stuffed animals and sewing them back together in different combinations. What I ended up with was a giraffe with a bear’s body wearing a koala hat. The bear’s body was apparently part of a bear-Minnie Mouse combination from the year before, but the participant’s dog had torn off the head, and so the body was at the event for round two. I rescued a giraffe head after someone else tore off its body, and the koala head was laying around, waiting for its fate as a hat. A little twisted, but still adorable. I think RV was impressed by my sewing skills, and from what I was told later on, my creation was quite the hit! The funniest part was figuring out how to transport the creature home. He was too large to stuff in a bag or use as a bicycle seat, so we strapped him onto RV’s back with a bike lock.

I really enjoyed my first time at Burning Man, and already, RV is planning on what to do for the next. There were certain things we weren’t quite prepared for, but I think being in an RV our first year certainly made things easier on us. We had a default place to go to escape the dust and the heat. Even if we’re in tents next year, we have a better idea of what to expect since we’ve been out there. Heading out there this year was definitely worth the time/money put into it.

Recent 101 in 1001 Accomplishments:
001 – Buy a bicycle. Ride it.
085 – Full moon party for nostalgia’s sake.
090 – Attend Burning Man.