Saturday, December 30, 2006
So, it's been a while. 20 months to be exact.
Some housekeeping things:
The old email (avocado_the@yahoo.com) no longer works. I checked so infrequently that Yahoo decided to shut me down. I'm now with Gmail (avocado.the@gmail.com), which is a lot cooler, and I set it up so that it forwards to my everyday email.
This site is a big mess. All the ads, links, and random groups and notifiers need to go. I'm afraid to go into the chaos that is The Template, because as much as I'd like to tell myself that I'm conversant in the basics of html and css (since I own a book on the topic, wow), I really suck at it. However, if I decide to write more regularly, it needs to look neater.
I've been up to a lot of things. More on that later. It's nice to do this again.
Some housekeeping things:
The old email (avocado_the@yahoo.com) no longer works. I checked so infrequently that Yahoo decided to shut me down. I'm now with Gmail (avocado.the@gmail.com), which is a lot cooler, and I set it up so that it forwards to my everyday email.
This site is a big mess. All the ads, links, and random groups and notifiers need to go. I'm afraid to go into the chaos that is The Template, because as much as I'd like to tell myself that I'm conversant in the basics of html and css (since I own a book on the topic, wow), I really suck at it. However, if I decide to write more regularly, it needs to look neater.
I've been up to a lot of things. More on that later. It's nice to do this again.
I got my first electric toothbrush last week.
I've wanted to try one ever since I became an obsessive plague remover many years ago, but my dentist is of the opinion that you can achieve a better clean with a regular toothbrush. She claimed that if you're doing the motions yourself, it's easier to feel around the edges and successfully brush your 'trouble' spots, i.e. in between teeth, and around oddly shaped teeth. Everytime I asked her about electric toothbrushes, she'd tell me how she uses the sample ones she receives in the mail to spot clean her laundry. But what about those uber-expensive-ultra-sonic-vibrating-twenty-years-of-research ones? They're all inferior to conventional toothbrushes. Alright then.
So I completely defied her and happily accepted the electric toothbrush my parents bought me. It's a Braun Oral B something or other. I'm like some kind of rebellious dental patient, except I'm also everyone's favorite because WOW PLEASE OBSERVE MY LACK OF PLAGUE. And also my lack of gum from over-flossing.
First of all, the good:
1) It gives me one more reason to look forward to brushing. One cannot have too many reasons to look forward to brushing.
2) The little buzzing noises it makes is kind of cute. All BZZZZ BZZZZ and stuff.
3) I get to charge it in a cute little stand up charger. I like charging things.
4) It spins a lot faster than I can ever make my regular toothbrush spin. Sorry regular toothbrush.
5) The correct way to brush is around and around. I tend to brush around and around, then up and down, up and down, up and down. That is bad. Electric toothbrush is all round motions. That is good.
Next, the issues I have with it:
1) How are you supposed to get enough toothpaste to go on the tiny toothbrush head? I usually use so much toothpaste that I foam heavily around the mouth like a crazy person and need to spit about four times. No 'pea' sized amount for me. Any toothpaste I put on the electric toothbrush head usually flies off (physics grad students, here's a thesis idea for you: the centrifugal motion of electric toothbrush heads). What doesn't fly off doesn't get distributed evenly. My routine involves doing a quick toothpaste sweep around my mouth with my regular toothbrush and then switching to my electric.
2) How hard are you supposed to press? I find myself doing the same motions I do with a regular toothbrush, because holding it in one place feels so lazy, and I'm terribly afraid that I'll press too hard and all my enamel will come off, and that I'll live the rest of my life dependent on Sensodyne, and since that shit's expensive, that I'll never be able to afford a house.
3) Does water get into the electric system? I'm a little worried about that.
4) The cute vibrating noises I mentioned earlier? I'm afraid it's killing my brain cells.
4) Is it normal to have so many issues with your electric toothbrush? Maybe I should stick to a conventional one.
I've wanted to try one ever since I became an obsessive plague remover many years ago, but my dentist is of the opinion that you can achieve a better clean with a regular toothbrush. She claimed that if you're doing the motions yourself, it's easier to feel around the edges and successfully brush your 'trouble' spots, i.e. in between teeth, and around oddly shaped teeth. Everytime I asked her about electric toothbrushes, she'd tell me how she uses the sample ones she receives in the mail to spot clean her laundry. But what about those uber-expensive-ultra-sonic-vibrating-twenty-years-of-research ones? They're all inferior to conventional toothbrushes. Alright then.
So I completely defied her and happily accepted the electric toothbrush my parents bought me. It's a Braun Oral B something or other. I'm like some kind of rebellious dental patient, except I'm also everyone's favorite because WOW PLEASE OBSERVE MY LACK OF PLAGUE. And also my lack of gum from over-flossing.
First of all, the good:
1) It gives me one more reason to look forward to brushing. One cannot have too many reasons to look forward to brushing.
2) The little buzzing noises it makes is kind of cute. All BZZZZ BZZZZ and stuff.
3) I get to charge it in a cute little stand up charger. I like charging things.
4) It spins a lot faster than I can ever make my regular toothbrush spin. Sorry regular toothbrush.
5) The correct way to brush is around and around. I tend to brush around and around, then up and down, up and down, up and down. That is bad. Electric toothbrush is all round motions. That is good.
Next, the issues I have with it:
1) How are you supposed to get enough toothpaste to go on the tiny toothbrush head? I usually use so much toothpaste that I foam heavily around the mouth like a crazy person and need to spit about four times. No 'pea' sized amount for me. Any toothpaste I put on the electric toothbrush head usually flies off (physics grad students, here's a thesis idea for you: the centrifugal motion of electric toothbrush heads). What doesn't fly off doesn't get distributed evenly. My routine involves doing a quick toothpaste sweep around my mouth with my regular toothbrush and then switching to my electric.
2) How hard are you supposed to press? I find myself doing the same motions I do with a regular toothbrush, because holding it in one place feels so lazy, and I'm terribly afraid that I'll press too hard and all my enamel will come off, and that I'll live the rest of my life dependent on Sensodyne, and since that shit's expensive, that I'll never be able to afford a house.
3) Does water get into the electric system? I'm a little worried about that.
4) The cute vibrating noises I mentioned earlier? I'm afraid it's killing my brain cells.
4) Is it normal to have so many issues with your electric toothbrush? Maybe I should stick to a conventional one.
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Tea Bags are SO Last Year
It's all about tea leaves and tea infusers now!
Note: Behind the tea maker you can see a bowl of dough. I'm baking bread using an amazing recipe I found online. My first time was extremely successful. I'll share the secrets with you soon.
It's all about tea leaves and tea infusers now!
Note: Behind the tea maker you can see a bowl of dough. I'm baking bread using an amazing recipe I found online. My first time was extremely successful. I'll share the secrets with you soon.
