Wednesday, January 23, 2013

The Silence of the Lambs

Not.

I'm sitting here, typing in the studio.  Don't have any music on, and through the wall I can hear a child screaming its bloody head off.  I mean screaming.

Geographic disclosure:  If you're not completely in the loop, my studio is next to a pediatric dentist's office.

I can honestly say that, other than some horror movies I've seen, I don't know when the last time I heard quite this much continuous screaming from one person.  As a point of fact, the kid started screaming when I started typing this post and it continues even now.

I just got back from seeing "Lincoln" -- which I enjoyed very much -- and it reminded me of how one might suppose a man might scream when they started sawing off his leg in the aftermath of Antietam or Gettysburg or Vicksburg.

They give you a shot of Evan Williams and a piece of wood to bite on.  Four guys hold you down and the doc starts to saw off your leg.  At first you're shouting "No.  No.  NO!"  But that's no help.  Then you just start screaming.  The pain; the dread; the loss; the horror -- it all comes up from your soul and out your mouth.  That kind of screaming.  Screaming til you pass out kind of screaming.

It stopped a moment ago.  Thank God.

I'm one of those people who has a bit of dentist anxiety.  For me it's all about the novocaine needle.  As a young man I disliked that needle so much that I went through a period of time when I had a couple of cavities filled without novocaine.

Bad idea, but still.

All of which makes me wonder what's going through the heads of the little children waiting in the dentist's lobby for their turn in the chair.

1 Comments:

Anonymous CS said...

Another thing we have in common. I also couldn't bear the thought of a needle in my mouth and eschewed novocaine. I would , in other words, transcend dental medication.
CS

1:13 PM  

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