I just got back from a painful visit to the dentist. What I thought was the crowning of a wisdom tooth turned out to be a gum infection instead. Oh dear, and I thought I was getting wiser! 
I shall not go into the gory details but 4 shots and lots of blood later, I’m back on an early day off work, high on my painkillers. I’m such a wuss when it comes to pain!
On an aside, you know how sometimes smells can evoke such a powerful memory? I came back just now and when I approached the lift lobby of our temporary digs, I suddenly smelt a long-forgotten smell. It was the slightly musty smell of my college residences when I was a student in Melbourne.
It was the smell of musty carpets and wood that have been trekked on by thousands of feet that had passed through its halls. The smell of late night instant noodles and pizza suppers. The smell of floor parties with the super cool Japanese tutor who cooked us an entire Japanese spread. The smell of a tiny forbidden kitten that spent several months living in a friend’s room. The smell of “Henry” the resident vacuum that does its noisy wheezy job sucking up the bugs from the carpet. The smell of “Truth & Dare” over Mark’s Pizza where we found out rather surprising things! The smell of heartfelt conversations that dragged on till 5am. The smell of one of my closest friend, E’s, horribly messy room and her amazing love for chocolate. Best of all, it was the smell of friendship, freedom, independence, support, love, tears and laughter from a time I’d almost forgotten.
It was surprisingly poignant as, for some unknown reason, I’d buried some of the best years of my life so deep inside me I didn’t realise I’ve missed it so much till that musty waft brought it all back. So while we can’t re-live the past, that little blast to the past was a nice walk down memory lane and perhaps a gentle reminder to me to once again, open my emails and pick up the phone to get back in touch with those who had made those years so fun.
Either that or it was an overdose of painkillers and I was in a drug-induced daze! 
Time to pop another!
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Actually, I kinda look forward to dental visits these days… hee, cos I can surf net, watch TV, and drink cappucino while waiting for my turn!
PE says: Wah! Such a luxurious dentist clinic! Where’s that?!
Oh, poor you! I haven’t gotten my wisdom teeth yet… *crosses fingers and uses tongue to feel gumline* Nope, no sign of ‘em yet.
PE says: *crosses fingers Rinnah won’t get her wisdom teeth* It’s a painful experience to remove them cos they normally don’t come up straight and screw up all the rest of your teeth!
Yikes, reminds me of what I went through last week in KK – had a tooth removed.
PE says: Ouch!
Poor you…Can so sympathize with that!
Eeewwwwwm 4 injections? I hope you feel better.
You studied in Melbourne? What year? What course?
Oops, sorry for my ‘kei-pohness’.
Take care.
PE says: Yeah 4
*ouch* It’s feeling a bit better today, thanks. Was in Melbourne in 1997, you moved to the UK by then? Take care too 
Hugs for the brave PE! My wisdom tooth were removed so pardon me of some of my wisdom is also MIA :p I know how smell can bring back memories…and I miss “my parts of my life smell” too!
PE says: Thanks
Sometimes better not to be wise la, it comes with too much pain to remove them!
gum infection… urgh! speaking of a sniff down memory lane… ok, for me it wasn’t a sniff, it was your story…
I had a tooth which I thought required some patching up, but it turned out the root was all gone due to a gum infection and the dentist couldn’t save it. I now have a gap in the gums where it used to be… *sigh*
PE says: Ouch, your poor tooth
But nevermind, gaps are cute 