Complex Numbers

Turning West Virginian

So this toothache I've been having, which I thought - because the dentist told me so - would be fixed with a relatively simple crown, turns out to now have a major crack in it. This, apparently, is why I've had to overdose on Advil and paint my gums with whatever-caine.

The crack, according to this same dentist, means now I have to do one of the following:

a) have the tooth extracted, perhaps getting an implant to take its place.
b) get a root canal AND a crown, or
c) do (b) and then if it doesn't work do (a)

I'm glad I have dental insurance, because (b) could run $2000 and (a) could be as much as $3000. And that would be one less tooth - I've already lost a lower molar in addition to my 'wisdom' teeth. It's too bad my 'wisdom' teeth didn't make me 'wise' enough to go to the dentist sooner, when I first started having temperature problems with the tooth.

He gave me a referral to an endodontist for further evaluation - but since endodontists specialize in doing root canals, I have a feeling that's in my future. I've had them before. They're not as painful as people say. What they are is expensive and boring (for once, no pun intended)

I'd almost rather have pain.

What has 37 legs and three teeth?
The front row at a Willie Nelson concert.