I'm Wisdomless, and glad about it!

Having my wisdom teeth removed was by far the worst, most painful experience to ever happen to me so far. I got them removed July 25 2010 (yes, I remember the date because it was THAT bad). I will recount my experience in this blog. I hope everyone who reads this has already had them removed because I don't want to freak anyone out.

I went into the doctors office wearing a TCU shirt, my glasses, and some nike shorts. I was told to dress comfy and to not have my contacts in. I remember talking to the doctors as they were preparing me for the surgery. By the time I was in the chair I was already slightly under the influence of some drug that made me less nervous. The nurse put the IV in my arm which was something I was really worried about the night before. I don't like IVs at all. But I don't even remember them putting it in. The last thing I remember is the doctor asking me who I knew that went to TCU since I was wearing a TCU shirt. I said, "Me! I go to TCU!" I don't think the doctor thought I was old enough to be in college.

Sometime later I woke up shaking because I was freezing. I was coming off of the anesthesia and I couldn't really function very well. I was shaking and kind of freaking out and my mom asks the nurse, "Is she okay? I mean I know Natalie is a drama queen but this is a little extreme." I was extremely offended by that comment and talked about how I wasn't a drama queen ALL the way home. The drugs were still in effect on the car ride home and well into the first hour I was at home. Not to brag or anything but I was hilarious on those drugs. I was cracking my family up so much that my dad got out the video camera and started taping me. We watch it a lot now. I was mad that the doctor didn't think I was old enough to go to TCU and I was still hurt that my mom called me a drama queen.

I finally fell asleep (much to my mother's delight) and when I woke up the pain set in. My first problem was that I was allergic to the Vicodin they gave me. NOT GOOD. My second problem was I had dry socket but I didn't figure that out until Friday after 5pm so there was nothing we could do until Monday to fix the problem. In case you didn't know dry socket is extremely painful. My third problem was that when the doctor finally did treat my dry socket with the clove oil some of the oil dripped all the way to the back of my throat and infected my tonsils. My fourth problem was that I got dry socket on the other side of my mouth later that week. My fifth problem was by day 8 post surgery I still couldn't open my mouth all the way. My mom told me that I was probably just still recovering so I dealt with that for a week. When spooning soup into my mouth was too hard to do I decided something was wrong. My jaw muscle had balled up on the left side and I had to take muscle relaxers to fix it, plus another antibiotic. Well, the muscle relaxers made me extremely sleepy and the antibiotic gave me acid reflux. I was still recovering from all of this when I got to TCU around the 20th of August for recruitment.

I am so glad that I only had four wisdom teeth. I'm glad new ones don't grow. And, I'm glad I never have to have them taken out EVER AGAIN. The only good thing that happened out of all of this is the endless amount of milkshakes provided to me out of pity. And, of course, the video my dad taped of me which I plan on entering into a contest someday.

Kathleen

I remember the first time I was introduced to my best friend Kathleen. We were on a school bus on our way to a basketball game somewhere in Oregon. My twin sister, Hilary, played for the high school JV basketball team and I was the JV team manager. I became team manager because Hilary didn’t like traveling around alone and being away from home. I signed up so I could watch her play, keep her company, and give her support. I kind of felt a little awkward when Hilary wasn’t with me during the away games because I didn’t really know many of the girls on the team. But, on one particular trip, Hilary made an effort to introduce me to more players.

I’ll be honest, Kathleen intimidated me when I first met her. She was a sophomore playing on JV and was swinging up to play varsity. She was a great player and was popular even with the senior girls on varsity. Kathleen was always making jokes with the coaches and other players. At school she was friends with a popular group and seemed to know everyone. She was tall and pretty and the life of the party so I deemed her way too cool to be my friend.

I immediately liked talking to Kathleen when we first met on that bus. She was nice and absolutely hilarious. Hilary and I laughed the whole time we talked to her. We bonded quickly over our love of Harry Potter and we almost never have a conversation that doesn’t involve the magical world of wizardry. We became friends during that basketball season and when it ended we began to talk in the hallways at school and started hanging out.

I don’t really remember when we actually became best friends. It just sort of happened. One day I was thinking Kathleen was too coo l for school and the next day I realized she was the most down to earth person I had ever met. Kathleen is easy going, and isn’t tied up in what other people think about her. She is a positive, glass half full type of person, and always knows what to say to cheer me up. When boys break my heart and girls crush my self-esteem, Kathleen is there. When I get homesick for Oregon I call her and she reminds me that being in Texas has been a great experience for me. On my birthday she called me two minutes after I turned 20. We celebrated graduating from high school together. And some nights we celebrate the joys of college with a simple text, “I love college.” She shares her ice cream cakes with me. Not to mention the fact that she never gets tired of watching SVU or Pride and Prejudice with me. During the summer we go on hikes, watch movies, grab drinks from our beloved Dutch Bros and generally have the time of our lives.

I tell Kathleen things I don’t tell anyone else. I don’t feel like I have to censor what I say, even if it’s silly, trivial, mean, or just annoying. She listens and responds accordingly. I feel like I can truly be myself around her, no questions asked.

I think some people come into your life as temporary friends. Some people you call for a few years when you want to go out or need a ride to the airport. Some friends I associate with here at TCU will probably not be my friends after I graduate from school. I understand that everyone I meet won’t make a huge difference in my life. Most people come and go, sometimes at their own convenience and sometimes at mine. Sometimes it’s hard to know who is here to stay and who isn’t.

Without a doubt Kathleen is here to stay. She has been with me through the pains of heartbreak and let down. She has been there for me when I felt like I didn’t have any one else to talk to. She will be there for me when I fall and most importantly, when I succeed. I don’t see anything coming between us. However, if we ever do get our acceptance letters to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry we might have a problem. She’d get into Gryffindor with all of the cool kids and I’d in Ravenclaw with the witty nerd types. But I have confidence that even if we were in different houses she would still be my best friend.

Oh and while I’m writing I might as well wish Kathleen a HAPPY 20^th BIRTHDAY!!!!!