What's small, delicious, and can cause $1,000 worth of damage?
An un-popped popcorn kernel.
It's not a very funny joke.
Neither is the bill we'll be paying to my neighbor dentist--a nice man, who may or may not have a boat payment. My guess is he doesn't.
You've probably heard a similar story before, a delicious half-eaten bowl of popcorn sits invitingly on the counter, a reward for a 10-hour shift at work, tempting, it's deliciousness beckoning its helpless victim to come closer.
Come! Partake! Enjoy the fruits (or vegetables...) of your labor! Live life to the fullest!
Granny, YOU LIE!
You evil, evil un-popped product! You lie...
Of course, this may not have happened at all had not the un-popped kernels been so yummy and had I followed my wife's admonition: "Don't eat the un-popped kernels." I love them. I must eat them. The popcorn must have sensed my weakness for there appeared many "grannies" in the popcorn bowl. As I'm chowing away I found an extra hard kernal between my teeth. But something was different about this one. The texture was smooth, almost like glass. I took it out of my mouth, examined it, then set it aside just in case there were any more kernels like this one.
When I had almost finished finding and eating all the un-popped kernels I noticed something strange with one of my molars. It felt like a kernel shell had lodged itself on top of my tooth. Upon further investigation I found it wasn't a kernel shell, it was a hole where the side of my tooth used to be. I examined the kernel I had taken out of my mouth earlier. It wasn't a piece of popcorn after all--it was a chunk of my tooth!
The temporary crown went on today. The permanent one will be ready in two weeks. The dentist said it could have happened any time. Many of my molars are full of metal fillings and the dentist said these are the ones he puts crowns on the most.
Have I learned my lesson? Will I continue my destructive behavior? Will the tiny seed overcome the human with a brain?
Time will tell, my friend...time will tell.
Poor you, thank goodness I don't like popcorn so I am never tempted.
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