my gains and losses for the week

• got out of my parking ticket fine: +$45
• received package from hickory farms: + (meat and cheese)
• had first part of root canal/crown procedure: + painful drilling, -$1,800

i got a parking ticket when i parked on the street in powder house circle a few months ago, but the nice man at the somerville traffic and parking office let me off. thank you mr. whatever-your-name-is, i'm sorry i wasn't paying attention when you introduced yourself but i'm grateful for your leniency.

kate and i finally got our xmas gift for each other - a discount meat and cheese platter from hickory farms. behold the bounty!! we decided to go high-class this year, hoping to avoid the figi's fiasco from last xmas, most of which went uneaten and can still be found in kate's office. figi's gave us many cheese products, none of which contained any cheese at all, and some interesting meat products. our favorite was the mettwurst - we still sing about it today (to the tune of 'sound of silence')...
hello mettwurst my old friend
i've come to eat you once again
from figi's we did get you
only to find you taste like a shoe

the root canal wasn't painful, just creepy. i kept picturing the dentist poking his teeny tiny little pick deep into the roots of my teeth and pulling out bits of pink tissue (wondering what a root canal is? the american dental association can explain it better than me). by the end of it i had messed up my neck from being tense and couldn't turn my head for a few days, but next time i'm make sure he gasses me or i get some valium. yeah, that's right, i have to go back! root canals take at least 2 visits, sometimes many more. but eventually i'll be able to eat using the right side of my mouth again and when it happens i will eat potato chips and jelly beans for every meal!! it will be glorious.

oh and i started school today. this time next week i'll be programming my very own lego robot. my hope is that it will be able to act as my monkey butler, getting me food and drinks so i never have to leave the couch.