What I learned at the dentist office

The last time I went into the dentist office was my first time in 7 or 8 years - since the last time I actually had dental insurance.  I was utterly terrified, but I don't particularly want to wind up like my 45 year old father who already has dentures because he let his teeth rot.  I'd rather go to the gynecologist, or walk on fire, or join the Tea Party than let someone stick sharp metal objects in my mouth, but I suppose I'd rather go to the dentist's and suffer for a day than pull my teeth out of a jar every day by age 45.

I went in today to get a cavity filled (and no, not the fun kind), which I figured wasn't so bad - 1 cavity in 7 or so years.  I picked up a copy of People magazine in the lobby, figuring I can find something in there that will occupy my thoughts once I'm actually in the dentist's chair, to distract me.

I open up to the cover story about Sandra Bullock, and read about how she's moved to Austin in the wake of her divorce, to raise her new baby.  "She looks beautiful and happy. She looks like a fabulous Mom," I read, and I wonder what it is about being beautiful and happy that makes someone seem like a fabulous Mom.

Flipping to the next article, I read a headline about Kendra from Girls Next Door (fuck me for not putting the magazine down then).   Holding a picture of her baby, the headline reads something about how, "Kendra now finds herself thanks to Marriage and Motherhood."

The dentist is ready to torture me with a filling.  "Are you ready?," she asks "Oh Kendra!  Her baby is so cute," she comments, looking over my shoulder at the magazine article. "Isn't she getting divorced?"

"I have no idea," I tell her.  "I didn't read this because I couldn't get past the headline... but judging that marriage is half of what helped her find herself... she's probably not getting divorced? It's sad to me that she didn't find herself.... FOR herself."

"Oh sure, that baby sure is cute," the dentist replies.  I'm not convinced she actually listened to my critique.

Looking good and having good looking kids - yep that's the stuff that makes someone a good mother.  I'm left wondering what it is that makes someone a good father, and I wouldn't know because People magazine never told me.  It's obviously far more important that women get married, have kids, and look good doing it.  A friend of mine was told this weekend that she is going to make a beautiful housewife.  I'm not sure whether the assumption that someone is going to get married, or going to have kids, or going to stay at home as a housewife with assumed kids bothers me the most.   But as long as they look good doing it, I guess it doesn't really matter.