Zapped

I was scheduled for two appointments in Boston yesterday, but one was canceled at the last minute, so I took advantage of my free time to have lunch with my friend Margaret and do some retail therapy with Diane.

It's too bad that the dentist canceled, because I was interested in hearing what he thought about a problem that I didn't even know had a name: burning tongue syndrome.

I did get to see my dermatologist for our now-routine session of zapping and chatting. It's a good thing I like her so much. She identified a spot on my wrist that will need to be removed surgically. She had thought that a past biopsy itself would take care of the little squamous cell, but it is still sticking around. She also biopsied a spot on my neck. Same old, same old. After Dr. Lin and the nurse had left the room, I noticed that my hair at the nape of my neck was caught under the bandaid. I went to find Bernarda, Dr. Lin's scheduler, who put on some gloves, and, tsk-tsking about the sloppy job, had to cut a little of my hair away.

By the time I was finished with lunch and shopping it was already getting dark. It might have been wise to spend the night, but I got it into my head to go home, so I stopped at Starbucks for a super-strong coffee on the way out. The barista told me that their Blonde Roast actually has more caffeine than the darker roast although it has a lighter taste. I got it with a shot of espresso; when he called out "One Red Eye," I didn't know what he meant, but he said that's it's name. (Two shots is apparently called a black eye.)

I had only eaten half of my lunch due to my normally slow eating habit combined with not having a full set of teeth. I realized I was hungry, so I bought a sandwich for the ride home. Add eating while driving to the list of driver distractions. I needed to go only one exit on 95 North to get to the Mass Pike, but by the time I realized what I was doing I had gone maybe five. So I turned around and of course immediately got stuck in traffic with those commuting home after a day at work along Route 128.

Despite strong winds and snow squalls, I arrived home safe and sound. I am glad I will not be driving much in the near future. I thought I might have trouble going to sleep after all that caffeine, but I drifted right off. However, I paid the price by waking up every hour.