Thursday, March 1, 2012

The Mystery of the Baby Teeth!

I made an offhanded comment yesterday about still having baby teeth. I did not expect to find that so many people would find that curious. But, in a post about death, privilege, and the plight of human suffering, folks only wanted to comment about my teeth. So, what the people want, people get.

I have baby teeth, they are in my mouth, and they are what I use to chew my food with. I am a mutant.

How many do I have? I have eight of them. four on top, four on bottom. Turns out, all those mushy foods in the modern American diet don't require those big kid teeth to eat. That's pretty much the whole story. I've had 4 or 5 dentists since I was a late teenager and they've all noticed it. None of them seem to think it was that unusual. I asked once how rare that was and my dentist shrugged and said, "I see it sometimes."

So, not too weird, it's not contagious, I won't infect your friends or loved ones with baby-toothitus, I don't need to have my rights taken away, my belongings confiscated, or spend the remainder of my days in a small government prison waiting for death.

No, I'm just like you. A person. Yes, I'm a mutant too, but think of me like a wizened old professor Xavier, I'll only use my powers for the betterment of ALL mankind.

And now you know.

23 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Just makes you all the more unique! But glad you're not contagious.

PT Dilloway said...

And knowing is half the battle! I don't think I have any baby teeth left but then I don't have many of my real teeth left by now. You must be taking care of them though if they haven't gotten rotten after all this time.

Matthew MacNish said...

That's not nearly as exciting as I'd hoped, Rusty.

Brinda said...

Sorry I was so fascinated...Pictures? JUST kidding.

Briane said...

If there's one thing I've learned from the Internet (and in actuality there are probably at least 3 or 4 things I've learned from the Internet) it's that whatever your point is, readers will ignore it and pick out a minor facet of something you said to harp on.

Which is why I don't even bother having a point anymore. Hey, did you see this weird button on my sweater?

If I were to follow the pattern, I would go off on a tangent about Xavier and the X-Men, and since I am inclined to follow the pattern, this is an appropriate time to bring this up: Why does everyone pronounce "Magneto" as "Mag-NEET-O?" Nobody has refrigerator magNEETS, do they?

You probably have those. Someone who has baby teeth probably has magneets, too.

Michael Offutt, Phantom Reader said...

It takes all kinds of people to make the world go round. People of all colors, races, genders, sexualities, and even those with non-standard teeth.

However, we could never say of you "Rusty has a smile that could shame a shark."

Andrew Leon said...

Tom Baker, who played Dr Who in the 80s, had (has) 36 teeth. I don't know if any of them were baby teeth, though.

@Briane: Magneto is pronounced that way because his name comes from a thing from a motor, a magento. Now, why is that thing called a mag-nee-toh rather than a magnet-o, I don't know.

Huntress said...

And so? This is the revelation?! That you are a muTanT?!

*sigh. crawls back into my hole*

M Pax said...

My husband has a baby tooth left, too. Oh gees, I'm surrounded by aliens. :)

paulandlou said...

I never noticed!

Golden Eagle said...

Yeah, but compared to baby teeth, death, privilege, and the plight of human suffering are just so everyday. :P

Christine Rains said...

Can my son join your baby teeth justice league? He'll have his for some years to come yet!

Cindy said...

My son (who is now 17) has one baby tooth because there was no adult tooth to push it out. So I have heard of it. We're all mutants in someway or another. Some people think I'm weird because I hvae all 4 wisdom teeth.

M.J. Fifield said...

I hear knowing's half the battle.

Thanks for dispelling the mystery. =)

Laura said...

Yeah - my grandad still had baby teeth when he died in his late 70's . Who'd have thought...
LX

Tonja said...

My baby has one vulcan ear. His eyebrows are normal though.

Unknown said...

I never got wisdom teeth. I've always wondered if that affects my intelligence. We are all mutants together.

सहज समाधि आश्रम said...

nice post

Shockgrubz said...

We each have a superpower, and it looks like this is yours. Could be worse, for sure.

Nancy said...

I never noticed either, I think that is why I found it so strange because you'd think it would look different. Of course, now I will be staring at your teeth next time I see you so you might as well be prepared to just open wide and let me inspect them. I didn't get it but my family has a genetic tooth disorder where there is no enamel on their teeth. However, it seems this genetic trait is matched to one that gives them incredibly strong bones so who knows what that awesome matching genetic trait is. Maybe you'll never grow old.

Carol Kilgore said...

As long as you don't use your baby teeth to bite babies, it's all good :)

Thanks for commenting at Under the Tiki Hut today.

Anonymous said...

Hmmm... that is pretty interesting. Sorry to be so fascinated...my kids are in the process of growing the baby teeth in....or having them fall out and have their adult teeth grow in. I guess the tooth fairy never came then, huh? Doing the A-Z challenge tour!

childrendentistsca said...

Cleaning teeth should be done regularly as part of your child's daily routine. It is a good idea to start to brush your baby's gums with a soft toothbrush to establish a routine. Start to brush your child's first teeth as soon as they erupt with a children's toothbrush with a small smear of toothpaste. Brush in the morning and before bed and don't brush teeth for at least an hour after eating. Children should be supervised when brushing their teeth until they are about seven years of age.

child teeth