AWB Sightings

Over the last few months I can't get over how many adults with braces (AWBs) I've seen. There was one working at Victoria's Secret and I said to her, "Look, I have braces, too!" She smiled, but probably thought I was crazy. There were two AWBs in the same subway car one day--with me, that's three! I thought I had hit the jackpot. I was waiting in line at Starbucks and there were two "business professionals" in front of me. The woman turned slightly, I saw her profile, and then I saw silver glowing from her mouth. At first I thought I was seeing things, but, no, I readjusted my line of sight and, sure enough, the woman in the conservative business suit was officially an AWB.

There's something about seeing that shiny glimmer under someone's lips that makes me smile.

You should be in pictures

with braces? I think I'm going to take the leap and see if there's a market out there in the film/tv/commercial/print world for adults with braces. I've been told I could even pass as a teenager, so it might come in handy.

A friend told me, though, that with the "clear" braces on top, I might be at a disadvantage since you can't see them as well. Man, should have gone for all silver!

My plan is to get a list of casting directors, take photos of myself with braces and send that along with my regular headshot. It can't hurt to try. Right? If nothing else, it could serve as my pre-preparation for when my braces do come off.

Let there be movement

I had my monthly orthodontist appointment on Tuesday and the assistant and I concluded that a lot has been going on in my mouth over the last few months. My teeth are moving! I have definitely seen changes, but since I look at my teeth everyday, it doesn't really make an impact.

I tried taking photos of my teeth, but they don't really come out that well. What I've noticed so far--

• less crowding in my bottom teeth--I definitely feel a difference when I run my tongue along the back of my teeth
• when I first got my bottom braces, the wire running across my teeth was noticeably crooked and all over the place, but now it's much more subtle
• my top two canines used to stick out and now they're in line with the rest of the teeth and seem to be slightly farther back in my mouth--when they stuck out, it emphasized their "pointyness" (if that's a word) and I always felt like they looked like vampire teeth, but I don't feel that way at all anymore
• The major work to be done now is rotating the two incisors next to the canines--my orthodontist says that he'll work on that next time, which probably means shaving a very small amount between a few of my teeth to allow enough space for them to move
• after my appointment, in which the wire was changed and some of the brackets were tightened, I've noticed a huge change in my "bite"--biting down feels very different. It used to be that I had a slight overbite (which I think a lot of people have), but now with teeth shifting, my top and bottom teeth seem more in alignment

I'd love to post some photos--if I'm brave enough and if I can somehow figure out how to take some non-blurry ones. I will soon be ready for my close-up!

Tinselteeth Tango

I took my first tango class last week at Dance Manhattan. If you know me well, you know I've been wanting to learn the tango for a while now. The good thing about the class is that you don't need to arrive with a partner since you rotate partners throughout the class.

My second partner of the night introduced himself and then said, "You're not the only one in the class with braces." He then smiled with a full mouth of metal. It was a classic Sex and the City moment! Two people with braces trying to dance the tango...it makes me giggle!