Diagnodent and more

Hi all,

Sorry about Monday. My kids are on Spring Break and we went the beach.
Yes it was 84 degrees yesterday (just to rub in some more the kids have been swimming in the pool for about 3 weeks now).
So when I am complaining in summer about how hot it is, remind me of these days.
(although it is suppose to be in the forties tonight...crazy).
Oh and there was this thing that I had to go to the doctor to get a tetanus shot.
Remember the garage that I am building....well, yeah come to find out that the pile of wood the guys have left behind have nails in them. Well, over the weekend, I stepped on this big mutha nail and it went right through my shoe and into my foot.
It was nasty and three days later it still hurts and I am walking with a limp and I am on a full regimen of antibiotics.

You all know that just because I write the blog doesn't mean I know all about the blog-o-sphere. I don't think most of you get to see the comments. So when I get a good comment I want you all to see it. Friday I got an awesome comment. It was one with passion. It was one with a little anger. It was one with, what I call, hootzpa.
This was the kind of comment that makes me believe people are really reading the blog.
I makes me believe that I am not the only one that loves his profession. I am not the only one that gets outrages at injustice.
I appreciate all your comments, good or bad (just not mean), because it means you are reading and you care.

But first, I need to clear something up about Friday's blog. I have no problem with the Diagnodent.
I am sorry if it sounded like I was bashing this product. I was really bashing the type of dentist who uses a piece of technology to rip people off.
And when I was saying "this new piece of technology" I was being sarcastic. I have had a Diagnodent for about 9 years. But the reason I was being sarcastic is this is how the dentist makes the pitch to sound even better...."this NEW laser technology" will help use detect decay.
Beep, beep, beep....you have 13 cavities.

Again I am sorry if I made it sound like the Diagnodent is bad an I certainly didn't mean to bash the dentist that were using it right.

But here is the comment.

You are seriously hoping that this isn't a "sign of the times", but I'm not sure you're right. It hasn't become the norm yet, and there are still alot of "good guys" left out there, but it is becoming more and more common to see the scenario you described. It's not even one type of dentist that I see this with either, young and old alike.
I used to think that dentists were innately decent guys, but my thinking has changed alot. It's sad, and I find myself becoming more jaded all the time, but I just keep plugging away. Oh, and by the way....those "salon dentists" you were talking about....I won't lie. I'm not rooting for them. To me it's like rooting for the plastic surgeons doing boobjobs on 17 year olds and cashing in because of Dr.90210 on primetime.
What I say to those salon style dentists is "sell a couple leather couches, get a hygienist, buy some forceps, and actually PRACTISE dentistry!" I don't know what an "Aesthetic Dentist" is...I know what a Prosthodontist is, but they must not do enough lumineers, or have enough TV commercials to be considered "Aesthetic Dentists"....hmmmmmm. My advice during these tough times is this - SUCK IT UP!
Dentistry is virtually recession proof. You might not be able to be fancy anymore, but your kids won't starve, and you might actually be able to send them to college. To all the Diagnodent-weilding, drill-aholics out there, I say this....go do a dental mission. Volunteer. Take a peek what the rest of the world has, and then whine and cry. Oh, by the way....when you're on your dental mission in a thrid world country, you might even get to see a 40 year old adult with 13 cavities needing to be restored....and you won't need a Diagnodent to see them. That's my 2 cents.

Now that is someone who is not casual about dentistry. He has opinions. Now it might not be just like yours but he or she put himself or herself out there.

I want to conclude on something totally different.
My wife drives a 04' minivan. None of the power outlets work in her car (and there are four).
So the first thing I thought of is a fuse. I checked the fuse and it was fine but I changed it anyway. Still not working.
I thought this was a weird problem and called my mechanic. I introduced myself and told him I was a loyal customer. I then proceeded to tell him my problem. I asked if this was something they would feel comfortable doing. He said yes.
Me being the curious guy that I am asked him, "Well what do you think it could be?"
And he kind of gave me an attitude, "Well, I can't tell you what is wrong with the car without seeing the car." You know with this tone like, "you are such a dumbass.
Then he continued, "You know, it could be loose wire or a bad receptacle, or you replaced the wrong fuse."
I said, "Now that is what I was looking for." (not the first statement of you making me feel like an idiot.)

I need a roof on my new garage. I called on of my patients, this is a family friend for about 15 years. I looked him up on our computer and it only had his home number. No one was home so I looked for his work number and we didn't have it. So I looked on the computer yellow pages...nothing. I looked in our paper yellow pages...nothing. So I called his wife at her work and she says that that he doesn't put his work number in the yellow pages or white pages for that matter. I almost said, "well how is anyone ever suppose to get a hold of him?"
So I finally got a hold of him and he said he would have an estimate for me in a couple of days.
It has been 11 days and I haven't heard from him. Some friend huh?
So I am going with the guy I don't know who was recommended to me that got me an estimate in 2 days.
I called 5 roofers and only two of them got back to me with a number.
Go figure.
People just don't get it. Why is it so hard for people to get this?
Service. Making people feel like they want to spend their money on you.

Have a great Wednesday,
john