Mr. T has Tall Teeth

What's that? You don't remember The Letter People? Ok, then. I'll write about something else instead.

I have very good teeth. I still have my wisdom teeth, too. Way back when they came in, a dentist wanted to pull them. I asked, "Is there room in my mouth for them?" He said, "Yes, but they're hard to brush; you'll get cavities, they'll get rotten, and then you'll have to have them pulled. So why don't we just pull them now?"
I asked, "What makes you think I'll get cavities? I don't have any now. Why should these teeth be any different?"
He shook his head, and I left the office with my brand new wisdom teeth intact. I don't do unnecessary procedures. :p
Anyway, a year or so down the road, I got pregnant. When I went to Massachusetts to give my son up for adoption, I drank filtered water. Their water quality is so poor, you can't drink tap water there. The combination of unfloridated water and pregnancy took it's toll (I guess); because when I came back to St. Louis, I had tooth pain. I went to a dentist who said I had cavities in my top wisdom teeth. (damn, and double damn) So I got my first and last set of fillings. That was almost 15 years ago. The web says most amalgam fillings last between 5 and 10 years. I guess I'm doing well!
Yesterday, I bit down on a popcorn kernel and a filling popped out. It was really creepy. I was afraid it was a piece of my wisdom tooth, (having no idea what a filling actually looks like). I was afraid my wisdom teeth were falling apart or something. I called my mom and told her what happened, and she said, "It's just your filling."
So now I get to go to the dentist, and have him tsk tsk over my brushing habits. (sigh) I need to decide whether to have it refilled, or yanked. I have a lot of confidence in my dentist. We talked about possibly pulling my wisdom teeth the last time I saw him. He said, "You're 34? You've had those teeth a long time. I think they should stay where they are, unless there's some need to pull them." Good man!