Pura Vida

So the first time I realized I could actually straighten out a bunch of cock-eyed teeth simulating a train wreck straight outa Chattanooga, I was amazed; signed up to be an Invisalign provider in about 20-minutes.

And some of my best friends are orthodontists but I have to admit, deep down in some dark place to some degree, I always viewed “those people” as engineer types who were queasy at the sight of needles, blood, and stuff like other people’s spit.

But when I was in dental school and if I knew I could have got away with it and I had discretionary revenue, I would have handed out serious greenbacks to save myself the indignity of bending little itty-bitty wires just right for a grade.

Who knew my using clear customized plastic could transform smiles and lives…and even land me a trip to Costa Rica? Costa Rica is that Central American paradise where the sun shines; there’s no water shortage…and beautiful Latinas speak lovely English…softly.

I’ve gotta admit, everything leading up to my Friday by the pool at the San Jose’ Marriott was awesome…and why not? My Invisalign mentor/stand-up comedian Dr. David “Almost nobody dies zip lining” Galler had shared all kinds of inside, “Invis” info that only special types like me and my Reingage study group bros and sistas were privileged to hear.

Doc Galler is a World traveler and Costa Rica veteran; he taught us to smile and say “Pura Vida” to the natives whenever we had the chance. In his native New York, Galler reasoned the phrase would probably translate to “Eff-it.” But in Costa Rica and in San Wikipedia, “Pura Vida” seems to go to the spirit of appreciating life’s simple pleasures and living life to the fullest (I even bought a “Pura Vida” t-shirt.)

We had great food, 5-star accommodations, all of the soup in the world, and basked in service that made Nordstrom look like a Dick Cheney Texas bird-hunting party. We even took a field trip to Costa Rica’s Invisalign central, the place where all of the technical magic happens 24-7; also had the unlikely pleasure of meeting, shaking hands with, and swapping cock-eyed occlusion tales with my very own Invisalign technician.

For the uninitiated, Invisalign is an orthodontic approach that generates great results (mostly within nine months to a year) while being virtually invisible to everyone except pathological close-talkers who violate the 5-foot rule of verbal engagement decency.

But now back to Friday poolside; President Franklin Delano Roosevelt once said “All we have to fear is fear itself.” And I’m just sayin’ FDR never went zip lining almost 200-feet in the air. And I don’t know about you but when I have to worry about stuff like changing my underwear at 200-feet, it’s time to reflect.

So I was gonna lie through my teeth and invent a story to tell all my co-workers back home. I was gonna go on and on about stuff like the monkeys, parrots, and lush foliage. Everything was going to work out just fine until Invisalign Territory Manager/Patient Ashik shared he was coming along for the ride. I was stuck because daredevil Ashik would be joining in, shadowing, and stalking me on the zip line way to San Jose’.

To his credit, once I shared my total fear of the old-school suspended buckets that used to take you from Frontierland to Tomorrowland, Ashik was prepared to lie on my behalf and back-up my story, a tale held together by a slim thread of un-waxed dental floss truth- my total fear of hanging from 200-feet and maybe even being struck by the lightening that was predicted 24/30 for the month of Noviembre in Costa Rica.

Atlanta Practice consultant Jay Geier is always saying what you fear is exactly what you should be doing. Jay Geier, I’ve got your zip line right here. I decided I’d go public and suddenly the Cervesa Imperial started tasting like nectar again.

And what’s wrong with the natural simplicity of sitting out by the pool, reading a Sicilian crime novel, being creative, and applying sun screen for beautiful Latinas who speak lovely English…softly? Pura Vida.

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