Latter Day Sinner

For most of my life I have had what people call a “sweet tooth.” And while I still enjoy sugary foods they have over the years ruined my teeth. I was told as a child that I had strong enamel and a rarely had cavities so I never developed proper oral hygiene. What no one ever told me is that the bones in my jaws would start receding in my thirties and by the time I was fifty that perfectly good teeth with healthy enamel would just get so loose they would either have to be pulled or they would fall out on their own. Which gets to the point that I have no adjacent molars in my mouth. I can’t comfortably eat “back of the mouth food.” So nowadays I gravitate towards soft proteins which can be chewed with my incisors. There’s a particular type of sandwich called a Raybern’s that the meat is cut into thin strips that is both nutritious and delicious. I just had a bowl of Chef Boyardee mini ravioli and I love SPAM’s new maple flavor. At some point I hope to be able to afford my teeth, but for now I eat in the front of my mouth and choose foods that are conducive to that.