For fun

This morning I went to the dentist for my checkup and cleaning. I'm usually pretty on top of those appointments but for various reasons it kept getting pushed aside and I'm nearly a year overdue. I had terrible teeth as a kid but have lucked out with minimal issues as an adult. With no cavities and me usually being on top of my appointments and flossing, the most she could recommend was invisiline to straighten out a minor overlap on my bottom teeth. If anything, I'd fix the top teeth that shifted after I got my braces off because I didn't wear my retainer. Both are so minor and don't bother me enough to think about it all. The dentist said it's about $5,000 but she could have the front office look into my coverage because it could be something fun to fix.

I know she didn't mean anything by it, and I took no offense at all, but I could think of a lot of other things I'd want to do with $5,000 just for fun! In no particular order, I could pay off a car; throw it at the mortgage; renovate something in the house; give it to charity; put it in savings; save it for the fall when our expenses are scheduled to skyrocket; take a fun trip; hire a weekly cleaning crew.... I could probably come up with more examples if I wanted to. It was a fun thought exercise to think about all the things and none came close to feeling as superfluous as this.

I'm actually currently looking into refinancing in order to replace our roof. We built some equity on our house over the past few years and if it makes sense with the current rates and whatever fees are involved, we could have enough to not only take out a bit of cash for the roof but also get rid of the mortgage insurance. Definitely something I would prioritize over optional cosmetics.

If straighter teeth was ever something I was interested in pursuing, I'd likely go to a trained orthodontist rather than have my general dentist deal with it. Plus I'd probably look into possible coverage during open enrollment season. The more I think about it the more funny it is to me that she would just throw this out casually as something to consider. Doesn't everyone have an extra $5,000 burning a hole in their pocket?