laughing gas

five minutes before my appointment
i slip into my shoes and walk over
that’s something positive about living in the inner city

perky dentist helper has been cleaning teeth for fifteen years
does it well
firm, delicate, yet no holds barred

she says do i want gas
talking to me, of course
maybe she was talking to herself
but i heard her plain as day

sure, fill me up
and this rubber scorpion from a sci-fi movie
was plugged over my face
after a while i claimed no affect
and got her to turn up the juice

suddenly dentist appears
fools around doing this and that
then before i know it
he got ready to do a cavity, mine

then pulled out an extra long needle
waved it around and warned this is going to hurt
that’s too bad for someone i thought
then looking around i knew he was talking to me
cause the dentist helper wasn’t there anymore
and i let him drive that thing through my gums
into the dark recesses of my now vibrating skull

the more i develop through life experience
the scarier it gets, i visualize too much
because i see tiny errors in judgment, chinks
in good guys in white hats and white masks armor

the dentist speaks five languages
is known as very skilled
however, as we spoke i suggested
and admittedly knowing nothing about dentistry

perhaps, perhaps, perhaps it would be keen
if he said x per cent of the patients
find the needle into the gums uncomfortable

instead of scaring the shit out ‘a me
by telling me it was “liable to be really painful”
two seconds before ahab rams the harpoon into my skull

no wonder he wears a mask