I was chewing on some broccoli the other day, and my buddy, Billy Bingley pointed out that I had some green food on my teeth. Hey, no big deal, I picked the food out with my fingernail. I actually thought about something as I stuck my nail between my front incisors. Now, this phenonenum of food in my teeth doesn't happen often, but it did make me think about how food in the teeth shows just how old you are.
Food in the teeth is a old thing. I mean, my pop and grandpop always carry toothpicks around with them. I never realized why all the rooms in the house had a little container of toothpicks. Check out grandpa's upper left shirt pocket. Yup. Toothpicks. I always thought old cowboys had to use toothpicks because having one of them between their teeth made them look tough. Hey, check out Curly from City Slickers. Now, he was tough. And he chomped down on a toothpick constantly. Really, though, the grizzled chuck-wagon cook probably didn't cook the beef too well and it was stuck in Curly's rotting teeth (hey, were toothbrushes invented in the wild west? What cool cowboy would brush anyways? Hey, hold on, Jesse James, before our gunfight, I've just got to clean up my pearlies a bit. NOT.)
I guess old folks' gum separate from their teeth and food find its way easily into spots in teeth. I'm not sure why I'm blogging about this, but it's clear to me that a clear sign of getting old is food in the teeth and the strategic placement of toothpicks packs within easy reach. And I still think Curly is one stinkin' tough hombre, pick or no pick.