Take a look at our newsletter this month!
INSIDE
Easy Holiday Party Cheese Fondue page 3 Don’t Leave Your Benefits on the Naughty List! page 3
What Makes Emmett Special? page 4
The Origin of Santa Claus page 2 A Word From Kalie and Caryn page 2
December 2017
I’D LIKE TO BUY A VOWEL!
Did I ever tell you about the time I was on “Wheel of Fortune?” This month, I’m headed to “The Price is Right” in Boise. It won’t be televised, and I think the host is Jerry Springer instead of Bob Barker, but we’re going to have fun, all the same. It got me thinking about the early 2000s and the other big game show experience in my life.
Then I went home and slept for about 12 hours. I wasn’t sure whether they liked me until I got a letter in the mail, saying I’d been chosen to be on the
DR. ELKINS ON STAGE AT WHEEL OF FORTUNE!
show, and they’d give me a call sometime.
Well, “sometime” turned out to be at the end of 2007. The show flew me out to California, and before I knew it, I was onstage with Pat Sajak and Vanna White. (As a funny aside, they have pneumatic lifts behind the podiums to get everybody to about the same height. Pat’s not all that big, but I’m 6’2”, so mine was bottomed out, and his was lifted all the way up!) So, how’d I do? Well, you know the guy who always seems to hit “bankrupt?” Yeah, that was me. I did, however, get a few chances at redemption, and I think I did pretty well, considering how poorly I spun. Altogether, it was some easy money, a lot of fun, and a pretty good story to tell during the holiday season. I hope your holidays are merry and full of family and fun, and I hope Santa brings you a thing or two on your list. My kids are hoping for electrical gadgets, and I wouldn’t mind a stereo for the Corvette, myself! But as long as we spend time with family, none of the other stuff really matters.
MY SISTER ANGELA AND MYSELF WITH VANNA WHITE
It was at the end of 2005, when the Navy had me stationed on the East Coast. I saw an advertisement that said they were having tryouts for “Wheel of Fortune” in Savannah, which was just a short way away. “Be on a game show” had always been on my bucket list, and here was my opportunity! I resolved to go to the audition and try my best. There was just one catch: When the day of the tryout came around, I was sicker than a dog. But, I told myself, this was my only chance — I just had to take it. I sipped on Gatorade the whole way there and arrived at a gymnasium with about a thousand other people. They took my name, and then I waited. They randomly called out names, only picking a couple hundred to have the chance to audition. I was sitting in the back of the gym, on the floor, with my Gatorade, trying to think about something other than how sick I was. Then they called my name. You only get one shot, so despite how ill I felt, I bounced up there with all the energy I could muster and did my best to be animated. I really gave it all I had.
All the best,
–Dr. Elkins
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The Origin of
SANTA CLAUS
Santa Claus wasn’t always a husky, omniscient gift-giver who circumnavigates the world once a year, propelled by flying caribou and backed by an army of friendly elves. Though the historical St. Nicholas had many of the same generous tendencies as our contemporary “King in the North,” he lacked a high-tech sleigh that could exceed the speed of light. To be exact, St. Nicholas was a renowned Bishop of Myra — an old Roman town near modern-day Demre, Turkey — way back around A.D. 300. Even before he became the bishop, St. Nicholas was known for his generosity. The most famous tale of his charity involved a poor man who could not afford a proper dowry to marry off his three daughters. In those days, this generally meant the daughters would remain unmarried, making it likely that they’d fall into prostitution. Wanting to help, but also wanting to spare the family embarrassment, St. Nicholas traveled to the house at night and threw three purses packed with gold coins through the window. After his death, St. Nicholas became a beloved patron saint, but during the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, the respect that many Catholic saints received diminished, and his popularity dwindled across Europe.
One area where he remained popular was the Netherlands. There, he lived on as “Sinterklaas,” a mythical figure who went house to house on the eve of St. Nicholas’s nameday, December 5, leaving treats
and gifts for children. Sinterklaas traditionally wore red bishop’s clothes and employed elves, and he traveled with horses that could walk across rooftops.
When the Dutch emigrated in droves to America during the 17th and 18th centuries, they brought this kindly icon to the new colonies. Over time, notably through Clement Moore’s 1822 poem “A Visit From St. Nicholas” and a famous 1930s depiction by Coca-Cola ad illustrator Haddon Sundblom, Santa evolved into the figure we see today.
A Word From
Kalie and Caryn
More Comfort With Kovanaze
fast numbing of the teeth with very few side effects. And all without needles! We’ve been using Kovanaze for months now, and we love the results. Instead of injecting a local anesthetic, we can simply give you a quick and pain-free spray that will have the same numbing effect, often fewer side effects. We’ve found that many patients don’t get the numbing of the lips and gums that are so common with other local anesthetics, which is great. We have so many good things to say about Kovanaze. It’s really a revolution. The industry standard has been injected anesthetic for over a century, but now we’re looking at a brand-new way to take care of our patients with less discomfort than ever before. If you’ve been avoiding a dental procedure to the top front teeth because you don’t like getting injections or you don’t like the way anesthetic makes your mouth and tongue feel, please get in touch with us. Kovanaze might be a good alternative, pain- and needle-free. –Kalie and Caryn
Like many dental practices, we use local anesthetic quite frequently. It’s a tool that lessens patient discomfort and allows us to perform important procedures that otherwise would be painful. Typically, we inject this anesthetic into the area we want to numb, which is not a problem for many patients. For some, however, the use of needles is almost as distressing as the procedure itself, and we’d like to prevent that anxiety whenever possible. Enter Kovanaze, a nasal numbing spray approved by the FDA for dentistry. Originally developed and used by ear and nose doctors with great success, Kovanaze is a needle-free alternative to numbing the upper front teeth. Before its approval for use in the dental field, the inventors of Kovanaze did extensive testing and ensured it was both safe and effective for dental use. What they found was remarkable —
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Ingredients
• ¾ cup dry white wine • 1 tablespoon cornstarch • 1 (8-ounce) package sliced Swiss cheese
• 1 clove garlic • Salt to taste • Foods to dip (apple slices, bread cubes,
roasted vegetables, etc.)
Instructions
(Recipe inspired by PinchofYum.com.) 4. Heat wine mixture over medium-low heat in the pot until thick and bubbling. Add some cheese and slowly whisk. When nearly smooth, add more cheese and whisk gently. Repeat until all cheese is melted. If mixture seems too tight, add 1 tablespoon wine. 5. Season with salt and serve immediately. Keep pot on low heat to keep the fondue dippable. 1. In a large bowl, whisk together wine and cornstarch. 2. Chop cheese slices into small, uniform pieces. 3. Rub clove of garlic all over the sides and bottom of a heavy-bottomed pot, then discard.
EASY HOLIDAY PARTY CHEESE FONDUE
Don’t Leave Your Benefits on the Naughty List!
D on’t wait until the new year! Your dental once your benefits are gone, they’re gone for good. Remember all the money you paid to your insurance premiums this year? Failing to use your dental benefits means all that money goes to waste. You paid for it, now use it! Call us to schedule your appointment today! This time of year, appointments fill up fast. Reserve your spot before it’s too late. The longer you wait, the more you’ll risk having to spend time away from the things you love most this holiday season. You can even call us after hours. Leave a message, and we’ll benefits expire at the end of the year! Now is the time to schedule an appointment, because
take care of you. Take advantage of your dental benefits today. If you don’t use ‘em, you lose ‘em! Call our office as soon as
possible at 208-369-4532, so you don’t miss out on your ideal appointment time and run the risk of wasting all your hard-earned dental benefits.
Don’t forget! Your benefits expire on December 31. It will be here before you know it!
Wishing You a Happy Holiday & a Safe New Year
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PRST STD US POSTAGE PAID BOISE, ID PERMIT 411
208-369-4532 elkinsdental.com
1110 S. Washington Ave. Emmett, ID 83617
Visit us for a 6TH ANNUAL FOOD DRIVE GOING ON NOW! $25 off any copay with a donation of six nonperishable items!
We will make the second donation December 22.
BUSINESS AFTER HOURS WHERE: Alliance Title & Escrow 1312 S. Washington Ave. Ste F, Emmett WHEN: December 6, 2017 TIME: 5-7 p.m. MST
WHAT MAKES EMMETT
Special?
DOWNTOWN CARRIAGE RIDES WHERE: Washington Trust Bank 901 W Bannock St, Boise
Out-of-town relatives who are visiting for the holidays might wonder what makes Emmett so special. But we already know the Treasure Valley is full of gems — and we don’t just mean the rocks. Here are some additional reasons Emmett and the Gem State are great. WE’VE GOT SUNSHINE On average, we have 210 sunny days per year. Compare that to 144 rainy days in Portland and we can feel pretty happy about all our free vitamin D. MOUNTAIN RANGES Surrounded by the Rocky Mountains, we don’t have to go far to find mountaintop winter activities. If skiing or tubing is your idea of winter fun, Bogus Basin is just a short drive away, and heading to McCall makes for a fun weekend getaway. ... AND RIVERS Not only are we surrounded by the Payette and Boise rivers, Idaho is also home to the deepest gorge in North America: Hells Canyon. Take that, Arizona!
WHEN: December 8-9, December 15-16, 2017 From 4–8 p.m.
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