I’m a pretty organized guy. I always know where my phone is. I never lose my keys. My glasses go from on my face, to a designated spot in the bathroom when I put on my contacts, back to my face, and then to their designated spot on my bedside table every day. I know it seems like a boring way to live, but I find a certain level of comfort in knowing exactly where all my most important things are. This is even more crucial when I’m out and about in the world.
The wallet is, of course, terrifying, because of all the crap I carry in it. And trust me, Millennial, I carry more stuff in mine than you do in yours, including more actual cash (a dying habit of my generation). The cellphone is a nightmare, as well as hugely embarrassing, because you know when you go to get a replacement, the millennial behind the counter will look at you with a combination of pity and judgment. But what I'm most afraid of misplacing these days is my mind. I walk into a room to get something and completely forget what it was, then have to go back to the room I was in to see if something jogs my brain. Or I leave a room thinking I have picked up my phone and look down to see it's the remote for the TV. Or I'm watching Jeopardy (which I was absolutely brilliant and lightning quick at five years ago) and totally forget who wrote "Of Mice And Men." I knew it was John Steinbeck five minutes ago. I'll know it was Steinbeck five minutes from now. But at this moment it's like I'm standing in front of a file cabinet that has the answer I need and I can't open it. And unlike my wallet or my phone, once I lose my mind there's no DMV or Apple Store I can go to. You'll have to take care of me. Good luck.
I'd like to think it's because my mind is on higher matters, but the truth is, sometimes I'm walking around spaced out and only later do I realize I have no idea where I put the remote down -- somewhere mysterious where I can't find it. Unlike other people my age I don't worry it might be dementia, but -- no lie -- I found it in the refrigerator the other day. How fascinating its that? Yes, I have a place for everything, but if that's so why do I find my keys in random locations throughout the house. On a bookshelf, in the bathroom, once in a shoe (??). Here's my attitude about this: I can either get frustrated or think of this as an adventure. A treasure hunt to liven my day, with a prize at the end of it!! How exciting a way to brighten my life!! I just wish it didn't happen when I have to go somewhere. Excuse me now, I have to go find my wallet.
I have some OCD stuff like, "Did I lock the car?" "Is the garage door closed", so the pocket pat is comforting and keeps some of my OCD at bay. Like your Dad, I too have too much stuff in my wallet. I've gone to keeping two wallets. One fully stuffed and the other with the bare necessities which is for walks and other light duty occasions. Now if I could only remember to take the right one with me when I leave the house.
Well, I think, at my age, the thing I most fear losing is ... my mind. Yes, Will, that thing that Apple or iCloud storage or any Time Machine thing can't help me with. Google? Sorry, they haven't a clue. It is that short-term memory thing that no Drop Boxed external hard driven entity can replace. You see, we oldsters, we pre-boomers, do not have something that has contained those memories that we cherish but don't quite remember. Alas. Our hard drives only started after we had forgotten the things we would have put aside of them. Pity us, Will. Make us tell you stories that you need to hear and that we will forget in a couple of days.
Update: I just remembered I had a dream last night where I couldn’t find my car. It wasn’t where I parked it and I became more and more freaked out thinking it had either been stolen or I was losing my mind. I woke up very agitated and then realized it was all your fault.
I once left my phone at home while the exterminator was over (meaning I couldn’t go back inside for a couple hours). I was supposed to go to a friends house while I waited but had no idea how I would tell her I was on my way. My best idea was to find a pay phone, call my husband (one of the only numbers I have memorized), and hope he had my friend’s number. But how do you find where a pay phone is without your phone? Then there’s the question of do I even remember how to get to her house without navigation? How do I get the gate code from her once I’m there? Needless to say, it was a big mess.
Remember in high school when you took those aptitude tests that were supposed to lead you on to your career path? Mine came up detective! Well, I didn’t become a gumshoe (like I should have) but I am finding that inclination very helpful when I lose my phone. That’s the only thing I seem to consistently misplace. Also one of the most important things I own.
The pocket pat is a cute phrase and sounds like the name of a dance you would do at a wedding
The wallet is, of course, terrifying, because of all the crap I carry in it. And trust me, Millennial, I carry more stuff in mine than you do in yours, including more actual cash (a dying habit of my generation). The cellphone is a nightmare, as well as hugely embarrassing, because you know when you go to get a replacement, the millennial behind the counter will look at you with a combination of pity and judgment. But what I'm most afraid of misplacing these days is my mind. I walk into a room to get something and completely forget what it was, then have to go back to the room I was in to see if something jogs my brain. Or I leave a room thinking I have picked up my phone and look down to see it's the remote for the TV. Or I'm watching Jeopardy (which I was absolutely brilliant and lightning quick at five years ago) and totally forget who wrote "Of Mice And Men." I knew it was John Steinbeck five minutes ago. I'll know it was Steinbeck five minutes from now. But at this moment it's like I'm standing in front of a file cabinet that has the answer I need and I can't open it. And unlike my wallet or my phone, once I lose my mind there's no DMV or Apple Store I can go to. You'll have to take care of me. Good luck.
I'd like to think it's because my mind is on higher matters, but the truth is, sometimes I'm walking around spaced out and only later do I realize I have no idea where I put the remote down -- somewhere mysterious where I can't find it. Unlike other people my age I don't worry it might be dementia, but -- no lie -- I found it in the refrigerator the other day. How fascinating its that? Yes, I have a place for everything, but if that's so why do I find my keys in random locations throughout the house. On a bookshelf, in the bathroom, once in a shoe (??). Here's my attitude about this: I can either get frustrated or think of this as an adventure. A treasure hunt to liven my day, with a prize at the end of it!! How exciting a way to brighten my life!! I just wish it didn't happen when I have to go somewhere. Excuse me now, I have to go find my wallet.
I have some OCD stuff like, "Did I lock the car?" "Is the garage door closed", so the pocket pat is comforting and keeps some of my OCD at bay. Like your Dad, I too have too much stuff in my wallet. I've gone to keeping two wallets. One fully stuffed and the other with the bare necessities which is for walks and other light duty occasions. Now if I could only remember to take the right one with me when I leave the house.
Well, I think, at my age, the thing I most fear losing is ... my mind. Yes, Will, that thing that Apple or iCloud storage or any Time Machine thing can't help me with. Google? Sorry, they haven't a clue. It is that short-term memory thing that no Drop Boxed external hard driven entity can replace. You see, we oldsters, we pre-boomers, do not have something that has contained those memories that we cherish but don't quite remember. Alas. Our hard drives only started after we had forgotten the things we would have put aside of them. Pity us, Will. Make us tell you stories that you need to hear and that we will forget in a couple of days.
Update: I just remembered I had a dream last night where I couldn’t find my car. It wasn’t where I parked it and I became more and more freaked out thinking it had either been stolen or I was losing my mind. I woke up very agitated and then realized it was all your fault.
I once left my phone at home while the exterminator was over (meaning I couldn’t go back inside for a couple hours). I was supposed to go to a friends house while I waited but had no idea how I would tell her I was on my way. My best idea was to find a pay phone, call my husband (one of the only numbers I have memorized), and hope he had my friend’s number. But how do you find where a pay phone is without your phone? Then there’s the question of do I even remember how to get to her house without navigation? How do I get the gate code from her once I’m there? Needless to say, it was a big mess.
Remember in high school when you took those aptitude tests that were supposed to lead you on to your career path? Mine came up detective! Well, I didn’t become a gumshoe (like I should have) but I am finding that inclination very helpful when I lose my phone. That’s the only thing I seem to consistently misplace. Also one of the most important things I own.