How to age gracelessly part 3 – where did I put that person, place or thing?

Ok, so we’ve discussed knowledge, but the brain stores more than knowledge.  When I first realized I was getting older, I discovered a strange thing.  I could remember what outfit I wore on Halloween in 1960 but I couldn’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday!  What kind of cruel joke is that? 

After you reach that certain age, words and memories become a bit elusive.  How many times have you run upstairs for something, and then stand there scratching your head wondering what it was you were after.  You go back downstairs and stand in the same spot you were in before you went upstairs and like magic, you remember.  You run back upstairs quickly, hoping you won’t have to repeat this activity!  Then again, maybe it's nature's way to get you to exercise more.

Names are another example of aging gracelessly.  Do you sometimes bump into someone and casually start to talk hoping that something will jar your memory and remind you who the heck he or she is?  And you are so glad that your husband isn’t with so you won’t have to introduce them. Your best plan of action is to fake it.  Smile. Ask how they are doing.  Comment on the weather.

“Lot of rain we’ve been having lately.” You say.

You steer the conversation towards small talk.  And when you walk away and you can still see them receding into the background, you remember. See I told you it was like magic!

Never, ever shop for Christmas in the summer.  Even if Joey would love that New sports jersey, under no circumstances pull out that credit card. I don’t care if it’s the lowest prices this century. Whatever you buy you will have to hide or stow away someplace until it gets closer to the holiday.  And you will never remember where you put it. 

What was a terrific buy last June becomes a geriatric Easter egg hunt in December.  Next summer you will come across lost Christmas toys for your kids, the youngest of whom is twenty-five. You will find sheet sets for bunk beds you donated to Goodwill when Billy went off to college, and he's 40. You may even come across unopened VHS tapes and you probably haven’t had a VHS player in years.  And if they somehow come across a wrapped present with their name on it.  Encourage them to open it and it will be double the fun and surprise everyone, even you.

“Where did I put my glasses?” Sound familiar?

Or maybe it’s the keys, phone, even the freaking coffee you were drinking five minutes ago.  I ask that question almost daily.  So, my son bought me one of those little new tile things you can attach to anything and link to your phone. Sounds, good, even though I will have to find my phone to find my keys.  Fortunately, my watch can find my phone even if the sound is off. Am I making you dizzy?

Of course, I couldn’t figure out how to set the tile up and I could have sworn I put it on the coffee table but it’s been six months now and it still hasn’t shown up.  You see where I’m going with this?  A wild goose chase doesn’t come close to describing this scenario.

So aging sometimes make you temporarily forget the nouns. You may not remember the person, place or thing you need to recall. Relax. It’s ok. It’s not the onset of Alzheimer’s. It’s just that there is just so much information in that old head of yours that it’s like an overloaded computer. You just have to reboot it. Load-shed some of the unnecessary stuff and everything will be just fine.