Memory

I have another birthday coming up, and I'm starting to feel old.

The biggest change I've noticed is my memory.

My long-term memory has always been exceptional. I hope it holds out, because I have a lot of stories to write. I can remember thousands of song lyrics, lines from poems, book passages--even things people said or did in my childhood. I remember them in the sharp focus of exquisite detail, as if they occurred yesterday. I'm not kidding. I can recall exact conversations I had thirty-five years ago. Things from grade school, innings of baseball games, kindnesses and meanness from a childhood long ago.

But my short-term memory is slipping. I have what the shrinks call a "busy mind" to begin with, which means my mind is constantly racing from one idea or thought to the next. I suppose that could make person careless, but it has never seemed to have that effect on me. I've never been one to lock the keys in the car or leave the stove on or anything like that. That's why I believe age is beginning to take a toll.

For example, just this past Valentine's night, I took the Redhead out to dinner. Today I discovered I was missing my credit card. I had left it on the table at the restaurant. That is twice I have left a credit card behind somewhere in the last six months.

By the way, the Valentine's dinner was good. We met two young friends and had a great time laughing and talking. They are young and in love, and it showed in their eyes and their smiles.

It wasn't as much fun as the Valentine's dinner we had in 1995, though. That night it was just me and the Redhead. We had a pretty teen-aged babysitter who later got a music scholarship to a fancy university up North. We went out to eat: I had a rib eye medium (it was supposed to be medium-rare) and the Redhead had fried shrimp. She wore her faded jeans and a blue blouse that she got for Christmas that year. The food was good, the night was clear, and there were a million stars in the sky as we drove home.

I'm sorry, what were we talking about?