I’ve been meaning to write this article for-over-a-week now, ever since I read the Times newspaper report on PPA – but I kept forgetting…but I woke up this morning after a strange dream sequence, not really a nightmare – but a dream that had me cast as an undergrad student who had forgotten to do something for one-of-his-classes, and, was going to receive a nasty surprise for his forgetfulness (it might also have been Giti’s pre-bedtime insistence to brush my teeth – or else they would fall out like her sister-in-law’s (who smokes about 3 packs of cigarets-a-day).
Well, the dream came true that very day! Austen and I went to see “Sucker Punch” (which has some pretty cool psychological interpretations happening as well) and at movie’s end, I felt for my car key – which was not to be found in my pockets. Then I recalled not feeling the keys in my pockets at all after we’d left the car. After a quick search around our seats and a stop in at the manager’s office – I figured that I had locked the keys in my car: Which pissed me off — because calling AAA to get us into the car was going to cut into our Sunday Lunch and Austen’s driving lesson – two activities I very much enjoy.
Then I suddenly remembered that I kept a back-up key in my wallet for just such an eventuality. So, off to the car we went. When we got there – I noticed that my dash lights were on, and then, I heard it! The car was still running!! It had been idling in park for 2-and-a-half-hours!!! I freaked – but Austen found it rather funny – as I had teased him about throwing the car into park (while going about 20mph) on our last driving lesson. Austen was forever absolved.
But then a veritable tsunami of my forgetfulness washed over me as I sat stunned over what I had done…
- · I remembered having completely forgotten my pin # on my ATM card – a card that I’ve probably been using for about 17 years;
And here I brain-farted…having completely lost the train of thought I needed to finish this article up…but then I meditated, and:
- · The other night at dinner, Austen told me to come over to see Brady – the guy who cut Austen’s hair for 11 years – I had absolutely no clue who Brady was;
- · And the other day, our groundskeeper at the minimum security prison I work at, informed me that I had left my car door wide open and that he had shut it for me (in all fairness to me – I keep a-ton-of-stuff in my car that I use for my jobs and often open every door trying to collect my stuff);
- · But most glaring was my query of whether we had just put some Frank Sinatra on at home while entertaining. It was Dean Martin (whom I love [I can’t stand Frank Sinatra]).
I’m not exactly sure why I am short-circuiting at this juncture – everyone tells me not to worry about it – but I can’t help wondering if this isn’t the start of significant brain-farting (which I have always accused my mother of). Sometimes I DO think that Nephew Arash is correct, and, that I simply can’t fit anything else in my head, and perhaps, my brain is emptying itself to incorporate new information (I often suggest that I have forgotten more than most people will ever know [and perhaps the Spiritus Mundi is punishing me for my arrogance]).
Whatever the case, I long for retirement from my day job – so that I don’t have to be hyper-vigilant for 6-hours-a-day (this dynamic might factor into my brain-farting as well). And I sometimes wonder if playing magic pianos that I find everywhere I go — don’t transform me somewhat – like folks on acid trips, or Bradley Cooper’s character in “Limitless” – every time they “come back” — they are changed – and can’t quite get in sync with the flow they/we left.
I dunno — as long as I don’t lose command of the English language – I’ll keep plugging along…PPA, my arse…