Banana. Sunrise. Chair.

Where Did I Put My Passport?

On Wednesday, I texted a bunch of friends to tell them about my frustrating morning. My new passport had arrived on Monday but here it was two days later, and I couldn’t find it anywhere. My first thought was that the trash did not go out until the next morning, so if I somehow threw it out, I could find it in the recycling bin or garbage can.

If it was not there, however, I feared it could be anywhere! After all, I recently found the sugar bowl “put away” on the tray of my Keurig coffee brewer that is meant to hold a cup. How did it get there instead of in the cupboard? And could the passport likewise be in some kitchen cabinet or in the freezer or microwave or some wrong place too numerous to calculate? I had visions of having the ten grandkids come over to ransack the house.

But first, I went through all the trash in the house. It was not there. The trash in the garage was gross having roasted out there in the heat for a week, so I tackled the recycling bin first and got lucky! I had thrown out a whole stack of mail in one pile, and the passport was the bottom item!

As I shared my tale of woe with friends, I was heartened to hear their responses. Many had a brain fart to share. One friend went on to suggest ideas for improved brain health. Stay tuned for those after the funny stories.

• Nancy wrote to say that she and her husband traveled three hours to attend a funeral only to realize they were a week early.
• Shari said she was missing not one, but two pairs of sunglasses – and we commiserated over the fact we can’t put AirTags on such things.
• Roberta messed up the time of two zoom meetings. One she caught in time to correct her mistake, the other was rectified when the group came looking for her. Oy! How embarrassing!
• And then Sue was just about to dive into the swimming pool at the Rec Center when she decided to check her phone calendar where she learned she was scheduled to tutor a student at the library in ten minutes! Fortunately, the library was nearby and her swimsuit coverup looked like a dress.

Terriann’s comment carried the words of her doctor. She said if you know what you are looking for and what it is used for, you don’t have a problem. And Robin’s contribution carried on in this more serious vein. She felt old at a recent doctor visit where he gave her a cognitive test.

A cognitive test hasn’t happened to me yet, but when it does, I will be rattled. While I am still quite capable of drawing a clock face, remembering a list of three words given to me a few minutes earlier would present a challenge.

Speaking of such – can you remember the title of this blog?

Nancy offers up practice in this regard. After her travel-to-funeral mishap, she is exercising her brain more. When working Word Search puzzles, she memorizes five or six words from the list and finds them. Then she memorizes five or six more as she works her way through the puzzle.

Nancy’s advice continues as she mentions eating blueberries daily as a super food for her brain. I checked out her advice by reading an article from Harvard Medical School called “Foods Linked to Better Brain Power.”  They say the best brain foods are the same ones that protect your heart and blood vessels and give a brief list that does indeed include blueberries:

• Green, leafy vegetables for nutrients like vitamin K, lutein, folate and beta carotene
• Fatty fish for omega-3 fatty acids
• Berries for flavonoids
• Tea and coffee for caffeine
• Walnuts as a source of protein and healthy fats

Way to go, Nancy!

But also, way to go, Lorie!

A common expression is “out of sight, out of mind.” So I really must congratulate myself for even realizing the passport was missing. I marvel at this! Had my terrific brain not gone there, I shudder to think what vacation I would have not gone on due to the lack of a current passport. I’m so grateful!

And I’m grateful too for Nancy’s tips and for her funny story and for the stories of all the others. Misery loves company, so thank you guys for sharing your mishaps with me. And you’re welcome. I hope sharing mine helps you as well.

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