Smile-breaks
Forgot a Few Things...
Forgot to save the file. Forgot to get the birthday card. Forgot to take the clothes to drop off at the cleaners. You’d think I was an old person. That kid at Wendy’s did.
I ordered two salads and a cheeseburger and he rang it up. Touched it up, I should say – you know, those square pictures on the register. Anyway, he rang it up and said, “That’ll be thirteen fifty-one.”
I was digesting the high cost of fast food when he interrupted my thoughts with, “And with the Senior Discount, it will be twelve thirty-two.”
Senior Discount? I’m not old! Well… How’d he know? I paid the exorbitant price for the fast food and took my goodies out to the car and that’s when I started with the thinking: Do I look old? What part of me looks old? I walk pretty good for an old gal. My hair isn’t gray or white or even dyed. It’s just kind’a reddish. What part of me looks old? After a while I gave up. Decided the kid was too young to know what old is.
Now I forgot where I was… Oh, yeah. Talking about forgetting. Forgetting is great. Things happen when you forget that would never happen if you remembered. Like when I forgot the birthday card. I was sitting on the couch last night, gaining ounces by the second – actually, I was on the edge of the couch, watching the Padres claw their way toward the wild card slot - when I remembered I forgot.
“Ohmigosh, tomorrow’s Paul’s birthday! I forgot his card!” I jumped up off the couch, told my roommate I was going to Longs – be back in a few minutes – and ran out to my little green machine out there in the garage.
Flew down to Longs – lucked out on the traffic signals – and walked three miles up and down and around the card aisles trying to find the right card. Then I grabbed one of those little baskets and took a hurried (didn’t want the Padres to win one without me) tour around the store. Five minutes later I was standing at the check-out counter with a basketful of goodies for the birthday boy. I celebrated all the way home, ’cause I just knew I’d lost every one of those couch-sitting-generated ounces by my sudden excursion to Longs.
Earlier that same day I forgot to save the file. (If you’re wondering, the Padres lost.) Actually, it was a huge accident having to do with going between different software programs that caused me to forget to save the file before I closed it. Wasn’t really my fault - ’cept maybe when I clicked the “no” button and both files slammed shut without warning.
When I reopened the file and saw that everything I’d done for the past two hours was lost, I went wild and did something I never, ever do. Hardly ever. I broke a rule. I picked up the phone and called the tech support guy. The rule is you’re not ever supposed to call tech support. You’re s’posed to send e-mail to techsupport@whatever.com and wait three to six days for someone to get back to you. That way they can schedule you when they’re darn good and ready.
Forget it. I needed help asap. The auditors have been waiting all week for the file and the board of directors is waiting for the auditors. So I broke the rules. Sure felt good. Silly rule anyway. (This newspaper is permanently banned from my workplace for reasons you prob’ly can figure out without me telling you.)
Well, that’s it. I’m not going to tell you any more about stuff I forgot because you’ll prob’ly think I’m old or something.