Compensation for Age

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Don’t forget about us! We’re on the porch!

No, this is not about money. (I wish!) It’s about doing things to disguise the fact that I I’m getting older…maybe even dotty. We compensate for a lot of things, not just forgetfulness. It’s also about not seeing fly speck print without my glasses (or even with my glasses).

Coupons are almost useless to me. I cut them out; put them in my purse; then promptly forget about them. Restaurant coupons are the worst. Maybe it’s that margarita I had before dinner or the pleasant ambience but I forget about them as soon as I sit down. Sometimes I put them on the table so I don’t forget but it seems kind of tacky.

Entering the world of index cards. We have found that index cards are wonderful things. They are flash cards for the aging. Unlike post-its, you can use the same one over and over gain. I print trigger words that we use over and over. Need juice from the basement? Put the juice card out. Need the birdseed container filled? Lie the card on the counter and you won’t forget.

Are they in or out? We have four indoor cats (yeah, I don’t know how that happened either). They have access to a screened porch but it’s closed off overnight and during cold weather. I won’t remember who’s out and who’s in. They are cats. They don’t know if they are in or out. After one experience where poor Mollie was locked in the porch most of the night (I woke up at 3 a.m. realizing she was out there with no food, water or…gasp…litter box.) Now we use cards with their name on it. It says “in” on one side and “out” on the other. They are cats so sometimes the cards get flipped more than a magician’s pack during a card trick.

Then there are medications. When the government decreed that manufacturers had to list every possible interaction or deadly disease on a bottle an inch tall (really, I don’t think aspirin causes leprosy), I haven’t been able to read it. (I won’t even go into those stupid lids that only toddlers can open!) I have dry eyes. I have medicated drops, plus drops that wet the eye (like a nice moisturizer) in lighter and heavier formulations. Four bottles. They all look alike. I had to put different colored electrical tape on them so I can easily tell them apart.

I routinely use a permanent marker to write expiration dates on things and mark my hair products. (Who in their right mind would put “shampoo” or “conditioner” in teeny print when you use it in the shower without your glasses?)

The most amazing thing about aging (and there are a few things) is that as life throws monkey wrenches in your path, you come up with solutions. My mind is still working!

 

 

 

68 thoughts on “Compensation for Age”

  1. Pingback: And back to flash cards again | Views and Mews by Coffee Kat

  2. I hate not remembering words. This evening I had to ask “What are old relatives called if young ones are called descendants?” Oh yeah, ancestors. Duh! I have a steno book and write down things I need to do and cross them out when done. I thought I was getting Alzheimer’s, but looked it up and unfortunately it is normal.

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    • As I aged, I was surprised that more products weren’t “user friendly.” What it is and simple directions should be readable and prominent. Our local pharmacy about 5 years ago finally started using a prescription lid that even an older person could open. Although you tell them you don’t need childproof, they give it to you anyway.

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  5. I forget everything, Kate. My wife keeps telling me to go get a book and put all my passwords in it. I can only hope I go buy some index cards to write them down on before I forget to go buy that book—before I forget all the passwords. 😀

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  6. Thanks for the laugh! Reading this in the middle of the night, due to waking up.
    Such timing, for earlier this evening, as I was watching a show with my daughter I remembered something. I remembered that I had forgotten my daughter’s dental appt that afternoon!! OOPS!
    I scare myself at how I am going to be as I get older! Think I am going to need those index cards! 🙂

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  7. There are no index cards, nor post-it notes for the damn words you can’t remember. So frustrating. You know there is a word for whatever situation you happen to be talking about, but damned if you can remember it! Makes me “dotty!”

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  12. I too put restaurant coupons on the table, and items to be delivered directly into the car. I think that I have always done this. Maybe I was preparing early…..

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  14. There are not many posts that are both practical and amusing. You are a winner, Kate! I’ve solved the shampoo/conditioner problem by stowing the products on different levels in the shower caddy. I don’t often use coupons, but when I have one for the supermarket, I clip it to the running list we keep on the counter. As for keeping up with cats, our cats died before my brain did.

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  16. One has to become more creative to survive as one gets older! You are doing a great job! Husband and I have to do some of the same things – lots of notes and reminders but must get out my index cards. Can read a menu without my glasses and need my magnifying glass for many other things. An honest take on aging – a sense of humor is essencial

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  17. I guess it is slightly tacky to put a restaurant coupon out on the table early, but then I’ve also been in situations where they’ve said “Oh, I needed to know you have that before you ordered.” So I guess best to be tacky. – Marty

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  18. I am intrigued with the idea of the index cards. CH uses post-it notes and I use small yellow legal paper pads for lists. Lists drive me crazy. I use a post-it note on the freezer door only when I have stuck a bottle of wine in the freezer… I usually always forget the bottle of wine!

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  19. I love index cards…especially the florescent ones! I use them to write scene summaries. Since I’m a visual person, I like to see everything spread out in front of me. Of course, I have to wear my bifocals in order to see them. 🙂

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  21. I love this one Kate! So true. Last night I finally brought out a bottle of something the hair dresser uses on my hair (but I didn’t really know what it was for). I had to get my glasses and a magnifying glass and still had trouble reading that it is a 3 in 1 thing that volumizes, styles, and something else I never did make out since it’s a dark purple bottle with small dark print. As for reading things in the shower – forgeddaboutit!

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    • Right now I have 2 different brands in my shower so I can tell but when looking at hair products, that’s a different story. I’m not in the shower but I have hairspray, texturizer, shine, etc. clearly marked in BIG marker.

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  22. The notecards remind me of the ones my daughter uses for her kids chore chart with pictures of the chore instead of words! Love the way you keep up with the cats! 😂 We do what we have to do. Leaving coupons on the table is a bit tacky. I save coupons for restaurants on my phone and I’m always forgetting to use them! I also forget my grocery list in the car so I added an app to my phone and it’s always handy – if I remember to look at it…

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  23. I haven’t started to use index cards yet (but thanks for the idea!), but we have acquired a few memory helpers around our house too. We put things against the door (not next to the door because we’ll walk right by them) that we need to remember to take with us, and we’ve found that sticky notes are very handy too. Fortunately for me, I can read small print much better without my glasses so I haven’t mistaken my topical face medication for my toothpaste… yet.

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  24. I know what you mean about adapting. I find that I’m starting to refer to myself as the Lady of the List: nothing stays in my mind so it has to be on the list. Plus all out-of-the-normal appointments are written on a piece of paper the night before, then placed by the coffee maker where I know I’ll find the message in the morning. Small steps, backing away from senility.

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  25. I love index cards too… they are pawfect little helper ;o) and I agree for the small prints on hair products or creams… the best is the sign of an open jar or bottle with a simple 12M… ok it means 12 month after opening, but I don’t know how much peeps opened my shampoo bottle in the store to take sniff and put it back… :O)

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  26. Great outlook on aging. I have learned to cope with various things regarding memory. I have always had a short time memory. Past I’m good with, but my brain is horrible maintaining retention for short period unless it is really interesting. I think I have just gotten lazy in the head.

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