Fuhgeddaboudit!
Funny, the things you remember. Funny, too, the things you don't. To this day, I swear I can recall the moment I first spotted my newborn brother the day he arrived from the hospital with my mom, even though I was just two-and-a-half years old. He was in his bassinet, surrounded by a bevy of cooing relatives, the fanfare rivaling an Apple store opening its doors on the day of a new iPhone launch. Yeah, it was quite the scene, the event signaling a changing of the guard as my, up until then, fawned over, only-child status suddenly took a back seat to this little interloper in swaddling clothes. On the flip side, I couldn't tell you what I had for dinner on Wednesday (possibly leftovers, but leftovers from what?). And, granted, while our memories aren't perfect and apt to play tricks on us at times, it's pretty amazing when a friend says, "Hey, remember that time...?" and, invariably, you do.
That being said, there are also seemingly innocuous memories that slowly become rather annoying. Case in point, years ago I was talking to an older friend who was having trouble remembering the name of an actor, or maybe a movie, something that he said happened to him frequently. He asked if that was a problem for me, too, and I told him it wasn't, surprised at the question. He smiled and nodded, saying, "Ahh, you're still in your thirties; get to forty-five and you'll see." "Whatever", I thought to myself, or maybe "fat chance", something like that. Anyway, throughout the ensuing years, I couldn't help being cognizant of my recollective powers and being worried that their demise might be imminent. Finally, hitting my mid-to-upper forties, I began to relax, realizing my retention was fine. Bottom line: I was still sharp and, yeah, a bit ticked over this guy causing me to worry needlessly.
As it happened, my friend and I lost touch until about ten years later when we ran into each other at that restaurant, ya know, that chain?... Not Olive Garden, but pretty sure it was Italian... maybe Uno's? Nope, it was Buca di Beppo. Yeah, that was it, can remember the name on the facade... So, anyway, we got to talkin' about the good ol' days, our common friends, what our families were up to. The works. Spent a couple hours reminiscing, or so it seemed, but who knows, could've been twenty minutes, really. Either way, before leaving, we vowed to stay in touch, exchanging phone numbers. Pretty sure we had to write 'em out as cell phones hadn't quite made the scene yet. Or maybe they had, and we put them in our iPhones. Or, could be we already had each other's numbers all along?... Whatever.
I do remember, on the way home, getting a bit nostalgic, what with all the talk of days gone by still fresh in my head. That, coupled with adapting to my friend's decade-older countenance, made me a bit sad. It was true, he had lost a step. His trouble with remembering names was more prominent than last we'd met, his repartee noticeably slower on the draw. And if I'm being honest, I did register a slight twinge of guilt over feeling pretty good about myself, being that my mental faculties hadn't diminished a lick. Luck of the draw, I guess. I mean, who knows how that works? Anyway, it was a mixed bag of feelings swirling around in my head as I drove home in my trusty VW Passat... Or was it the Toyota?... Oh wait, I think because I had a few drinks I called an Uber... or maybe a Lyft?... Huh, were they even around back then?
As luck would have it, it didn't take a phone call to get us together again. My wife and I met up with him and his better half at the movies. "The Bourne Ultimatum", I think. Or was it "No Country For Old Men"?... Wow, not even close; it was "Michael Clayton", yeah, that was it, one of my faves, ya know, the one with that guy from the old medical TV show, "St. Elsewhere"?... Really good-lookin' guy, pretty sure voted "Sexiest Man of the Year"?... Oh, wait, that was "ER"... Oh, oh, Clooney... that's it, George Clooney! Man, he was so good in that. He and that English character actor--not sure I ever even knew his name, but you'd recognize him if you saw him. Anyway, we were at one of the movie theater chains, AMC, Showcase Cinemas, Edwards... Hell, like it matters, right? Fact is, we met up again.
Ya know, now that I look back, I never did get to tell my friend that his assured take on how I was destined to start forgetting stuff never came to fruition. Was gonna, but I think maybe I didn't want to make him feel bad about it. Either that or it slipped my mind.