I have a syndrome; okay, okay, I have several syndromes, but the one that intrigues me at the moment, is my delayed memory syndrome. It\u2019s not just an old coot thing. I\u2019ve had it for decades. And I\u2019m not alone; it\u2019s fairly common with people of all ages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ll run into someone and they\u2019ll say, \u201cHey Merlin, how\u2019s it going?\u201d That\u2019s the problem; they remembered my name (and face); I just remembered their face, sort of. I expect the name will come to me, so I fake the conversation with lame weather talk, while focusing on coming up with their name or where I knew them from. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I barely hear what they are saying; I\u2019m racking my brain to come up with their moniker; I use the alphabet method of memory stimulation. A as in Alan, Albert? \u2013 B as in Bob, Bill. Usually, it doesn\u2019t work, even when I go through the A to Z routine multiple times. I don\u2019t know what their name is; I haven\u2019t heard a thing they said and then comes the final blow, they ask, \u201cWhat do you think?\u201d (What do I think? About what?) I end up faking it, and say, \u201cI\u2019m not sure.\u201d Sometimes my wife is with me and knows that I\u2019m deep into a delayed memory episode, she\u2019ll try to rescue me and introduce herself to the nameless one, and in hopes they\u2019ll say who they are. But it usually doesn\u2019t work. The person will say, \u201cIt\u2019s nice to meet you,\u201d and never mention their name. I guess they expect me to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The encounter finally comes to an end; the \u201cstranger\u201d thinks I\u2019m an idiot who can\u2019t carry on a conversation. I walk away in a daze, still focused on coming up with their name. It sometimes does, now that the pressure is off. But, more and more often, it takes a few days or never surfaces at all. I go into research mode and call friends from the old days and ask, \u201cWhat\u2019s that guy\u2019s name that used to stop in the office every once in a while, black hair, tall, one ear bigger than the other.\u201d They never know. At least that\u2019s what they say. I think they just love to mess with me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The cure for these uncomfortable encounters is so simple. All I\u2019d have to do is admit that the person\u2019s name has slipped my memory and ask them who they are. Do I ever do that? Of course not! It seems I\u2019d prefer to have people think I\u2019m an idiot who can\u2019t carry on a simple conversation. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
I have a syndrome; okay, okay, I have several syndromes, but the one that intrigues me at the moment, is my delayed memory syndrome. It\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":76794,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorial"],"yoast_head":"\n