Feeling my age

I just got back from a trip basically across town. I wrote down what I needed, feeling proud that I had made up a list.

Even changed out of my pajamas.

Got to the store on a Sunday at 7 p.m. and it was closed. I had almost gotten it together.

Only about 3 weeks ago, my biggest fear now that I've started to drive for the first time in many years, what with my sensitive ears to noise I couldn't drive a car because the engine was too loud, my biggest fear once I started driving about 6 or 8 months ago, was that the motor would quit on a 4 lane road and there I am standing outside with 4 lanes of traffic roaring in my ears blocking a hundred cars, and with a cell phone that I don't know how to work.

So what happens 3 weeks ago? I pull up to a redlight at a 4-lane and my worst nightmare happens. The car cuts off. Oh, horror. The light turns green and I try the ignition again and it cuts on for a few hundred feet long enough for me to get into a parking lot.

What happened? There was no oil in the car. I knew that because I don't ever put any oil in it. I don't even think about it. The cell phone was an adventure with 17% power. Managed to call a couple of people who weren't there and the phone said, "Leave your number." Which apparently I don't know how to do for the phone kept repeating, "Leave you number."

I'm now down to about 7% power. All of my gray matter is needed at this point. I finally find a card which lists the number of a help service I don't use anymore, except when I locked my keys in the car about 5 months ago. "Jane, yeah, how you doing? How the kids?" Yeah, embarrassed. Where was I when I locked my keys in the car? At the mental health center. How appropriate. Right when I thought I was making progress. Yeah, a setback, thank you.

So here I am calling Jane again, this time because my car cut off in traffic and I haven't seen her since I locked my keys in the car. I'm telling her, "Yeah, I thought I could make it on my own again but it doesn't look like it." Yeah, embarrassing. Jane saved me again. "OK, how much do you charge for saving somebody? Is it more than a house cleaning? Is it more than you charge somebody for locking their keys in their car?"

And then today I go all the way to the store and it's closed. Little reminders.