Tag Archives: middle aged

and the answer is ….a lemon….

30 Oct

I think all of you beyond the age of 40 will relate to the occasional lapse of memory …you know… the  struggle to remember why you walked into the room, or what you were looking for.

I know MY brain sometimes feels like a jam packed hard drive that desperately needs de-fragging… So sometimes retrieving the pertinent facts can mean a bit of mental gymnastics. But I was struck by the effort it took today to retain a head full of numbers and regurgitate them in the right order.numbers

Having filled the petrol tank, I needed to get in a queue to pay the cashier. While reciting the pump number, the odometer number and the PIN number for the fuel card…over and over, I inched closer … but not quick enough. The line was long and I was afraid someone would distract or speak to me and the numbers would fall out of my head,. never to be seen again.

Now I know you are probably thinking …‘why on earth didn’t you just write them down?’  but I was determined to challenge myself, thinking I can do it …I can do it…I CAN DO IT…. (but what if I get to the counter and lose the lot …..eeek)

P1000955I played games in my head and tried visualising the ‘look’ of the numbers …as the queue moved slowly in the right direction ….FINALLY when I got there the attendant wanted to engage in some small talk, and all I could think was ‘please no ….let me spit my numbers out first’ … and anyway I don’t ‘do small talk’. Next minute the lovely woman asked if I had lost my voice, so rather that try to explain, I smiled and nodded yes, to which she replied … ‘oh don’t worry I have lots of mute customers’ ... what the ??? ….please just let me punch these numbers out and get out of here.

Fortunately all the repetition paid off and I was able to perform when the keypad was put in front of me, but it certainly was a stressful 7 minutes.

 

 

Advertisement

Tags: , , , ,

a few words from a technological giant …

14 Sep

Tonight’s very brief post comes to you from the outback … the heartland of Aboriginal Australia ,where I’m spending a week ~ strictly work purposes of course.

After landing in Alice Springs and walking off the plane into the midday heat ..I was struck by the number of thoughts racing through my head. Not the least of which were … 1/ thank god I got that pedicure, so I can peel off these boots and be comfortable about my naked feet …. and 2/ OMG I forgot my swimmers …but then would I wear them and risk being half naked and  poolside with a bunch of colleagues? (mmm still not sure about that one).
P1000487After settling in, we headed out of town to the original Telegraph Station for a traditional welcome in the dry sandy river bed of the Todd River.

After the celebrations and dinner I was curious to read the history attached to the site … Now as you can imagine there was much to learn and facts to absorb …. BUT the thing that got me wondering, was this whole tele-communication deal…. how DID they lay underwater cables from England to Australia in the 1830’s ?? then how did they connect them and run from one end of the country across the vast desert to the other end …. AND THEN how did they ever make sense of messages being tapped out in morse-code along them  ??

Give me high speed intrnet any day ….I don’t understand it either but it seems to work !!!

P1000423

…

 

 

 

 

Tags: , ,

coffee cringes

6 Feb

I love my coffee just as much as the next person …but I really find ‘coffee snobs’ hard to swallow; they are popping up everywhere and are just as bad as the know-it-all wine snob. I really don’t care whether it’s plunged, perked, dripped or instant…as long as it is hot strong and not-too-milky.

Which brings me to my point…. when IS it ok to complain about a bad one, without sounding like a complete tosser?

coffee

Today I had the pleasure of meeting a friend for catch up and coffee at a cafe in her workplace … It was made even better when she offered to shout…( I should have suspected something when she opted for a cold drink instead).  So, there we were settled into our conversation and I took my first sip… eeek… watery and very very odd flavour. I just smiled and we continued to talk as I felt awkward that:  (a) she has paid for it …and (b) I hate to complain (and sound like a tosser).

So…I persevered for 2 more  mouthfuls until it all became TOO much…The vile after-taste had me imagining that I was about to succumb to some sort of bizarre toxicity and be rushed off to the local hospital ( and THAT wasn’t a good option – I know because I work there).

I eventually fess up and tell my friend that it is god awful, and she laughed saying “that’s why no-one buys coffee here”. (LOL thanks Karen).

I decided to brave it and tell the barista…BUT… given the crowd and my ‘vocal challenges’, it just all became too hard …so I binned it !! (and left feeling bad for the next victim)…. BUT I am happy to report that I’m 50 something and (still) not dead yet despite my ordeal.

P1120634

Tags: , , ,

Link

scratch that itch…

4 Feb

Last night I posed the question … is a good back scratch better than sex?back scratch 2

Well I’m going to let you make up your own mind about THAT… All I am suggesting is that over more recent years…(since becoming a ‘50 something’)I have developed an itchy back.  There are no signs of anything wrong or irritation, I just think I’ve come to love the sensation of a good back scratch and will take (almost) any opportunity to get one.

Funny really, because I can remember my dear Dad sidling up to a door jam for a good old back scratch, and thinking he was ‘a little odd’ as he almost purred with relief while he rubbed his back against the sharp timber edge.

But, I sometimes wonder what comes first the itch?… or the scratch?

Scratching perpetuates the itch and before you know it the whole surface of your back is screaming out for more (I’m sure you all know that deliriously delightful sensation).

When checking to see if there were any photos worth pinching to attach to tonight’s post, I stumbled across the attached link to an article called  “scratching your ankle is like masturbating” …. so perhaps we ARE onto something here after all ….but in the wrong area.

Lets face it…it’s cheap, it’s easy, and you can do it almost anywhere… alone or with a partner.

http://thestir.cafemom.com/love_sex/131957/scratching_your_ankle_is_the.

P1120635

Tags: , , , ,