Writing things down doesn’t always work

This is the second day in a row I’ve forgotten to pick up my dry cleaning.  And that’s kind of a problem this time, ’cause ALL of my work clothes are there.  What am I supposed to wear tomorrow?  I think I’ll have to wear what I wore yesterday or the day before again.  Not really a big deal since when I’m downtown, I never see the same people two days in a row.  But still.  How could I have forgotten again?  I wrote it down!

I know exactly how I forgot ’cause I do this every time I plan on stopping somewhere on my way home from work.  Whether it’s the pharmacy, the bank (which I also forgot about today – I remembered as I typed those words), the grocery store, or the dry cleaner’s, I have to tell myself over and over again just so I won’t go into auto-pilot mode and go straight home.  It rarely works, in part because I’m usually on the phone.  I’m talking to someone (today it was John, venting about work) and repeating my errands to myself isn’t as effective when I’m trying to have a coherent conversation.  So I find myself in the driveway.  Often, that’s when I remember the errand, and I just back right out and go.  Today, though, I was unloading groceries from the car (I didn’t start talking to John until after the Wegman’s stop) and letting the dogs out.  I sat down at the computer, remembered the dry cleaning, grabbed my keys, and looked at the clock.  Then I yelled a few not-nice things into the phone (still talking to John) because it was 7pm on the dot, and that’s when my dry cleaner closes.

What do I have to do?  Install dry-erase boards on my dashboard?  …  That’s not a bad idea.

7 Comments

  1. Rover the Wannabe Cocker Spaniel

    Might be too easy to start doodling while driving… That’s a bad idea.

    I do the same thing. If I’m on the phone, it’s autopilot no matter how committed I was when I got in the car. So easy answer: No phone while driving when you have a stop to make?

  2. Zannah

    I found clothes! I’d be all for a self-imposed casual day if I were just going to be in the office, but I’m still teaching the client how to use our software, and I kinda have to look professional. But only two more days of classes, and then I’m back in the office full time. Woohoo!

    The phone alarm is not a bad idea, but I’ll have to figure out a way to add a note to it. I might not remember why my alarm is going off. 🙂 The string on the finger trick never really worked for me, either.

  3. Dad

    Any car parts place or decent auto section in a megastore will have a notepad that suctions to your window or dash. Cheap solution. Could even combine that with the alarm.

  4. Redrum Writer

    I’m the same way with the auto pilot – kind of annoying sometimes.

    I used to write notes to myself on the bathroom mirror in dry-erase when I was single. The wife banned that as soon as she saw it, so now she gets to wonder why I forgot to pick her up after work.

  5. Zannah

    What if you weren’t in the bathroom right before you needed to pick her up? (Or close enough to the time to leave to get her that you wouldn’t forget again…)

    Why did she ban the note-writing? Seems like dry-erase markers would clean up pretty easily. Of course, there’s the horror movie freak-out factor. That alone would be enough to make me ban that practice.

Leave a Reply to The Wombat Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.

Are you a robot? Beep beep boop beep *