I’ve read that when a person survives a horrible trauma, they sometimes get amnesia. Traumatic amnesia is considered to be a survival mechanism and, while it usually follows a violent crime or trauma, I think that I have experienced the phenomenon first hand after a rather insignificant event. I don’t mean to make light of the condition but I can think of no other reason why I remember nothing about a first time event that I recorded as number seven on my list of fifty firsts.

I went to three different Walmarts in one day. I wrote it on the list so it must be true but I have no idea why I would do that. What could I have possibly needed that would convince me to sally forth into the nether regions of three different Walmarts in one day? Even if there had been a dire need for circus peanuts, there are other candy choices I would have been satisfied with if the circus peanut shelf was bare. Which three Walmarts did I honor with a visit? And, again, I ask, why?

I don’t drink and drive so I can’t blame it on alcohol. Given the absence of all memory, I suppose it’s possible that I was forced at gunpoint. Could it have been temporary senility? Could I have been cruising around in three counties, driven by each Walmart, and thought oh, yeah, I need deodorant? Did I go home with three separate bags containing Secret? Temporary insanity would be more like it! It shall remain a mystery!

What I do remember is number eight on my list. I ate lunch for the first time at Black Bear Burritos in Morgantown. The downtown restaurant where I ate is no longer open but the food is equally good at the other location. I don’t remember what I ate but I have a habit of telling the waitstaff to just surprise me. I realize that this is a few steps beyond normal but I like to watch their response. It causes a bit of confusion and, most of the time, you can actually see them struggle with the whole concept of choosing for a stranger. Sometimes I will ask them what they like and then order that. This didn’t work very well for me at Chick-fil-A last week. I ended up with a plain piece of breaded chicken on a bun with nothing else but dill pickles! It was a rather traumatic dining experience for me but it didn’t cause amnesia. I remember every bite!