Wallet Panic

I seriously thought 2020 had thrown yet another curve ball at me this morning when I couldn’t find my wallet. Losing that item would be a serious setback since it includes all my IDs, including the dearly bought Panamanian ones, as well as credit cards and medical insurance cards – yes – even my newly acquired Medicare card. I was devolving into a near panic state after my initial run through the house yielded nothing. I was certain the wallet was in the house because I remembered carrying it into the house after my swim yesterday. In situations like this I depend on my Favorite Panamanian because she’s got a great eye for anything out of place (which explains our somewhat fractious conversations on tidiness).

FBR posing With Friend at her Birthday Party

After two hours of searching we were still wallet-less. I even walked down the street to see if it had fallen out of my pocket and blown down the street. At this point I had to honor an appointment at the city bulk rubbish drop off for the recently non-operational toilet that had been bouncing around in the back of my car for over a week. They would require a photo ID to confirm I was a resident of Worcester. Luckily, I still had my old driver’s license and hoped that would suffice (it did). I returned home hoping against hope my diligent wife had good news, she didn’t. I knew it was in the house but I was running out of options. After another hour and a half searching, we were both standing in our closet when she asked me about the clothes I wore to a doctor’s office visit and then my swim. I incorrectly thought I was wearing a red sweater but she clearly remembered me in something green. At this point I turned around and grabbed my War College sweater off the shelf and found the wallet! It’s a comment on how lax things have become in Pandemia because where before, when we could routinely leave the house, the wallet was always in my back pocket. Once again, my wife’s vigilance paid off.

The Gang

She’s not the only one laughing at my lapses in memory. My daughter rather pointedly reminded me that the photos I posted yesterday were not from the FBR’s birthday but Halloween night. This combined with my failure to remember the obligatory drunken phone call to the Pittsburgh College Roommate after the pub crawl has led to the Cantankerous Friend reveling online as to apparent approaching senility. My daughter provided some photos from the actual small party since hopefully this blog will serve as a historical record of the FBR’s (as well as the BRS & BR3) early life.

FBR Holding Court

Everyone Was Excited!

My daughter softened the blow by providing this heartwarming video which chronicled last year’s pub crawl, before anyone, other than some Chinese government officials, had heard of Covid 19. It was arguably the best crawl ever with both my kids attending as well as Great Aunt, Soxfather and a large contingent of high school classmates. It caught the moment I paid respect to the now defunct Scores when we walked by as well as the FBR’s arrival at the last pub after an afternoon shopping with her abuela. It was a great stroll down memory lane and provided all the motivation (as if I needed any) to recapture the glory next year.

Finished Another Puzzle

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RECURRING CHARACTERS                                           

BR3 – granddaughter #3, BRS - Blog Reader the Sequel - second granddaughter; FBR - First Blog Reader - first granddaughter, ABFA – Amazing Best Family Athlete = my daughter in law; Wingman – my son in law; Keene Friends 1 & 2 – friends since high school from my home town of Keene, NH; Soxfather - my brother in law; Great Aunt - my elder sister; Cantankerous Friend – friend since grade school who likes to argue about everything, poses as radical leftist to attract women; Kindergarten Friend – friend since kindergarten whom I reunited with after many years; Pittsburgh College Roommate – high school friend, also a “Minor Celebrity” in Pittsburgh; Deckzilla – our backyard deck which grew to monstrous dimensions once my wife got involved in planning; Maine and Virginia Musqueteras – two close friends of my wife – her US sisters, my wife is the 3^rd musquetera (musketeer); Riggins - also known as the Grandpuppy, son's dog; PanaGals – female relatives /friends of my wife from Panama; Panamanian/Latin Mafia – inevitable group of Latino friends my wife accumulates wherever we have lived & their spouses; Neighborhood Mafioso - wife's close friend and Panamanian mafia member, Favorite Panamanian - the wife (of course); First Friday – celebrations to mark the First Friday of the Week; Curbside Girls – close friends of my daughter acquired during her single days in Brooklyn