Greetings from Gumdrop Falls

I was born in Gumdrop Falls. Granted that was not the given name of our town at the time.  Nor is it now.  But when my friend Jennifer first referred to our quaint New England town by that name, well, it just stuck. 

When I mentioned this fictional name to my husband he said, "I don't get it.  There are no falls and we don't sell gumdrops."  Really?!  Hopefully my readers are a little more creative.... And for all I know, The Old Store (pictured above) may actually sell gumdrops!  Anywho...

If you're not familiar with Gumdrop Falls, I'll give you a little mental tour.  There is one (I repeat, one) school where preschoolers and eighth graders alike attend.  The big transition to middle school occurs by traveling, not across the street or to another building but, rather, down a flight of stairs.  I kid you not.  High school, however, is attended outside town lines. 

When my husband and I first returned to my birthplace, after spending the previous five years in Washington, D.C., I was shocked to learn there was not a CVS pharmacy in town.  In truth we moved from Gumdrop Falls to the next town over (one with a CVS I might add) when I was only six months old, so my memory of it thirty some odd years later was virtually nonexistent.  The closest pharmacy is a 15-minute car ride away, which can feel like an eternity when your child is screaming and needs his medicine.  In fact, aside from the local I.G.A, a bank, post office, a couple churches, library, and a few other small businesses, to get pretty much anywhere outside this idyllic community takes 15 minutes or more. 

This Cheers-like locality, where nearly everyone knows your name, has been home for my family for more than a decade, and it is from here where I share stories of my small-town life with you.

My Brain is Fried!

Remember the 80's commercial with the egg? "This is your brain."  Then the egg is dropped into a sizzling skillet, "This is your brain on drugs."

First, let me start off by saying, No, I am NOT doing drugs!

But, yes, my brain is fried.  And it took my friend's blog and her link to this nearly two-year-old New York Times article to find out why.

It's been going on a few years now.  My inability to remember the simplest of things.  Just yesterday I was at a 5K race and someone came up to me who I've met and I knew I knew her.  I could tell you where I met her and who our mutual friends are.  But for the life of me, I couldn't remember her name until hours later when I was back home.  Ellen! 

It's beyond frustrating.  I was concerned enough to mention it to my doctor a while back to be sure I didn't have some form of early onset Alzheimer's.  I have trouble remembering why I walked into the kitchen or what I was going to say next.  I've driven the wrong direction when heading out for an errand or dropping a friend's child off at a house I've been to a hundred times.  It's not all the time, and maybe it's not even every day, but certainly enough for me to think, this can't be normal.  Actually, it turns out, it is.  At least in my case.

Where our brains are concerned, a lack of sleep certainly doesn't help keep things fresh.  And sure, it can't hurt to try taking vitamins for memory...so long as I remember to take them.  But the real culprits, so it seems, are also my favorite gadgets: my iPhone, iPad, and the television.  (My inner voice screams, 'the iPad? Say it isn't so!')

Simply put, our brains need a break.  Makes sense, right?  I mean, they don't call them Crackberries for nothing.  When I'm at home alone all day and want to have some connection with the outside world, the first thing I do is open my iPad.  I'm surprised someone hasn't invented a way to strap this thing to my body because I carry it with me everywhere.  Well, no, not everywhere.  The bathroom is generally off limits.  But close.

Don't get me wrong, I am in NO WAY saying iPads, or iPhones or anything of the techno-gadgety sort are bad.  They are the way of the future and I am 100% on board.  But, like everything else, moderation, moderation, moderation.

If you were to peer into a window each night at my house (no, this is NOT an invitation to do so), you would probably see the following: the television would be on channel X, Y, or Z while I sit on the couch with my iPad playing some mindless game (hmmm, starting to see the connection too?) while my husband looks up occasionally from his laptop at the kitchen table behind me where he agonizes over ads, spreadsheets, etc.  Work stuff.

Now there is no telling my husband to put away his computer when he has work to be done, but I can certainly focus my brain on one activity or the other, not both.

Yes, my brain is fried. But at least now I know why. And I can do something about it!

So tonight, I'll put away my e-games when the kids go to sleep.  I won't check Facebook.   I won't Draw Something or text anyone.   I know I won't wake up in the morning remembering everything I need, but it's a start.  Baby steps....