Bookstore Block and Almost Forgetting My Anniversary

Don't you hate it when you have a mental list of books that you want, until the minute you set foot into a bookstore and then you draw a complete blank? I happened to me again this week. My stack of unread books had dwindled to zero. I had about twenty minutes to kill before my haircut appointment yesterday, so I stopped into the Book Nook, a used bookstore near my workplace. I walk in, say "howdy" to the guys at the register, and stride purposefully to the science fiction section... and then instantly lose my focus. Can't think of anything that I want. *sigh* Why does that happen?

I ended up simply going with some old classics, mostly. Nothing newer than 1987, and some stuff dating back to the 50s. You can't really go wrong with Asimov and Bradbury. I also picked up a Haldeman, somebody else I had never heard of, and I loosened enough mental cobwebs to remember to get Seventh Son, which I wanted because PDM has the whole Alvin Maker series except that first one and I like to begin at the beginning. I probably would have fared better if I had not had a deadline. I can spend hours in a bookstore - used or new. Next time...

My absent-mindedness is growing to epic proportions. I do hope it is a temporary side effect of the "all work no play" (and no wine) regime. Last weekend PDM asked me where I wanted to go for dinner on Thursday night. I gave him a puzzled look and shrugged. Thursday night? WTF? We don't usually plan that far ahead. He laughed and told me to "quit being such a guy." And then it hit me -- our anniversary! It wasn't even on my radar. I'm glad he said something. Between work (with a big software upgrade looming for this weekend) and studying for the board exam, I hadn't even thought of this. There's no guarantee I would have remembered on my own. Yeesh!