After the long day, which started very early as previously noted, my half-awake mind labored to guide me home from downtown San Jose, which in itself doesn't sound so rough, but has never been an easy thing for me - as whether we are leaving a San Jose Sharks contest, or are in the downtown area on business, I always seem to muck up my directions home. Today of course was no different, as I found myself on a scenic tour of the San Jose area, looking upwards at the freeway overpasses, which mocked me with their inability to offer available onramps. After a ridiculously circuitous route that showed me areas of the town I didn't knew existed, I literally had ended up a block away from my starting point, and opting for a different route in my second chance at redemption, I eventually found my exit point - though certainly not in the most direct manner.While San Jose is notoriously bad for me - I must have some form of mental defect that just won't allow me to adapt to places where I'm not familiar. I take known routes to and from places, and if there are deviations from the norm, we have a good chance of being two or three U-turns away from success. If it weren't for Google Maps and Mapquest telling me how to get places - both new and old - I'd probably be a complete disaster. I know it's a weakness, and don't find myself getting better at this skill over time in any way.
Tonight's escapade got me thinking about other mental feats that I completely suck at - and the most obvious follow-up is with names. Even moments after introductions, I cannot remember names - and that can put me in odd situations when somebody more adept remembers who I am and I don't know them, except possibly by face. I may know what company they are from, what job title they hold, or even where I saw them last, but their name may as well be anonymous for as likely as I am to recall it.
My mother is similarly notorious for lacking name memory - and probably isn't the first person I'd call for directions, but those seem like funny excuses to use for maladies such as these. One of these days I'll lose somebody's name in a public setting and damage the relationship - or the next time I'm doing the world tour of your local neighborhood, I'll run out of gas or park on the side of the road for the night. There are just some things my brain isn't programmed well to do.
Listening to ''Superfly'', by Yellow Blackbird (Play Count: 4)