Dory is My Doppelganger

Sometimes, I have to laugh when everything turns to …. . Since Dory is my doppelganger, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised! Don’t get me wrong, compared to 99% of the world, my life is awesome, and I have nothing to complain about. I have traveled in many countries, and I know that when one has food in their belly and a roof over their head, that is good fortune. Often, though, I do get frustrated with all of the shit that happens. I mean, everything is relative, right? A therapist once told me that I had a right to my feelings, that life was relative, and I should stop prefacing my feelings with “I should not feel this way because I have the most wonderful life”. Yes, I have a wonderful life, but there is still some rain in it. The fickle finger of fate (remember Laugh-In?) likes to have a little fun once in a while, pretty frequently actually, and my Guardian Angel gets very tired.

Now, everyone has frustrations. Everyone has issues. I am part of the rule, not the exception to it. I’m not even talking about big stuff…like my husband’s double lung transplant almost 3 years ago, or chronic pain, or depression. Just everyday stuff. Like being ADHD. Being clumsy. Being distracted, unable to concentrate, or being so focused and concentrated there is nothing else in the world. Dogs being crazy dogs. Falling into pet gates and getting 15 stitches around the eye. Putting popcorn in the refrigerator and milk in the pantry (I just did that one yesterday). Leaving the car running (yes, you heard me right, I have parked the car and left it running). My cell phone? Ha! I can never remember to take it with me, from room to room or when I leave my house. My phone insurance was actually cancelled because I lost the phone too many times. What is insurance for, anyway??? Now it won’t charge. It’s always something.

A friend of mine told me not long ago that I was the “Dory” of my scuba diving tribe. Well, I have to say that is pretty accurate. I mean, I have been known to get so excited that I try to descend with a snorkel in my mouth instead of a regulator, and forget to put on fins. You know, of course, that forgetful Dory is actually ADHD? She has all of the symptoms, and so do I, and that is why my friend sent me an article titled 9 Signs You’re the Dory of Your Friend Group. The only exceptions I have to the nine signs? I eat fish even though they are friends, and I rarely pronounce or spell anything wrong (I’m the original absent minded Professor). Everything else seems pretty correct. And I do speak Whale.

This isn’t new, but as I get older it does seem to get worse. In the last year I have been forgetting to notice my gas gauge, and I ran out of gas once on the expressway. Thankfully I have a hybrid and I was able to coast into the gas station! Talk about luck! I’m on the expressway and it starts to sputter!

As I ready myself for my epic Down Under and Indonesia trip, I find that I cannot even complete a thought before I start talking about something else. My brain is darting around so much that I cannot even speak. Or think. I exhaust myself. And I have to pack at some point. I am going on this trip solo, which is probably good, because I doubt I’d be able to handle another person at this point. Oh, shit, I need to remember to print all of my documents out. Should I do that first? Or pack? I don’t know.

I think I’ll go take a nap.