Bob

Batz

Read Bob's bio and previous columns

February 6, 2009

Nice to See You Again, Uh, Um, I’m Thinking . . .

I’ve never been real good at remembering names. 

I still remember the combination of my locker – 5-4-22-30-6 – at Flint Central High School when I was a senior in 1958. 

But my mind immediately becomes a total blank if somebody asks me, “What are the last four digits of your Social Security number?”

I also vividly recall the name of my high school German teacher. It was Gertrude Mae Gostenschelter and she did me a huge favor my junior year by giving me a D-minus in her class.

But I frequently forget my license plate number, all of my kid’s birthdates and, on rare occasions, my own telephone number.

I used to joke about my inability to remember important things, but I don’t take it lightly any more.

“I’m worried,” I told my first wife the other day.

“Worried about what?” she asked.

I took her hand in mine. “Please don’t me angry with me, Sandy, but . . . well . . . sometimes I . . . I . . . forget things.”

She smiled and replied “Not to worry. It happens to everybody at one time or another. And, just for the record, my name is Sally, not Sandy.”

It isn’t that I haven’t tried to improve my ability to remember things. I even took a class a few years ago to improve my short-term memory, then I forgot to go to class – five times – in less than a month.

There’s no logical reason for my forgetfulness. I mean, it isn’t a Batz Family tradition or anything like that. When I was a baby, I said all of the things babies are supposed to say, including “goo-goo” And “ga-ga.” In grade school, I had a gold or blue star on my forehead almost every day because I was one of the best spellers in my class.

To tell the truth, I’ve always had a hard time remembering names. For a long time, whenever I had to introduce somebody to somebody else, I’d forget both names. Then a friend – I forget his name – told me I should try to associate names with other things and that would make those names easier for me to remember.

“For example,” he said, “the minute you meet somebody new, try to link that person’s first and/or last name with the name of an animal, or movie star, or common household appliance. For example, if I introduce you to a man whose last name is ‘Lincoln,’ you will automatically think of the Civil War, the nickname ‘Honest Abe’ and a log cabin. If you run into that man again, those three things followed by his last name will automatically pop into your head.”

"That's really neat," I said.

"Now for a little test. “If I introduce you to somebody whose last name is ‘Byrd,’ what words will pop into your head?"

I thought for a moment, then replied “Robin . . . spring . . . nest . . . worms!”

“Very good, Bob,” he said, adding, “So what last name do you come up with?”

“Robin Worms! I declared triumphantly. . .

Even as you read this, I'm still working on my association method. Unfortunately, I haven’t had an opportunity to test my friend’s theory because I haven’t been fortunate enough to meet anybody named Lincoln yet.

I have been introduced to about 215 other people in the last six months but, to be totally honest with you, I don’t remember any of their names.

Contact Bob at bbatz@who.rr.com

© 2009 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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