My dad is starting to get to the age where he needs a little bit of help remembering all of the necessities in his life.
He sometimes forgets to buy air conditioner filters to replace them once every month or two, so I tend to pick up large packages of the HVAC filters whenever I visit one of the local warehouse stores to get my bulk grocery purchases. If I leave 10 or so a/c filters in my dad’s utility closet, it guarantees that he won’t forget to replace them within the appropriate amount of time. Other days I’m helping him create an account for a new phone app that he must learn to either pick up his medicine or purchases from a local store or restaurant. It’s not easy adapting to this digital world when you’re a byproduct of the one that came before it. My childhood happened during the moment of transition, so I have a unique perspective on it all compared to those younger than me who never experienced life without 24/7 internet access. They’re used to adapting to new digital interfaces all of the time, but people like my father struggle by comparison. I had to walk him through the process of getting a medical marijuana card when he decided that he wanted to use marijuana again. He was worried because he was confused and wanted to learn how to get a medical marijuana card but simply didn’t know how. We got him an appointment with a medical marijuana doctor and filled out the application with the state. In a matter of hours, my father was making his first medical cannabis dispensary purchase as a legal medical marijuana patient.