Mommy Brain Strikes Again

I get up to get something and forget what I need when I get there. I've developed what I refer to as "web-ADD," where I open a tab on Firefox intending to visit a specific website and forget where I'm going by the time I get through the www. I read an article that reminds me of something else I need to look at and then by the time I'm done reading I've forgotten where I said I needed to go. I need a mental note pad.

All of that is bad enough, but then this morning I stopped at a light and forgot how to drive. The light was red, and I was sitting there waiting, listening to Mike & Mike while Baby C slept in his carseat, and all of a sudden I realized that I didn't know which pedal was the clutch. It was a momentary lapse, and luckily muscle memory is a powerful force, because I didn't actually forget how to drive, but at that moment there was no way I could tell you which pedal was which. I also forgot how to shift through the electronic display menu. I'm a geek, and I like numbers and data, so I routinely flip through the stats of my current trip - average speed, average fuel consumption, miles remaining on tank, etc, while performing mental calculations to see how off base my fuel gauge is. I flip through the menu a few times each drive, and I drive at least twice a day, so there was no reason to forget how to switch the display. I tried everything - every button, every lever, every switch, and just could not for the life of me remember how to change it.

That's something else no one tells you. The lack of sleep seriously affects your short-term memory and ability to function normally.