Has your wife ever reminded you to turn off the engine after you parked? (I would remember eventually.) Or you forgot where you left your phone and realized it’s in your back pocket (But I always put it in my front pocket!) Or even worse you forgot your wife’s name? (Now, that I won’t forget. It’s “Honey.”)

Most of us worry about our memory and whether we might have Alzheimer’s or another type of dementia. But what should we be concerned about? At the recent half-day conferences named Mini-McGintys in Hood River and The Dalles — a third will be held in Moro on October 23^rd — the Oregon and Southwest Washington Alzheimer’s Association presented the following 10 warning signs of dementia plus what is typical age-related change.

1. Memory loss that disrupts daily life such as forgetting recently learned information, or important dates or events. Typical change? Sometimes forgetting names or appointments, but remembering them later.
2. Challenges in planning or solving problems such as changes in the ability to develop and follow a plan or keeping track of monthly bills. Typical change? Making occasional errors when managing finances or household bills.
3. Difficulty completing familiar tasks such as trouble driving to a familiar location or remembering the rules of a favorite game. Typical change? Occasionally needing help to use microwave settings or to record a TV show.
4. Confusion with time or place such as losing track of dates; forgetting where you are or how you got there. Typical change? Getting confused about the day of the week but figuring it out later
5. Trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships which may lead to difficulty with balance or judging distance. Typical change? Vision changes related to cataracts.
6. New problems with words in speaking or writing; having trouble naming a familiar object, or using the wrong name. Typical change? Sometimes having trouble finding the right word.
7. Misplacing things; putting things in unusual places; or accusing others of stealing, especially as the disease progresses. Typical change? Misplacing things from time to time and retracing steps to find them.
8. Decreased or poor judgment when dealing with money; paying less attention to grooming or staying clean. Typical change? Making a bad decision or mistake occasionally, such as neglecting to change the oil in the car.
9. Withdrawal from work or social activities caused by a decreased ability to hold or follow a conversation. Typical change? Sometimes feeling uninterested in family or social obligations.
10. Changes in mood and personality and becoming confused, suspicious, depressed, fearful, or anxious. Typical change? Developing very specific ways of doing things and becoming irritable when a routine is disrupted.

If you notice any of these changes, don’t ignore them. Schedule an appointment with your doctor – as I have already done. With early detection, you can explore treatments that may relieve some symptoms and help you maintain a level of independence longer.

Brain Tease. One more riddle for your brain. “What three numbers will give you the same answer when either multiplied or added together?”

The name of the 1971 Motown song that included the lyrics: You know we’ve got to find a way / To bring some lovin’ here today is “What’s Going On” sung by Marvin Gaye. I received correct answers from Bruce Johnson, Donna Mollet, Dave Lutgens, Rebecca Abrams, Judy Kiser, Keith Clymer, Doug Nelson, and Jess Birge who is this week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket.

In 1961 Goodson-Todman Productions produced a game show that consisted of two teams of two players each and one player on each team is given a word and the other player tries to guess the word from the one-word clues. For this week’s “Remember When” question, what was the name of this game show ranked number eight by TV Guide of the 60 greatest game shows ever? Email your answer to mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, call 541-296-4788, or send it with the popular board game of the show.

Well, it’s been another week, looking forward to the geese flying south. Until we meet again, if you don’t know the words to the song, you can always hum.

“Just because the person criticized you is an idiot, doesn’t make him wrong”. Roger Rosenblatt wrote in his book Rules for Aging.

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