Remembering names

Sometimes in the evening before closing it slows down, and if it's been a long day I'm tired. It's then that I usually get "deep in thought" on something. And that's when it usually happens... someone will come in to pick up their prescription and I have to ask for them name because it's just not there. Most people are just fine with giving their name. I even have one lady who after several years feels the need to say her name loudly, "FARGOST," then she always spells it for me, loudly and distinctly, "F-A-R-G-O-S-T." As you can imagine it doesn't matter how deep in thought I am, I always remember her name before she starts spelling it to me.

But I have 2-3 patients out of thousands of customers that are quite upset that "After all this time, YOU don't remember my name?" And the harder I try to remember their name, the less it comes back to me. And then there's times when I do remember it but other times when I don't. I have invented a way around the problem which seems to get me off the hook, though. I just say, "I know your name, but company policy requires me to ask you each time to verify the prescription." That seems to work.

And now that I've been deep in thought about this a little longer, there are two other things that are quite interesting, to me anyway, possibly because it IS me:

One is that there are some people who I have checked out many times and have no problem remembering their name. Then they'll come in another time and I got nothing. Nothing. I know I should know their name, but it's not coming to me. Then when I finally remember it's like, "What the heck?!" and I feel like and idiot. It reminds me of when I took the NAPLEX exam. (For those who don't know, that's the big exam to prove to the world you're worthy to be a pharmacist). There were several questions that I knew the answer to three questions later, but on the NAPLEX you don't ge the chance to go back and change your answer because it is computer-administered and you're SOL. Mrs. Fargost will be happy to loudly spell that for you: S-O-L.

The second thing that's interesting is probably really interesting. But now that I've typed this far, I can't remember what it is now.