The Little Black Book

People used to joke about single men's Little Black Book. They kept girlfriends' or dates' phone numbers at the ready. Some men put little stars or their own rating system in there. I think that's weird but Que Sera Sera.

Speaking of Doris Day ... in Pillow Talk, Rock Hudson went through his little black book and called every women to say "bye" so they could get married.

Everything is electronic now. People keep their calendars on their computer, their Blackberry or whatever the latest gizmo allows. If they need to reach someone, they scroll through their cell phone to find the number.

Not Me.

I am a dinosaur. Oh, I'm technical enough. I spend an incredible time on the computer. I email a ton. I do all of my research online. But if you need to ask me about something on the calendar, I will go pick up my trusty datebook. It's the same style and format that I've used for the last 20 years. It ain't broke so I'm not changing.

And then there's my little black book! It's magical. If I know you, you're in there (but I don't rate people with little stars.) It rarely leaves my possession. I have been on a beach (out of this country) and someone needs a phone number. I've been in a number of social situations and phone/fax/cell/email information was needed. Got it! It's in my book. My friend Cynthia thinks this makes me the perpetual Girl Scout.

Once I loaned the little black book to the mother-in-law -- just for a minute to jot down some phone numbers. She lost it for a bit. I sort of had a heart attack. (Kidding!) But, I was manic. She does every correspondence in bed so I was crawling around under the bed with no luck. Then, I started flipping the Unabomber around like a grilled cheese sandwich. Found it!

The dog took it off the counter once and I had to chase her around. I'm freaking out and she thinks this is A GREAT BIG FUN GAME. Well, I won. But, I had to tape parts of it back together.

I may not know what the husband or the children are up to at any given moment. I may forget to return a call. There are a lot of little details in life that escape me.

I know where my little black book is hiding.