December 25, 2019 - 103 - “Memory Triggers’

Food as Memory-trigger

Memory Triggers Are Everywhere

     Maybe it's the holidays, but I'm hyper aware of the things that bring back memories.

Food Memories

    Here you see that good ol'
"Red hot salad" I mentioned at Thanksgiving.  One bite of this jello mold and my brain explodes with a thousand memories.  It just tastes like the holidays to me.

     Things that are specific to an event or era are the most powerful.  I've never eaten this dish at Easter, or the 4th of July, or on a random day in August.  Nope.  It's for Christmas and Thanksgiving feasts only.  

      It reminds me of my mom making it when I was a kid.  She'd usually make two because most years we'd go to one Grandparent's house for lunch, and the other for dinner.  I wouldn't say this is my favorite dish of all time, but because it's so woven into my holiday memories, I grow more fond of it every year.  

Music Memories

     Songs are also major memory triggers.  Some of the best music memories are just like the food; not necessarily my favorite songs of all times.  They’re often songs that were played a lot at a specific time, then rarely played since...so the memories of that period of time are even stronger.

     Glen Campbell's "Galveston" will always be tied to a family vacation we took to San Antonio when I was about 6 years old.  

     There's a song called "Popcorn" by the band Hot Butter (yes...really) that is inextricably tied to 4-H summer camp the summer of 1974...or maybe '75.  It's not that I love the song.  Wiki bills it as early 'synth-rock'.  It’s a fairly obnoxious song...but it instantly takes me back. 

     "Wipe Out" by The Surfaris takes me back to the Decatur skating rink and the thousand angst-ridden memories of the tween years.  

     The first Travelling Wilburys album is tied to my excruciating days as a computer programmer.

     I asked Michael about songs that really carry him back in time.  He mentioned "We Gotta Get Out of This Place" by The Animals.  It transports him to driving around in his VW bug, hanging out with his friends, and being anxious to grow up and get out into the wider world.  

     And the song "In the Summertime" by Mungo Jerry making him think of being bored in the summer, and simultaneously not wanting to go back to the drudgery of school...but also wanting to see his friends again.

Advertising Memories

     Commercials are a powerful trigger too.  Again it's the specificity.  They tend to be played incessantly for a brief window, then either change entirely, or evolve to something new.  

     All those Kodak film commercials from the '70's...

     The "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke"  campaign....

      They bring back hip hugger jeans, halter tops, and spaghetti strap dresses.  

New Memories

    I'm lucky to still be making memories with both of my parents.  Michael and I were at their house today pigging out on Mom's pies and candies...oh yeah and we ate dinner too.  We got to enjoy my Dad's hilarious one-liners.  And I got to hang with my middle brother, David.  

     David was hanging out in the kitchen with me as I attempted to unmold the Red Hot Salad.  As usual it didn't want to leave it's happy home in the bundt pan.  I repeatedly immersed it in warm water, but it wouldn't budge.  The jello was starting to melt around the edges.  Suddenly, it let go and David and I were left to clean up what appeared to be a crime season.  Melty red jello pouring off the plate and onto the counters and floor.  

    Michael came in the room about this time and I told him if we ever end up using that Christmas tree carrier to haul off a body, we know who to call to help with cleaning up the evidence.

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    Just one more memory linked to that fabulous Red Hot Salad.   lol

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Happy Memory Making!

   I hope all of your memories are good ones!

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"Every moment of my life has a soundtrack, so I never know when some song is going to jump me by surprise and bring the memory alive."

-Rob Sheffield

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"Good morning yesterday 

You wake up and time has slipped away 

And suddenly it's hard to find 

The memories you left behind 

Remember.  

Do you remember the times of your life?" 

-Paul Anka

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