We have been managing all of my dad’s finances since his health crisis in 2020. That included taking his credit and debit cards out of his wallet. Since all his meals and in-room services were billed to his room, he never needed to pay for anything out-of-pocket. I did leave him a $20 bill, just so it seemed like he had some money. We put his wallet out of sight, in his nightstand, since he really didn’t need it.

When we started going to Cold Beers and Cheeseburgers when he was on hospice, he really wanted to pay.

But since he didn’t ever carry the wallet in his back pocket, as he had for his entire life, he didn’t remember to grab it before we left (again, not that it would have done any good).

After a few times of him feeling bad that he hadn’t brought any money, I started carrying his credit card in my wallet, and using it to pay for the drinks. I’d tell him, “don’t worry, I have your credit card, so this round is on you.”

He forgot about this, often, of course…and continued to forget to bring his wallet too.

By this last year, it had evolved into a fun joke, a short routine we had nearly every time we did happy hour.

“Oops, I forgot my wallet my again,” he’d say.

“Don’t worry, we’ll stop early so you have time to do some dishes in the back,” I’d respond.

(This was also a reference to him getting fired as a dishwasher not long after he had moved to the United States—that story is coming soon).