Permanent Record

One day in the early '90s I walked into the University of Chicago Hospital. I had an appointment with a doctor I had never seen. As a new patient I had to register. The clerk asked for my name and date of birth, and she typed them into her computer.

Then she asked: "Were you born here?"

As a matter of fact, I was.

She told me I had a very low patient i.d. number. That was her clue. They had assigned i.d. numbers in chronological sequence.

I hadn't been there since. But they had me on their computer! This was unusual dedication to keeping good records, and impressed me deeply.

I was surprised they recalled
Me at all.