DEAR ABBY: You recently ran a letter about the importance of having identification. May I add a personal experience?
I had what I thought was a heart attack. I got myself to the hospital and was rushed into the emergency room. I was put on oxygen and hooked up to machines and monitored. The nurse even gave me a nitro pill. Then she asked me a question: "Is there anyone we can call for you?"
I was floored at the idea. I had ID with me; I'm never without it. But it was not current. My wife had a job that had her driving from store to store and couldn't be reached. My daughter slept days and I didn't have her telephone number. My eldest son had just moved and I didn't have his new number, either. I couldn't remember where my youngest son worked. None of my family could be reached.
At the time I was employed as a supervisor at the post office, and part of my job was to give a safety talk once a week. I used the above experience in my talk on the last day I worked. All the employees assured me that their IDs were up-to-date, but I insisted they check to make sure. I saw pencils whipped out to hurriedly erase outdated information, and one carrier piped up, "My God, I haven't been married to that witch for three years!" I know firsthand that current ID is very important. -- DEX PACKARD, AURORA, ORE.
DEAR DEX: I think you've made your point. Not only is it important to carry identification everywhere, it's equally important that the information be up-to-date. It doesn't have to be fancy -- a 3-by-5 index card tucked in a purse, a wallet or a pocket will do. And for joggers and athletes who don't want to "carry" anything, marking the information in indelible ink on the tongue of an athletic shoe will accomplish the same thing.