Musings: A simple hunt for pills leads to a major hassle

Have a headache? My wife gets them from time to time and finds Anacin works best for her. I hadn't bought any in a couple of years.

Anyway, as my wife's supply was almost out and the bottle past the expiration date, I went to a local Walgreens. I asked a young man working in the aisle if the store had any Anacin, not having seen any in the analgesic section.

"Anacin," he said. Is that a brand name? I said, "Yes, Anacin. It's been around for 100 years." That worker was in his 20s or 30s, but had never heard of it. He summoned a store manager, who said they don't carry Anacin in the store anymore.

The manager said I can order it through a Walgreens app and have it shipped to the store, where I could buy it. Or, he said, I can have it shipped to my home address, but it would cost a lot more for delivery. This is crazy.

Am I so old now that Anacin has become a relic or antique? So now I have to figure out how to get a Walgreens app on my phone? Is Anacin becoming extinct like the dodo bird?

Anacin is just aspirin and caffeine. I called my wife before I left the store saying I could get her Excedrin instead. That's aspirin and caffeine and acetaminophen. She replied that maybe they'll have Anacin at another store.

So when I returned home, I called a CVS before driving there to see if that store had any Anacin. I waited on the phone for more than 10 minutes with no one picking up the nonpharmacy option. So next, I pressed the pharmacy option.

In the past, I've learned that when the store is busy, no one will answer the call, even in the pharmacy. You can be on hold listening to music and messages saying how important your call is, or just hearing it ring. After another 15 minutes hearing a recording about apps and links and vaccines, I hung up.

Now I have a headache. I need an Anacin.

— Mark Lane, Douglaston, Queens