Where my in-laws have a condo in North Miami Beach, the COOP board requires residents to have a minimum age of 55 years old.  In the complex, each of the thirty or so buildings are identically sized and designed. The buildings are plotted out in a square.

First Floor – Iron Vines

One could easily lose her bearings during a mindless stroll around the giant square circle of the complex.  Without the building numbers hung above each main entrance, finding home could be bewildering to a tired mind. To make things more confusing, each building’s level looks the same as the others.

Second Floor – Iron Roses

Cleverly, some residents have added memory devices, image mnemonics, to provide unique identifiers to their buildings’ level. This is the series of such memory devices that appear on the three stories of my in-laws’ building.  If you step out of the central stairway or elevator, these appear where the hallway forms a T to the individual apartment units.

Third Floor – Iron Fish Eggs

On one of my first mornings during our visit, I returned to the building after completing yoga session on the rooftop of the pool clubhouse. My mind was totally relaxed, and I exited the stairs too early. When I saw the roses, I realized my error and found the correct floor.