Flint Township View

The signs are all there






 

 

I ’ve written about growing old before. It can be a struggle sometimes to wrestle with the idea you’re not a youngster any more, but approaching the big 5-0.

But now I’m starting to wonder if maybe I’m not just over the hill. That’s right, maybe I’m on the fast track to (pardon my stereotyping here) wearing suspenders, black socks with my shorts and sandals, and keeping my teeth in a container at night beside my bed.

Here are some observations I’ve made recently which further lead me to believe I’m just an old codger:

• I take so many medications I need a box marked with each day of the week — A.M. and P.M. — to keep track of them. The box became necessary when I found myself unable to remember if I had taken my morning meds when I was supposed to.

• Speaking of memory loss, I’ve noticed myself having to stop and think about what I was just going to say at least once or twice a day. It’s like the thought is there, then boom it’s gone. It’s also common to walk into a room of my house to do something, only to forget why I’m there in the first place.

• I … wait … I forgot what I was going to say.

• I watch movies from the 1980s with my son and realize how old they are today. The other day he was engrossed in a movie and I asked what it was: “Ghostbusters!” he told me. I was like “oh, that’s a classic.” Wow. I remember when that movie came out. It didn’t seem that long ago.

• Music is another area I find myself dated in. Try explaining to younger people who Kurt Cobain was, that a Flock of Seagulls isn’t necessarily something you just see at the beach and that Soul Train isn’t a method of transportation in Korea.

• In the ’80s we had boom boxes and walkmen to listen to our music on. Today everything, and I mean everything, is done with cellphones. You can load them with music files, you can stream it from the Internet and it just fits in your pocket. Kids today have no idea how far we’ve come where that technology is concerned.

• I walked three miles in the Making Strides Against Cancer Walk in downtown Flint a few weeks ago and I was exhausted when I got home and had to take a nap. I used to be able to walk for miles and miles and it barely fazed me.

• Booming car stereos annoy me. Then I think back to my own youth and remember playing really loud music in my car. In fact I think my car stereo back then cost more than my car did. My, how priorities have changed.

• When I go see the doctor I’m used to him being older than me. While I still see doctors who are older I have one who is considerably younger — and he greets me every time by saying “how are you today, young man?” The last time I was called “young man” by a doctor I also got a sucker for being good at his office. While I know he’s perfectly capable as a physician, his youthfulness still makes me worry for just a moment.

The biggest indicator I’m getting old is I know I’ve grumbled about this topic before. I’m starting to think maybe I just like to hear myself complain.


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