While it's very easy to hear people criticise the young, I am finding it people my age that are really where the problem lies. The enthusiasm and open-mindedness is gone. I think understandably the emotional wear and tear of the years has jaded the best of us. And physically, the cards are crummy...or at least not the winning hand they once were.I found myself guilty of this yesterday when I noticed a band I like was coming to town. I excitedly checked the date and went to buy tickets. Then I realised they were the second act, and the gig was starting at 11pm. Realistically, they would be coming on about 1 am...I have no delusions on my youthfulness or lack there of. I know I'm old. I know that is way past my bedtime. I might stay out late at the occasional party but I know starting my night at that hour is only for watching the World Cup or Olympics on the telly...
I felt a little defeated. Like I should be wearing a scarlet O for Old.
I was driving my daughter and her boyfriend to the airport this morning and my playlist was EDM. The boyfriend kept chuckling with each new song because he found it 'funny' I liked this kind of music. Funny to the point of stifling laughter. And he hasn't even seen me dance yet!
I do from time to time find myself sitting at a dinner party with the wrong people thinking 'Are we those people now? Is this all we talk about?'. But that's a Me vs Them scenario. Twice this week I've found myself in a 'You're the problem, you got old' dilemma. It is far more disconcerting than I expected.
Have you noticed a change in your tune, or the attitudes of those around you?
Was Somerset Maugham right? Do you think it's the case that we lose our enthusiasm rather than there's less to be enthusiastic about?
Linking with #FloralFridayFoto (just for the pictures)
Linking with #FloralFridayFoto (just for the pictures)
I still feel almost childlike on the inside but must admit lately I've found myself wondering about the youth of today. Sometimes I feel myself turning into one of "those" people and surprise myself. I know I'm not into all the stuff I used to do/like and that's cool but I still have plenty of enthusiasm for stuff, it's just different stuff. I think it's great that you love music and gigs and why shouldn't you? I think your kids are pretty lucky to have such a cool mum!
ReplyDeleteThere is no such thing as a cool mum! One of my favourite memes is when Paul Rudd got Ant man and his kid said 'Yeah, let's see how stupid that will be' and I think Mark Rufalo's kid told him he'd ruined The Hulk when he did the first movie. I always chuckle and can picture exactly how that went down!
DeleteI had a moment this week when I got the reneal slip for my NSW drivers licence. This is the last year I will be able to get a 10 year renewal!!! 44 is the cut off. I do not feel that old at all!!!
ReplyDeleteSSG xxx
That happened to me last year too. It was a bit of a shock (I couldn't get 10 years!!! ARGH!
DeleteI try so hard not to be one of *those* people ie the judgmental kind, but only yesterday when I was waiting for my flight in the abomination that is the gates at terminal 4 in Melbourne and it was full of 2 flights of kids heading north with their parents for school holidays to where I live I started to get crabby and had to give myself a good swift talking to. Having said that I'm still enthusiastic, but about different things to what I once was.
ReplyDeleteI'm still enthusiastic about many things. It's always been 'so many things to explore and so little time' situation. #lifethisweek
ReplyDeleteI think I've always been a bit "old" when it comes to things like 1am outings! I have trouble staying awake for NY eve and have given up on it in the last few years (a lot of waiting for a party popper or two and then home to bed!) I think you're rocking this age and stage and going at it a lot harder than most Midlifers (which is why I wondered initially if you were old enough for our #MLSTL party!) Let those young things laugh, you're rocking it!
ReplyDeleteJust popping back to say thanks for linking up with us at MLSTL and I've shared on my SM :)
DeleteHi Lydia I think you know my philosophy about aging and although I feel 30 most of the time I do have my moments where I have to pull myself up because I'm thinking 'old'. I am guilty though of looking at others and thinking I hope I'm not like that. I think that enthusiasm depends on the person and their attitude. Go for it I say! #lifethisweek
ReplyDeleteThanks Lydia for linking up at #MLSTL, have a wonderful weekend. x
DeleteI'm 57 but feel 40 most of the time though sometimes the mirror and my creaky bones won't let me forget! You go girl, yolo!
ReplyDelete#kcacols
Only when I do certain survey and am not impressed with the age bracket I have to select do I feel old! LOL!
ReplyDeleteDi from Max The Unicorn
Interesting thoughts here Lydia, life just runs away from you sometimes and although I know the age I should be I often don't feel it. #Lifethisweek
ReplyDelete...every time around the barn takes its toll on you! You are right, a tune that would not be a favorite, but it has a snap to it.
ReplyDeleteThought provoking question at the end of your post. Visiting from Midlife Share the Love
ReplyDeleteI have found that when I stopped comparing myself to others, no matter their age, I feel better about myself knowing that I do my best every day.
ReplyDeleteIt's always the ride home that gets me. We went to see a comedian that we really liked, but the venue was an hour away. The show didn't start until 10 at night and there was no way that I wanted to drive home after that. So we found a nearby hotel and took afternoon naps so we'd be ready for the 10 pm show! I'm still enthusiastic...I just have to make plans.
ReplyDeleteI like this! I was once shamed into seeing a midnight show by a friend 20 years older than me! When I rang to asume she wouldn't want to go because it was late, she said 'No, it will be fun. We'll just go and get dinner in between the 8pm show finishing and the midnight one starting...it will be fine'. So yes, I agree it is do-able if you plan. Maybe i'm losing sight of this as my default and I need more energetic people to remind me...
DeleteOh yes, I understand this a lot. It is, in some ways, hard for me to think I am old when I have my father still alive and kicking back at 95. I admit, I would rather not be as restricted as he is now so...not going for 95 not out. My grandson is a DJ - Hardstyle? and is doing well but when he was under 18 my daughter, who needs and loves her sleep, would have to drive him and stay as his guardian at the venue when his segment wasn't on till 1 am. She was very relieved when he turned 18. Thanks for sharing for Life This Week. Next week's optional prompt is Self Care Stories. Hope to see you there linking up. Denyse.
ReplyDeleteWow. I am so impressed re your grandson. I have a friend's son who I'm encouraging to follow his dream of being a DJ. That's great that he's got it working for him....(Not your point of the story but you know me, I jumble it all in my head and go with whatever bit I think is right...hahaha)
DeleteI'm fighting the "Old" thing, in my mind I'm not, but my body says I am! Yes I think I am a little jaded with very late nights now, not so much the night itself, but working the next day. #Dreamteam
ReplyDeleteIt's a dilemma for sure. My mind is more enthusiastic and interested in learning and doing, but the body just cannot do things it used to be able to do. Now, 4-5 miles and I'm done.... not the 12 mile hikes of years ago. And then early to bed for sure! With some Aleve! I've never been a late night person, nor into the newer music. (Hubby listens to it with ear-buds!) And noisy kids/teens have always bothered me - that's not new. Yesterday evening we were all laughing when a couple of friends were struggling to get the parking app to work on their phones (to get more time on the meter)...even the IT-guy couldn't get it to work. Is that old? I'm not sure. Your post is thought provoking for sure! visiting from #MLSTL
ReplyDeleteThis is a tricky question... I do feel old, in some ways, and I have definitely become more cynical than I once was. But in some ways I feel more enthusiastic now than when I was young, and more excited about many aspects of life...
ReplyDeleteThank you for Iinking up with #KCACOLS, hope you come back again next time! X
I think that having a child at 43 will hopefully keep me young. But not siure how I am going to cope with all the teenage years in my 50s! #KCACOLS
ReplyDeleteI'm a kid at heart, and will remain one, no matter how old I get. At 56, I can run corcles around my Mrs., my kinder, and still have energy to burn. Truthfully, there is no way in h%ll I will go to a concert that starts at 1am, but my inner kid as free and wild! #dreamteam xoxo
ReplyDeleteThe things I'm enthusiastic about have changed over the years, and I definitely go to bed earlier! That said, I still love life and I'm okay with having "more mature" conversations. I absolutely do not want to be one of those people who spends all their time complaining--about aging, the youth of today, or anything else. Thanks for reminding me to be conscious of my thinking, my speech, and my actions. #MLSTL
ReplyDeleteThis made me smile. I think our experiences change us, and as we get older and usually wiser, conversation is naturally going to be different. Hehe! 11 is past my bedtime too. Thanks for stopping by the #DreamTeam - it's lovely to have you.
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