Tuesday, April 01, 2014

A is for Age.

How old are you?  That question is so innocuous, but so loaded.  I am always amused at the idea that as you are a certain age, you need to be/do/like/say certain things. 

I am interested in things that would belie my age. 

I know about Babbit bearings and zirc fittings on old Chevy trucks, and have helped repair a Studebaker.  I know some about donkey engines in logging.  I also know some about making stone and bone arrowheads.  Does that make me a certain age?  I also like (some) rap and hip-hop, think skateboarding and motorcycles are sweet, and I knit.  Does that change the opinion of how old you think I am? 

I have found that people think you are as old as you let them think you are.  A friend of mine had been in Viet Nam, and a news article had come up about Jane Fonda.  He was, to put it mildly, outraged...  I was puzzled.  She had never been on my radar, and so I asked why he was upset.  After hearing probably more than I will ever remember about 'Hanoi Jane', he then snorted, "You should know this, you were around then!" 

I looked him squarely in the eye, and said, "Just how old do you think I am?"  He responded that I was his age.  I asked him what he was doing during the Moon Landing in '69.  He told me he was in the Marines.  I told him I was a toddler, sitting on my grandparents table, watching the landing.  Also, according to my parents, I was much more interested in my Oreo cookie dismemberment.  He looked stunned.  "But you act so much OLDER!"

So.  Act your age?  Meh.  Act how old you WANT to be.  That keeps 'em guessing!

30 comments:

MunirGhiasuddin said...

I rather behave the way I wan to not how I am supposed to according to my age. LOL

SlimDoggy said...

Not sure I'd like someone telling me I acted 'older' but I'm with you and acting as old as you want to be. And as you get older, the younger you want to act.

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh! I loved this because it is soooo true. Some days I'm told how young I look and act - what? You're 44? No way!

Other days, I can feel the looks of, why is that old grandma listening to Eminem?

Fun read!

Happy A-Zing!

Elsie
AJ's wHooligan in the A-Z Challenge

J.H. Moncrieff said...

This is an especially timely post for me. I'm finally getting to an age where it might be held against me, and that terrifies me! I truly believe age is just a number and we're only as old as we feel…but I wish everyone else believed that too.

messymimi said...

Yes, always keep them guessing! Enjoy what you enjoy, and live, laugh, and love like you are ageless.

Cat said...

Yep, that works for me!

Cat said...

In the situation I was in, I considered it a compliment, but no, being considered older can have its drawbacks...

Cat

Cat said...

Yep, I have had that occur with me both ways. The senior buffet offer, I am not really THAT close to a senior yet, and some that have asked if I understand all the 'kid stuff' on the web... Ha!

Cat

Cat said...

I guess I am more of a mind that I am going to be what I am, if it is too old for some, or too young for others, meh, it's the observers problem, not mine!!! ;)

Cat

Cat said...

Yes! And it confuses the majority of 'em anyway!!!

Cat

stephen Hayes said...

Most people think I'm younger than I am because of my stunning immaturity.

Tom Stephenson said...

I watched the moon walks, the Mai Lai massacre. the shooting of Kennedy and Dr King; I watched Cassius Clay turn into a Molsem, and I don't look a day over 63.

Janine said...

I so identify with this! I didn't to college until my mid-thirties and I always enjoy the assumptions that are made about me when people find out first that I am "Class of '09" and meet me later!

See you tomorrow for B!

Andrea said...

I think a lot of people don't really consider looks as much as one might think when guessing age.

Unknown said...

Ha! I loved this -- age has been a repeating theme for me over the last couple months. I'm close to hitting 40, but my two BFFs aren't even yet 25. Meanwhile, many of the people I chat with online are right in my age group. And there are a couple women I adore who are a decade older than I am. My hubz and I find that having a thirty-year spread among those with whom we spend the most time, keeps us sharp and puts a lot of things in perspective -- or at least makes life very interesting!

On a similar note: My son is almost drinking age and is in his 2nd year of college; my daughter is only 9 and in 3rd grade. That age difference is enough to keep anyone on their toes!

PS - Are you in Twitter? Wanted to add you to my #AtoZChallenge list there so I can keep up with your blog throughout the month. I'm Andi-Roo @TheWorld4Realz if you're ever that direction. No big deal if you aren't; just thought I'd ask! :)

Kathy Skinner (Kat) said...

I have always been very comfortable with my age! I am looking forward to entering a new decade this year but want to make sure that at any age I am healthy, happy and thoughtful of others. How does a 60 year old act??? Who's the judge???

Inger said...

I feel so blessed to have reached the age I am now, I would tell anyone who would be interested.

Mandy said...

Interesting topic choice. This was a fun A-Z post to read! Looking forward to seeing more of your incite over the next month. Keep up the good work!!

Frankie Miller said...

Think I'll have to have a face lift and lie. Age is scary - life passes too quickly.

Cat said...

Ahem. I won't say a word about you, and I take the fifth for myself...

Cat

Cat said...

Works for me! ;D

Cat said...

Oh, yes, that can make for some INTERESTING assumptions, I would think!

Cat

Cat said...

It really depends, when I am with some, they see the silver in the hair, and I might as well be "drooling in my oatmeal" as one of my family members say, other times, I talk, and I have had comments on how I know all the 'kid stuff'. Guess it varies...

Cat

Cat said...

Oh, my, what a range! I love it! I am mostly with older folks with some of my hobbies, but younger ones with my volunteer work. I am a "big people" friend with a second grader, and a pen pal with a woman near 85. So I have some variation, too!

Oh, my! I hadn't even thought to put my bloggy A to Z on Twitter! Yes, I am Cat @rencatus, thank you for the reminder!

Cat

Cat said...

I guess, we should all be our own judges, who's better to tell how we feel on the subject, yes?

Cat

Cat said...

I think I agree with you, except I have to stop and figure out what my age is, I think about it so little! Heh.

Cat

Cat said...

Thanks!!

Cat

Cat said...

Meh. If I worry about it, I would be afraid of my own shadow. I guess I am too busy being busy to think, oh, I am OLD! Or getting so. Or not... But I have definitely decided skateboarding is hazardous, no matter how fun it looks.

Cat

Unknown said...

I recently got offended when someone included me among their group of fortysomething's conversation. What can I say? There's nothing wrong with being over forty. I'm just not in a rush. And a little sensitive about my gray hairs.

Sigh. Your blog seems really interesting! I liked the slang and barn repair updates too. I like blogs about daily lives.

Empire for a Blueberry

Anonymous said...

This question makes me a bit nervous. I am 6 years younger than my husband, but lately people are telling him he looks WAAAY younger than his years. I'm not sure where that puts me...