Ageing

[forcebwithu 4,858]

Stickman's site still is accepting and posting reader submissions, some of which, IMHO, have been well written and thoughtful. One such was posted a few days ago titled The Years Of Our Lives, an essay on growing old and how we choose to deal with all that entails. Most of what the author wrote resonated with my own approach to life. Thought I'd give it a mention here in case anyone's interested in a good read.

 

[Bushcraft 2,591]

Yes, well written and it resonates very much. At 69 I ain't done yet either!

[Goldpanner 399]

Thanks for the link. A thoughtfull piece about growing old. Ive never realy noticed the aging process untill the last few years when I started gigging less and finding how hard it was to actully energise myself to get up and gig. But now I'm slowing down and it scares me.

[wacmedia 277]

Hi,

 

I feel dreadful this morning and only drank enough to get me going in earlier times. Still, most of my friends are no longer with us.

[Irish boy 67]

I've recently noticed hair growing out of my ears, what's that all about ffs.

 

Lucky enough I have a little Thai lady to pull them all out ?

[js007 795]

Getting older. I guess we should all consider the alternative before complaining too much. I'm 66, although I can still pretty much do all the same stuff I could always do. I guess I don't run any more on a daily basis, although I might try that again after I finish my upcoming move. Once upon a time, I got up and ran 3 to 5 miles every morning, without fail. That always made me feel good for the rest of the day. Plus, it helped keep me fit.

 

Anyway, some of my old friends are already dead, and others don't seem to be in such good shape. It's almost like they gave up on their bodies long ago. That's sad. My plan is to keep active and have as much fun as possible until that's really not possible any longer. My did was in his mid 80s before he slowed down. Maybe I'll be as lucky.

[nkped 1,208]

Had four friends/acquaintences from work across the country die within a few months of each other a few years ago. The youngest was a 39 year old mother of two. That will give you pause.

 

On a lighter note, it's a bit disconcerting to realize that a significant number of the old goats I see stumping around Pattaya are younger than I am.

[wacmedia 277]

Hi,

 

I think it helps to engage with a younger lady now and then. Good for the heart and the soul.

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

My doctor once told me, "Getting old ain't for sissies!"

 

Shit, we all die and it's probably gonna hurt.

 

Then there is the title of the first Jim Morrison biography:

 

No One Here Gets Out Alive

 

Too pessimistic for me.

 

So, live. That seems simple but odd how many don't. Get out every day and engage with the world. I don't mean go shopping. No rocking chairs! We are human. Engage with fellow humans, every day.

 

I agree with wac about younger ladies. My mom was 23 years junior to my dad. Kept him younger and then alive long after the emphysema should have claimed him. I am not looking for a wife but do love younger female bodies - mmmmm that skin, those perky tits. Damn! I feel younger just thinking about them.

 

Engage with youth. At my daughter's wedding I was sitting with my son and his wife and lots of nieces and nephews for dinner. I joked that I had been assigned to the kids table (all these "kids" are in their late 20's and early 30's). When a former brother-in-law came by and joked about it, we were all in that the kid's table ruled. We had a blast.

 

Go with the flow and have fun with it. That will keep you mentally young.

Edited October 11, 2017 by midlifecrisis

[VPI78 11,538]

A man is only as old as the woman he feels ...

 

................. Groucho Marx

[TheFiend 1,181]

Just read it, quite an interesting read....

 

Since my twenties I've lived by the philosophy of just enjoying each day as it comes as you never know when I'll die, although as I am now getting closer to retirement I've been manoeuvring towards ensuring I'll be able to survive financially that period of my life... I want to be able to enjoy retirement and that's what I'm going to do!!!

[jacko 8,822]

Just read it, quite an interesting read....

 

Since my twenties I've lived by the philosophy of just enjoying each day as it comes as you never know when I'll die, although as I am now getting closer to retirement I've been manoeuvring towards ensuring I'll be able to survive financially that period of my life... I want to be able to enjoy retirement and that's what I'm going to do!!!

There is the caveat that as your financial ability to enjoy retirement goes up, your physical ability goes down.

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

There is the caveat that as your financial ability to enjoy retirement goes up, your physical ability goes down.

 

So, you do what you can that requires a youthful body when you are young and do other things as you age. I doubt I will be doing modern rollercoasters any more at my age. I gave up golf because of a bad knee and bad back. I haven't played competetive sports like softball and adult league basketball since my early 40's. I always found things to occupy my time that I enjoy. As things pop up that restrict me physically, I seek out other things. Ageing is about adjusting. Or one can just sit around and watch the world go by or watch TV.

 

My next door neighbor is in his 40s. Paralyzed from the waste down from an accident. He owns sprint cars. He can't drive them any more but he works in the pit. He just bought another car. He is off about 30 weekends a year doing that. He has an RV for the offseason. He has a job and a GF. He lives.

[atlas2 4,329]

Usually I notice the aging process most in the barber's chair....

But I was looking at this yesterday and found it fascinating .........Though not interesting much after Halle Berry.

 

a. how the face of beauty has changed since the 1960s

b. how some (particularly one of the gipsies in Russia with Love have aged so well. Others cruelly.

c. the difference in races and aging.

d. Brings home........ageing.

 

[atlas2 4,329]

By-the-way.......

 

Can't believe The Eagle's Hotel California is 40 years old in Dec'

 

Now that's aged very well.

[VPI78 11,538]

By-the-way.......

 

Can't believe The Eagle's Hotel California is 40 years old in Dec'

 

Now that's aged very well.

 

Reminds me of a Don Henly conversation. As you likely know Henly is from Texas not California. Considered the quintessential California band by many Timothy Schmidt is actuzlly the only Eagles band member past or present that is from California.

 

Any way I am trustee of a family ranch in East Texas and one Saturday morning, Henly who is from nearby Linden, Texas came into the feedstore I was in. I think other than me, only the store clerk recognized him. Henly was browsing through some cattle feed options and noticed I was picking certain varieties and he asked me why I picked the choices I did. We went on talking about ranching and towards the end of about a 10-minute conversation I just had to ask him ... WTF does 'colitas' mean. I've read lots of explanation and guesses over the years all over the internet, some attributed to Henly.

 

He said ... it means nothing ... he made it up because he liked how it sounded. All those blurbs about it is part of a hemp plant or marijuana bud are just BS.

Edited October 12, 2017 by VPI78

[atlas2 4,329]

Good story

[Bushcraft 2,591]

Yah boo, they missed out my favourite Bond girl - Rosa Klebb.

[atlas2 4,329]

Yah boo, they missed out my favourite Bond girl - Rosa Klebb.

 

Yes a dammed fine looking woman....

 

We all guessed she was a leso..........but feminist??

 

Apparently " Her name is a pun on the popular Soviet phrase for women's rights, khleb i rozy (Cyrillic: хлеб и розы), which in turn was a direct Russian translation of the internationally used labour union slogan "bread and roses".

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

 

Reminds me of a Don Henly conversation. As you likely know Henly is from Texas not California. Considered the quintessential California band by many Timothy Schmidt is actuzlly the only Eagles band member past or present that is from California.

 

Any way I am trustee of a family ranch in East Texas and one Saturday morning, Henly who is from nearby Linden, Texas came into the feedstore I was in. I think other than me, only the store clerk recognized him. Henly was browsing through some cattle feed options and noticed I was picking certain varieties and he asked me why I picked the choices I did. We went on talking about ranching and towards the end of about a 10-minute conversation I just had to ask him ... WTF does 'colitas' mean. I've read lots of explanation and guesses over the years all over the internet, some attributed to Henly.

 

He said ... it means nothing ... he made it up because he liked how it sounded. All those blurbs about it is part of a hemp plant or marijuana bud are just BS.

 

"The term "colitas" in the first stanza ("warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air") has been interpreted as a sexual slang or a reference to marijuana. "Colitas" means "little tails" in Spanish; in Mexican slang it refers to buds of the cannabis (marijuana) plant."

 

Flower tops and not leaves are preferred for smoking.

 

It is a well know term going back to my youth.

 

"The term "colitas" in the first stanza ("warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air") has been interpreted as a sexual slang or a reference to marijuana.^[43] "Colitas" means "little tails" in Spanish; in Mexican slang it refers to buds of the cannabis (marijuana) plant.^[44][45] According to Glenn Frey, the "warm smell" is "colitas...it means little tails, the very top of the plant."^[46] The Eagles' manager Irving Azoff appears to lend support to the marijuana hypothesis,^[47] however, Felder said: "The colitas is a plant that grows in the desert that blooms at night, and it has this kind of pungent, almost funky smell. Don Henley came up with a lot of the lyrics for that song, and he came up with colitas."^[43]

[losgrad 264]

Just read it, quite an interesting read....

 

Since my twenties I've lived by the philosophy of just enjoying each day as it comes as you never know when I'll die, although as I am now getting closer to retirement I've been manoeuvring towards ensuring I'll be able to survive financially that period of my life... I want to be able to enjoy retirement and that's what I'm going to do!!!

 

 

Since my early school years, i began thinking of careers and retirement. Each day i'd enjoy, but each night i'd make plans. Yes, i saw some friends die while we were in school, some early in their careers, some in the peak of their professions and some as they neared retirement; but i also saw many senior citizens (including my parents) who seemed to have insufficient funds to enjoy their aged years.

 

I partially agree with 'You Only Live Once,' so i have enjoyed a very active life of experiences, things and travel; but also partially agree one needs to save for the future. Fortunately, my ex- had the same philosophy though she was more biased towards the future even now when we ARE both senior citizens . At some point, we determine when the pendulum swings towards enjoying and spending with less regards to the future.

 

In Pattaya, i see many expats who are enjoying a fantasy life at a relatively bargain rate compared to what we could afford in the West. However, i also find it interesting that some guys who never married, no kids have only minimal retirement funds.

 

As with many things in life, it's not all black and white, but "shades of gray."

 

 

There is the caveat that as your financial ability to enjoy retirement goes up, your physical ability goes down.

 

 

Caveat Lector.... Yes, since aging is inevitable and savings 'tend' to grow.

 

On aging... time doesn't necessarily have to deteriorate one's health. i am healthier now than i was 20 years ago, e.g. Benjamin Buttons . Twenty years ago in my mid-40's my health was horrible - obese, multiple mini-strokes, high blood pressure, stressed to the max with family (teenagers :) and work (mid-career), etc... My ex- and i continued to save towards the future even when i began to doubt if i had a future.

 

At the peak of my final career and my kids completing their undergraduate education, we divorced and i retired early to take care of myself. My health has improved tremendously although some joints seem worn. i know i'll slow down, but without prescription drugs, only a bin of vitamin supplements .

 

We can't stop the aging process, but we can enjoy the resources and wisdom accumulated over the years.

 

 

P.S. I asked a few of my retired expat friends, if they would exchange being 25 again, retaining the knowledge they have now, but giving up all of their financial resources; would they exchange?

 

Most said, YES!?

 

i, however would not as i don't want to go back to night school, working two jobs, raising kids, saving, etc..and not sure i would have done things any differently as I completed my "Bucket List" and more..., i.e. no regrets!

 

How would you answer this question? 25 AGAIN?

 

 

Just for fun, here's a trailer from the movie, "17 Again."

 

Edited October 12, 2017 by losgrad

[VPI78 11,538]

 

"The term "colitas" in the first stanza ("warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air") has been interpreted as a sexual slang or a reference to marijuana. "Colitas" means "little tails" in Spanish; in Mexican slang it refers to buds of the cannabis (marijuana) plant."

 

Flower tops and not leaves are preferred for smoking.

 

It is a well know term going back to my youth.

 

"The term "colitas" in the first stanza ("warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air") has been interpreted as a sexual slang or a reference to marijuana.^[43] "Colitas" means "little tails" in Spanish; in Mexican slang it refers to buds of the cannabis (marijuana) plant.^[44][45] According to Glenn Frey, the "warm smell" is "colitas...it means little tails, the very top of the plant."^[46] The Eagles' manager Irving Azoff appears to lend support to the marijuana hypothesis,^[47] however, Felder said: "The colitas is a plant that grows in the desert that blooms at night, and it has this kind of pungent, almost funky smell. Don Henley came up with a lot of the lyrics for that song, and he came up with colitas."^[43]

 

Yeah, I've read that and several other explanations. I once also read on the internet about a dinner in Saigon with Andropov and a legendary BM here.

 

I'm still going with what Henly told me.

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

 

Yeah, I've read that and several other explanations. I once also read on the internet about a dinner in Saigon with Andropov and a legendary BM here.

 

I'm still going with what Henly told me.

 

Well back when theme out, that is what was discussed.

 

I think you didn't meet Henly. You were with DUSA in Saigon with Yuri and Henry.

[VPI78 11,538]

 

Well back when theme out, that is what was discussed.

 

I think you didn't meet Henly. You were with DUSA in Saigon with Yuri and Henry.

 

Believe as you will, I have met all of that above except Yuri and Henry.

 

It is possible Henly told a porkie like LOLDusa, but I doubt it. He had nothing to gain by it as he had already impressed me with his knowledge of cattle feed, more so than LOLDusa and his knowledge of cheese steaks and cruises..

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

 

Believe as you will, I have met all of that above except Yuri and Henry.

 

It is possible Henly told a porkie like LOLDusa, but I doubt it. He had nothing to gain by it as he had already impressed me with his knowledge of cattle feed, more so than LOLDusa and his knowledge of cheese steaks and cruises..

 

I know the lingo from some trips to Baja and elsewhere in my youth.

 

Think of what the lyrics are saying.

 

On a dark desert highway

 

Smoking a joint (warm smell of colitus rising up through the air)

 

Then he comes upon the Hotel California

 

Is it a pot induced hallucination or is it a reality?

 

It's similar to Coleridge and his opium dream "In Xanadu did Kubla Khan a staely pleasure dome decree"

 

https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poem/kubla-khan

 

Believe what you want.