thoughtnot

I’m often accused by a few of my younger co-workers as being an “old man”. Of course, I’m 10 years older than they are, so I certainly remember many things they would not. And I’m often accused by my wife as sounding like a “grumpy old man” because I complain about things, but I only do so because I really do get frustrated by things that seem to follow no logic.

But outside of the occasional foot problem or back-ache, I generally have not FELT like an “old man”. To the best of my ability, I have remained fairly up to date with musical and “fashion” trends (that’s not to say I listen to the music or dress fashionably), and I remain interested in activities such as cycling and kayaking. I keep up with technology, and I believe with a little effort I am still within the realm of remaining on the “cutting edge” of trends.

I have to admit, though, that I sense a sea change in my life. Things are changing. And while I still don’t see myself as an “old man”, I DO sense the generational differences between myself and some of the others in my “circle”. To wit:

• I now drive a 40-year-old truck without power steering or A/C, and find myself enjoying it’s “simplicity”
• I find myself missing things from the past, such as Coke and beer in returnable glass bottles and the Charlie Chips truck
• Every time I fill up my gas tank, I recall when gas was 89¢/gallon. And I tell my wife about it.
• I told one of the guys today how I recalled when MTV and the local Top40 station came on air. I’ve told him before.
• Despite their popularity, I really don’t get “Hannah Montana” or “Fergie”, which sounds like “noise” to me
• I still listen to Motley Crue, Poison, and G-n-R and it doesn’t SOUND 20 years old to me
• I can’t drive more than 120 miles without stopping to pee
• I am repeating jokes I’ve already told
• We take our kids places, and are 5+ years older than some other parents with similar aged children
• I wish I could look at an ice cream truck and not think the driver was a pervert
• I desire enough acreage to raise some animals, and to perhaps own my own hardware store
• My ‘hobby’ of working with computers has become my ‘job’, which is now no longer my hobby
• I sometimes pass gas in public, because I can’t help it (I DO try to go off in a corner, though)
• I had to take the shocks and knobby tires off my Mt. bike because riding off road was too time consuming
• I find myself complaining about local politicians (and long for the days when I didn’t know who they were)
• I have to ask people to repeat themselves more often
• There are random hairs growing out of my ears (maybe that relates to the hearing?)

Now, those things aside, I KNOW I’m not THAT old… At 35, I can still run with the younger guys, too (when my foot isn’t hurting). But I can see the horizon and know that, soon, I’ll be driving “down hill” in my old truck. And you can bet I’ll stay in the fast lane and keep my left blinker on all the way. =)