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Realizing you're not so young anymore.....

April20

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Yesterday, the words, "when I was your age", actually came out of my mouth.

It was a HORRIFYING experience.

Most of the people we are working with right now are at least ten to twelve years younger than me. Twelve years! TWELVE. That's all of grade school thru high school graduation! I used to be the young one! Or at least in the middle of the pack. Granted, we're currently in a unique situation where a much younger crowd is typical (volunteer work- easier to do when you are younger and have less debt), but it still stings!! I'm only 34!

So for those of you that are no longer in the bottom of the age pack, what was your wake up call?

Edited because apparently I can't type tonight and it's causing spelling errors.
 

kenny

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I do not accept that getting old is bad.
It just IS, and it's one of the few things we all have in common.
 

Haven

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I realize I'm not so young anymore because I have to update the references I use in class. (I'm only 31, btw.)
For example, most of my current college students have never seen the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off."
Oh, and they talk about bands I've never even heard of.
ETA: And last year, I really amused one class when I asked "What's a Snooky?"
 

monarch64

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Haha, I'm 34 too, April20. I work with a bunch of people in their early twenties on up to my age. We have a very relaxed work environment, and hearing about some of the 23-24 year olds' escapades takes me back to those days! It actually makes me feel younger. When I came on, actually, they all thought I was in my mid-late twenties so they were very accepting, and I don't ever take a tone with them like I've been there/done that. Maybe I'm just not grown-up yet!

I do remember thinking when I turned 31, that that was the age of one of my college instructors who everyone in my major abhorred because she was so frumpy (yet we were Apparel Merchandising majors) and we thought she was SO OLD. Looking back, I don't think it had anything to do with her age and everything to do with the fact that she'd just given up and dressed like an old lady.

All of that aside, I'm happy to be in my thirties now. I feel like my opinions mean more, people take me more seriously, and that I have a lot to contribute to conversations with my older peers whereas 10 years ago all I could talk about was very me-centric. I have more life experiences and lessons under my belt now and just much more confidence in general. This getting older stuff isn't bad at all.
 

April20

Ideal_Rock
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Haven|1318614788|3040336 said:
I realize I'm not so young anymore because I have to update the references I use in class. (I'm only 31, btw.)
For example, most of my current college students have never seen the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off."
Oh, and they talk about bands I've never even heard of.
ETA: And last year, I really amused one class when I asked "What's a Snooky?"

I have absolutely NO idea what this is.

And how are there kids out there that haven't seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off. That's one of the best '80s movies out there! Oh wait, they might not have been born. :cheeky:

One of the kids here like to play chess and is very good. I called him Bobby Fischer the other day (thinking about the movie from the '90s). He had no idea who I was talking about.
 

April20

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Wanna know the sad part of all this? What caused these words to come out of my mouth?

A few of the boys went to Cape Town for the weekend. I was talking to one of them before they left for the airport. Asked what they were going to do. He mentioned they were going to hit a few clubs, beach, etc. Then came the dreaded words.... I was trying to explain to him that when I was his age (22), my friends and I used to take turns being the "bride" and the "maid of honor" so we could get into the clubs for free.

Yes, worldly wisdom from someone his senior.

I'm glad it was meaningful.
 

movie zombie

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kenny|1318614687|3040335 said:
I do not accept that getting old is bad.
It just IS, and it's one of the few things we all have in common.


agree.
 
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Snookie? ugh.

I'm 27 and I keep forgetting how old I am. I've told several people that I'm almost 29.

I think I'm having a late quarter life crisis... I have decided I really want a convertible.
 

jewelerman

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knew i was older when i realized that i was the oldest one at my place at work(including district manager) and that i could have been the father of most of my co-workers.That when i returned back to school that i was older then the instructors!knew i was older when one of my co-workers didn't know who the music group the Eagles were and when i went back to college that a majority of the students in my classes didn't know who Richard Nixon Or Ronald Reagan was!!!
 

luv2sparkle

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The key to not feeling bad about your age is having friends that are older that you! :naughty: :naughty: Or maybe just have more wrinkles than you!


I didn't pick my friends for this, it just worked out, but hey, I will take it!


Is getting a new job out of the question? Just kidding.
 

fleur-de-lis

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April20|1318615451|3040348 said:
Wanna know the sad part of all this? What caused these words to come out of my mouth?

A few of the boys went to Cape Town for the weekend. I was talking to one of them before they left for the airport. Asked what they were going to do. He mentioned they were going to hit a few clubs, beach, etc. Then came the dreaded words.... I was trying to explain to him that when I was his age (22), my friends and I used to take turns being the "bride" and the "maid of honor" so we could get into the clubs for free.

Yes, worldly wisdom from someone his senior.

I'm glad it was meaningful.

:lol:
 

choro72

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Feb 11, 2008
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I feel this all.the.time. And I'm only 31!

During the end years of my grad school, I remember seeing the excited freshmen and thought "Why are there baby teenagers at a university campus?". Then I realized that they are 17. I used to be one of them. Now they look like babies. So glad I'm not there anymore.

Now that I teach, I feel old when I tell them my experience of experimenting with VCRs. They also don't remember the time when they discovered the universe was growing at a faster rate, they don't remember Hubble being launched, they don't know about Voyager 2, and they don't know about the NEAR Shoemaker landing on Eros. I also feel old realizing that I'm teaching students who weren't born when the Gulf War started, and when the Berlin Wall was torn down.

Most of all, when I hear my favorite songs played on the "Oldies" radio channel.
 

yssie

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April20|1318615451|3040348 said:
Wanna know the sad part of all this? What caused these words to come out of my mouth?

A few of the boys went to Cape Town for the weekend. I was talking to one of them before they left for the airport. Asked what they were going to do. He mentioned they were going to hit a few clubs, beach, etc. Then came the dreaded words.... I was trying to explain to him that when I was his age (22), my friends and I used to take turns being the "bride" and the "maid of honor" so we could get into the clubs for free.

Yes, worldly wisdom from someone his senior.

I'm glad it was meaningful.



:bigsmile: :bigsmile: :bigsmile:



ETA: I had one of those moments right after my birthday. I am now in the target audience age for several anti-aging creams.
 

diamondringlover

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I realized I was old when one of the oldies stations was playing 80's and 90's music :-o
 

packrat

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My dad every now and again sends me an email comparing generations..things like, those at such and such age have never used a rotary phone and probably have never heard of the agony of taking forever to dial a phone and having to hang up and start the process again if you messed up, those kinds of things.

I remember in 1994 (pretty sure) going to Ames to see Pink Floyd w/a friend and he was the COOLEST EVER in our group b/c he had a car phone. That thing was like a big ole suitcase and plugged into the lighter. I called my mom from the parking lot, thrilled to pieces. My dad was a big into "In MY day.." Mom never really used the term..but then, she never really did any of the stuff normal teenagers do..mom's kinda an odd duck.

I'm turning 37 in a couple weeks. My mom just turned 60 in May and she gave me the funniest look when I laughed-it just strikes me as ODD. Mom is 60, and I distinctly remember just yesterday my Grandparents being in their sixties and my parents were in there 30's..and now I'm in my 30's..I swear it was yesterday..

Grumpy Old Man from SNL, anyone? Only those of a certain age group will know..
 

Regular Guy

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I believe that turning gray did it for me...maybe mid 40s (I'm 56 now).

Seems like within a year I went from looking young for my age to being an older guy.

More recently, some newer (movie or tv show) had one of it's young actors speculating about the future, and calling the years after 50 as like "spare change," and it kind of rang true.

Frankly, this is a bit hard right now, when 2 years ago I also was first diagnosed for bladder cancer, and then, within 6 months, told it was a mistake. My specialist has now,as of last month, told me not to check back anymore (I had done so quarterly), and so I am effectively now clear of being supposed to be concerned about this, which almost even works for me.

My wife, on the other hand, 4 + years my junior, after having fattened us both up over 20 + years, has just gotten onto a program and over the last 6 months, has lost over 40 pounds...making me a bit behind the 8 ball.

On the whole, this latter development is good news...so long as I do something about my more naturally sedentary ways.


Ira Z.
 

iLander

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bean|1318616058|3040360 said:
Snookie? ugh.

I'm 27 and I keep forgetting how old I am. I've told several people that I'm almost 29.

I think I'm having a late quarter life crisis... I have decided I really want a convertible.

Oh, please!!

All of you are lightweights!

My SON is your age! :lol: :lol:
 

zoebartlett

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Haven|1318614788|3040336 said:
I realize I'm not so young anymore because I have to update the references I use in class. (I'm only 31, btw.)
For example, most of my current college students have never seen the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off."
Oh, and they talk about bands I've never even heard of.
ETA: And last year, I really amused one class when I asked "What's a Snooky?"

You crack me up. I hate Jersey Shore and I'm not a fan of her, but I thought EVERYONE knows Snooki.

My birthday's coming up in a couple weeks and it always amuses me when my students try to guess how old I am. I'll be 38. This year, my students guessed correctly that I'm in my 30s but some years, they think I'm in my 40s. I love it when the think I'm 25.

I tell a lot of stories of my family and what my childhood was like. I laugh when I catch myself saying, "When I was your age, way back in the early 1980s..." Not that it was that long ago but some days it feels like a lifetime has passed.
 

amc80

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My DF and I are both 31. We realized we're old when we would see what teenagers are wearing and shake our heads. I'm sure our parents said the same thing about us. But seriously, I do not get the fashion these days.

Another wakeup call was when Nick at Night started airing shows I grew up on.
 

Circe

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monarch64|1318614898|3040338 said:
Haha, I'm 34 too, April20. I work with a bunch of people in their early twenties on up to my age. We have a very relaxed work environment, and hearing about some of the 23-24 year olds' escapades takes me back to those days! It actually makes me feel younger. When I came on, actually, they all thought I was in my mid-late twenties so they were very accepting, and I don't ever take a tone with them like I've been there/done that. Maybe I'm just not grown-up yet!

I do remember thinking when I turned 31, that that was the age of one of my college instructors who everyone in my major abhorred because she was so frumpy (yet we were Apparel Merchandising majors) and we thought she was SO OLD. Looking back, I don't think it had anything to do with her age and everything to do with the fact that she'd just given up and dressed like an old lady.

All of that aside, I'm happy to be in my thirties now. I feel like my opinions mean more, people take me more seriously, and that I have a lot to contribute to conversations with my older peers whereas 10 years ago all I could talk about was very me-centric. I have more life experiences and lessons under my belt now and just much more confidence in general. This getting older stuff isn't bad at all.

Could not agree more - I quite look forward to getting older and older yet. I plan to be the ancient lady with the flaming red hair and the sword-cane.

That said, I think my wake-up call was my first actual hang-over, circa a year ago. Oh, for the hollow leg of yore! And since then, it's been one thing after another - ache-y knees, getting a tad concerned about wrinkles for the first time in my life, etc. They are, interestingly, all physical things: given my arcane and anachronistic interests, I'm sort of used to 99% of the population not getting my jokes.

That said, this?

jewelerman said:
knew i was older when i realized that i was the oldest one at my place at work(including district manager) and that i could have been the father of most of my co-workers.That when i returned back to school that i was older then the instructors!knew i was older when one of my co-workers didn't know who the music group the Eagles were and when i went back to college that a majority of the students in my classes didn't know who Richard Nixon Or Ronald Reagan was!!!

Makes me want to cry. Not okay, kids, so not okay!
 

packrat

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diamondrnglover|1318623777|3040460 said:
I realized I was old when one of the oldies stations was playing 80's and 90's music :-o

One of the radio stations here does "classics" during lunch hour...to me that's Rolling Stones, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eagles...not songs *I* sang in the late 80's/early 90's! Gah. Nik at Nite is used to be My Three Sons and Donna Reed..not Home Improvement and Roseanne.

Now I know how my parents felt when my brother and I would moan and groan about "Solid Gold Saturday Night" on the radio...course now I really dig all those old songs so go figure.
 

ChloeTheGreat

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I'm only 23, but I often curse those "darn teenagers" as if I wasn't one only a few years ago...
 

NOYFB

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I just turned 43 a few weeks ago and find myself saying "When I was your age..." quite a bit. What really makes me feel old is my creaky knees and realizing that I've been out of high school for over 25 years! :-o That, and the fact that when I still get carded when buying wine (which is a compliment now but used to annoy me) the truth is that I'm old enough to buy alcohol TWICE!

Fortunately, or unfortunately in some cases, I look extremely young for my age. This is unfortunate in work situations where people don't take me seriously because they think I am much younger (the speech therapist where I work told me the other day that she thought I was 25). I also had a doctor ask me in 2008 years ago if that was the first election I was old enough to vote in. I politely told him that I had voted in the previous 5 elections as well.
 

Dancing Fire

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April20|1318614324|3040330 said:
Yesterday, the words, "when I was your age", actually came out of my mouth.

It was a HORRIFYING experience.

Most of the people we are working with right now are at least ten to twelve years younger than me. Twelve years! TWELVE. That's all of grade school thru high school graduation! I used to be the young one! Or at least in the middle of the pack. Granted, we're currently in a unique situation where a much younger crowd is typical (volunteer work- easier to do when you are younger and have less debt), but it still stings!! I'm only 34!

So for those of you that are no longer in the bottom of the age pack, what was your wake up call?

Edited because apparently I can't type tonight and it's causing spelling errors.
b/c your getting old... :lol:

my wake up call?...as we were driving along a street i pointed out to my daughters that this store was a Bahh,bahh,bahh 40 yrs ago... ::)
 

Dancing Fire

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amc80|1318635737|3040601 said:
My DF and I are both 31. We realized we're old when we would see what teenagers are wearing and shake our heads. I'm sure our parents said the same thing about us. But seriously, I do not get the fashion these days.

Another wakeup call was when Nick at Night started airing shows I grew up on.
wish i was... :lol:
 

lyra

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Realizing you're not so young anymore is the phase right before realizing you only have a limited time left... ;))
 

portia

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I realized I was old the first time someone called me ma'am. Ugh! I hate that!! It's just all downhill from there. ;(
 

Lady_Disdain

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When I was a teenager, I really didn't understand why people said that young people thought they were indestructible and would live for ever. Of course I knew I was going to die.

Now, I get some achey pains and I can't run down stairs like I used to and I finally get that.

On a more serious note, I tutor 2 teens and one preteen. Man, they make me feel older. The difference in how we see time is just amazing. A year is nothing to me, an eternity to them. 20 years ago is recent history to me, old stuff to them. And I am closer to their mother than to them.
 

Laila619

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April20|1318615164|3040344 said:
Haven|1318614788|3040336 said:
I realize I'm not so young anymore because I have to update the references I use in class. (I'm only 31, btw.)
For example, most of my current college students have never seen the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off."
Oh, and they talk about bands I've never even heard of.
ETA: And last year, I really amused one class when I asked "What's a Snooky?"

I have absolutely NO idea what this is.

Me either. :sick:
 

HollyS

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College kids look like 12 yr olds to me.

My oldest niece is 33 . . . and I'm old enough to be her mother.

High school was longer ago than the birth of that 33 yr old niece.

My favorite radio oldies are more than 40 years old, not 20.

I was aghast and appalled when TVLand had a marathon last weekend to celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Dick Van Dyke show. FIFTY YEARS AGO????? Lord, have mercy.

On the bright side, a clerk at Ross said there was no way I looked as old as my driver's license said I was. God bless her.

As DH and I often say, we are just a "You kids get off my lawn!" moment away from being past 'middle age' . . . as if we weren't already pushing that envelope. But, hey, I hear that 60 is the new 40. :bigsmile:
 
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