“SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) – Ramona Trinidad Iglesias Jordan, who at age 114 was recognized as the world’s oldest person, has died after a bout with pneumonia, her family said Monday.”
This also may end the United States dominance in this category:
"Her death could make Hendrikje van Andel-Schipper, 113, of the Netherlands the oldest living person, according to news reports. She was born in Smilde on June 29, 1890.
“Fred Hale Sr., 113, of Syracuse, N.Y., is listed by Guinness as the world’s oldest man. He was born on December 1, 1890.”
You know, once you’re recognized as the world’s oldest living person, it’s all downhill from there. No one is going to pass you; you will remain the WOLP for the rest of your life. The only reason to keep on living is to shoot for the all-time record. Now, if you’re the World’s Second Oldest Living Person, you have some incentive to hang in there. In fact, if you weren’t so dagnabbed tired all the time, you just might want to pay a visit to the WOLP and see how strong their ticker is.
Actually, the title of WOP frequently changes without any deaths being involved. A new document turns up that invalidates the current claimants alledged birth date. A new contender turns up in some obscure corner of the world. (Usually due to better documentation being found.) Etc.
So, remaining the WOP is not as easy as merely “not dying”.
And indeed it has - it was on the news last night. She’s turning 114 next month, and while she certainly looks her age, she seems incredibly well-spoken and bright.
Amazing - that woman was 24 when World War I began. Ponder THAT for a second. :eek:
Incidentally, whilst the Dutch have one of the longest life spans of all peoples, it had been 40 years since one of our citizens was actually the oldest in the world. I guess with 16 million inhabitants, chances are smaller even if we DO live longer.
That is truly amazing. What also astonishes me is that when she was a small child, many people though man would never fly in heavier-than-air machines. And in less than a lifetime later, she watches man walk on the moon.
I will never get over the fact that that huge jump in tech happened in less than a human lifetime.
Lieu, was that before or after we chipped clogs out of the gigantic mass of ice covering our Northernmost provinces, errr, tribes?
Revtim: when she was born, Karl Benz’s invention was only 5 years young, and automobiles hence were a rare sight in the streets. And certainly in Smilde, where she lived. Hell, chances are she was well in her teens or early 20’s when she saw a car for the first time.
The thing that amazes me is that within about ten years’ time, there won’t be a single person on Earth who was alive during the 19th century. Then again, considering it’s now the early 21st, the fact that it took that long for that to be true is impressive in itself.
