# Privileges One Receives When They Hit 50 **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 20, 2026, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844 "2026-02-20T08:56:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 8:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/1 "2026-02-20T08:56:05Z")
I’m about to turn fifty in the USA. I’m planning to get some shots (pneumococcal, shingles and RSV) for which I’ll be eligible. Which things did you get when you turn fifty in your life? ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/2 "2026-02-20T08:57:51Z")
A free mammogram ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/3 "2026-02-20T09:05:48Z")
My first colonoscomy, I felt so grown up ! Also at 50 I became much more attractive to women for some reason. I hadn’t really changed but I look back now and see that I was perceived as being more mature and stable than before, and being a straight male with no children became a big plus. ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 11:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/4 "2026-02-20T11:59:26Z")
AFAIRecall, at 50, the NHS sends out FOBT kits, or they did when I was 50, which rather put me off icing a birthday cake. But at 60 I got free public transport within London, and free NHS prescriptions. And until this year some cash to go towards extra fuel costs in the winter. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/5 "2026-02-20T12:11:07Z")
> [@Eric1](#): > > I’m planning to get some shots Boy, that would’ve meant something a lot more fun 25 birthdays ago. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/6 "2026-02-20T13:52:34Z")
Just because you’re fifty doesn’t mean you need to give up e.g. oyster shooters. You’ll probably tap out sooner, but OK. Remember, you’re only as old as you behave. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/7 "2026-02-20T13:59:45Z")
My Mom received a great deal of deference in public venues when she was in her 80s and 90s. I’m nowhere near that age, plus I’m an Old Fart of the male persuasion with a permanent scowl, so I don’t receive – or expect – any favouritism. But I still like it when cute checkout clerks call me “dear”! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/8 "2026-02-20T16:41:04Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Remember, you’re only as old as you behave. “Do you need a diaper change before your nappie?” works at both ends of the age spectrum! ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/9 "2026-02-20T17:28:04Z")
You don’t “hit” 50. It sneaks around your blind side and you trip over it when you least expect it. 50 didn’t mean much for me. I built my house when I was 59. 65 was my slow down point, I think. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/10 "2026-02-20T17:32:28Z")
AARP membership. Odds are that they will spam your mailbox with offers to join. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/11 "2026-02-20T18:15:59Z")
I turned 50 last year and AARP has yet to start spamming me… maybe they don’t realize I exist? I did get my shingles and pneumonia shots right after I turned 50. I also got a proclamation in the mail from a local politician. That was both strange and hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/12 "2026-02-20T18:17:04Z")
> [@Dr.Girlfriend](#): > > I turned 50 last year and AARP has yet to start spamming me… maybe they don’t realize I exist? Sometimes their address list isn’t perfect. I was surprised that I wasn’t getting anything from them when I turned 50, until my parents told me, “oh, yes, you are, they’re just sending it to our address.” ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/13 "2026-02-20T18:27:09Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > AARP membership. Odds are that they will spam your mailbox with offers to join. Yeah, AARP starts recruiting 'em “young”. Also look forward to the privilege of rubber chicken dinners meant to sell you hearing aids and retirement planning counselors. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/14 "2026-02-20T18:36:17Z")
Don’t forget funeral/cremation planning. Or was that 65? ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/15 "2026-02-20T19:21:22Z")
I’d gotten a global pandemic for my fiftieth birthday. I turned fifty and the next weekend, everything shut down. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/16 "2026-02-20T19:23:10Z")
It’s never too soon for cremation planning. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/17 "2026-02-20T19:31:19Z")
I received a job offer from a company in Alaska. I was in Uganda at the time. Other than that, nothing of note that I can remember. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/18 "2026-02-20T19:33:58Z")
Full invisibility! Remember, the older you get, the better you were. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/19 "2026-02-20T19:52:50Z")
Senior poker tournaments require participants be 50+. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2026, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844/20 "2026-02-20T19:54:38Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > It’s never too soon for cremation planning. You gotta get the fire going so it’s ready when needed. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/privileges-one-receives-when-they-hit-50/1027844.md?page=2)