# Subtle signs that you're getting older **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 27, 2008, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244 "2008-01-27T22:48:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/21 "2008-01-28T03:07:03Z")
[QUOTE=bufftabby] I don’t like to leave my house past about 6:30 pm. It’s “too late”. And my ENTIRE high school crowd is either pregnant, married, a mother twice over, or a combination of the two, except for me. FWIW, I’m 24. I’m sure it just gets worse as time goes on. [/QUOTE] Wow. The only people I knew who were married or had kids at 24 were the high school sluts who accidently got themselves knocked up. At 24 my friends and I were in a shore house with 20 people getting drunk every weekend and thought we were “old” because we had jobs and half the kids in the clubs were kids still in school. Some subtle signs I’m getting older (since at 35, I am still routinely mistaken for 25): -The last thing I want to do is go out drinking with my 20-somthing year old coworkers. I’d rather drink with my 30-something coworkers and not have to worry about things like their lack of money, common sense or any kind of “game” -Occasionally I run into girls I hooked up with in high school or college and realize they are now married with kids -There are more and more “decade playlists” in my iPod ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/22 "2008-01-28T03:09:07Z")
Today I took my last child for her first haircut. And on the way out of the mall, I found the first grey hair on my head. There’s more than 10 inches of grey, with a 3 inch red tip; how did it go unnoticed for so long ?! ---
**Author:** ![Pixilated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/aeb1de/32.png) [@Pixilated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pixilated)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/23 "2008-01-28T03:22:47Z")
[QUOTE=msmith537] Wow. The only people I knew who were married or had kids at 24 were the high school sluts who accidently got themselves knocked up. [/QUOTE] Sheez - a lot of my fellow female classmates married riight out of highschool or shortly thereafter. And not all of us were sluts 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/24 "2008-01-28T03:44:48Z")
[QUOTE=Boyo Jim] Barbers started offering to trim my eyebrows. [/QUOTE] and the hair in your ears. ---
**Author:** ![Khampelf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Khampelf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khampelf)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/25 "2008-01-28T04:06:00Z")
I have a new car, and I’m realizing that I’m not all that interested in getting any stickers to put on it. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/26 "2008-01-28T04:11:55Z")
[QUOTE=Patty O’Furniture] and the hair in your ears. [/QUOTE] For me it’s not the hair IN my ears, but my earlobes start to grow little beards. ---
**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:** [January 28, 2008, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/27 "2008-01-28T04:27:39Z")
You see an 18-ish hottie in the mall yakking with a woman obviously her Mom. And you think about hitting on Mom. Oh yeah, and ear hair. That _really_ ages a guy. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/28 "2008-01-28T04:39:29Z")
[QUOTE=Jennshark] This last year: bifocals, physical therapy for tendonitis in the ankle, and acid-reflux disease. I’m 41. [/quote] You and me both (all the stuff, and the age, except my tendonitis is in my hips). I don’t have the bifocals yet, but I’ve noticed a distinct tendency to hold things further away from my eyes to focus on them. > [@](#): > > Emotionally, however, I feel better than I ever have: I could give a shit less what others think of my opinion, I’m much bolder about speaking out, and I don’t hesitate to seize leadership roles. I’m also kinder, more generous, and, in general, really don’t sweat the small stuff much. You and me both. Except, of course, god having the twisted sense of humour she has, I feel great except for my hormones going completely haywire. Yay perimenopause! :mad: ☹ ---
**Author:** ![bufftabby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/77aa72/32.png) [@bufftabby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bufftabby)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/29 "2008-01-28T04:48:19Z")
[Quote=msmith537] Wow. The only people I knew who were married or had kids at 24 were the high school sluts who accidently got themselves knocked up. [/quote] [QUOTE=Pixilated] Sheez - a lot of my fellow female classmates married riight out of highschool or shortly thereafter. And not all of us were sluts 😛 [/QUOTE] Yeah, I would not characterize my friends as sluts. That would be neither nice nor true. Another sign that I’m getting older! ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Wing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/51bf81/32.png) [@Little\_Wing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Wing)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/30 "2008-01-28T05:01:21Z")
[QUOTE=BiblioCat] One not-so-subtle sign: now _both_ knees make that weird Rice Krispy-like sound when I walk down the stairs. [/QUOTE] Oh, geez. Me, too! Freaked me out the first time I heard it. What’s bugged me more than anything, though, is slowly losing my close-up vision. I think I’ve hated that more than the other various aches and pains. I’ll be ordering bifocals in a few weeks. ---
**Author:** ![mmouse9799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mmouse9799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mmouse9799)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/31 "2008-01-28T05:10:41Z")
I have _two_ gray hairs. I’m 27. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/32 "2008-01-28T05:46:30Z")
I started finding a few gray hairs at my temples a few months back. Friday, I found 3 or 4 gray hairs right at the top of my head, in front. (I’m 34.) Also, my knees aren’t quite what they used to be. They get tired when I kneel a lot, and one of them aches sometimes. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/33 "2008-01-28T06:03:23Z")
Those daggy sandals that you used to consider Old Granny Orthopaedic footwear suddenly make an appearance in your closet because, damn, they ARE comfy. You wonder if they still sell girdles/corsets like your mum used to wear in the 50’s because you’re really not all that keen on going on a diet to curb the middle-age spread. You toss up whether to save some money to go on an overseas trip, or whether you should put it into your Superannuation fund. A big night out is dinner _and_ the movies. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/34 "2008-01-28T06:35:50Z")
[QUOTE=mmouse9799] I have _two_ gray hairs. I’m 27. [/QUOTE] A old girl friend of mine from high school complained a couple of years ago about finding 5 gray hairs. Only 2 of them were on her head. I offered to remove the others with my teeth. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Cyberhwk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7993a0/32.png) [@Cyberhwk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyberhwk)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/35 "2008-01-28T09:40:49Z")
Browsing old classmates’ profiles on MySpace had pictures from all over the world with spouses, kids, etc. “Yeah we live in Chicago now.” “We just found out we’re going to have a second child.” ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/36 "2008-01-28T09:53:23Z")
I gave a talk to some college kids on a China business tour for their University spring break. I realized that they have always known a flat world. Even more strange was not that I had first come to Asia before they were born, I had written my China guidebook before they were born! ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/37 "2008-01-28T10:30:15Z")
I’ve had handfuls of grey hair since I was 23. I just dyed my hair today. I pluck that one bastard that grows out of my eyebrow. I lie in wait for it. But I started getting the Rice Krispie sound in my right knee. I’m none to pleased about it, esp. since I wanted to start weightlifting again. Whatever. I’ve been a curmudgeon since I was 12. ---
**Author:** ![Martha\_Medea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/43a26b/32.png) [@Martha\_Medea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martha_Medea)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/38 "2008-01-28T11:09:19Z")
[QUOTE=Sarahfeena] That reminds me of the time I showed a picture from my wedding of my dad and his two brothers (all aged around 65-70) to my grandmother (aged 90ish). She was flabbergasted that “those old men” were her sons! [/QUOTE] When I took my baby son to visit my grandmother, she was more amazed at the fact that her “baby” was now a grandfather than the fact that she was a great-grandmother – and made sure she let me know that although my baby was beautiful, hers (who was standing there, age 63) was a much much more beautiful baby. 🙂 Policemen have looked young and fresh faced for a few years now - I’m used to it. Now I’m more impressed by the fact that some of my younger friends (in their 20s) were born when I was at university, and that some politicians - like the British foreign secretary and both opposition party leaders - are actually younger than me. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/39 "2008-01-28T12:04:26Z")
I have several pure white hairs in my eyebrows and more grey ones than I can count in my head. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2008, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244/40 "2008-01-28T12:15:06Z")
I’m 62. I’ve just started to collect Social Security. Every year I dread winter more and more. Snow used to be fun. My body: I’m sitting here, counting the number of body parts where I have chronic pain: 9. And everything either dries up or leaks, including my brain. The younger cousins who I used to babysit for are now grandparents. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/subtle-signs-that-youre-getting-older/435244.md?page=3)