I play bridge. It used to be that whenever I sat down at a table the old ladies would all coo and say “it’s so nice to have young players playing this game.”
they eventually stopped doing that.
That’s when I became old.
And you notice that their music sucks ass and their haircuts are stupid looking.
I don’t even care if I’m old, my kids listen to some god-awful music. I hope I live long enough to see them grow some taste. 
When you stop being a child in your heart. I know old people that act younger then some young people. It’s a state of mind. I still have a sense of awe as if I was still a child although my body says otherwise. I see things over and over for the first time. That is awe.
I’m definitely silly and childlike in a lot of ways. For example, when asked how I felt the other day, I replied, ‘‘Snail.’’ As in, ‘‘I feel snail.’’ My husband tried to convince me that animal names do not count as feelings, but I knew damn well how I felt and meant to express it properly.
On the other hand, I was listening to a radio advertisement in the car for a major theme park. And the excited announcer was screaming, ‘‘Adrenaline pumping, mind-blowing, intense fun fun fun!’’
As a teenager, mind you, I used to go to the World’s Best Amusement Park, Cedar Point, between 2-3 times every summer, and have an absolute blast.
But I haven’t been in 7 years. As I listened to the advertisement, I felt it sucking the energy out of me. I complained, ‘‘That doesn’t sound like fun. That sounds exhausting.’’
At which point Sr. Olives turned to me and said, ‘‘You’re old.’’ And I knew he was right.
When you’re 53 years and 7 months and 11 days old. It just happened to me. Without question. And, it has nothing to do with my lawn.
Last summer, I was listening to Devo’s ‘Gates of Steel’, and my prime Rush on my mp3 player.
Two hours ago, I downloaded Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby. I’m still perusing Celine Dion’s catalog.
Sigh.
When this question occurs to you.
Irrelevant. Have aspergers syndrome and shave your head regularly, beginning in your mid-twenties. I haven’t aged visibly in a decade.
You’re no longer young when you’re resurrected from the dead over a year after being posted…
I am going to say 30 is the beginning of old. In that, if I saw two women at the mall. One was in her 20s and looked her age and one 30 and looked her age. One of them stole something. I had to id them, I’d say the 30 year old was a lady/woman. Where as I’d called the 20 something a girl. That’s just the way I see them. You guys KNOW I’m not PC and I don’t hold punches. 35 and over, though, is middle age. The average person lives to be around 75 in first world countries. So, anything over 38 can’t me considered young/not middle aged. It’s just denial. It 45-50 was considered the beginning of middle aged, you’d have to live to be 90-100. Most people won’t. I’m going to stick with 30 as the beginning of old. Not in that, you’re 30 you’re going to die. I also notice when people reach 30s and up, people start using their age in ways. “She’/He looks good for (insert age)”. “She/he is in good shape for (insert age)”. You don’t hear someone say “She’s in great shape for 25!” :eek:
I used to freak out about this in my twenties, but since reaching 30 I’ve become a bit zen about it.
What do I have to be afraid of? Adult responsibility? Well, I’ve been capable of getting knocked up since I was 12. But, so far kids and a mortgage and a soul destroying job have yet to come. It’s starting to look like they actually aren’t going to just magically come to destroy my fun loving life unless I invite them in. And if I do choose them, I can hardly bitch about it, right? Chooseing these things is a function of choosing these things- and you can choose them at 20 as easily as 40- and is not a function of “getting old.”
Looking older? Yeah, I’m not happy about the wrinkles that are cropping up. But then, I wasn’t exactly a supermodel in my 20s. It’s not like I lost my chance to be a centerfold or movie star. I still look nice. I just don’t look like a nice looking 18 year old. Big whoop. I still get hit on. I still have sex regularly. In fact, the sex seems to be getting better and better. Anyway, I figure that cosmetic enhancements will improve at a rate faster than I’m aging. The future looks bright!
My ability to have fun? Fuck that! Instead of sitting around dreaming of the stuff I want to do, I’m actually living it. Way better. Travel the world? Doing it! Dream job? Doing it! Going to a top school? Getting my MA at one! Learning languages? Four so far! Even if your dream is “having a lot of cats,” your ability to live the life of your dreams increases and increases.
Body? Did my legs fall off? I recall spending my 20s eating Cheetos and playing video games. Despite having a greater chance of being healthy, it’s not like I did much with it. Now, with my still-attached legs, I run 3K every single day and my body is hard and toned in a way it wasn’t in my “skinnyfat” 20s. Yeah, I will gain weight if I eat nothing but Cheetos. So I don’t do that. No biggie.
Partying? Well, someone has to be the oldest girl at the club. I run with a slightly younger crowd, and get out more than I did when I was younger. I’m yet to be kicked out of a hotspot for being over 30. And now, I can afford their drinks. Anyway, no reason to stop going out if you are still enjoying it. And if you really have trouble, move to DC where the nightspots are packed with older career girls. 30 has been my funnest year.
In short, old is something you choose. My hero is a mid fifties lady with a crop of gorgeous silver hair and a face wrinkled from smiles. She wears silver clothes that match her hair, runs marathons, is on the bleeding edge of technology and is currently travelling the word as a teacher. She is sexy, energetic, classy and living life to the fullest. I want to be just like her.
I was buying groceries the other day and some punk errrr kid came up to me and asked me “uncle are you a Lawyer” (i was dressed for court). Wait a minute “Uncle!!!”. The little tykes mother was in tears from laughter.
OTH I remember someone saying that one sign is when you perfer a nice book to a nice girl; and I have been buying a LOT of books.
It’s situational.
A person in their late 20s who has a spouse, owns a house, has kids, and all that jazz is “older” than a person in their mid-30s who doesn’t have those things. Not necessarily more mature, but just “older”. I work with a co-worker who I just discovered is six years older than me. I just assumed she was at least 12 or 15 years older not only because she looks it, but because her office is full of pictures of her kids and that’s all she talks about. I cannot relate, so she seems much older than she actually is.
When my mother was my age, she was juggling a house, a husband, two cars, and a house. I feel damn infantile compared to her right now, not having hit any of those milestones.
I just turned 34 this year. Which still feels youngish to me. But I know it will feel different next year when I can no longer be in denial about being “middle age”. But I won’t feel old. Just “older”. I imagine people will still treat me as a youngish person because I simply look and act young. One day this will change and I will probably feel sad, but I’m enjoying it while it lasts.
Nothing ages a person faster than losing a parent. The phrase “You are the oldest male in your family” just cut me to the quick.
I think the important part is: Don’t grow up too fast. I felt older at 28 than I did at 33, mostly due to how I viewed my life. I feel a little older at 41 than I did at 33, but that’s mostly because I don’t work out as much as I used to. I may feel older, but I don’t miss the constant aches and pains I had with the strenuous exercise. Yeah, I’m softer, but I currently can’t afford to get the AC fixed, and I’ll be damned if I do any major exercise with the house being 85 degrees.
That’s what people who are like 22 think. Over 30 seems “old” if you come from somewhere/when high school or college is viewed as your “glory days”. Where one is expected to find a job, get married and settle down right afterwards.
These days, people seem to go through an extended “post adolescent” phase between finishing school and their 30s, especially in more urban areas. 30s seems “old” for the same reason 21 used to seem old. Because you are getting to an age where you are expected to not act like you are still in college anymore.
I thought 30+ was old when I was in my early 20s as well. But I think that had more to do with still having a college fraternity party mentality.
I agree entirely.
At 31, married, but without children or owning a home, we both feel like “young adults”. In fact, now that we are both finally employed in positions that pay us decently by our standards we are just starting to feel “grown up”. Middle age comes later now generally, but I can’t call anyone below 40 middle aged. That seems to be the point where you are starting to wind down, and I’m just getting going after being in a boring holding pattern through my twenties.
A few weeks ago I realized that on my next birthday, I’ll be squarely in my late 30s. There’s no way one can call 37 “mid-30s” anymore. That made me feel a *little *old for the first time ever. I still don’t think 30s are middle aged. I’ve always considered that to be mid-40s to about mid-50s. As others have said, that’s not technically the middle of the average lifespan, but it still seems fitting.
Absolutely. I think it really depends on the individual and their lifestyle - one person’s 40 is another person’s 60. Personally, I’ve decided to skip middle age and go straight to being “old” a few seconds before I die, when it will finally be time to wind down.
Really? Because in a few months I’ll be twenty nineteen.
when you can’t understand the lyrics or if you still can understand the lyrics and don’t like them.
Heh. I started this thread a little over a year ago, not long before my 27th birthday. Now my 28th is coming up - and in a lot of ways, I feel better now than I have in a long time. Over the past year:
My job has finally started to become tolerable (still not great, but tolerable).
I’ve kayaked the Hudson, and nearly died, and laughed at the fact I didn’t.
I’ve learned I’m actually a pretty decent photographer.
Moved to a great new apartment in DC, right next door to old and valued friends.
This week, I’m learning to ride motorcycles - in fact, the last lesson is on my actual birthday. And in about a month, I’m going back to law school - just to audit classes, but it’ll be good to get back into learning things. 
Life is better this year than it was last year, and next year looks to be better still. Getting older rocks! Bring on middle age! (Okay, middle age can wait for a bit. But you get my point.)