Remember when we were in junior high and we yearned to be older so that we could drive, date, and drink, allegedly not all at once? And now – assuming you’re not some 14 year-old who’s freakishly reading my blog, we all want to stay Dick Clark-young, year after year. This transition in wishful thinking probably occurs in our mid-20s, I’m guessing. Because after that, I’ve never heard anyone say, “Gee, I wish I was older.”
(Enjoy the Beach Boys classic “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”)
(Photo of childhood friend and kid-at-heart Leslie “being Leslie”.)
So, here’s my theory: Whatever that magic age-number is when someone stops wishing they were older, that’s the “set point” age that they’ll always feel like in much later years. For example, I always feel like I’m 27. (But I wish I was 10!)
I’ve scientifically polled, by which I mean – over beer and pretzels, several people ages 40 and up. Whenever I ask Baby Boomers and Gen X’ers how old they really feel inside, pretty consistently, the numbers run in the mid- to late-20s. But let me also clarify, my control group tended to be generally cheerful and positive folks, and possibly under the influence of alcohol and crunchy snacks.
It was also interesting, though, that I asked a woman who was turning 59 how old she felt; she replied that she felt 40. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that!) But, I have to add that this woman also tends to be grouchy. Coincidence? Yep, there’s got to be a link between being negative and not feeling more youthful as you stroll into your senior years.
So my question for you is: How old do you feel inside? And why do you suppose it’s that particular age?
As Groucho Marx once said: “You’re only as old as the woman you feel!”
Related Posts:
Everybody Says They Want to Stay Young, But…
8 More Tactics to Fight the Fogey in You
5 Double-Dog Dares For You
2 kids playing along so far ↓
1 ReformingGeek
// Feb 2, 2009 at 9:45 pm
Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Nice post. I will come back later and read some more.
I liked my 30’s so I wish I were about 35. You can still heal up from injuries and get up and down without moaning.
On the other hand, the moaning may have something to do with running.
ReformingGeek’s last blog post..22 years
2 marissa
// Feb 3, 2009 at 8:19 am
Hi ReformingGeek,
I hear ya sister – about the injuries and stiffness. We went snowboarding a few years ago and the next couple of days, all I can say under my breath was “Oil Can.”
I only dabble in running. However, just yesterday a friend returned to work after 2 weeks out because she was out running and her leg muscle “pulled away from her bone” (ugh, gag…). She said she hadn’t stretched properly. And she’s still doing the quasi-modo limp.
When we were kids, didn’t we use to just get up and run (i.e, tag, hide n seek, race around the block)? Now we gotta do a Gumby routine first?
Sarah Connor doesn’t bother to stretch when the evil Terminator’s coming for her. AND then, there’s Jack La Lanne. ..
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