My mother-in-law (who lived to be over 100 years old) chanted a rhyme to me one day and I laughed my butt off. She said, “The golden years have come at last, the golden years can kiss my ass.” Turns out it is the last two lines of a poem, author unknown by me…
The Golden Years
I cannot see
I cannot pee
I cannot chew
I cannot screw
Oh My God What can I do
My memory shrinks
My hearing stinks
No sense of smell
I look like hell!
My mood is bad - can you tell?
My body's drooping
Have trouble pooping
The Golden Years has come at last
The Golden Years can kiss my ass.
Unfortunately we all are growing older nano second by nano second. The best we can do is to take care of mind and body so the Golden Years won’t be tarnished by illness and a poor attitude. Laughter IS the best medicine. Who gives a shit about laugh lines around your eyes as long as they twinkle with mirth? It’s hard to be angry or depressed when you have just heard a great joke. If you can maintain your sense of humor, find pleasure in everyday minutia, escape routine, read a book, write a blog, walk around the block, talk to someone older than you are, you can keep your mind young and your attitude positive. There is nothing you can do about the aging of your body. Keep it moving. And don’t look in the mirror with dread. There is beauty in all stages of life. Buy some rose colored glasses!
Mickey Mantle once said, "If I had known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself." Put this on your refrigerator. Maintaining good health is most important. It’s the first thing you should think about when you wake and the last thing you remember before you sleep. Good health can affect your mood, your relationships, and your pocketbook. If you want to work, travel, play with your grandchildren, you need to be healthy. Life doesn’t come with a manual, but look around, there are lessons for living a rewarding life everywhere. And don’t forget the sunscreen.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
The Squeaky Wheel and the “L” word
Idiom: “the squeaky wheel gets the grease” - means that if you bitch loud enough, you'll eventually get your way.
From “astro turf” demonstrations at town hall meetings to shouting “You lie” during President Obama's health care address to a joint session of Congress, it seems that the very “squeaky Republican wheels” are getting greased. Their efforts to derail health care reform are having a definite effect on the electorate. The Conservatives resort to distortions and outright lies. They yell, threaten, and wave tea bags. Their rhetoric resonates with the elderly, the poor, and uneducated. Unfortunately, because this health care reform debate is so emotionally charged, a lot of people are succumbing to scripted fear tactics. Every day at my office, I hear the “death panel”, “rationing”, “government run health care” arguments, exactly as the right-wingers on TV present them. And every day Sara Palin, Betsy McCaughey, Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, Sean Hannity, et al, come up with more fuel for the fire. It works! They get to keep their jobs, increase their ratings, and foment further uncertainty at the same time. There is nothing logical in their rants. It’s akin to yelling fire in a crowded theatre.
I am a “Centrist Liberal” and prefer to hear discussed, without distortion or bias, the most important piece of legislation in our lifetime. But if a minority of Senators can filibuster, and because the law requires a 60 percent senatorial majority vote to override, then the minority rules if there aren't the 60 votes. How distorted is this? 40 percent of the senate can control what becomes law and what doesn't.
The “L” word (Liberal) no longer has the hippie, tree-hugger stigma attached. Now Neo-Cons and all that connotes has become the undesired label associated with the Bush administration and its disastrous tenure. I like the following description of Liberal and I'm proud to say I'm a Liberal.
…But if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal." – John F. Kennedy
From “astro turf” demonstrations at town hall meetings to shouting “You lie” during President Obama's health care address to a joint session of Congress, it seems that the very “squeaky Republican wheels” are getting greased. Their efforts to derail health care reform are having a definite effect on the electorate. The Conservatives resort to distortions and outright lies. They yell, threaten, and wave tea bags. Their rhetoric resonates with the elderly, the poor, and uneducated. Unfortunately, because this health care reform debate is so emotionally charged, a lot of people are succumbing to scripted fear tactics. Every day at my office, I hear the “death panel”, “rationing”, “government run health care” arguments, exactly as the right-wingers on TV present them. And every day Sara Palin, Betsy McCaughey, Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, Sean Hannity, et al, come up with more fuel for the fire. It works! They get to keep their jobs, increase their ratings, and foment further uncertainty at the same time. There is nothing logical in their rants. It’s akin to yelling fire in a crowded theatre.
I am a “Centrist Liberal” and prefer to hear discussed, without distortion or bias, the most important piece of legislation in our lifetime. But if a minority of Senators can filibuster, and because the law requires a 60 percent senatorial majority vote to override, then the minority rules if there aren't the 60 votes. How distorted is this? 40 percent of the senate can control what becomes law and what doesn't.
The “L” word (Liberal) no longer has the hippie, tree-hugger stigma attached. Now Neo-Cons and all that connotes has become the undesired label associated with the Bush administration and its disastrous tenure. I like the following description of Liberal and I'm proud to say I'm a Liberal.
…But if by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal." – John F. Kennedy
Saturday, September 5, 2009
My Two Lists…
“Some of the things that make me feel sad” list.
Pine trees, frightened children, hurt animals, winter, sunset, really old people, nursing homes, empty fruit stands, unrequited love, neglected historic buildings, things made in the 1950s and 1960s, some Country songs, cemeteries, rusted out pickups, partisan politics, funeral homes, grumpy people, knowing I won’t live long enough to visit Venus…
“A few of the things that make me feel happy” list.
My son, my grandchildren, having a caring and funny partner, knowing I have a project to do, friends, spring, fresh cantaloupe, John Butler Trio, Benny Hill theme ringtone, email and Facebook, sunrise, fresh coffee, my recliner, a new scifi book to read, comfortable shoes that are cool looking too, my Chihuahua, fascinating conversations, travel, mountains, New York City, a great deli sandwich, sitting on my porch when it rains, the way a freesia flower smells, hummingbirds, clowns, unicorns, all things banana, Brit Coms and BBC, a good night’s sleep, recycling, taking a long hot bath…
Pine trees, frightened children, hurt animals, winter, sunset, really old people, nursing homes, empty fruit stands, unrequited love, neglected historic buildings, things made in the 1950s and 1960s, some Country songs, cemeteries, rusted out pickups, partisan politics, funeral homes, grumpy people, knowing I won’t live long enough to visit Venus…
“A few of the things that make me feel happy” list.
My son, my grandchildren, having a caring and funny partner, knowing I have a project to do, friends, spring, fresh cantaloupe, John Butler Trio, Benny Hill theme ringtone, email and Facebook, sunrise, fresh coffee, my recliner, a new scifi book to read, comfortable shoes that are cool looking too, my Chihuahua, fascinating conversations, travel, mountains, New York City, a great deli sandwich, sitting on my porch when it rains, the way a freesia flower smells, hummingbirds, clowns, unicorns, all things banana, Brit Coms and BBC, a good night’s sleep, recycling, taking a long hot bath…
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