THE SENIOR “MASH UNIT”… YOU’VE GOT TO BE TOUGH TO GROW OLD!

Its not easy…  getting old is not for sissies!

I eat breakfast with a group of Seniors most mornings at the local Big Boy Restaurant.  As often happens with Seniors, today’s conversation centered around the ailments, aches and pains of growing old.  We had it all…. hip replacement, carpal tunnel, arthritis, open heart surgery, hearing loss, walking cast, oxygen tank…  You name it, someone has had it or is going to get it soon.

These are tough people!  With soft hearts.  The best kind of people.  I didn’t have the courage to bring up my latest physical woes… How, after listening to their stories, do you mention that your body hurts everywhere and you’re so stiff you can hardly move?  Injuries sustained playing golf on a Wii Gamebox with a three year old! These are people who laugh at adversity and remain active no matter what.  My “injuries” wouldn’t gain  a lot of sympathy…   So, I listened, kept a low profile and didn’t complain.  You know, toughed it out so-to-speak.

But, I couldn’t ignore the fact that I was eating breakfast in a MASH UNIT!  In the spirit of companionship and support, I drew this cartoon.  Tomorrow, when I take it to Big Boy and show it to them, I’ll face the heat…  Like I said, “Growing Old is not for Sissies!”


GETTING OLD MAKES YOU MORE EFFICIENT

I had a moment of insight last night.

I was bending down to tie my shoes and noticed an item nearby that I knew didn’t belong there.  I caught myself thinking “I should pick that up while I’m already bent over.”

It made me think about how my thought processes have changed by getting older.  I remember telling a friend a few years ago that “the best part of growing old is that I’m no longer expected to run through brick walls… I can look for a door”… Or, better yet, let a young person do it!

When you think about it, it’s really about being more efficient.  “Look before you leap” not only keeps you out of potential trouble, it saves a lot of time.  Time spent correcting the result of not thinking ahead to the consequences of your action.

Over the course of a lifetime, most of us gain experience by doing things the hard way.  The wisdom of aging (or more realistically, the reluctance to experience unnecessary pain), has taught us to get the most out of our actions.  Chronic Pain has a way of encouraging older people to reduce the effort needed for any given result.  Let’s face it… We are getting older.  But, on the bright side, we’re also getting MORE EFFICIENT!


TRAFFIC CALMING? WHY NOT CALM THE DRIVERS INSTEAD?

I live in a fast-growing area that hasn’t addressed increased traffic congestion caused by rapid growth.  In the Summer, our population explodes with the infusion of  additional tourist traffic.  The buzzword for politicians has become “Traffic Calming“.  So far, efforts to “calm” traffic have slowed it but at the expense of increased congestion.

To avoid the bottlenecks, locals (because the tourists don’t know the shortcuts) have resorted to cutting through neighborhoods to get to where they are going.  The politicians answer to that is to put up stop signs at every neighborhood corner… making it even slower to get anywhere by “calming” the traffic.

“Traffic Calming” is an oxymoron.  Traffic going slower but increasing congestion does not create a calming effect.  Slow does not necessarily equate to calm.  Cars aren’t the problem…it’s the drivers!  Cars don’t get Road Rage, drivers do…

Add cyclists and pedestrians to the mix and it becomes a real battle.  Since the local political mindset seems to favor slow under the guise of traffic calming, I tried to imagine what their ultimate solution would be…

Bingo!  An EXPRESS LANE FOR PEDESTRIANS!  It might not calm down any drivers but it would guarantee they drive slower…  Isn’t that the goal?

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CAN ALL LIFEGUARDS SWIM?

In my early days as a STATE FARM AGENT, I often attended the annual “Professional Sales Institute” held by State Farm at Albion College, in Albion, Michigan. After a day of classes, one of the great things available to participants was the Olympic-size pool we got to use in the evenings .

As you might imagine, some insurance agents aren’t in the best physical shape.  On one particular evening, several of us “larger-than-life” agents were in the pool at the same time.  In addition to discussions about the rise in the water level, we all noted that the lifeguard was a tiny college coed.  Soaking wet, she might have weighed 90 lbs.  The thought occurred to us we might be in trouble if she had to jump in and save us.  In my mind, it was like sending a minnow to save a whale.

The “Save the whales” talk sparked the idea for the cartoon.  You might have noted from the cartoon that the section we were in was only 4 feet deep.  Maybe we weren’t in as much peril as we thought… if, for some reason we weren’t able  to stand up, she could have dragged us to shore!

HAPPINESS IS…

Cover of
Cover of Live In The Moment

I was asked by a Senior Citizen friend to draw a card with his dog on it.  He asked me to make the dog smiling because he was going to send it to a little girl in the neighborhood who had helped him  and loved his dog.

After I had drawn it, I got to thinking about dogs…  If we could adopt their attitude towards life, we’d be a lot happier.  Dogs don’t worry about the future or brood over the past.  They live in the moment.  If you own a dog, you know what I mean.

Just the mention of going for a walk will throw them into a frenzy.  Pick up a ball and they quiver with anticipation.  They don’t dwell on “I wonder how far he’s going to make me walk” or “Why don’t you go get it yourself?”  Dogs are just happy to be dogs… They live in the moment.

Humans spend too much time looking for happiness rather than experiencing it.  We all have the ability to be happy.  Think how your day would go if you decided to greet everyone you meet the same way your dog greets you when you get home.  Wouldn’t that change things?  Do you think people might treat you differently?  I don’t necessarily recommend you lick someone but wagging your tail wouldn’t hurt!

Now, on the other hand, if your dog happens to be a biter… You might want to reconsider how you greet people if you’re using your dog as a model for behavior.  You also might want to ask yourself, “Why is my dog a biter?” Since our pets usually follow our lead, does he reflect his owner’s attitude?    Think about it.
Most dogs will do almost anything for a treat.  We, as humans, will do almost anything in the search for happiness.  Follow your dog’s lead on this one… Decide to be HAPPY… relish the moment.  Your best chance is now!  Unless, of course, you decide otherwise.  In that case, don’t be surprised if you get bitten…