Who are the old farts around here (and willing to admit it)

Better get yours while it's still there! Wifey starting her SS for her birthday in October. I took mine
10 years ago and am enjoying every dollar! 40 years of work paid off.

 

I have my slide rule tucked away somewhere. I'll have to drag it out to show my techie 32 year old.
Amazing I once knew how to use it!

 

What kind of boots?

 

Hi, nice to meet you, oh, BTW I am "old as dirt" we are the same age.

 

Simms , comfy

 

Don't know I only know how old I feel.

 

They got a pill for that

 

This seems like a thoughtful subset of our forum and we’re at a point where making every moment count becomes more important by the day. So you may appreciate the profound lesson my dad taught me about living with gratitude just before he died in 1991.

He fought with the Army’s 77th Infantry Division at Guam, the Philippines, the Kerama Islands, and Okinawa. (The 2017 film “Hacksaw Ridge” depicts the 77th on Okinawa.) His company left the States with 203 men; by war’s end, its original members numbered 16.

Fast forward to 1991 and a diagnosis of terminal cancer. Our family was understandably devastated but my dad was utterly serene. When I asked how he could be so calm, he said, “Son, no one wants to die, but God gave me a gift of many years my buddies never had. I got to see my children grow up and to play with my grandkids. How can I be upset now that my time has come?”

“Lagniappe” (“lan-yap”) is a word used in New Orleans, where he was from and where I grew up. It means a small gift or bonus, like the 13th item in a baker’s dozen. I realized that my father had seen every day since the war as lagniappe.

He stayed in the Army, did 2 tours during the Korean War, and whether coincidentally or by some twisted sense of humor, was ordered back to Okinawa just in time for the 20th anniversary in 1965. He’s looking at a huge floor map of the battle and his face tells me he’s remembering those buddies.

 

Thank You for your father’s service

 

Thank you for that story and the timely reminder.

For myself, I came to the belief while working ICU bedside for all of those years, that everything over 70 years of age is a bonus. Of course that is an arbitrary number and subject to individual variation, but so often I would see folks 70-75 y/o come in with an issue and just really never get over it. Frequently they had "never been sick" (especially the men) which probably meant they hadn't seen a doctor since they were 18. I learned in a certification class some years back that the American College of Surgeons classified "old" as 50. I found this distressing considering I was 49 or 50 at the time but also realize that this is just a statistical breakpoint after which ones recovery from a trauma injury deteriorates. It's just the way it is...

So please, everyone enjoy today and tomorrow and take pleasure in the fact that we get to remember when gas was 19 cents, complain about the government, and tell fart jokes if we want.

 

Huge thank you to your family for his service. I can only imagine the horrors your father has seen. What a wise man for the outlook he had on life after the war. God bless all of you.

 

Well said

 

Good morning to all the old farts gotta take my morning pills and go for my walk , maybe some “jazzersize”

 

Today is the first day of my wife's 2nd retirement. 28 years as a Field Investigator for CPS County Child Protective Services. 11 years as a Medical Social Worker. We had a very nice day. I'm mostly excited because I don't have to answer anymore, "What did you do today and who did you talk to?" And as well cooking dinner for her. I get to be retired too!