- My knee still doesn’t feel right after that hiking trip two weeks ago.
- I started listening to really old music.
Have I crossed the threshold?
My knees have been going out since I was like 16, so I’ve felt pretty old for a long time. I think my biggest old person thing is being very particular about my bedtime each night and always getting up at the same time. I definitely did not do that in my twenties.
Yeah same boat here.
Testosterone got the better of me weight lifting in high school and I fucked up the ligament that holds my left kneecap down.
I pop and crack like a 70 year old and I’m 29 (been happening since I was 17) and I can’t keep my left knee bent for long periods of time without it aching.
I’m trying to stay young by playing video games (primarily rocket league) but they don’t feel the same as when I was younger. That was my actual sign.
I turned my head to the right to look at something and sprained my neck.
So when just existing hurts, you’re old.
You start looking for what the signs of getting old are. Seriously the big first thing that sorta marks the end of what I consider to be my healthy youth was jumping off a dock and having to take a moment after landing. Happened in my thirties.
You start noticing bird species you’ve never seen before… Wait! Was that a cedar waxwing???
This is so accurate.
But have you begun yelling at clouds yet?
No but sometimes I grunt when I get up from the couch.
Oh to be young again. I remember questioning whether I was old or not. Embrace your youth, it’s nearly gone…
You’ll start growing hair in even weirder places than you did during puberty.
And start losing hair on top of your head
Why, ear lobes? Why?!
I have one weird hair that grows out of my neck. Why on earth?!
Dude I’m hairy ass a gorilla since puberty.
How are the ouside parts of your ears and the bridge of your nose tho?
Just fine hair like the one most women have on their face
He just said “hairy ass”, well after hearing that I hope it’s “he” anyways for his own sake
nose hair trimmer attachment works well around the ears I’ve found (but it’s loud!)
You forget peoples names.
Everything you say is misconstrued through some lens over which you have no control.
example:
Me: Hey do you want to go for a walk when you are done what you are working on?
Them: Why are you always so critical of how long things take?
Me: What. The. Fuck?
Me: when you’re ready let’s do the thing we’d agreed we wanted to do around now.
Them: okay. (drops everything)
Me: okay…I knew you’re in the middle of something, I can wait 5 minutes.
Them: ugg, no, its fine let’s just go now.
(Later with someone else)
Them: Ugg, I always feel rushed to do things with [me].
Other: you know he’ll will wait for you right, its not a big deal.
Them: I know, but I feel bad. I dont like wasting his time…(he doesn’t have a lot of it left).
A backbrace becomes necessary for any physical activity more demanding than walking.
The radio station that plays the old hits has started playing newer hits. Spoiler: they’re not new.
I sometimes listen to old balkan songs (from yugoslavia timen) and am 17.
The radio station that plays old hits I swear is playing even older songs. I swear it is now playing 60’s music. And not the good songs from the 60s either.
“Your teeth/eyes look pretty good for your age! 👍”
When you let the student hair dresser cut your hair and she cuts it to your actual hairline.
When the barber asks: do you want me to do your eyebrows?
Some things I’ve noticed in my early 40s:
- You talk about things like property taxes and 401k contributions more often than you ever thought would be possible
- You seriously weigh whether a drink is worth the bad sleep and headache it’ll cause you
- Your pop-culture references are lost on younger folks
- You start referring to college-aged people as “kids”
- You need reading glasses but you’re in denial about it
- Injuries take longer to heal
- Those of your peers who haven’t taken care of themselves are starting to have serious health issues
- You care more about flossing, skincare, fiber, and hydration
- You still rock bottom eyeliner like you did in high school
- You’ve seen fashion from your high school years go out of style and then come back as “retro”
- You see the utter confusion on your nephew’s face when you explain that you used to keep a quarter in your bike pouch in case you needed to call someone, because he doesn’t remember a time before cell phones and his generation isn’t allowed to just roam around unsupervised on their bikes
- You have strong opinions about things like laundry detergent brands
- Birds become fascinating
- You have no problem spending a few hundred dollars on a new kayak paddle, but the price of cold cuts these days is just unacceptable
Eyes, motivation, you can’t drink all night and only sleep for three hours, and in general it’s better to drink at home, it’s better to lie on the couch, lack of interest in many things… taking care of children’s health is above your own etc.
That’s bang on. Aside from the quarter. I used to call collect and they would get “Would you like to receive a collect call from ‘Hidadcomepickmeup’?”
Good o’le “Bobwehadababyitsaboy”
I also remember when CarrotTop did the C-A-L-L-A-T-T commercial, so that’s fun/old…
Remember the 10-10-321 commercials? Or actually I think it was 10-321 originally.
My friends did that, but my mother would’ve killed me - she thought that was no different than theft lol
You may fascinate the elderly with a bird
Injuries take longer to heal
cold cuts? Have you seen the price of a bag of chips? Ridiculous. I don’t need to spend 5 bucks to hate myself later after I’ve eaten too many.
$30 to buy an old mechanical pencil on ebay you remember having in highschool? No problemo.
The most depressing sign is your parents that were once invincible are now having concerning health issues
A couple of years ago my dad, who has always been heavy into cycling and never had a weight problem, had a quadruple bypass. He was 72 or 73 at the time. He was always so healthy and fit, but the men in his family hoard arterial plaque like crazy. It was really sobering to see him go through that, and especially to see how lost my mom was while he was recovering. And my mom has osteoporosis; she’s getting treatment for it but she’s afraid to do much more than a brisk walk because if she falls, she could easily break her spine or pelvis. And she’s only 67!
It’s really depressing seeing them get old. I visited them over the weekend and we watched old camcorder tapes*. Seeing them younger than I am now was so weird; I didn’t realize my mental image of them has aged along with them, if that makes sense. But watching those tapes, all I could think was how strong and youthful they both looked!
*Seeing myself as an awkward teenager with braces and huge glasses was godawful, do not recommend!
I also have a knee thing. Why the knees.
pop
