Things that suck about getting older

OMG, I spend about 5 minutes on my ears every morning I am obsessed with it. I hate it when a man of a certain age turns his head and there is a small forest growing in his ears. Disgusting. I always think, does his wife not notice he has a forest growing in his ears, or does she just hate him? Does life just get in the way? Straight men are slobs. Really, once they hit 40 they become disgusting.

Pain. Little aches and pains that never bothered me before. Now they feel ten times worse. I think as you age, your pain receptors become much more sensitive.

Every single fucking thing that I ingest--from alcohol to the odd apple streudel--has a tremendous impact on my physiology and mental health. I cannot get away with anything anymore.

Toenails. As time passes, they get harder and harder to clip. It's as if your legs never stop growing, making for a longer reach every time you tackle the job.

Fucking lipomas.

I had never heard of them till I developed one.

What the hell!

Making an involuntary little sound, kind of like an almost internal grunt, when you get out of cars and stuff. Or you put something down and go "Uuughh!"

So glamorous!

To echo R6, my friends have noticed that I make a little "sighing" sound whenever I get up, whenever I sit down, whenever I finish a task. I'm turning 37 this month... has Old Age started already?!

•sigh*

Ear hair is a BITCH!!!

I'm 60 -- but I look 60! -- and I am, thankfully, in great health. I've been a vegetarian and a healthy eater for most of my life, so I still have energy and stamina, and don't feel the aches others upstream have mentioned. At least not yet. What bothers me the most is feeling invisible. I like going to new restaurants. I live in Nashville, where the new restaurants are very trendy and crowded with the young, the hip, and the hipsters. I'll go to the new hot place, and sit at the bar, and be completely ignored by the bartender. He's too busy chatting with the younger crowd, and discussing the virtues of single-barrel aged whatever. When he begrudgingly comes to take my order, it is clear that he would rather be doing anything but talking to an old man sitting by myself ordering food. I definitely get the "this place is not for you" vibe. And they just ignore you. If anyone older has ever gone to a trendy place, I'm sure they know the feeling. It bothers me, but it doesn't stop me from doing what I want to do and going where I want to go.

The weight gain. it's like someone pulled a fucking rip cord!

Ear hair drives me crazy. I pluck really obsessively and unfortunately do so blind since much of it can’t be seen with all the neck twisting and lobe pulling in the world. I keep it pretty well under control, but am still annoyed every time I put my earbuds in and hear a slight rustling.

I, too, have started the involuntary grunts and sighs.

All the injuries that happened in youth come back to haunt. It may have healed long ago, but the distress it caused on that area of the body is forever.

Not waking up with a boner any longer.

Low low hanging balls

[quote] I definitely get the "this place is not for you" vibe. And they just ignore you. If anyone older has ever gone to a trendy place, I'm sure they know the feeling.

Oh boy. A friend and I were wandering around Brooklyn one day seeing how it has changed since our youth (we’re both 44 now). We stopped at a bar for a beer. The place wasn’t super hipstery or anything, but I guess the crowd skews younger. The cunty bartender said to his friend, “Check out these two,” as we sat down. I so wanted to go full nasty faggot on him, but my friend didn’t hear and I knew his comment would have really bothered her.

Hair thinning at the top.

Having a lot of people in your life (friends and family) die.

I hate the new ear and nose hair! I use Nair but I have to be constantly vigilant.

Roller coasters now give me headaches so I can't ride them any more.

One drink and my hangover lasts a week

I used to be able to shed weight so easily. A week of eating less and jogging any extra weight just melted off.

No longer. I have a fucking dad bod

I can no longer sleep through the night without waking and usually having to pee.

Xanax certainly helps.

r5 I have some in my arm, didn't know that's what they are called

Changes in skin. Age spots, skin tags, warts, dryness, and the skin thins so you feel colder in winter and hotter in summer.

Loneliness. Old groups of friends move, get married, die and disperse. Meanwhile all the opportunities to fill some of that space with acquaintance or just for now folks seems to dry up as well. It doesn't hit often. Contentment fortunately is much more common, most days. But there are times you look around and think "when did this happen?" What was effortless for years, even into middle age changes and it becomes an effort to stay in touch and connected.

Routine changes upset me. Spontaneity is for vacations, not for workday mornings.

Hair, again. Not just ears, but WTF is up with individual eyebrow hairs growing an inch overnight?

Bifocals.

Cuts and scrapes take longer to heal.

[quote] Not waking up with a boner any longer.

I'm 60 and I still wake up with a hard-on every morning. And if my partner and I have had sex the night before, it's extra hard. Like a 17 year old.

Unfortunately we like to have sex in the evening and it's like trying to raise the dead to get my dick hard. Luckily I'm the bottom so it doesn't stop us from fucking, but about half the time I don't even try to get off, I just let him finish and call it a night

Ear hair?

What about back and shoulder hair?!?!

I used to be a twink!

I don't mind the invisibility so much, but I do mind not being respected as a human being when dealing with care givers and service people. The condescension is disgusting and the general lack of professional behavior is made worse when you're perceived as old. It's worse because I need a cane, despite generally being fit.

The other comments here strike home. One thing I'll add is the pain of seeing old friends and family members suffering worse than I. It's like a huge community of people who are moving towards the dark, and the bell seems to be tolling all the time. My partner is seven years older than I am, and I see him beginning to struggle.

At the same time, simple pleasures afford great pleasure. I have ambition but it's in perspective. I'm not afraid of death - have had a close call or two and was able to see how I really felt in my reactions. I enjoy new experiences but do not crave mere adventure. I can look at people and see them fairly clearly for who they are. And small delights make a good day.

Old "friends" and family members I haven't seen in years only interested in asking how much money I make, if I rent or own, if I'm dating anyone....and that's it.

1) I love staying in the house. I can just sit through the weekend and watch TV or be on the internet and just be fine. Which bleeds into preferring to stay at home, rather than going out. I'd rather stay in an Netflix alone than go to a party or dinner with friends.

2) People just really annoy me now. Even minor things and I just think that everyone is moron and not want to deal with it.

I can't work out as intensely as I used to be able to, and still recover as well. I've been in denial about this for the longest, but am realizing I should probably start accepting it now.

Do women get extra nose hair when they get old?

And naps. I forgot about the naps.

Lipomas? Add the facial bumps, odd marks, purple splotches, weird acne and those nasty scarlet bumps that appear and never leave that dermatologists insist on calling "wisdom spots." I finally told the doctor after his third usage to stop insulting me and call them by their proper name, angiomas. He dropped the act.

I take a three-hour nap daily, for Christ's sake. I have MS but it's so intrusive - the fatigue gets me if I don't lie down.

R28 that really sucks about caregivers and service people. I’m looking after an aging and disabled parent and I hate having to leave her with home health aides. Some of them are truly awful and the agencies don’t give a fuck. It makes me sick to think of people who have no one to advocate for or protect them.

God, I don't even know where to begin. I'm about to turn 52, and I've hit a wall this year - increased nose, ear, and eyebrow hair, grey in my eyebrows, mandatory reading glasses, foot and ankle pain after sitting for too long, and hangovers after just three drinks from the previous night.

Also, my memory is slower in absorbing new information, and quicker in forgetting it. In regards to sex, I can only go one round and that's it until maybe the following week. My days of marathon sex are completely over. I just don't have that repetitive stamina anymore. My skin is still smooth (I'm black), but my facial features are developing that hard look, especially around the eyes. Passing for 35 is no longer something I can pull off.

[quote] People just really annoy me now. Even minor things and I just think that everyone is moron and not want to deal with it

I don't have the patience to deal with bullshit. I'm very blunt now. What's the point of small talk about an issue, just a bunch of run around. I'm like, "get to the point"

R30 you are my long list twin. I used to be socially active but now I'd be thrilled to stay home all the time. People are the worst, they drive me insane with their stupidity.

That my time in this motherfucking AWESOME party called Life is coming to an end.

But, I feel like I just got started...

I haven't mentioned this elsewhere because I didn't want to to deal with trolls but I was just diagnosed with cancer of the tongue. I used to smoke, not heavily, but that's probably the origin.

I'd beg any tobacco users to throw the shit out. It's not worth the pleasure.

The CT scan wasn't clear enough so I need a PET scan to see if/where it has spread. I'm scared and freaked out. I've never had an operation, not even my tonsils out. I'm 37.

So yeah, getting older means facing things you really thought wouldn't happen to you.

^. I hope things go OK for you

Sending you good wishes R43. I am a light smoker of 60, so your words have given me food for thought.

gGray eye brows. I keep trimming them, but they grow back quickly--and more of them. It's hard to not make age an issue when you have fucking gray shooting out of your eyebrows, goddammit.

R41 brings to mind the closing song from the Carol Burnett Show.

Sunken eyes and more crows feet. I've taken to not smiling much so that I don't get cheek wrinkles.

I used to walk everyday to keep in shape. Then two years ago, I started getting lower back pains midway through a walk and I'd have to slowly make my way back home, in excruciating pain. This was happening all too frequently, so I stopped walking. Now, I've developed a big gut and large ass. I recently purchased an elliptical to get back into shape, but now my knee keeps giving out. If it ain't one thing, it's another.

Chronic Insomnia. Watching my face sag, my nice jawline is going to jowls, frown lines between my eyebrows. I don't recognize the old person I am in photographs, use to be attractive, now I'm old and look it. Acid reflux. Constant fatigue. My bones ache most of the time. And my teeth are crumbling and gums receding. Gray hair that has gone wiry and must be dyed more frequently. My nose is getting bigger and lips thinner. I look down and see I now have my grandma's hands.

You realize you work with the same type of horrible people you went to high school with.

"For men of a certain age" this is the best DL thread in ages. 45 and I recognize myself in many (most) of these posts. 'nuff said.

This is all true, but, as a 60 year old, I love being 60. I have all the money to do what I want, and I no longer go out to a club every night to pick up someone new. I’m happy to have nights alone, and still have a lot of friends to hang with.

Well, Jane, it just goes to show you, it's always something - if it ain't one thing, it's another.

r30 and r38 I know how you feel. It's coming to the point that I dread going out. Maybe I am getting more irritable as I get older or people really are annoying but I get anxiety when I have to face the day - and the public. I live in Toronto, and they just build condo after condo and the city becomes more populated and there is literally no space to walk on the sidewalk, more rude people, stress, etc.

I also find the noise pollution has gotten worse. You get on the streetcar or bus and snag a seat... only to have someone behind you shouting into their phone, swearing, talking about things you don't need to hear. Or someone on speakerphone or someone playing their music from their shitty-sounding phone.

For the person asking above, women don't have to deal with ear/nose hair growth but we start getting random chin whiskers. And, every bit of moisture in our skin instantaneously dries up at 45. I think men have a bit more oil in their skin so it's not as bad for them as soon. Does anyone remember grandparents having their skin split by every single finger nail? I never remember it but now everyone over fifty seems to have the skin on their fingers painfully split open near the nail beds.

Thank you, R43 and R44.

(To R44, if you've made it to 60, you don't need cigarettes. Quit and live to be 70, 80, or older! I'd give anything for the chance to live to 60.)

Back to OP's topic:

At 37, I definitely have regrets. In my 20s I chased a model-cute asshole who never loved me and missed out on a great guy, a friend who didnt tell me he liked me until 5 years later. If I'd paid more attention, I'd have gotten how much the nice guy cared and probably be married now. We were very compatible in retrospect.

I agree with all the above but I can mention two small advantages that may come with age.

My optometrist says the iris in the eye enlarges which can help reduce myopia.

I've been told that we will perspire less.

A prostate made of cast iron.

These are all "elder problems" I sorta knew were coming, and I agree...they're all bummers, and totally suck.

The thing I never foresaw was how much passion I'd lose for things which I'd previously been insane about. At 17-22, my life and enthusiasm revolved around a devotion to Punk Rock. I lived and breathed about only being devoted to, and a spokesman for, my preferred type of popular song.

Hundreds (thousands?) of hours devoted to thinking about pop music, and now I'm basically resigned to saying, "It's okay."

Why does so many men’s leg hair fall out?

Orgasms are not as intense. The amount of ejaculate decreases. Sex just isn't as good anymore.

r14: low hanging fucking earlobes.....see Kirk Douglas at 101.

R10: YES. man, are you right. it is awful ....but

i also notice when you really start to age you start getting really skinny again,.

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R55, women do get nose hair, maybe not as often or as early as men do but it definitely happens. There are two women in my building, both in their late 60s, who have the occasional errant nose hair. I guess the little suckers can be hard to spot in the mirror if the lighting isn't just right and it's only one or two hairs. A friend in her early 70s that I haven't seen in almost ten years called me last week and said she finally sees an old person when she looks in the mirror. While she doesn't have many wrinkles, the loss of tone, particularly around the eyes, and changes in her complexion give her a tired look no amount of caffeine or aerobic exercise can snap out of her. Then one day she looked in the mirror and saw a dark hair growing out of her nose and was completely shocked. She didn't think women grew nose hair either!

I can relate!

R60, I think leg hair decreases because of poor circulation.

I highly recommend putting your feet up when you sit. Whoever invented chairs was a sadist. The human body was not designed to sit for hours so that the blood pools in the legs. Think about it.

It's hormonal, R65. As hormone levels decrease with age, most people experience some loss of body hair, the same as they do thinning of their head hair. Personally, I look forward to it. (The body hair loss, not the head hair!) Nevertheless, putting your feet up when you sit is a good idea.

R25, try protein for the cuts and scrapes. I have 1 scoop of whey protein in cold coffee 2-3 times a week and cuts & scrapes heal like they did when I was younger again.

For the occasions protein doesn't work, I use silicone sticky pads over a scar to help it fade.

I dislike having to slather my back with mineral oil in winter because of seasonal dry, itchy skin.

And I hate having to use hand cream to counter the sometimes painful skin cracking, usually on my fingertips, that takes place in cold weather.

I NEVER had either problem when I was younger.

R49 G, is that you?

[quote]Why is this happening?

Because you are disgusting.

Can anyone relate to this?

I rarely look good in photos any more because something about my smile is "off" and I notice it's true for many older people. Smiling, I look either tense or distracted or weird. I hate posing for photos now.

Of course, maybe it's because I've gotten tense, distracted and weird.

r71 my CPAP mask has jammed my teeth together so my smile is wicked. I had a beautiful smile once. Oh Well

Both my best friends died a few years back, people that I had known since my 20s, relationships of thirty + years . I miss them.

they connected me with our youth, the times we went through together. Now there is a void.

As to the above issues, yes, all the above. Also, your pants and socks rub the hair off your legs over time.

Some of these comments made me laugh so hard my damned 'ol teeth fell out!

Great thread and it's encouraging to see so many elder gays on DL!

I now have extreme reactions to the weather. I sweat profusely in the summer heat and I'm usually freezing in the winter cold, especially my hands and feet. I usually wear socks to bed. My skin has gotten so thin it doesn't really seem to absorb conditioner or moisturizer.

My fingernails and toenails are constantly cracking and the skin around them is dry and rough.

I wake up in the morning, even with a great night of sleep and my body aches all over, especially my back. My back is constantly itchy.

I was looking at a photo of myself the other day and now I'm wondering if that photo was just unflattering or if that is really how I look, because it's not what I'm seeing in the mirror. The dark circles, the extra weight. And then you get to the whole what is "old" now. I remember thinking 40 was old and 50 was ancient. Now as I close in on that larger number, I realize I don't feel old. I still feel the same. And then you start hearing people from your past telling your younger yourself, enjoy your youth, don't sweat the small stuff and it finally starts to make sense. And then I remembered that I chose my college based on where a high school crush was going. Basically I was Felicity or Gaylicity. I actually made a major life decision based on the choice of someone that I haven't spoken to in decades.

Hi M- R14, Merry to All the Family 🎅 !

My gums have receded and food gets stuck in between my teeth after after every meal.

Oh God this thread is terrifying. I’m 23 (don’t hate me) but I wanted to post because this was an interesting read. I think most of you are forgetting the anxiety / stress / uncertainty of earlier in life that made little things seem impossible at times. At least that’s something to be glad about!

In the last year or so my digestion / bowel movements have not been as great as they once were (nostril / shoulder / back hair hit me early). Does it only get worse from here?!?

It will get worse, R80! But you will also learn not to sweat the small stuff (except in summer, haha), and enjoy the little things.

Develop hobbies! Try to maintain a healthy lifestyle, but don't rely on your looks - as those will be gone!

[quote]it's encouraging to see so many elder gays on DL!

You actually had doubts about this?

When did I morph into my father?

I have no neck, sunken eyes, errant eyebrows and a foot that hurts from a bone I broke 40 years ago.

In business terms, the realization that all the stuff I worked on, the campaigns I developed, the midnight oil I burnt are all forgotten. My bosses are dead. my peers retired and the companies I worked for are dead and buried.

[quote]Toenails. As time passes, they get harder and harder to clip. It's as if your legs never stop growing, making for a longer reach every time you tackle the job.

Mine are sort of curling. Harder and harder to cut.

I'm going to have to consult a pediatrist

re: Nails. I take pure gelatin powder(NOW Real Foods,not Knox) in my coffee. Hair and nails are beautiful for 60

Clip your nails after your shower with German or Japanese clippers.

R86 or soak them in Palmolive dish soap

I can relate to almost all of the comments above, I'm 52 and the worst thing seems to be the unpredictability of my digestive system and bowel movements. Sometimes I don't have a b/m for several days then when it comes it's so compacted that my hole bleeds when it comes out. No I'm not a bottom and never have been. Other times I have diarrhea for days. I'm also facing the fact that I have 2 relatively healthy aging parents that I will have to take care of at some point. Right now I barely have the energy to take care of myself. I find doing the least little tasks tedious, I can't imagine what things will be life if I make it into my 70's or 80's. I also feel extra depressed even though I take medications for this. I don't really want to start more depression medication because the side effects are too hard to deal with.

[quote]Do women get extra nose hair when they get old?

They often DO get hairier in new places. Not sure about the nose.

But some no longer need to shave their legs etc..in older age.

( I always had heavy duty nose hair. Long and strong. In fact they're not as bad now & I have a good electric clipper now for that purpose).

Also, in my 30s I suddenly had shoulder hair. I was very upset. Should I shave it. Wax it. Electrolysis. Anyway. It disappeared at some point. No longer have it.

I’m often taken for wildly different ages when I go out and it can be quite the bipolar experience being treated one way and then completely differently.

Try cranberry juice, r88. The lowest sugar you can find (100% unsweetened if you can drink it without puckering your whole head in from the bitterness) and about 10-12 oz a day. It helps!

You do mean a PODIATRIST, R84!

[quote]I live in Toronto, and they just build condo after condo and the city becomes more populated and there is literally no space to walk on the sidewalk, more rude people, stress, etc.

Well, yes.

If you live in the same place for a long time, it will change. Look at "then and now" photos of the city you live in.

I've lived in London all my life. I remember a much gentler place (that was its charm, for a big city). You could drive your car all over town and park wherever you went. Very little traffic. It's now aggressive and expensive and crowded. There's traffic at 11PM. The food's better though. So people are fatter.

and the foreigners have made the city much friendlier - smiley. No wonder many cafés don't employ the sullen natives.

People in their 20s look like kids to you. My friends and I are in our early 40s and if we walk into a bar or restaurant and the majority of people are in their 20s we immediately feel out of place, and we might get stares, like "what are these middle-aged people doing here?"

It's kind of hard to take.

I'm 54. I say "Gurl, please" all the time. To men (str8 & gay), women, children, cats and dogs.

I blame DL.

But not so much the eye-roll thing. I guess that's next.

Interesting thread. I am a woman, don't be mad. Menopause is Hell the hot flashes are unbearable. I actually look pretty good for my age but the constant pain in my lower back and knee reminds me I'm getting old, 52.

Also, I think I've gotten lazy. I used to love to party and be out and about now I rather binge watch Netflix and news and generally don't want to be bothered much.

R84 -- Mine have curled too, especially my big toes.

My solution: use a Dremel®.

Search: Dremel toenails -pets

[quote]People in their 20s look like kids to you. My friends and I are in our early 40s and if we walk into a bar or restaurant and the majority of people are in their 20s we immediately feel out of place, and we might get stares, like "what are these middle-aged people doing here?" It's kind of hard to take.

It's the horrible music that's hard to take. I don't know why you'd want to go there. The minute I hear that hideous noise I walk out. Many people who work there hate it too. I ask them. They say "yes, it's shit and it's on repeat - so we hear the same tuneless shit over and over."

That's when I say "Gurl, please..."

Bring back cafeterias!

[quote[Menopause is Hell the hot flashes are unbearable. I actually look pretty good for my age but the constant pain in my lower back and knee reminds me I'm getting old, 52.

Isn't 52 rather old for menopause?

I don't have all y'alls ages of 40s+, but now in my late 20s I can compare to my teens.

-Head hair growing more slowly, what would grow in less than a month now takes up to two or more. Grey strands beginning but only beginning. Receding but not to any uncomfortable level unless its a bad haircut. Judgement: Honestly I prefer how it is now. I had too thick and messy hair before and now I can control it. I'm OK with going grey in my 30s if it comes to that, though I'd prefer it takes to my 40s.

-Nose hair is a thing. I have to trim, or if I feel dangerous shave the inside of my nose once in a while, or it sticks out. Eyebrows are okay but I now have to shave the middle just in case of any start of unibrow look (I've never let it grow so I dunno), and I have to pull the odd errant hair. Facial hair growing faster and a little more messy, though when close shaven I can sometimes pull off looking early 20s. I used to be nearly clear of hair on top of body but now I have scattered spots on my back, shoulders, and chest of single, long hairs. I pluck or pull these once a week or two and its fine. There's one particular patch on one shoulder that annoys me with how uneven it is on me. I shave around nipples because it sticks out. Conclusion: Getting annoying but not too annoying.

-Lots of lower body hair growth. I have to shave my bottom back, trim or shave my ass, and trim or shave my legs (much more occasionally). But I accept it more now than in my teens, where I felt, even then, that I had much more hair in that region (especially for a skinny white and otherwise hairless guy) than other boys. Now its pretty normal for men and I trim and shave as I like. Ass gets shaven sometimes to excite partner and because I like the sensation. Conclusion: I'd have less hair than I do if I could, but no biggie.

-Age feeling is... starting to happen. Harder to keep tighter muscle, but to be fair I'm also not as active. Harder to keep weight off, but to be fair I had a way too fast metabolism before. Aches are a bit more prominent, but only a bit and I put myself in terrible postures anyway - I'm sure it'll get worse though and I hope to afford special treatments and therapies sooner than later. I haven't hurt my body much so I thankfully feel my age, but I could do better (gym). Conclusion: age is noticed but not a problem yet.

-Mind is iffy. I feel like I'm forgetting things more already, but I always wasn't the best with memory. I do get a bit flustered more easily at times, but I get flustered less often and less badly more often. I'm back in school and at best I just feel like older brother to some guys, but at worst I feel like I'm *almost* dad. I dislike how I don't feel and look so young, but I also look at other guys in their teens and think... wow, most of them are actually not nearly as good as I remembered. I definitely prefer other 20somethings now (compared to 18-20). I keep up with enough popular things in a good enough way that no one has even implied or let slip that they think I'm out of touch.

-Sex is.. interesting. I'm certainly not as avidly into it as when I was younger, but I wasn't THAT into it back in the day and when I AM horny enough to have sex now, I really really go for it. So I'd take it as a step up now, if I wasn't so conscious of my (damn slight to be clear, I just don't have, say a really tight ass at the moment) weight gain and weaker muscles. Its the difference that gets to me, but not the status itself.

-A problem I DO have is that while I like where I'm going with this in some ways.. my face is indeed looking more.. I dunno... rounder Ukrainian? Not so bad that I can't lose 10-20lbs and basically fix it, but enough that its going to stick as a minor feature and along with my relative tiredness on my face (depending on day; I'm VERY in flux about facial appearance) means my twink days are simply DONE. But I think I can still achieve 'gym twink' if I go hard at it, or at least 'fit'.

I think if I do things right, I can manage to look and feel late 20s in my 30s.

R98 - eh, music tastes for millennials are so allowed to be varied now, that we have complete difference between what companies think we want to listen to, and what we actually have catered to us on steaming music services. Night and day. Most of us hate whatever is pushed on us through intercom/speakers, outright hate it. Its not even the Gen X situation of blandless on grocery store music. Its just shit and we hate it.

Oh I didn't really clarify about my face. Its very, as I said, 'Ukrainian', and this at its best could mean a very distinguished and handsome visage... or it could mean a really dumpy and uberserious hatestare face. I'm leaning too much to the latter for my liking, as it will look HORRENDOUS in my middle age, so I want to counter the dumpy with gym and diet, and seriousface with more reminders to smile :). I don't get hit on much by guys who don't know I'm gay, and I think the face is a big reason - I seem too much like a straight guy that might react badly if come on to. Shame.

I already had knee problems in my teens so I'm certain I'll need a cane and/or exosuit (depending on how futurist we go) when older. My family has as history of dementia and similar diseases so I'm praying that great strides happen in research for aged boomers that I can benefit from decades after.

You see some actress or actor and think "wow, they're really looking older. They used to be so hot."

Then you realize that they're more or less the same age as you.

I’m with R88, fucking digestion. Sometimes it’s fine and sometimes it’s like a cage fight in my bowels. I will try the cranberry juice.

Tinnitus. Weird how it comes and goes.

They play harsh pop in pharmacies etc...now. It's hard to concentrate and browse. They're morons for playing it. Most people have such cloth ears they don't even notice it.

I used to like the old fashioned Muzak. I'd saunter about to it.

[quote]I’m with [R88], fucking digestion. Sometimes it’s fine and sometimes it’s like a cage fight in my bowels. I will try the cranberry juice.

Eat an apple.

^ What’s special about apples?

R105: Retail establishments (of any type) will play that harsh music to get customers to shop faster and out of the store quicker. Many restaurants will do that to promote ever faster turnover of tables.

That 70s supermarket music is hypnotic.

Play it while you browse DL.

This one's lovely >>

R107 I have heard that apples keep doctors away for some reason

Didn’t work for me R110

some of that supermarket music is so sad. but in a sweet way. reminds of afternoon TV movies in the 70s.

This one is wonderfully gloomy. But it's OK to be sad sometimes. That kind of feel.

R99 normally menopause starts at 50, but of course can be earlier or later for some women.

I had my lipoma removed. I called it my twin. I'm so happy it is gone! One thing I noticed I can not eat fresh pasta or heavy pastas like fettuccini or ravioli. Is that weird? It does a number on my GI tract.

R88 take Metamucil twice a day. A heaping teaspoon. Also, take a probiotic daily.

R115 I have posted multitudinal times on DL about benefits of Metamucil. It is the gay mans best friend for various conditions, sex included

Every gay guy under 30 years old automatically assumes you want to sleep with them.

When you have to go to the bathroom, you have to go NOW.

You can't remember if you've eaten corn until you have a bowel movement.

R80 made me laugh. One thing about growing old that bothers me is young people who assume I will hate them for being young. What adds to the irritation is that they believe my denial that I hate them is somehow confirmation of that hat.e.

What sucks for me is my vision. I have progressive lenses which get me through most of the day. But they don't work for everything. For example I've bought a pair of glasses with just the long distance prescription. I found it next to impossible to watch the TV lying down on the coach with the progressive lenses. I have those readers for reading in bed and trimming my beard.

I will say there is one good thing. My hair has gone completely gray. It's changed the texture. For years my hair had no personality. Straight fine brown hair. For that reason kept it short Now it has personality and I can wear it long.

hemmies. All the time.

Losing your parents. The following, from a Roger Cohen NYT op-ed ("Sons Without Fathers"), poignantly summarizes the sentiment:

"There is no preparation for the loneliness of a world from which the two people who put you in it have gone. The death of parents removes the last cushion against contemplating your own mortality. The cycle of life and death becomes internal, bone-deep knowledge, a source now of despair, now of inspiration. The earth acquires a new quality of silence."

They don't seem to have 'dremels' in England - or they're called something else.

When you have to shave the space above your nose because your monobrow decides now is the time to come out and play.

Amazon, r123

Here:

For those with digestion issues, you may have become lactose intolerant. I did in my early 50s.

Say goodbye to pizza and ice cream!

I'm 65. In my 50's I learned I was lactose intolerant. I switched to lactose free dairy (milk, ice cream, etc.) and I'm fine. About the same time I added a daily fiber supplement and could not believe the difference it made it keeping my digestive system running smoothly. I never drank coffee except in the morning, then I found that having a cup of coffee around 3 or 4pm everyday gave me the energy to make it through the day.

I'm a woman and I miss having those days after my period was over in which I was totally glowing and had flawless skin and sparkly eyes. I have wrinkles now and often circles under my eyes so I will never again have a flawless day.

I've gained weight and need to lose about 25 pounds. I'm almost 44 and this NEEDS to be done before I hit my menopause years, otherwise I'm going to pack another 25 on top of what I'm already carrying. I've noticed that most of the supermodels, those icons I grew up wanting to be, have even struggled a bit once they hit those years, so I really need to get on top of my health.

Thanks for this honest thread. I'm glad it's not the usual "I'm 60 but everyone still cards me" thread. It's a bit depressing, but at least I know I'm not alone.

I'm laughing over all the comments about eyebrow maintenance. I guess I'm not the only one! It was like the day I turned 40 I grew a unibrow and my other eyebrow hairs started growing. WTF is that? I keep a strict maintenance routine of shaving/plucking my eyebrows so they're neat and tidy-looking at all times.

For those asking about apples, they really do have a positive impact on digestion, as do pears, even if you peel them first (yes, I know--"but that's where all the vitamins are!" I prefer peeled.) Eat one near the end of the day and it will sweep you clean by the next morning. Nature's broom.

They have also been proven effective in maintaining circulatory health and preventing strokes, possibly due to the fiber's soaking up cholesterol in the gastrointestinal tract. I'd reference a specific study, but there are many, so here's the Google page instead.

Wow. If there was ever a reason to go vegan this is the thread for it. Lots of the things listed in here are resolved cutting out animal products. I’m a 40 something vegan and glad I don’t have to deal with a lot of this stuff anymore.

R132 - I'm a vegan for a number of reasons. Strictly for heath reasons I like Mark Bittman's approach. Vegan before 6:00 PM.

I kind of wish I could be vegan or vegetarian but alll Vegans I know are fat and sickly looking. Sorry.

Job search at 53: enthusiastic internet and phone responses/interviews. Set up in person interviews where the reaction to my age is obvious on the faces of "Travis, Tyler, Brittney or Kayla".

What bothers me is the very gradual presumption by officious persons in authority that: (a) you don’t know what you are talking about, or (b) you’re not really worth the effort to listen to. Warning to gaylings: once you start to have a lot of gray hair up top, medical receptionists, customer service reps, DMV clerks, etc. assume from the very beginning that you don’t know what the fuck you are talking about.

Oh, I see R126. They're really for things like this, but you can use them on your toe nails

All my years of running have messed up my knees, and I'm in constant pain. I know I can have surgery but choose not to, at least not until I have to.

OMG R7, are you my twin? Same age, same sighs.

I'm a female, 42

Yes to nose hair (not as much as men but it's there). I'd also like to add breast hair as an evil cousin of chin hair, I need to keep tweezers in the shower these days.

Other irritaions are dead, calloused foot skin and patchy pubic hair that loses some of it's natural curl but insists on creeping down the thighs.

Most of this is resolvable on some level but I really resent how much time it requires to maintain compared to being under 35 when it was literally just a case of wash and go.

[quote] All my years of running have messed up my knees, and I'm in constant pain

Sorry to hear of your pain but thanks for validating my choice made years ago to get my exercise by bending my elbow while perched on a bar stool

There is a 17 year difference between my partner and me. We've been together over a decade and have been very happy. Now that I'm in my 50s I have begun to realize he might one day have to become my caregiver and I don't want that burden to fall on him.

R142 he will probably dump your ass by then. Lol. JK. You know some bitch is going to say it.

[quote]You know some bitch is going to say it.

& you happened to be that bitch - without the wit.

[quote]Now that I'm in my 50s I have begun to realize he might one day have to become my caregiver and I don't want that burden to fall on him.

I looked after my much older partner.

When you love someone it's privilege.

I'd do it for another 10 years, given the chance.

Anyway - you never know what's going to happen - it's a ridiculous thing to worry about.

I forgot to add: In regards to losing weight, when I had to lose a bit when I was younger I knew I'd be looking better and better each day, and the end result would be positive. Now I'm petrified about "what lies beneath"... wrinkles and droopiness. I'm afraid I'll look WORSE after weight loss.

What R30 said.

R134 get out from under that rock and live a little. Pam Anderson, Woody, Steve O, Joaquin, and Russell (I could go on) are neither fat or sickly looking. Name some who are.

Jowls. I'm starting to look like a hound dog. I'm trying to lose 20 lbs which might make them look worse.

I look like I have a double chin when I smile now, and anything remotely spicy irritates my bowels

r128, we could be twins!

What is your preferred daily fiber supplement? And what time of the day do you have it?

[quote] I have to shave my bottom back, trim or shave my ass, and trim or shave my legs

R100 What's bottom back? And why do you shave your legs?

And another thing: the soles of my feet have gotten so thin and tender, most shoes do not give me enough padded support. And I can't walk around barefoot any more.

Or at least hung like one.

This thread is useless without people stating their current age in their post.

I'm 68.

And in the last few days there see s to be a lot to enjoy on DL!

I'm following about '12 threads, everything from the Jim Acosta/Sarah Huckabee Sanders kerfuffle to Ryan Lizza's firing to Hollywood Screen Tests, Sal Mineo Sordid Last Days and the Hedy Lamarr documentary.

It's not just nose hair but ear hair, crazy Andy Rooney eyebrows, hair growing on my facial cheeks. Hair everywhere but my head and bush.

Yes, pluck all ears and nose hair. Pluck or trim white eye brow hair. I have always trimmed all my eyebrow hair, but don’t wax. I leave that for the hot Latinos.

You’ll get out of shape, but try not to get overweight. I’m down to my college weight, though it’s not in the right places at 57.

R73 But do those ugly things work?

Most of my friends can afford a house where we can sleep alone so no one is offended by my gurgling, offensive, loud mouth-breathing and snoring.

I’m 58. You can also pick up unpleasant diseases. I just started on anti-cholesterol meds in October.

I’ve been on hypothyroid meds for 10 years, as I grew up near a nuclear power plant. My twin is as well. Even the dog is on those meds.

Both are really not a problem at all.

My biggest beef with age is my hearing. At 58, I got the bad ears, and the good hair. Oh well, whatever. My twin just got a hearing aid last Summer and recommends it. Doh!

Yes, I get a lot of enjoyment from DL.

I think moving around is really important. That might require some inventiveness in some cases, like just waving one's arms around, if walking is hard. Physiatrists are good at working around obstacles.

FIBER!

One of the worst things is having to listen to intrusive "what about me!!!!" types like R80 who try to make everything about them. We know youth is stupid. We were young. But few of us were as stupid as what we see here and in the world among the young. They just are not acculturated, and nothing one says gets through. Like a another species, alas.

Damn I was going to post something that sucks about getting older, but for the life of me, I can't remember what it was.

It sucks when you get to the age you can be a grandpa.

What is it about aging that causes the hair in the ears? Is it a hormonal thing? Does it happen in the nose, too? I've seen older men with forests growing out of their noses.

[quote] It sucks when you get to the age you can be a grandpa.

LOL My best friend became a grandfather two weeks ago and he's only 37.

Boys, Qigong is IT. It really restores vitality and promotes LONGEVITY.

[quote] People in their 20s look like kids to you. My friends and I are in our early 40s and if we walk into a bar or restaurant and the majority of people are in their 20s we immediately feel out of place, and we might get stares, like "what are these middle-aged people doing here?"

Oh R94 it is cute you think, they think of you as middle-aged, you are old fucks to them.

R117, Yeah, for cash.

The realization that being a sentient being on earth is coming to an end. You slowly realize that it has all been a miracle and gift.

thinning and greying bush.....i love the black forest

I get little aches and pains now for no reason at all and of course, I ignore them.

But I worry that one of these aches and pains one day will be a harbinger of something really serious and I ignored it.

Eh, who can say ....

At 65, I find myself wondering how, when and where will I die.

Loosing hair, getting fat and bad fucking skin, it suuuuucks.

R163 wins!

[quote]At 65, I find myself wondering how, when and where will I die.

if you are sufficiently wealthy, you will live to a ripe old age and die at home, accompanied by one of your handsome 24/7 attendants, Juan, Diego, or Santiago, all strong, youthful and handsome.

Plucking hairs has become my new passtime now, and I'm not even 40 yet! I'm female.

61 years old female here. My feet ache when I first start walking in the morning. I walk my dog 3 1/2 miles in the morning and 3 1/2 miles at night. I keep about a 3 mile an hour stride. It's not the looks that faded that bothers me, but the realization that I'm in my twilight years.

[quote] I walk my dog 3 1/2 miles in the morning and 3 1/2 miles at night.

Her feet ache and I'm fucking exhausted. Make it stop! PLEASE - MAKE IT STOP!

Moving to Palm Springs. canNOT do cold.

FREE TO A LAZY GUY: If you're looking for a loving companion to just lay around and watch Netflix with, eat snacks and take naps, I'm your boy! Call or text: 555-HELP

To the poster above who had the snarky bartender I hope you and your friend left.

beyond the nose hairs and the ear hairs, let's talk about the eyebrow hairs. Hasn't doomed me yet, but my dad and his brother could practically trim and donate the leftovers to some chemo patient for a wig. Can't wait for the trimming fun to begin.

Wow! What is it with aging and rapid random hair growth. I am so thankful I'm not the only one. Female here too. 48

In the past 5 years I've had the rabid in-flux of chin hairs and the rando pubic hair on my inner thigh that was 2in above my knee that I found this summer. (Horrifying) Please, Jesus, make it stop! For whoever asked, I trim nose hairs too on rare occasion, but haven't noticed a difference there.

Also, Amen to the weight gain. It's like someone suck in and turned my metabolism switch down to zero. Keeping the weight off is such a fucking chore now - especially around the middle. That totally blows.

I think my biggest regret about aging is the perception of losing value as the Fertile Myrtle I once was.

Does anyone else suffer from dry eyes. I've worn contacts since 8th grade. All of a sudden at around 44-ish, it became painful to wear contacts all day. My eyes stared getting so red I looked stoned. Then the farsightedness kicked in. I'm too chicken to get LASIK and will now have to get bifocals or two pairs of glasses. ::sigh::

r185 I'm almost 42 and have the same issues with contacts. I used to SLEEP with them in my eyes FFS! The next morning my eyes were a tad dry but a few drops and I was fine. I rarely wore my glasses. Now I take my contacts out the minute I get home at the end of the day because I have the same dryness/redness problems, and I wear my glasses more frequently. I'm also not getting LASIK because I'm afraid of complications. I have friends and co-workers who've had it done and they were all fine, but I just know that I would have something fucked-up happen to me if I ever did it. I'll just struggle along with contacts and glasses.

The weight gain is just the worst, though. I was never more than a 31/32" waist for most of my adult life, and I did absolutely fucking nothing to maintain it. I could eat pizza and ice cream at 2:00 in the morning and never gain a pound. Then, around age 37-38 it was like my metabolism changed overnight and I just started gaining weight in my stomach. I'm now a 34" waist and I have to watch pretty much everything I eat and what times I eat. I've cut out a lot of food I used to eat because they're just too fattening now. I cannot stand it! I want my old metabolism back, damnit!

Deep thoughts, like: If I get dementia - how will I know? What if I do the worst things imaginable in public? What if I start saying things over and over? And if I get dementia, how will I know?

I fart like the Philharmonic

[Quote]I fart like the Philharmonic

: )

R178's dog >>

R190 LOL !

[quote]That my time in this motherfucking AWESOME party called Life is coming to an end.

Here, here, R40. Here, here.

All you young guys better savor it. Life goes by unbelievably quick. Before you know it you're turning forty, then fifty, then sixty. . . .

R185, yes dry eye here too. Tears Plus, etc., helps.

I can't imagine getting lasik. A friend got some version of that and now has "halos" in her night vision.

I keep running into younger men who are into "daddy/granddad" types and even when they're attractive I look at them like they're insane.

Because they are.

i look at them like they're adorable,

because they are

Actually R179 she loves her walks and I don't walk fast enough for her. My feet hurt when I get out of bed, but after that I'm OK.

R190 Laughing my ass off.

R196 do you have plantar fasciitis? I had a bout of it a few years back and while my foot was ok after warming up, the first steps of the day or after a period of sitting felt like I was being stabbed in the foot.

I ask my grandpa what it feels like to grow old. He ponders this question while we sit in his office overlooking the yard, the same yard I pulled weeds in when I was a boy.

Grandpa takes a sip of his black tea, pondering my question on aging. And without ever taking his eyes from the window, he asks me a question. “Have you ever been in a hot shower when the water ran cold?” I tell him I have.

“That’s what aging feels like,” he says. “In the beginning of your life, it’s like you’re taking a hot shower. At first the water is too warm, but you get used to the heat and begin enjoying it. When you’re young, you think it’s going to be this way forever. Life goes on like this for a while.”

“But you begin to feel it somewhere between your 40s and 50s. The water temperature drops just the slightest bit. It’s almost imperceptible, but you know it happened, and you know what it means. You try to pretend like you didn’t feel it, but you still turn the faucet up to stay warm. But the water keeps going lukewarm. One day you realize the faucet can’t go any farther, and from here on out the temperature begins to drop — you gradually feel the warmth leaving your body.”

“It’s a rather helpless feeling, truth told,” he continues. “The water is still pleasant, but you know it’ll soon become cold and there’s nothing you can do.”

Realizing my parents' and grandparents' generation worked and sacrificed so grown men and women could wear pajamas in public and needed to be shielded from anything remotely upsetting.

Knowing I'll get maybe 5 more years of my parents being around--if I'm lucky.

Seeing that first wave of deaths among the friends and family of my own generation (I'm 55) and knowing this is just the beginning.

Knowing all the small pesky signs of aging--the stiffness in the morning, needing readers when I'm tired--are also just the beginning.

Seeing the relatively short life expectancies in my husband's family tree and dreading the likelihood of him following suit (he's 50, and his father and grandfathers were all dead by 73).

My eyebrows are taking on a life of their own. They literally grow in right angles now, each individual hair is shaped like a boomerang. I trim them and slick a little Vaseline on them to keep them down. Then you get the random gray ones, or the ones that grow straight out. A few years ago I developed eyebrow dandruff -- I didn't even know there was such a thing but I noticed scales and flaking in my eyebrows. The dermatologist gave me a prescription for a very expensive anti-dandruff shampoo. Now I just use Head & Shoulders a couple times a week.

[quote] A few years ago I developed eyebrow dandruff

Apply coconut oil. One of the few things that coconut oil really can help with.

I see dead people

[quote]Hair starts growing out of weird places. I had this long hair coming out of my ear lobe. WTF?!?! I am constantly trimming my nose hair now. Why is this happening?

Some time ago I found close to an inch long hair growing on the tip of my nose. Since I wash my face at least once a day in front of a mirror I've no idea where the hell it came and how fast this mutant hair grew. I've never had one before but sure hair started growing from my ears when I turned 40.

I hate to be a dick in what has otherwise been an interested thread, but then there is this...

[quote]Realizing my parents' and grandparents' generation worked and sacrificed so grown men and women could wear pajamas in public and needed to be shielded from anything remotely upsetting.

You know, your parents didn't do anything more than anyone else's parents did. Nor did they make some grand sacrifice. If someone wants to wear pajamas in public or be shielded from anything remotely upsetting, then that's on them. No one needs you chiming in with your nonsense about anyone else's personal decisions and/or feelings. All you need to do is live your life. Age should have brought that wisdom to you, but apparently it hasn't.

I'm in my 30s, so none of this is happening to me yet, but my father is in his 60s and is a spry, executive guy who travels twice a week for work (and sometimes much more).

Some tips from him--

1. Continue to work out (especially with resistance training) 2. Cut all caffeine 3. Vitamins 4. Cut out red meat 5. Eat veggies and stay hydrated 6. Continue to read and learn (challenge your mind)

R200 your first point is a great description of millenials. The most lazy, disrespectful, wuss generation. The young men today have no balls, and proud of it! They're all a bunch of vegan, sensitive hipsters.

I find this thread oddly very comforting. I have to have cataract surgery in both eyes. And R196---I have had plantar fasciitis and I advise you to deal with it ASAP. It rarely gets better on its own and can get much worse and become chronic.

For plantar fasciitis it helps to freeze a plastic water bottle and roll it back and forth under your foot/feet.

I'm working hard to retain flexibility.. A few years ago my back was sore so I had a hot bath with Epsom salts. My back felt good but I had a hard time getting to my feet to get out of the tub. I was in my late 40s and that freaked me out. I work out 5 times a week but stretch every day

Realizing you'd rather stay home and have pre-dinner cocktails than go out for drinks.

Maybe it's the money ($18+ seems to be the price of a martini in NYC these days), maybe it's the awful music, maybe it's that everyone is on their phones, but drinking in bars isn't as much fun as it used to be (and, believe me, it used to be LOTS of fun) so my partner and I have a drink or two at home and then go out for dinner

r199 that is like the saddest bedtime story EVER and there is no escaping it. lol ::sigh::

R58, ever try Saw Palmetto?

The vegan bashing is tiresome. I'm close to 70, vegan, walk a fast two miles, and very flexible. I know a guy who's 40, decided six months ago to go vegan since he wasn't feeling good, and lost 40 pounds that he needed to lose.

Hair around my nipples.

Your sex becomes centered around pee-pee.

My dad had a hair growing out of the end of his nose when he got older, not a long one but noticeable. Now I have the same hair.

When I was young I had great skin. I mean really great. People would stop mid sentence just to tell me how flawless it was. Now I'm in my 50s it's good for may age, but I'll never have that beautiful, golden, juicy 80s gay porn star skin again.

When I was 30 I went to a dermatologist and he had the foresight to tell me to stop tanning and wear sunscreen on my face. I did just that so my skin is not a mottled, saggy mess. I was catching a bus last week when I noticed a guy who looked familiar to me. It was Peter Phelps, an Australian sem-star who was in Baywatch ages ago. He was obviously a sun bunny and his skin was very aged. There is a link to his before and after below. And the current photo i extremely flattering. Made e grateful for that sun advice all those years ago.

Glad global warming is upon us but will die before it burns me to a crisp.

"Now I have the same hair."

How did you get your dad's hair in your nose?

The eyebrow thing I'm trying to make peace with. I'm a woman and was lucky to be born with a nice shape of eyebrows (yes, two). Never trimmed them in my life. About a year ago I was washing my face and out falls this hair from my eyebrow, twice the normal size (and length!) I thought there might have been a mistake, but for a few weeks I kept getting this abnormaly long hair from my eyebrow. One day I decided to pluck it. It hasn't reappeared but now reading this thread I realize I'm only chasing time. I don't even know how to pluck eyebrows. At this point I just hope not to be getting eyebrow dandruff.

I wish I had eyebrows. After I shaved them for a movie in 1937, they never grew back. I had to paint them on for 60 fucking years.

Is there surgery to lift balls? A sac lift? Between the low hangers and the grey bush I'm repelled by my reflection in the mirror.

Standing naked in front of your bathroom mirror - "OMFG how did this happen?"

I'll add to R223 that not only is standing naked in front of a mirror shocking,its also proof positive that NO ONE will ever want to fuck you again. If you wouldnt fuck yourself,who will ? And honey,Id only fuck me if I were drunk!

Female here, early 40’s

Vertical Finger nail ridges - anyone else? I started getting them a couple years ago, so I file them off. No eyebrow issues yet. I’ve always had thick dark brows. I have to trim them and pluck. Random chin hairs -this started a few years ago. I use the Tria laser hair removal home device. It removes them for about 6 months then they come back so I zap them again for another 6month reprieve Nose hair - never had nose hair until I had a rhinoplasty. I have an electric trimmer that shaves them off. I don’t know why the surgery suddenly gave m hair in my nose.

Swollen lower legs if I’ve been walking all day (I walk 10 hours everyday in the city due to my profession) I take salt baths which helps, and by morning they return to normal.

Weight gain - I’m not gaining weight but I can’t eat like I use to. Keeping fit and trim requires much more effort. I’ve really deprived myself at holiday parties this year because a few extra snacks or drinks hit me right in the mid section.

Vision -the worst! Age aside I have an unfixable eye injury due to a head injury on top of it, so my vision is already poor. That plus I was told by my eye doc that I have developed presbyopia and also have a baby cataract. I can’t see anything without glasses. I can’t even use my cell phone without them. It truly sucks.

Oh an a question to the person who said they had a public hair growing in their leg -I’ve never heard of that. Is that normal aging?

[quote] Is there surgery to lift balls? A sac lift?

Have you tried the nut bra?

R206 - I believe everything you've written about your father. With all due respect I doubt you are there first thing when your father wakes up in the morning. Stretches to relieve muscle aches and pains. Or that you watch his required morning routine to face the world as an in shape 60 year old. Or that he goes to the doctor more frequently than you do. Regular check-ups where he breaths a sigh of relieve when he leaves the visit without a prescription for hypertension or high cholesterol. Or maybe he has the prescriptions and you don't know. There is a lot to growing older that most people don't see.

Plantar fascia - I had it in my thirties. First don't self-diagnose. Get an actual diagnosis from your doctor and a referral to a physical therapist. Then follow his/her instructions. If you're a runner spend money on your shoes and replace them every 500 miles.

[quote]Is there surgery to lift balls? A sac lift?

Why don't you try it?

Tell us how it goes.

No R198. I think it is due to being flat-footed. The small toe on my left foot is a hammertoe and it hurts every once in awhile.

Living in LA, I used to think nothing about impulsively driving from the Valley to Thousand Oaks to pick up friends, then head into West Hollywood and LA proper to party, then drive back to TO at 3am, before coming back to the Valley to sleep for a few hours before getting ready for work. And I'd do it all over again later that week.

I'm still in the Valley (a nicer part than previous), but now, whenever friends on the other side of the hill invite me over, it seems like such a chore and requires advanced planning. And I need to excuse myself at around 9-10pm so that I can be in bed before 12.

Having turned 65 this year, the ONLY positive thing I've discovered about getting older is that you now have built a history and experienced events firsthand that others can only read about.

Have your barber or hairdresser groom your eyebrows and ears for you. They will be happy too.! And you don't have to use wax, they can use clippers or scissors.

As for balls, get SCROTOX. (if you dare!)

Random hair horror story: in my 40's one random hair grew from the bridge of my nose. I plucked it and it, thankfully, never grew back.

I just spent some time putting Porcelana on the back of my hands to get rid of the age spots. It definitely works but takes a few weeks.

Next, I'll have some ice cream and file my nails while I watch my shows.

It's not a bad life, but not what I imagined.

The amazing thing is how quickly hair grows. I will clean out my ears with a tweezer and seemingly over night I will have a hair either growing out of my nose or ears. So strange.

I also have a couple of friends with partners/boyfriends with 20+ year age difference. Honestly, I don't know what the hell they talk about? So, there is hope if you are looking for younger men.

I have vertical creases in my earlobes. A body quirk. Hardening of the arteries. At least something's getting hard.

[quote]Vertical Finger nail ridges - anyone else? I started getting them a couple years ago, so I file them off.

They can be an indication of heart disease. Make sure to get regular checkups, if you are able.

Any advice for treating brown spots on a bald scalp? God! I cannot believe this is happening!

When you get older the rest of your skin gets saggy, but your foreskin actually tightens, so the likelihood of phimosis increases. Two friends had to undergo circumcisions in their mid 60s.

In my thirties I felt more stress about the diminishing relatively good looks that I had, as I noticed lines on my face and nascent male pattern baldness.

In my forties, I began to feel the physical effects of aging on my body, many of which have been listed already: worsening eyesight, old injuries that suddenly sprang back to life after years of dormancy, limitations on exercise, a dip in sex drive, and an increasingly ambitious waistline.

In my fifties, I’m experiencing more of a change in sentiment. I see mortality in much more concrete terms, no longer as something beyond the horizon, but something on an ever shortening timeline. I think about relatives older than I am and how many times I will get to see them again. I think about my grandparents with a sense of empathy that I hadn’t anticipated: seeing them struggle with deaths all around them and ailments for which there were no cures, only a mountain of medications for management.

Most of all, I now notice how much I struggle to remember names and details that once held permanent positions in the hard drive that was my brain. I think about my great-grandparents, mired in dementia, their personalities warped, trapped in states of perpetual confusion and agitation. I’m more in fear of that than of death.

That is all dismal, but on the plus side, I am more filled with wonder at life and existence than I ever was as a horny teenager, an anxious twentysomething, or a career-driven thirtysomething. I see my time left on earth as a gift but not a given, and in small moments I marvel at the world around me like a small child.

[quote]seeing them struggle with deaths all around them and ailments for which there were no cures, only a mountain of medications for management.

Fuck that shit.

I think it's a bad idea to be kept going on an endless array of pills and medication.

I'm 54 and my doctor was ready to start me on a life of blood tests and pills. I cancelled the hospital appointment. Cholesterol. Blood pressure. Gurl, please...

I had a elderly friend - every month she went to the pharmacy to get her prescriptions and came out with bags full. Like Christmas. In the final years she had to pay someone to sort them for her.

But if that's what you want, I'm sure they can extend your life.

Yeah R217, I have very white skin (not totally and I CAN have something of a tan, but still) and was even mocked for it in my teens, but now that I know more about skincare, I hide away from the sun in my current twenties so I won't be like those previously-sexy guys who wrinkle all to hell. One of the guys I was most attracted to in college would work outside landscaping in the summer and was amazing looking, but I can tell now in his early 30s that its all catching up to him fast. I'm still attracted to his features, but he'll never be THAT sort of sexy again. Sure you can say that for anyone, but people who have good genes and take care of themselves can be just as sexy if not more sexy as their youth, into their 30s-40s. My own partner was quite a bit less attractive looking in his early-to-mid 20s compared to his now current (gym, diet, massages, therapy, etc) early 30s. Its the long game, and ironically, those surfers and jocks and even preppy sorts often fail it. (surfers tan, jocks pounch, preppy stress)

What did my parents' generation do that was above and beyond, defensive whiny millennial R205? Oh, let's see, survived the Depression and won World War 2?

Sorry if older folks and their strong (and unflattering) opinions are upsetting to you, Sonny. It won't keep me from expressing them, but feel free to start another Gross Eldergays Hitting on Me on Grindr thread if it makes you feel better.

Back to the subject at hand:

Witnessing some natural, once-in-a-century phenomenon like the total eclipse or Halley's Comet and realizing you probably won't be around for the next one.

Remembering when your dad seemed physically invincible, seeing his limitations--not being able to drive at night, needing to nap more and more, and realizing you're looking at your own future.

Coming across pictures of relatives and not knowing who's who and realizing everyone who could have told you is dead.

Getting cold more easily.

My imperviousness to caffeine or alcohol--a thing of the past.

The ever-growing list of foods that give me heartburn.

Food doesn't seem as tasty as it used to be, and I don't know if it's because the ingredients have changed or my taste buds are less sensitive.

Wondering if it's my imagination or is my nose actually getting longer.

Some guys age like Alfred Hitchcock and some guys age like Henry Fonda getting stringy and skinny was they get older--I'm the second kind, and I can already see the beginning of scarecrow-like old-man legs with that big thigh gap. Also, if you're that type, any ass you might have had will shrink down to nothing.

[quote] Wondering if it's my imagination or is my nose actually getting longer.

It's not. Your nose and ears continue to grow until you die.

Tell me about it.

R230 being flat-footed is a cause of plantar fasciitis. Go to a doctor.

Another thing that sucks is not just realizing how old you're getting, it's also realizing how old the people 10 to 15 years above you HAVE GOTTEN. Back when I was in elementary school, they were the college students or young working adults with the good looks, cool clothes, and great taste in music. They were the ones I wanted to be like when I was grown. I related to them because they seemed to be a "grown-up" extension of the kid I was.

When I finally became a young adult, they were still young to me - now in their 30s, they had experience, savvy, and many still had their good looks with the enhanced sexiness of a decade or so of adult living. As a 21-year-old, I had no problem being in the company of these then thirty-somethings. In certain cases, you couldn't even tell some of us apart.

But now that I'm 52, I see how old many of these now sixty-somethings have become. I'm not talking just about their physical appearance - I'm also referring to their reduced mobility, their bouts with pain, their increasing inability to hear things clearly, to understand things quickly, and to just stay in pace with the young world they were just recently part of. What's worse is that I don't really relate to them anymore, despite that THEY'RE MY DIRECT FUTURE. It's denial, of course, because in another ten or so years, I'll be just like them. It's hard to believe how soon this future reality will undoubtedly hit me.

Swollen feet and Hillary Clinton ankles by the end of the day. I seem to have missed most of the above mentioned problems.

I do not recall this being the case when I was younger: it takes me two full hours every morning to fully emerge. The first two hours I'm up I'm not really awake. This goes on every single day. I dread what it's going to be when I turn 50, and 60...

There's a wonderful song by Dory Previn:"I Wake Up Slow."

I now get hangovers after just two alcoholic beverages. Two. Nothing severe, but I feel lethargic throughout the rest of the morning. I can, however, push through that feeling, and get on with my morning without a problem.

But if I have [italic]four[/italics] drinks that evening, I'm a mess the following morning - lethargy, headaches, and the inability to focus happen to me. If I'm working the next day, I'm prone to making mistakes and likely to be in a snappy mood. It also lasts all day, unlike with just two drinks. In my youth, four drinks was my [/italic]minimum[/italic]. And even if I got completely inebriated, I could still shake off the hangover by noon the following day. I hate how my body no longer breaks down alcohol like before.

When I turned 30 I had to stop drinking (even small amounts) altogether. I was working an early shift with sharp focus from the start of the day and it was unthinkable to make a mistake - let's just say the bosses were in on you. Even just one drink the day before would fuck up your morning. So I stopped drinking, and even though I'm having a beer now (it's almost 9pm), it never went back to the frequency/amounts it was before.

Life without alcohol also turned my focus around completely. It took me a while, but I ended up developing hobbies that were a lot more personal and fulfilling than gossiping, screwing, and generally getting wasted.

Actually, it's like I turned from one of the characters in Shameless to the guy from Endeavour. And I do love Oxford.

R250 Your problem in your 50's & 60's will be the inability to sleep through the night. What happens to me is I usually finally fall asleep an hour before I have to get up and I feel completely drained.

Sounds exhausting, R255... As it is I sleep about 4 hours a night, then wake up, then get back to sleep 1-2 hours later. This is most nights. If I sleep "well" I can get 7 hours straight. One or two nights a year maybe a 11-hour night, but that happens once in a blue moon. This pattern started just as I hit 30, it's like clockwork now.

Sometimes I fall asleep right away, sometimes only around 2-3 am, but the 4-hour thing is nearly every single night.

And if I am stressed out, it's 2-3 hours and wake up! In the middle of the night. I have low energy during the day, most days.

Sorry for messing up the italics in r252. Yet another sign of aging - more inadvertent mistakes! How long will it be until I'm unintentionally leaving the turn blinker on while driving?

I see small red spots appearing mysteriously on my hands and arms that look like burns but eventually turn into brown liver spots.

Has anyone else experienced that? I'm 68 now and this started 4-5years ago.

I've been using Porcelana on the backs of my hands for the past few weeks and it really does work. Almost all of the age spots are gone although there are a few that don't want to shift.

Problem is you have to be diligent. I put it on when I'm have my ice cream and watching my shows.

Mary Carson will tell you what sucks about getting older!

^ Stanwyck was a star right to the end. Even in TV-movies.

I don't mind getting older and all the little shit that goes with it.

But I don't want to LOSE my mind to Alzheimer's. I'll take cancer or ALS before Alzheimer's.

Yikes! Those are the choices?

Thanks, R260, that is the best part of that turgid 8 hours.

Vera Donovan will tell you...

limper dicks

bad knees

Little lines around my eyes that seemed to appear overnight. I looked in the mirror one day and thought "when the FUCK did these appear?"

Back pain

Chronic Prostatitis. I can't have more than two cocktails without having to piss every two hours all through the night. I never had that problem five years ago, but once I hit fifty......

Everything makes me shit

Bumping this because I just pulled out a lone eyebrow hair that measured almost two inches. It was half black (end) and half gray (root). Equally fascinated and disgusted by it.

The farting. Oh holy mother Mary, the FARTING.

R271, that must've been growing for a while. Best to feel for them before they get to one inch -- every 3rd day just run your fingers on your eyebrows. You'll feel the thick wiry ones; pull them before they grow!

R272, maybe increased gas but more likely a weakening sphincter. Spend twice as much time douching before bottoming next time, and your sugar baby will stick around thru brunch.

When you have to go to the bathroom, you have to go RIGHT NOW.

The hairs have always been in there, it's just when you get old they get bolder and come out and say hi to your face.

Age discrimination in hiring. That, and reduced libido.

One of the things for me is inflexibility. When I get down on the floor, it takes me several twists and turns to get back up. When I was younger, I would pop right back up. Now it's like it's too much work to get down on the floor.

[quote] Age discrimination in hiring. That, and reduced libido.

Amen to both.

I may as well have a pile of shit on my head if I go into a job interview. I'm over 30 and not named Bronwyn, Cadyn or Topher, so I may as well have a name like Ernest and be 105 fucking years old.

losing ones beloved pet....

why o why cant they live as long as we do....

Thinking that old age was going to be like an episode of The Golden Girls: eating cheesecake at 3:00 am, dancing in the community theater, going out on dates. Those four old broads lied to us.

earrings and

CAFTANS

im old....

the only recipe ive found for a bit of cheer is

whiskey and vicodin...

and rentboys.!!

A perfectly adorable, smart, funny semi-twink who'd probably be kneeling at my cock if we could be the same age sees me as invisible now.

Then they are neither smart nor funny, R284. Just horny.

Feeling anxious every time you can't remember something or make a mental error because it may signify dementia is stalking you.

That I'm invisible.

plantar facciatis (sp?) tho my nephew (seriously) had it too and he's only 21.

I loathe the ear hair, I'll go in with a pair of tweezers and really enjoy the feeling when I pluck it out, but sometimes it's not the one I felt.

grrr

it's taking longer to get well from being sick; I've had the flu since just after Thanksgiving. I start to fell better and go out and do errands and then I'm exhausted and feel a relapse coming on.

Probably mentioned 22 times upthread but it sucks that my age-cohort friends are dying from kidney disease. I'd understand if I were in my 70s but my parents if they had lived would presently be in their 70s. People wonder how I turned into a health "nut", well, watching my friends and family die at too young an age would do it.

The hairs sprouting in weird spots. Thick, wiry, white or black. That goes for women too according to my sister.

[quote]plantar facciatis (sp?) tho my nephew (seriously) had it too and he's only 21.

I had plantar fasciitis in my 30s from running and jumping.

I have to put everything on a list before I go to the supermarket if I don't I will forget to pick up half the items I need. All my aunts and uncles have dementia by the time they reach their mid 80's I'd rather die before this happens.

I've always been that way, r292.

[quote] Thinking that old age was going to be like an episode of The Golden Girls: eating cheesecake at 3:00 am, dancing in the community theater, going out on dates.

It WAS possible in the 80s. Now all of us have to work until we die.

You have to shit four times a day.

I am a history buff.

I have always liked reading about history and historical figures. Some people read novels, I read histories or biographies.

Now in my 60s, I am astounded when I run across some historical personage whom I thought was old when he or she died and now I learn that I passed that age a while back .... (ahem).

This site is interesting and you can advance or go back a year.

your anus doesn't stay bleached as long as it did when you were younger

But what does one do when one has to go to the bathroom RIGHT AWAY??

I've often wanted to scream at the young person in the shop or store and say: Some day you'll understand why you need to let me use your private rest room and pull down my pants and go right on their precious floor (instead of in my pants).

R240. My foreskin is not tight at all. Slides back and forth very easily, works fine, feels good. I'm 63.

Why don't the patchy eyebrow spaces grow back?! By the way, I hate the eyebrows that are there sprouting gray--even more than the gray hair on my head.

R294 ..Or house share with 4 people to drastically cut expenses

I had a nose hair grow through the side of my nostril!

You know you're really old when ordinary things like shitting, pissing, eating, sleeping, and breathing seem like accomplishments.

Not if you don't have one, R240.

I used to love really spicy food.

Now it just burns through my stomach.

[quote]I used to love really spicy food. Now it just burns through my stomach.

It waits until it hits my ass to burn.

Hair growing on my stomach. Ironically, the hair on my legs have stopped growing

I have been roliing down my socks for years when I noticed that the hair about 6-8 inches up from my ankle was thinning badly.

i have to shit

RIGHT NOW RIGHT NOW

Hope you make it to the toilet r309!

LOL R310. I just meant in general. When it comes on it's like NOWWWWWWWWW

Gray pubic hair

The jealousy directed at me because I'm 62 but only look 28

Oh, that's so funny, R313. Who writes your dialogue?

"I used to love really spicy food. Now it just burns through my stomach."

I ate an Italian sub sandwich last night. Knew that I'd pay for it, but did it anyway. Let's just say that from now on, I'm sticking to turkey or veggie.

[quote] Now in my 60s, I am astounded when I run across some historical personage whom I thought was old when he or she died and now I learn that I passed that age a while back .... (ahem).

Oh yeah. Last weekend I saw FILM STARS DON'T DIE IN LIVERPOOL, which lead me to do a little research into Gloria Grahame. She died in 1981 a month shy of her 58th birthday. I just turned 60, so that made me feel old. But what made me feel fortunate was reading about all her health issues (cancer at 51, peritonitis after undergoing a procedure to remove fluid from her abdomen at 57).

I realize just how lucky I've been that the worse I've suffered is the occasional cold

When you were younger you could stay out drinking hard liquor half the night and the next morning you could barely feel it. Now, if you have so much as a third glass of white wine you feel like a bus hit you the next morning.

R7, you're a moron and you deserve to age 10 years just for asking the question. 33 to 38 are the perfect ages with 35-37 being absolutely perfect. You are still youthful biologically, yet you know so much more (or should) than you did in your 20s. Get your shit together, you idiot, because the best period of your entire life will be over before long.

R84, get a Dremel. I have used one for years to do my dogs' nails. Finally tried it on my big toes. Works great. The other toes I can clip easily after my shower.

You can no longer put your socks on while standing up.

Start with a good probiotic, R88. This is the one I use and it works really well for regularity and consistency. I tried several others before finding this. Thus, you may have to experiment as well, but it's totally worth it.

And if you are exhausted, you may need to change your diet. Cut out any junk food, make sure you get more protein and stick with whole foods.

R123, UK dremel.

R132, get back to us in 20 years.

Death! Trust me once you hit 50 your funeral attendance takes a spike upwards.

If that anti-cholesterol medicine is a statin, R159, you'd better read up. Also, do yourself a favor and add the senior version of Co-Q10, ubiquinol.

I think I just saw Mary Lou Retton in a commercial for emu oil. I used to see her on my Wheaties box as a young kid.

I took Co- Q10 in my 20s when it was all the rage in the 90s and it gave me explosive diarrhea. Haven't tried it since, what's it supposed to be good for now?

R206, your dad has no basis for his suggestion that older people forego red meat. I know of older docs who are competitive athletes and they swear by it

R327, it corrects the muscle problems caused by statins. It also supports the heart.

R325 Are statins bad?

r206 says "veggies."

Im 30 and just got my first gray chest hair. Its actually more like snow white in color.

Wait till you get your first gray pube.

Dear eldergays, we have a name for getogethers where we all compare our various aches, pains , and other assorted bad news.

It’s called an ORGAN RECITAL.

My splitting foot pain stopped shortly after I started wearing supportive shoes (Vionic, Olu Kai, Birkenstock), or putting Dr. Scholl's Tri-Comfort inserts in my shoes that would accommodate them. Never went to a doctor. I don't see the tri-comforts in stores anymore. Probably re-branded.

Bladder leakage

I prescribe Tena for Miss R336!

Get back into life, gurl! (oh wait, that's Depends)

I KNOW!! Hair is growing out of my eyeballs too!! I have to trim it to maintain my eyesight.

Interesting factoid: "The order in which graying happens is usually: nose hair, hair on the head, beard, body hair, eyebrows.[19]"

I start hearing voices..

Confronting the fact that your life is petering out and this experience of living is going to come to an end as you witness and feel it happening is pretty bad too.

When you're young you don't think about it, or you think about it but it's so abstract and far off you feel very brave, because there's little that's real about it. But then as you get older, and people start dying around you, you get to experience it precariously and watch it happen right before your eyes, and it becomes much more real. You wonder what the point is. It's like reading a book knowing that it's not going to wrap up, it's just going to peter out in mid-sentence. Why bother reading it?

The realization that you're going to die is probably worse than the actual dying, although no one who's ever irrevocably died has been able to relate their experience so we will never know.

Naturally this is the reason for religious superstition on every human culture (well, one of them) -- religion is the bigger picture that gives a rationale for life.

"in every human culture"

Every doctor or dentist you see is younger than you.

The Dremel tip is worth the $18 DL "admission fee."

Excellent way to easily trim toenails.

Realizing that spending more time in the gym will not help your appearance. Your muscles will deflate and sag, your waist will get thick and your strength and stamina will diminish.

Looking up in the sky and see a bright light calling upon you ☀

R346 Don't go into the light, Carol Ann!

la la la la

r343 That's something I look forward to, doctor, anyway. Especially when one of the medical students wants to do a long exam.

I can relate to the "I lost my juicy 80's porn skin" poster. I was a real looker when I was young, able to get any guy I wanted, and for about a five year run in the late 90's went to NYC every single weekend and had the time of my life in the clubs, drugs, boys and outrageous sex. It was a very different NYC without smart phones, incurable STD's or PreP. The drugs were more tame, people had respect for each other, and most of the gossip was in person, not online. The future reinforces a lot of self indulgent behavior we would've found odd or ridiculous back then. We watched out for each other when we were out, and knew when a round of drugs was bad or to take somebody home. We played elaborate outrageous jokes on each other and laughed and laughed. No one got offended. We did trashy drag and went out to the Combat Zone looking for sex. It was fun getting attention from straight guys but having NO intention of having sex in a dress, too much! I looked androgynous when I was younger, bleach blonde softened my features, I had a great complexion, and all I needed was a streak of lipstick...

I came out very young in the late 80's and back then gay guys had a social status, a close group of friends, and the bonds between us were much closer. We'd see each other the next morning at brunch. I miss the closeness and the gentle, harmless flirting and attention from older guys. I miss Jerk off parties and had fun visiting my friend Jonathan when he worked at the phone sex line and heard all the horny guys...

If I could do anything over again I would've had more sex, I remember a night at Crobar where a half dozen straight guys, one more gorgeous than the next, rolling on E hitting and sizing me up, but I had a jealous boyfriend I was towing behind me at the time. Ugh.

I'm happily married, get to bed by 8pm, and relate to all the aches and pains. Stay flexible folks!

[quote] Is there surgery to lift balls?

They can use the extra skin they remove from your scrotum to give you back your foreskin if you want to become uncut again.

[quote]We played elaborate outrageous jokes on each other and laughed and laughed. No one got offended.

Do elaborate, r350. Especially the "no one got offended" parts.

R351 Uncircumcision lifts your balls. Who knew?

At [R350]. Not flexible......PLIABLE !!

One time a guy passed out on our toilet during a party with his pants down around his ankles. We dragged him into my roommate Al’s bed. Al was a tall lanky black guy with a penchant for Jodi Whatley, combat boots and large womens handbags. We put the guy’s hand in one of his purses, then all of us left home there and went to the corner bar and waited for him to come home from work from Hard Rock Cafe.

Another time my boyfriend and I were completely plastered, and stole a Jack O Lantern off a stoop, when suddenly were approached by a bunch of thugs. I avoided us getting mugged by acting retarded, screaming happily like the Barney character at the top of my voice, “I HAVE A PUMPKIN!” over and over while skipping along. The guys moved along, didn’t mess with us, and my boyfriend pissed himself laughing at me and never, ever let me forget it.

What a precious little tale, R355. What does that have to do with getting older?

Anyone getting blown at the height of Jody Watley is old now, R356.

Miss Watley never had a height, you see.

55 year old female here.

The skin on my hands. In the winter, I look like my 80 year old grandmother's hands used to. In the summer they plump up and don't look so bad.

Eyesight. I wear daily -wear contacts and glasses when not wearing those. Even with my contacts, I find myself wearing readers for computer work and reading.

The loss of book stores, video stores and record stores. FYE was a favorite because you could hear the music before buying it. Video stores displayed movies you didn't know were on VHS/DVD and being able to rent full seasons of shows like Gossip Girl.

The loss of CD 101.9 cruises in NYC. Went on a couple of those in the 90s. Love smooth jazz. Yes, I can listed on iHeartradio but it's not the same.

The need for sleep. Didn't even stay up for Midnight this year. My Mom used to say she didn't need to stay up. New Year's would come in with or without her. She was right. I have to know a week in advance if I'm going out with friends, Need to store up as much sleep as possible. Thinking that 9 PM is late. I used to go out at 10 PM! No one was in the club before then.

Thinking of EVERYTHING as exercise instead of fun. As kids, we ran everywhere, Played games like Tag and Red Rover. Now I calculate how many calories I burn doing the dishes or vacuuming.

Thinking of everything as an adventure. Now I weigh the pros and cons of doing anything impulsive.

Spending money like its going out of style. I now contemplate whether or not to buy something vs putting in my savings or retirement fund.

R355 Wrong thread perhaps but thanks for the laugh!

[quote]The farting. Oh holy mother Mary, the FARTING

I'd kill for a fart. It's the constipation I can't stand.

At 50 I was feeling a lot of aches and pains, stiffness. I was pretty sure I was getting arthritis in my hips. I started exercise program and eating healthier 4 months ago (for other reasons) and I just realized these body complaints have mostly disappeared.

Constipation. It's been a lifelong problem but getting worse. (Yes, I drink gallons of water and over 45 grams of dietary fiber a day...) Short of subsisting on only tree bark, there's not much more I can do on the diet front.

I do miss being the object of lust I was in my 20s and 30s. But am glad I enjoyed that time because I knew it wouldn't last.

LMFAO, R355.

Seriously, my assistant just asked if I was OK in here.

The narrowing of choices. When I was young, I really believed I could do or be anything. But now, while it's technically true I could change careers, there were only be so many years before retirement to establish myself in a new endeavor. And age discrimination is real. Why wouldn't an employer want a bright-eyed bushy-tailed 20-something college grad over an old fart?

Coupled with my resignation, "Well, I guess this is as good as it gets. I'm not going to be as rich and powerful as I hoped, and there isn't some grand and epic romance in my life," is also the realization it's all OK. My life is not bad as is. There are certainly many who have drawn shorter straws. And I didn't fail because my starry-eyed dreams of youth didn't materialize.

Same here R30...Also, thin skin. Not easily hurt feelings, but actual thin skin. All I have to do is brush against something and I get a big purple splotch.

Two words: CHRONIC PAIN.

[quote]I'm 54 and my doctor was ready to start me on a life of blood tests and pills. I cancelled the hospital appointment. Cholesterol. Blood pressure. Gurl, please...

Enjoy your strokes and heart attacks, moron.

The hair on my legs is wearing off. There's nothing in the area my socks cover.

Something always hurts at least a little.

Full time ear/nose/back hair patrol.

But I have nothing to complain about. I got the best anti-aging genes ever wrt my apperance and my dick works like I'm 30. I love my low hanging balls, but then I've had them since I was a teen.

I look at my forearms now and I can see the faint template for what is to come - blotchy, mottled, sun damaged skin with no elasticity. It's like it's under the surface, rising with each year.

Being pretty much invisible or being called sir at a gay bar, when I could remember less than 10 years before, getting occasional compliments about my looks.

Being called sir was the deal-breaker for me, so I haven't been back there in six or seven years.

R359 I borrow dvds from the library. Some CDs. Once you're a member, you browse and reserve what you want online and they email you when it's in for you. I recently found out through DL that I can stream films through Kanopy using my library membership.

R363 have you tried coconut milk kefir?

The day it really hit me that was getting old was 6 months ago: the train was packed and a young girl offered me her seat.

Damn kids.

Well, R374, I thought I was doing a favor for some old fart.

Age 66 here. These are my gripes:

1. Service-type workers who call us “hon” or “dear.”

2. Insomnia.

3. Running to the bathroom a lot.

Becoming like your parents, we all swore we would never become like them but when you look in the mirror you see more of their looks and when you speak you start to sound like them.

I was dining with a friend at her millennial daughter. The daughter ordered a glass of wine. The waiter looked at me with a look saying, "Is it ok to bring her booze, dad?"

I was like, "Oh shit. I'm plenty old enough to be her dad." And we do kind of look alike. (The girl was like 22, but did look about 16.)

Cleaning the house because the cleaning lady is coming is me becoming my mother.

Advice please: are there any supplements that actually work for your joints to keep aches and or arthritis at bay? Chondroitin (sp?) for example?

I despise being called "Ma'am" by people working in stores and restaurants. Can somebody please just throw me a bone and call me "Miss"?!

By 50 everything will start to hurt when you get out of bed in the morning.

I have age spots on the backs of my hands that are doing that, R371. You can only see them in a certain light.

I'm 65 and I need a job and NOBODY will hire me!

R380 - Glucosamine Chondroitin worked for me; my knees feel much better and I can’t hear them click & crunch every time I go up the stairs.

The job market definitely sucks when you get older. All that talk about how "Life experience is really valuable in a workforce" is really crap. If you're willing to take a job beneath your skill or experience level, you know, so you can pay rent and eat, they see desperation and don't want you. Or your younger potential boss doesn't want to hire anyone who threatens them.

Life experience is good in your 20s and early 30s. That's the time to try to launch a start up, volunteer for a political candidate, or dedicate significant time to cause-related pursuit. Once you hit 40 you are considered old in the workplace.

When you get up in the morning, everything is stiff except for your dick.