Sixty-six and loving it

I think that in your sixties you become mellow.  I know I am not the person I was and I am thankful for that.  I am more able to ask for exactly what I want and I really don’t care what people think.  Years ago I wouldn’t ask hair-dressers for exactly I wanted thus I always came home with a hair cut that looked awful.  Really they want to know how you have your hair.  So now when it doesn’t matter so much how I look I have finally got the gumption to ask. 

I am getting a little deaf now and if I don’t hear I always used to say, “Yes” when I didn’t hear the question.  Now I just keep saying, “Pardon.”  This is particularly important in food courts because I have often ordered some dreadful thing that I have hated.  Now I make sure I get what I am paying for.  No-one cares if you ask them to repeat themselves. 

I also ask if shops take the Seniors card.  If you don’t ask you don’t get!  This is another good thing about getting older to have a Seniors card that gives me free travel in off peak times.  The insulting thing is that when you get on a bus they already have the oldies free ticket out.  Surely I don’t look that old!!!  I saved a small fortune with my card when I went to Queensland.  They are quite happy to honour the South Australian Seniors Card so I was able to get in to all the Worlds at a reduced rate. 

I was socialized to not bother anyone and to always do what I was told.  I was told to keep quiet and to stand back and let everyone else take a turn.  I have taken this long to stand up for myself.  I deserve a turn and I deserve to be waited on and not to stress about making someone else wait their turn.  I have just as much right as anyone else.  Now that is a real step forward.  I think I should have that song by Moving Pictures later reprised by Shannon Noll “What About Me?” as my theme song.  I used to love that song when it came out years ago and enjoy it just as much with Mr. Noll singing it. 

I don’t believe that I am as anxious as I used to be.  I have the whole ‘who cares’ philosophy.  Who cares if I don’t understand technology?  Well perhaps some people can be a bit annoyed at that. Who cares if I am slow?  Who cares if I take ages to pay for things because I get muddled up with counting?  Who cares if I lose track of what I am saying?  Who cares if I am tactless?  Well perhaps other people do care but I really don’t anymore. 

I like to say what I think now. I can say things to my daughter that I would never have said years ago.  I can say, “I told you so.”   I always used to agree with what people said and now I put my two cents in.  I don’t have to agree with everyone and I certainly don’t expect people to agree with me.

What about me?  I am soon going to be sixty-six.  I reserve the right to be cranky and indeed I am sure that the name Cranky Pants really applies to me.  I want to be able to complain about how it used to be and how bad it is now.  I want my say.  I deserve to be respected.  Over all the years I have learned a lot and would like to be asked to share some of it with others.  I would like to be loved but understand that everyone doesn’t have to love me or even like me and I am fine with that.

I am happy and mellow and cranky and deaf and muddled and loving but perhaps not lovable.  I am incredibly selfish but try not to be. My credo is that I should, “Do unto others that I would have them do unto me. I want to remain curious until the day I die and I would like to learn something new every day. I want to laugh ………..a lot.  Remember……………………

Life is like a long complicated joke,
You smile and

You laugh politely

But you already know the punch line.