For refusing to

irishingrid what a fab way to spend the season how lucky are you,I think we should arrange a virtual chalet holiday for GNers.

irishingrid - you are so very right!! Social pressures - what are they? Only things that 'others' don't approve of! We should all do whatever 'floats our boat', as long as no-one is harmed or hurt in any way. Get on and have a great time!

irish good for you, go and enjoy it.

I refuse to give in to any social pressures ...
Am going to do my 2nd season as chalet host. This year I am in Chamonix, last time I was in Morzine. I shall miss my children and grandchildren but hope that I will inspire my grandchildren to see aging in a positive light.
Oldest chalet host was retired at 75 unless any of you know otherwise.

Like Grumpyoldwoman I also will always wear jeans (or long skirts). Bare feet, (always) in the house, and crocs or Birkenstocks outside in the garden. I daydream too much to play bingo and I just couldn't bear the thought of wearing a thong..... ! I'm scared of electric blankets and wear Ugg-type boots in colder weather. (By the way, got some lovely little fleecy desert boots from Primark yesterday!) I do wear purple because I think it suits me and my hair which (now mid-length) is white. I always wear me knickers, but mainly for comfort!

I have never ;
played bingo,
worn a thong
joined WI
worn twin sets ..(but like pearls)
worn socks or tights (for years) (only wear tights for a wedding)
had an electric blanket
worn pj's in bed (unless I am ill)
worn bed socks

I will always;
wear jeans
go commando under jeans
go bare foot
wear Ugg boots (or similar)
wear fitflops and crocs (all year round)
wear dark red nail varnish
love leather handbags (hate shoes)
wear scarves and baggy tops

I would also add ..wear Purple but I don't actually like it !!

I am really fed up with my hair (neither grey nor brown) and wondering about highlights. Will have to consult with my hairdresser daughter.

Something I would love to do but probably not fit enough is 'White Water Rafting.'

As long as we are not dressing like teenagers I think we should wear what we feel comfortable in. I look at some of my friends in their skirts, smart jackets, tights and neat shoes and envy their 'style'...but it just isn't me.

I must confess to being a member of the W.I. and secretary of our local branch, but not ready yet to join their luncheon club or Craft and Chat.
I did try the U3A but everyone seemed so old! May give it another chance!
Gave up dyeing my hair because results looked so hard against my pale skin, and I'm basically lazy! Husband loves the silver look, don't know whether this is a recommendation or not!
Don't look good in jeans - rear end just too large! Has anyone tried that brand called "not your daughter's jeans"? Supposed to be a better fit for the more mature female form.
Played bingo at a charity do once - couldn't keep up, so perhaps it keeps your brain active. My mother in law used to play two or three cards at once, and she was bright until the day she left us.

Doris...every day, on waking, my husband looks me up and down and yet again and gasps "Wow!"...as I approach 70, I accept that as being a great compliment spoken by a true gent...

I recently gave up on the 'all white' and virginal underwear - which usually turned into the 'all grey and withered look' anyway! - and have nothing but a drawer full of coloured undies now - all matching of course, can't give that up. I was getting fed up with looking at all these things available and thinking that wasn't for me when I suddenly thought 'Yes - they ARE for me and I am having some of that!" I'm all for giving the hospital staff in casualty something to talk about if I am ever caught in an accident and have to strip off!!

Thongs! At first I thought it was a spelling error. Grief...how can anyone find such a garment comfortable? I adore my Sloggis...knicker drawer full of them...only white and natural, mind. All my prettiest, laciest, raciest numbers from yester-year are stored in a silk nightdress case. The majority are a size 8/10 and I'm now a shade chubbier but my husband seems to approve...so that's okay with me

My greatest compliment was from my husband when I said that I was going to become an eccentric in my old age and his answer was ,"What do you mean 'become'?" and I thought - yeh! made it! Will admit to playing Bingo but only with a crowd of friends to raise money - ever looked at some of these numbers and their possible meanings? That and a few glasses of wine..................need I say more. Have dyed my hair, but gone back to white as it's in vogue now. Prefer to mix with friends who are only too ready to laugh at themsleves and anything in general. I like to act my knicker size - 10! and 'no' I don't wear these cheese wires called thongs - I draw the line.

I have never joined WI
Never played bingo
Never dyed my hair
And I never wear jeans (my favourite trousers are made from old curtains and have huge pockets)

No Vindiboy. Just keep breathing in and out.

I did try it eGT a few years ago when i became a widow,sat for an hour listening to one member talk about her 'amazing' holiday climbing the Amazon or some such mountain!! Knew it wasn't for me when asked to read the prayer,declined on the grounds i'm an atheist and was completely ignored for the rest of the meeting.
As for GANGY5,Ageist or what

I have invites to clubs and gatherings that mainly consist of over 60's. I'm sorry but I am not eager to join in with alot of 'oldies'. Keeping young at heart is not helped by mixing overly with more of your own age. I try really hard to still appeal to younger age groups - even if its only the younger members of the family. Until a few years ago I taught 16 - 18 year olds and took great comfort in being able to get on with them on their level when needed. They certainly kept me young!

Colouring hair is fine as long as you have the complexion to go with it.
Colour and wrinkles don't mix and definitely not blond or black!

I refuse to curl up and die.

I thought Tony Christie had died,or is that my memory playing me up, is that a sign of advancing age? Enough of that, I refuse to admit that I am getting old, i do draw the line at mini skirts though, or thongs, comfort underwear for me. I have been known to occasionally wear a pair of magic knickers, only for important events like my youngest sons wedding. I also dye my hair and wear jeans, and avoid the 'Classic' section in marks and spencers. I also joined, only for a year, World of Warcraft on my pc, and admit to thoroughly enjoying it. That really impressed my grandson.

He looked quite good and, despite his age, not at all boiring!!!

If Tony Christie cant find his way to Amarillo after all this time he is in the right place at the Albert Hall with the WI,how boring is he ?

Absolutely amazed by people who think the WI is an "oldie club". Obviously it's beginnings in the country and its role in being women's lib before the the modern women's lib took place must be very hidden. Perhaps the previous granset postees are not from the country. WI is a vibrant countrywide organisation; we are all ages, not just grans! Our national conferences have public debates and our campaigns bear fruit "Keep Britain Tidy" "Farmgate Milk Prices" "The disappearing honeybee" We have new mothers, slightly older members and a few old members. Don't refuse - give it a go toothfairy; you'd be surprised how many WI members go to meetings in jeans and colour their hair. And as for the toplesss in the garden bit ...........well those Calendar Girls showed us all the way!!! And you'd have loved being in the Albert Hall and joining Tony Christie to see "Is that the way to Amarillo" a few years ago.

Grow old gracefully not on your life (nor in mine) I would be lost without
my 501s
my black boots
blonde hair (nice & easy 98)
old black leather bag (fabulous)cost £120.00) 30 yrs ago (when I had
money)
and last but not least my newly aquired bus pass !

shut up
disappear and blend in
conform
much the same as when I was younger then!

And ditto again.

Mind you I do one thing that could be considered typically 'old' - I have become a gardener. I have an organic garden where I grow as much food as I can, and I keep chickens. Well, we're on the basic pension so it helps us eat really well, but my husband thinks I'm a bit peculiar because gardening was the last thing I thought of when I was younger. In the end he told our friends I'd only taken up organic gardening because I had read about it, and mistook organic for orgasmic!!

The other thing I do is going to my writers' group run by U3A. I didn't want to go at first because I thought they'd all be staid old fogies, but they are a right radical lot. I'm writing a play, acting in an extract from "The Importance of being Ernest", and have written stories, poems, and even a comedy dialogue. I love my writers' group!

Pandemonia...ditto!

I think we're all entitled to grow old disgracefully. I'm not sure where I could begin my list of what I won't do given the rather bizarre lifestyle I lead but certainly the WI and Bingo would feature very highly. As would cardigans, sensible old lady shoes and "acting my age".