That's not me

When I went to the hairdresser today, I asked him to cut my fringe up to the level of the first wrinkle on my forhead. He congratulated me on being so straight forward about the signs of aging.

I have a chronological age, but how I look is dependent on my genes and my life style and life incidents.

One of our closest friends started going grey before he was 20 and by 30 was completely grey. By 40 he was white haired with an old man's complexion to go with it. As a naval officer he was otherwise, slim, fit and had a healthy active life style. His hair colour and skin texture was geneticaly determined. His health and fitness, the result of his own decisions.

I will be 75 this year, but if asked will say I am 21 with 54 years experience!

I agree with Lucca and anybody ten years younger is roughly my age.

I won't forget the look on husbands face at the beginning of the pandemic, when he announced that he was cancelling our online shopping order as we were being asked to leave slots free for the elderly. I replied "yes, but you are the elderly! (He had just turned 70 so perhaps I was a bit harsh?)

I don't worry about age and never have. I don't care if people label me as old, elderly, middle aged or anything else. If the doctor needs to sign me into a particular category to ensure I get age-related treatments (it happens to all ages from birth on) more power to him. I just refuse to get worked up about it.

An aunt of mine in her 80s regularly goes out collecting for 'the old people, some of them have dreadful lives' ?

My mother is 94 and even she doesn’t feel elderly so I definitely don’t at 71! I’m fitter than many people younger than me from running, walking and generally keeping active and busy. Plus my children in their 40s are not middle aged as far as I’m concerned!

75 is deemed as elderly these days but age is just a number.

Haha... if 65 is geriatric , medically speaking , then I am a geriatric doctor as I am still working at 65 .
Is that allowed?

Calistemon

I do wonder how old some Gransnetters are sodapop!

I'm around that age too and it was a shock when DD said that she was middle-aged now. I can't be the mother of a middle-aged child, can I?

My DC are 31 & 29. I am 56 and consider myself middle aged.
We live longer these days, tho it's anybody's guess as to how, so obviously young, middle aged and elderly have changed with the times!
I think it all depends on our own points of view!!

I always work on the basis that as many people live into their 90s these days, it is reasonable to say that you are young for a third of your life, that is until you are 30, middle-aged for a third of your life, that is from 31 - 60 and old over 60.

I prefer to base things on facts and not feelings. My own sense of self does not include any elements of age or gender.

I will admit, it was a bit of a shock last year to find us celebrating DS's 50th birthday.

My grandchildren are the same age as your children Ali08 but I still don't feel 'elderly'

sodapop

My grandchildren are the same age as your children Ali08 but I still don't feel 'elderly'

We're all late starters in our family, sodapop

‘Elderly’ is when you ‘have a fall’, you don’t just happen to fall over.
That’s the law in this house, anyway!

Just joined-my first try at this! I did once hear that you know you are old when people don't say you had a fall-old people 'take a tumble'.

Lucca

Old/elderly is ten years older than I am, and always will be.

Well said, Lucca.

dahdoo Welcome, keep posting. I have enjoyed your posts.

'Elderly'is when you fall over and you get referred to the Falls Clinic. A 80 year old friend was very irate when, having broken his ankle, when he stepped back on a pavement to let someone by, not realising how close he was to quite a high kerb, the medics insisted he attend a falls clinic to be warned about wearing slippers round the house and not tripping over cables.

FoghornLeghorn

If you want to feel decrepit have a look at Mumsnet. They think everyone takes to a shawl and a rocking chair at forty! ?

Thats funny....

My daughter will be 40 next year ( *WHAT !!!!!!*) I will buy her a shawl and rocking chair for her birthday hahahahaha.

LullyDully

I am now 72 and didn't realise that was elderly until the pandemic. A bit of a reality shock.

I'm a few months behind you LullyDully and the pandemic has brought the fact home to me as well.
After being called an elderly primigravidae at 27 I thought I was going downhill. I perked up hated being 30 so decided I would do something about it. In my early 40's I was called grandma by a child at work mine hadn't even sat GCSE's.
I slimmed down highlighted my hair and changed the way I was dressing. I also made a pact with a friend to grow old disgracefully.
Where has that person gone in the last two years? The post about shampoo for grey hair which I could add to brought it all home.
My mother went dancing into her 80's with another widow, they toured Australia and New Zealand, wintered in the Spanish sun at a friends hotel in their 70's and basked in the glow when they were called "The Golden Girls" after the TV sitcom. She did not have a wardrobe of unworn clothes.
For nearly two years we have if we have been obeying the rules or being careful and staying safe not going out except to pick the prescription up. Gone grey not really had anywhere to dress up for,put all the weight back on and some.
I read an article about tidying your wardrobe yesterday and it suggested you ditch anything you have not worn in the last two years. Well, that's everything except a few bl.... sparkly Christmas jumpers.
I even like it when the young Dentist and hairdresser call me by my first name which no one has been called since 1960.
If and when this is all over I am going back to growing old disgracefully, no more reading about lip and chin hair just get rid of it and start to wear clothes similar to my I suppose middle-aged DD's though not quite as short I would look like a lolly pop on a stick.