60 Years Old & Don't Care What They Think

 Do things start annoying you as you get older or is it just that you don't give a damn what everyone thinks and are going to tell 'em what you think anyway? 

I think one of the biggest (and best!) changes that came with age was the ability to not care.  

I work in an Animal Rescue. When we have to medicate a dog we need a weight to make sure it gets the proper dosage. Usually the smallest person in the group is chosen to do help out. Getting the weight on a dog that doesn't fit on our smaller scale is done by one person getting on the scale, we get her weight, then she picks up the dog and gets back on the scale. Do some math and we got the weight. Easy. 

Hard part? If that skinny mini isn't there to jump on the scale today, who will step up?  😁 Yeah, I don't care. I jump on the scale. I don't care if you know my weight. Really, I spent years keeping it a secret and now? eh. I don't care. In the grand scheme of things, do you really think people care that much? 

And if they do want to focus on that number, well, that's on them. I'm going to go eat some ice cream. 

Not caring what people think is a free state of mind. You can be you and those who love you will still love you. (They probably knew all about you anyway) 

There's a poem that I think fits this time in life.

  When I'm an old Woman I shall Wear Purple.  

Check it out and wear that red hat that doesn't match & don't care so much about other people' brainwaves.

 

Half Way Over 60 & Wondering What's Next

 At 65 I have no idea where I'm going next. Does anyone?                        

When my mother was 65 she died. A second heart attack took her out. She languished in the hospital for almost a month before passing. Most of that time in a coma. Mom hadn't been in the best of health for years and I think the lack of medical know how and information kept her ill.

Today we have the internet and the ability to look up our symptoms and and research doctors who can help us. One reason I picked my last doctor was because RateMyMD.com had reviews that said, "she doesn't give up until she figures out what's wrong." The doctor I had before her was a waste of time. He would dish out medication without running tests and kept saying everything was stress. Simple answer that didn't help anything. 

I think if Mom had the right doctor she might have been healthier and lived a longer and more enjoyable life. 

At 65 today I can lift 50 lbs of dog food, wrestle a 60 lb shep mix into a harness and still keep going. Don't ask me how because not every day is perfect. Some days it's exhausting, other days I breeze through. 

I've been reading a lot about positive thinking and that old law of attraction stuff. Right now it's all over social media sites and there's lot's of tiktok'ers talking about it. 

So, how to make this positive? I'm repeating the following; 

"I have the body & health of my 21 year old self" 

Me at 21 - 1st degree Black Belt

I repeat this several times a day. Especially when my back tells me to slow down, my knees creak and the hip screams as I try to stand. 

"I have the body & health of my 21 year old self."

Then I have to wonder if it really is mind over matter.  There are reports that a long time ago living to over hundred was a normal thing.  Then I started to do research but didn't really find any truth to that. Check out the page Ancient Origins where they come up with other meanings for the reports of living longer. 

So back to what I want out of life at 65? That would be good health, fun times, and work that brings the satisfaction of helping others. (I choose to help dogs & cats in rescue) And I get to play with puppies. 😎 

I think positive thinking is helpful but not sure it's going to make me feel like I'm 21 again. That was a very good year. However 65 hasn't been too bad either. 

Where are you now? Does it make you happy? 

Making the Most of 60+

 Tomorrow I'm 64. WoooHooo! 

Actually, I feel 30. Except for the stiff back from sleeping on the couch for two days because my new foster dog has anxiety issues.  He's adorable, but is still getting used to us. 

I always look at each decade as an adventure. Something to meet with joy & awe.  This decade had me opening my own business and facing the challenges of running it during Covid. 

So for this new year of my 60 decade, what challenges shall we find? Adventures shall we plan? Or goals shall we set?  Okay, let's give it a go. What would be good things to do/see/experience for 64? 

•  Build my business 
• Publish another Book on Amazon (It's written but now comes the edit)
• Post some short stories on The Midnight Brain
• Rescue more dogs 
• Buy a home
• Get organized
• Lose 10... okay, 15 pounds
• Make friends
• Plant a garden
• Paint a mural 

So what's your plans for this year of your life? 

Sixty the New Forty?

Could sixty be the new forty? Are people more in-sync with a healthier lifestyle that they eat better, stay active, and get medical care? Could be.

Turn on any morning talk show and half the time you find some doctor talking about the best way to do things. Eat your veggies, walk, drink water. All of this wasn't on our parent's radar when they hit sixty. The information highway has brought this info to us in a constant stream. TV, radio, and of course the computers. (Which are now inside our phones.)

So, yes. Sixty could be the new forty.

Sure I feel a little stiffer in my joints. I've got arthritis in my neck and shoulder from a car accident, and that extra weight doesn't seem as easy to lose as it used to be. But I can still walk a mile, lift weights and work. I think back to my mom at this age and she was already disabled and collecting disability. She had hip and artery problems which I think now were misdiagnosed.  Something we'll never know for sure. She hadn't been working for a few years by this age.

I see friends my own age that are in pretty good shape, too. Some have bigger health challenges but the information that's out there is helping them. They have more places to turn to than just their doctor. They were exposed to a time when new discoveries in medicine surprised us all. Vitamins, vaccines, food values, healthier sweeteners, the list goes on.

So someone tell me, how do we make Seventy be the new forty?