On Behalf of Grumpy Old Men

First – Some clarification… Older not Old!

For any “X” or “Y” generation folks that may be reading this, shaking your heads, mumbling, “Not another one”… You may want to read further...
Why?
Because your turn will be coming along cupcake, sooner then you may realize!
And there ain’t squat you can do about it!

Sure you can and should exercise, eat right, drink plenty of fluids, get a good night’s sleep, reduce stress, see your doctor regularly and do everything in moderation…
Will that help? Yes!
Will it stop the inevitable? No!
You are almost guaranteed to become a grumpy older person!

I can’t speak for everyone, but I can speak for me!
I didn’t go to sleep one night and wake up the next morning deciding to be grumpy or older, it happens over time.
Like you right now, I was a ball of fire… Four hours of sleep could and would get me through the next day… I could multi-task without a flinch, I could party all weekend and still [And Did] report to work on Monday mornings ready to go!

Then something started to happen about midway the course… allotted time started to dissipate faster then you would realize. What usually took an hour to accomplish, took a little over an hour to accomplish.
Sure you could make adjustments to your once normal routine, but still the time allotted was over. So you made more adjustments, but with the same results.
You start to get frustrated… you wonder why your tool belt seems to weigh so much more, why getting up off the ground after working under your car took more effort and why does that ladder you used before to paint the house look so tall and unsteady. Still you plug away and you do accomplish your tasks.

Each one of us turns that corner in our own way.
Are there signs to indicate this change… symptoms to watch for?
Maybe, maybe not, but here’s a possible clue…
You can meticulously schedule your work and the same with your chores, but the moment you take scheduled work or chores out of your “Do Today Schedule” and place it in the tomorrow or next week schedule, only to allow yourself more time…
You have arrived!
Welcome to mid-life crises 101!
The seeds for grumpy-dom have been planted!

There is a plus side to having experience in making and adjusting your schedules to accomplishing what was at one time, a routine task. Something today’s employers should take into consideration, before dismissing us seasoned work veterans…
We already know what adjustments can and do work!
Think about it!

You can’t stop or reverse time… you can’t even slow it down. That’s life!
Perhaps that’s why they call it a “Life-Time”?

More often then not, we’re not grumpy at you; what you’re doing or anything like that! We’re sort of grumpy at ourselves. We watch you going about your life at full throttle and seemingly endless energy and remember when that applied to us. You grow tired at making adjustments and wish things would return to the way they once were. Our minds are still full throttle, but now we have to allow extra time for the body to catch up. Ergo – Grumpy!

Even now, as I find myself streaking towards sixty…
[ OMG… 60! ]
I still have no intentions of growing older gracefully…
It is still my intent to go kicking and screaming all the way!

… and remember this, the next time you see an older person…

Inside every older person, there’s a younger person asking themselves... “What the hell happened?”

Power to the Grumps!

"You can't help getting older, but you don't have to get old." George Burns