Are too many on Capitol Hill over the hill? I haven’t been writing blogs as often as I did a year or two ago, mostly because the world, especially the political world, has gone wacky. I can’t even make fun of this wackiness anymore, because these people are serious, and there are a lot of them out there. I should be enthused that, at this point, at least, two dudes much older than I will probably be [...] READ MORE
Why the long face? A tough act to follow for Baby Boomers. I’m not so sure I like being a Baby Boomer, but I can’t do much about it. Considering that the age group preceding us is known collectively as the Greatest Generation, it seems to me that, by comparison at least, the Baby Boomer moniker is not flattering. This is a subject I pursued in a previous decade as a newspaper column, and I’m returning to [...] READ MORE
So much to be angry about and so little time. Okay, everybody. I just want you to tune in and mellow out, as they said in the commune before it was time-shared into a condo. Take a few deep breaths and count to ten. Now tell me, as calmly as you can: Why are we all so angry? Why all the sputtering and spitting? Have things really reached such a sad state? How is it that we’ve [...] READ MORE
"I don't know about you, but the only rocking I'll be doing is in a chair!" When it comes to my favorite music, I live in the past with classic rock. Classic rock is struggling to remain relevant. In fact, CNN recently proclaimed that this summer “marks the twilight of classic rock.” Bob Dylan is 81. Paul McCartney is 80. Carlos Santana, one of the youngest rock icons at 74, was rendered unconscious by heat stroke at [...] READ MORE
Is there a difference between old and too old? Looking ahead to becoming a centenarian. Eight years ago, when I was a wet-behind-the-ears age of sixty-six, I wrote about “joining the legions of 90-and-older” one day, which was still almost two dozen years into the future. Well, that one day would have been October 7, 2037, which doesn’t seem so far away now. Therefore, with increasing optimism, I have expanded my goal to breaking the 100-year age [...] READ MORE
Once you get to the top, the only way to go is down. There’s really no need to sprint to the bottom. Baby Boomers in their sixties and seventies were taught by our parents and grandparents to work hard and be loyal. Loyalty is a two-way street, or so we were told, and employers supposedly recognized and respected this asset as exemplified by our hard work and willingness to go the extra mile. Our parents were better [...] READ MORE
If at first you don’t succeed, just hang around and try not to screw it up. The boomers inherited a rich, dynamic country and have gradually bankrupted it. They habitually cut their own taxes and borrow money without any concern for future burdens. They’ve spent virtually all our money and assets on themselves and in the process have left a financial disaster for their children. — Bruce Gibney, A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Destroyed [...] READ MORE
They’re the “oldest-old” and they’re soaking up Social Security. About seven years ago, not long after I had passed traditional retirement age of 65, I pondered the possibilities of making it to the age of ninety — an age range that was becoming more common among the U.S. populace than ever. It seemed that by 2050, according to a prognosis from those dedicated to the science of aging, a.k.a. gerontology, there would be at least nine million [...] READ MORE
Every generation has the songs and lyrics that remind us of the events and feelings we may have forgotten otherwise. There are song lyrics that get you right where you live. As a kid, I remember Chuck Berry singing a song that basically told the older generation, namely our parents, to back off. This is our music, as crude as you may think it is, and you can have your Big Band music and your symphonies. "Roll [...] READ MORE
Boomers killed America’s love affair with smoking before it killed more of us. Skill Note: Most of following was written in July of 2015 as a newspaper column several years after retiring from 39 years as a reporter and editor for three different newspapers. Aside from several edits, addendums and asides, it remains the same. I know the range of age for retired people grows wider and wider with each passing year. For starters, people retire a [...] READ MORE
