Well, that was what Jimmy Buffett talked about, anyway. I remember thinking about that song ten years ago, only because I was turning 40 at the time and, like the modern-day pirate in the song, was contemplating my future. Now, ten years later, I find myself doing it again.
Hitting that "half century" mark is a bit sobering, I think. I can remember, as a kid, thinking that anyone who'd reached such an advanced age was, in fact, ancient. I mean, come on... 50? I can still remember my Dad's 35th birthday party at our home in Hauppauge, New York. I was 11 days shy of my 6th birthday. I don't know why I remember that particular birthday of his, but I do. At 35, Dad was one of the oldest guys I knew.
So, I'm 50. I hit the big "5-0". I am, as I would've believed when I was a kid, "ancient".
You know how you know you're old? You don't get any of the traditional "old guy" presents. I didn't get a cane with a fold-out seat, and I didn't get a box of Depends. Nowhere on the party decorations were the words "OVER THE HILL". Aside from being asked to wear this button, you'd never know that it was a party for someone of such advancing years:
See, for the most part, it's serious business, this turning 50. It makes you take stock of, well, everything.
Someone called me "middle aged", which would suggest that I'll live to be 100. Well, I'm just not sure I want to do that. Quite honestly, if I got another 30, maybe 35 years under my belt, I'd call that a pretty good run. But I also can't ignore the longevity that runs in my family. In 2003, Grandma died at age 91. She'd quit smoking at age 85. Grandpa died five weeks late at age 95. He never smoked. My Dad, who's always been a smoker, is 79 years old and is in perfect health.
The smoking issue is a big one for me. I'm not the kind of guy who'll ever insist that someone else quit, but it was the right choice for me. Back in December, I'd decided that I didn't want to be a 50 year old smoker. It was nothing more than a simple coincidence that my six month anniversary of being a non-smoker was July 16, which was my 50th birthday.
I really do view it as my birthday present to myself.
It was a major change, no doubt. Initially, I even lost weight. But, as weight will often do when it's lost, it all came back, and it brought friends. Since quitting, I've gained about 25 pounds. While I feel very good, the jeans aren't fitting quite as comfortably as they used to, and the shirts don't fall as nicely as they used to. Make absolutely no mistake here. I would much rather be a non-smoker dealing with a few extra pounds than a relatively skinny guy trying to quit smoking. I'm very proud of the fact that I quit smoking. Now it's time to address the additional poundage which has taken up residence around my mid-section. I made the change to quit smoking. Now I'll make the change to lose the pounds I gained.
There are other changes, as well. For those of you who were unaware, I left Taylor Guitars back in February. It was just time for me to go, and I'm happy that not a bridge was burned because of my departure. Since then, I've been doing a lot of photography, and considering my next move. I've got a plan in place, generally speaking, and will start down that road. I'm excited to get started, and the fact that a trip to Vegas plays into all of this has nothing to do with the joy of this. Nooooo... Not at all.
Okay, I'm full of it.
The bottom line is that, at 50 years old, I need to start thinking about "what's next". The old saying "This is the first day of the rest of your life" is, indeed, true. These will be the first days of forever. I guess I did the previous days right, as I've made it this far.
Let's see what the next 50 years brings...
So, I'm 50. I hit the big "5-0". I am, as I would've believed when I was a kid, "ancient".
You know how you know you're old? You don't get any of the traditional "old guy" presents. I didn't get a cane with a fold-out seat, and I didn't get a box of Depends. Nowhere on the party decorations were the words "OVER THE HILL". Aside from being asked to wear this button, you'd never know that it was a party for someone of such advancing years:
See, for the most part, it's serious business, this turning 50. It makes you take stock of, well, everything.
Someone called me "middle aged", which would suggest that I'll live to be 100. Well, I'm just not sure I want to do that. Quite honestly, if I got another 30, maybe 35 years under my belt, I'd call that a pretty good run. But I also can't ignore the longevity that runs in my family. In 2003, Grandma died at age 91. She'd quit smoking at age 85. Grandpa died five weeks late at age 95. He never smoked. My Dad, who's always been a smoker, is 79 years old and is in perfect health.
The smoking issue is a big one for me. I'm not the kind of guy who'll ever insist that someone else quit, but it was the right choice for me. Back in December, I'd decided that I didn't want to be a 50 year old smoker. It was nothing more than a simple coincidence that my six month anniversary of being a non-smoker was July 16, which was my 50th birthday.
I really do view it as my birthday present to myself.
It was a major change, no doubt. Initially, I even lost weight. But, as weight will often do when it's lost, it all came back, and it brought friends. Since quitting, I've gained about 25 pounds. While I feel very good, the jeans aren't fitting quite as comfortably as they used to, and the shirts don't fall as nicely as they used to. Make absolutely no mistake here. I would much rather be a non-smoker dealing with a few extra pounds than a relatively skinny guy trying to quit smoking. I'm very proud of the fact that I quit smoking. Now it's time to address the additional poundage which has taken up residence around my mid-section. I made the change to quit smoking. Now I'll make the change to lose the pounds I gained.
There are other changes, as well. For those of you who were unaware, I left Taylor Guitars back in February. It was just time for me to go, and I'm happy that not a bridge was burned because of my departure. Since then, I've been doing a lot of photography, and considering my next move. I've got a plan in place, generally speaking, and will start down that road. I'm excited to get started, and the fact that a trip to Vegas plays into all of this has nothing to do with the joy of this. Nooooo... Not at all.
Okay, I'm full of it.
The bottom line is that, at 50 years old, I need to start thinking about "what's next". The old saying "This is the first day of the rest of your life" is, indeed, true. These will be the first days of forever. I guess I did the previous days right, as I've made it this far.
Let's see what the next 50 years brings...
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