Monday, September 17, 2012

On Waking Up to Seventy Five

So yes, it has happened:  I am 75 years old today.  Don't worry, I feel fine.  I'm still the same person, but one now saddled with the realization that I have lived three quarters of a century.  My God. How does a thing like that happen?

I'm planning a big day in which I'll be pondering some burning questions:  How the hell could three quarters of a century have sailed by so fast?  If I had been paying attention, could I have done something to slow it down?  And any chance I'm only half way to the end?

But it's not just my big day, it's a big day for you, too.  You probably don't often get a chance to sit by the side of a septuagenarian, gleaning words of wisdom.  I've always wanted to do this and now I think I've earned the right.

So here they are.

Ramona's Words of Wisdom.

Ready?
Five things I've learned along the way:

1. I don't know everything and it's beginning to look like I never will.

2. 75 feels just like 74, only older.

3. Laugh lines look no better than frown lines, but you have a lot more fun getting them. (I may have stolen that one, but it was probably from some old broad, so who cares?)

4. Life is good when life is good but it really sucks when it's not.

5. . . . . . . . (Apparently there were only four.)

So off I go, trying to get used to the idea that, as long as I keep breathing in and out and can still hop on one foot, this three-quarter-century thing might be okay.  (But if something happens to change that I'm going to be pissed.)


Me at 12, Highland Park, MI - Not a thought in the world about ever being 75

Me yesterday -- Trying to remember what it felt like to be that girl


14 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thanks, K. Thought I had answered this! I did. I did have a good one, and I'm hoping for many, many more. . .

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  2. Let me wish you such a happy Birthday and I look forward to your hundredth.

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  3. Happy Birthday. I do not know you but so what. You look great! I wish you many more happy years. Oh and I loved the words of wisdom, thank you. Nancy

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    Replies
    1. Ha ha, I don't know you, either, but I loved your words, too! Thanks.

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  4. Happy Birthday RAMONA! Wisdom and good looks...an unbeatable combination. Hope you 75th year is your best ever!

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  5. I hope you can think better than Ayn Rand when she hopped on one foot.

    Happy birthday. You look great: like a 12 year old, only older...

    (BTW: that girly shot of you is scandalous. Do your parents know?)

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    Replies
    1. Ayn Rand?? I will NEVER hop on one foot again. I'll use two from now on.

      Re: the scandalous girly shot. If I start hearing thumps in the night, I'll know they're not happy. So far they've been pretty quiet.

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  6. Happy wishes to you for your birthday! You were and are a cutie in those pictures. I turned 65 last month and I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about that. Better than the alternative, I suppose.

    Stuck in Oklahoma

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! Lots of good things to be said for getting older. For one thing, we're alive! 65 is a big one because it's the start of the Medicare years, but nothing really changes beyond that. We'll always view life through our own particular lens. Things get quieter--hopefully--and we have time to actually SEE things.

      I do it through photography and writing; others do it through arts or crafts or woodworking or decorating or traveling. Whatever it is, we now have time to do it. That's a good thing!

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  7. May the sun always find you on a dreary day

    When you need to be home may you find your way

    May you always have courage to take a chance

    And never find frogs in your underpants

    Happy Birthday!

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  8. Ha ha, that's a keeper! Thank you. Love your handle, by the way. A perfect blog title.

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