Hi! I'm old, and you are?

[mysid]

I was chatting with a friend, R., at the pool today. Her six year old son and my six year old son are "best friends." They've known each other for about a year (met in kindergarten), and so consequently have R. and I.

In the course of today's conversation, she mentioned that she dropped out of college when she became pregnant with her son. (Her employer was paying her tuition, and she couldn't handle a new baby, a full-time job, and school all at the same time.) She also mentioned that she and her husband met when she was nineteen. Add it all up, and she's probably in her late twenties.

I said that my husband and I had also met when we were nineteen. I then said that he and I had known each other for over half our lives. I could see the mental math going on, so I went ahead and answered the unasked question. "Yes, I'm old. I just turned forty a couple of weeks ago."

"Really? You're forty?"

"Yup. Forty."

Comments

[kenazfiction.livejournal.com]

I don't give much thought to age, as my friends range from 17 to 65. That said, a couple of years ago I started riding again as an almuna with my alma mater's team. This meant commuting to the barn by van with a bunch of undergrads, most of whom were 18 or 19. At some point, I uttered the fateful phrase "My husband..." and every head in the van snapped around.

"Wait... how old are you?"

I thought nothing of it. "I'm 30," I told them.

Much shrieking and squealing ensued.

"Oh my gawd," crowed the worst offender. "I knew you were a grad student, but I didn't know you were so OOLLLLLLLLLLD!!!"

Funny. 30 didn't seem the least bit old to me, but suddenly 18 seemed awfully, awfully young. :)

[kenazfiction.livejournal.com]

er... that would be "alumna." heh.

[mysid.livejournal.com]

I just did the math. Those 18 year old college students were born the year that I graduated from college. Good god.

[pforte.livejournal.com]

Really, you're forty? ;)

The internet made me extremely indifferent towards age.

[mysid.livejournal.com]

It's hard to tell age when you can't see someone.

[yuan-18.livejournal.com]

When I first read your fanfics, I never stopped to think about how old you were. Later I figured you were older than I was and left it at that. Much later I saw that you mentioned you were 37(?)on livejournal. And now you're forty.

Well.
Congratulations.

The forties to me are the threshold between still young and middle-aged. You're not old until you're sixty. But when we get down to it, it's all about attitude and mindset. I have a sixty-something college professor who acts like she's twenty-five and looks like she's 35. And we have me who alternates between acting like a 7 year old and a 13 year old :D