I'm Getting Over Getting Old

I'm 44 years old. It is amazing how each year you cross over teaches you different things. Mind you I was 39 when my children were born so the speed of my post-40 days have progressed at a rate that is basically unnatural. I'm am so freaking old today! At times I just can't believe it.

I can't read a box score in the paper without my glasses. And by the way, my glasses are bi-focals today!!!

It's just getting scary/stupid. I say stupid because I have never lived my life thinking of the consequences of the future....I never will. I am a huge believer in live for today.

I did two things this week that I have been doing for the last, well almost 20 years. I went to the New Orleans Jazz Festival and I went to a Grateful Dead concert. Let me tell you the truth today....I am dust!

There was a time in my life I could do these things on top of each other like this week when it wouldn't effect me one iota. I'm not lying. I could burn that candle at both ends and when it was gone I could say, "Bring on the next one!"

Now it's like, "You've got to be kidding me? We're going to a Dead Show tonite?"

Not only am I tired as shit, but my body is screaming at me. There is so much walking we do in New Orleans.....for that matter there was so much walking we did last nite at the Dead Show in the parking lot/festival that is the Dead Show pre-show, there isn't enough Glycosimin in the world that could make my knees respond positively to this abuse. It's insane. I'm not good with getting old.

But I must say, in this day and age, it sure is nice to have a pair of glasses that I can wear that allows me to see....just see. I watched the Red Wings game the other day without my glasses for the first period and it was great. You know, it's the hockey playoffs and life is good watching my favorite team with my son wearing his #9 jersey that has "Michael" written on the back. But after the first, I put my glasses on and I was just in awe. I was like, "You must be freaking kidding me? I can see the puck! This is great!" And it was. I push against my glasses wearing because I have never really needed them unless I have been pushing my eyes too much.....i.e. a job that has me on the computer all day. But this was better than my veiness. This was beyond my ridiculous anti-glasses thing that probably came from high school. I was happy again! I could see the puck! It was like learning what offsides meant!

I guess my point is this. Life can be a blast no matter what age you are. It doesn't matter if you have to take Glycosimin for your joints(hey live 35 years at 6'3" and tell me your knees don't ache) or after turning 40 you need bifocals or even if you need that tremendous little blue pill to make your life better, the point is we are able to experience the events in our lives that make us the happiest. And in large part it's because we have the tools to help us through it all. We need not be afraid. This is what we do.

Whether it's a trip to one of the greatest cities in America for the wonderful cuisine and amazing musicians that you will experience or a chance to see one of you favorite bands play what most likely will be their last hurrah, you gotta suck it up. Life only happens once. Get after it.

I must tell you a funny story....of course it will be funnier to those who aren't as sore as me today but I'll tell it anyway. I made my way to the bathroom during the concert last nite. We were on the second floor and the bathrooms were on the first floor. As I made my way down the stairs I took the first step and noticed that they seemed a slight bit slippery.....at the same moment I went down...you see my shoes had some slime on the bottom and the combination of my slimy shoes and the slimy stairs said, "Dude, you're going down!" And down I went.

I slid down those stairs on my ass for a flight. The problem was I reached for the railing to save me but I was too far in the middle of the stairway.......As I flung my hand to grab the rail I caught nothing but air and my hand slammed against the stair that I happened to be sliding along. Needless to say, typing this blog tonite is as painful as any other blog I have written because my index finger must have ripped backward in a way I'm sure it doesn't like me to extend. It ripped backward so far double jointed people would've been shocked. Today it is a balloon-like digit on my right hand. The best thing was that there was virtually no one on the stairway at the time of my spill, so nobody laughed at my sliding down a flight of stairs on my ass!

I will never stop doing the things that make me happy. I will go through hell and high water to have a good time. This includes time with my family and friends. My family knows I will travel through some of the most difficult weather to be with them for Christmas, and I have. I will push myself through pain in my joints to see my favorite band. I will always go the extra mile for the things that make me happy no matter the consequences to my slowing recognizably ancient body.....screw it, if it makes you happy you gotta be happy.

I guess I look at it this way....the guys in the Grateful Dead last nite are all in their 60's(at least) and they're still giving people like me a night out with my friends that makes me a better man tomorrow. I sure can suck it up and deal with a little pain of being older to feel better about myself.

Because the bottom line is this....if you don't do the things that make you feel good because you're getting older than you've just given up.

The day I give up is the day they dig 6 feet down.