Bill,

I agree. I want to grow old as long as the years I have are years that I can enjoy without being a burden on others.

I also want to age with class. I see too many people wearing things that are too young for them and not flattering, or acting as if they are still 21. At the other extreme I also see people act many years older than they are.

I hope I find the right balance.

 

I have no intention of ever taking it easy, slowing down or retiring. The reason for the above is that I know I will never retire. By the time I even get close the government will have increased the retirement age to 80 and I

 

I like your attitude, Hustn, but what happens when your body does start to malfunction? I think that's ultimately what folks are considering here. You can only control just so much of your environment and your personal health, and when you start to deteriorate there isn't much you can do about it.

Unlike you, I don't think I want to work until the bitter end. I am hoping to provide for myself before social security eligibility. And, I am hoping to be there for my kids if/when they have families. It's a dream, but you never know.

 

But you can be as healthy as possible in the medical condition you are in. Allowing yourself to get completely out of shape only makes existing conditions worse and helps the rest of your body to deteriorate.
I don't pretend to know the answers here but I do know that a healthy body somehow contributes greatly to a healthy outlook and a healthy outlook contributes to a greater quality of life.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Chazmo
but what happens when your body does start to malfunction?

 

Tough one. My religious beliefs DO guide me here. Suicide is out of the question. I'll wait for "the boss" to tell me when it's time to come home. I do have some personal experiences to share which may give you some food for thought. My mom had a massive stroke in her low 70's. She was paralyzed on one side, was unable to speak or swallow. She had to have a feeding tube inserted and was bed-ridden. However, unlike many stroke victimes, she kept her mental capacity 100%. So, in essence, in one day she went from being ok to being a prisoner in her own body. We did not have the ability to care for her at home so we had to move her to a nursing facility. She was there for 6 years and eventually died from an infection (common among nursing home residents). My sister, God bless her, went to visit my mom every day for 6 years. I lived further away and went as often as I could. When I saw her I often pondered the question that is being asked here. But ya know what? Who are we to decide? What I learned was...you just don't know how you will feel in that situation until you're in it. That's why I struggled with my living will and health care power of attorney. It's easy to sit here today all healthy and say, "I'll never accept living like that". But you just don't know until you're there. I often wondered if my mom was "ok" being in bed and watching TV and listening to music. Maybe it was enough for her given the alternative. You JUST DON'T KNOW until you're in the position. Consider that before you load the bullets in the gun. My .02.

 

Great points, Carmen -- now for those who are depressed, here's a thought on the lighter side:

Anyone out there over 50? Stand up & be proud!!!!
People over 50 should all be dead by now.
Here's why ............ According to today's regulators and bureaucrats, those of us who were kids in the 1940's, 1950's, or earlier probably shouldn't have survived childhood.
Our baby cribs were covered with bright colored lead-based paint.
We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets, ... and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets. (Not to mention the risks we took hitchhiking.)
As children, we rode in cars with no seatbelts or air bags.
Riding in the back of a pickup truck on a warm day was always a special treat.
We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle. Horrors!
We ate cupcakes, bread and butter, and drank soda pop with sugar in it, but we were never overweight because we were always outside playing. (unsupervised by adults)
We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this.
We would spend hours building our go-carts out of scraps and then rode down the hill, only to find out we forgot the brakes.
After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem.
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on.
No one was able to reach us all day. NO CELL PHONES!!!!!
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo 64, X-Boxes, no video games at all, no 99 channels on cable, no videotape movies, surround sound,
We played dodge ball, and sometimes, the ball would really hurt.
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth, and there were no lawsuits from these accidents. They were accidents.
Remember accidents? No one was to blame but us. No personal computers, or Internet chat rooms. We had friends! We went outside and found them.
We had fights and punched each other and got black and blue and learned to get over it.
We played games with sticks and homemade baseballs (rolls of masking tape or whatever was available), and although we were told it would happen, we did not put out very many eyes.
We ate worms, in spite of what grown-ups said, the worms didn't live inside us forever.
We didn;t have play-dates, and Mom never drove us anywhere. WE rode bikes or walked to a friend's home and knocked on the door, or rang the bell, Or just walked in and talked to them.
Schools weren't closed because of snow.
We put on heavy coats, scarves, gloves and hats and trudged to school, when we got there, we stomped the snow out of our boots.
After school, all of us walked between the sidewalk and street so that we could experience the biggest snow banks!
We learned at a very young age to find empty soda bottles and turn them in to the store for the coveted two cents and redeem our find for 2 pieces of bazooka bubble gum!
We went to school with all races, religions and ethnicities and no one ever got preferencial treatment because they were different, we all were!
Little League had tryouts and not everyone made the team.
Those who didn't had to learn to deal with disappointment.
Some students weren't as smart as others, so they failed a grade and were held back to repeat the same grade. Horrors!
Tests were not adjusted for any reason.
Our actions were our own. Consequences were expected.
The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke a law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law. Imagine that!
This generation has produced some of the best risk-takers and problem solvers and inventors, ever. The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.
And you're one of them! Congratulations!

(Don't get me wrong -- I'm all for innovation, new technology and new ways of doing things, but sometimes I yearn for the days of playing outside from morning to dusk and NEVER BEING BORED. When the grandkids come to visit they look at me as if I were a Visitor from a strange planet when I suggest going outside to play.

 

Carmen, In my brother's situation, I would expect him to load the bullets, keep the weapon in the bedside table.....so it's ready if (and when) he decides that it's 'time to go'. He has 100% of his mind right now, but 5% of his lung capacity! There is no religious influence in his case....which also gives him little emotional support in his declining years A few local friends who help with groceries, etc....that's it

 

I am not trying to be Billy Graham here but............It is not to late for your brother to look towards religion. Plenty of people have found great strength and hope in their greatest time of despair by just opening up a dialogue with Christ. He will not turn you away.
Your post made me reflect and realize something I too often take for granted. My faith.
What I am trying to say is, I receive strength and hope on a daily basis just knowing that in the grand scheme of things, the trials and troubles I face daily on earth are but a blink in eternity.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by benny
I am not trying to be Billy Graham here but............It is not to late for your brother to look towards religion. Plenty of people have found great strength and hope in their greatest time of despair by just opening up a dialogue with Christ. He will not turn you away.