Some days I feel 16 years old again, overflowing with life and enthusiasm. That was such a good age. There is a lot of hard work for exams, but I have never been afraid of that. There was a lot to wait for. Always friends to sit with and chat about clothes, shoes, music and makeup.
Parties to plan, decisions about which kids to invite, and long discussions about how far to go and with which one.
Other days I wake up and have a little arthritis.
I sit not at 73 but at 103, unwilling to get up, staggering stiffly down the stairs and continuing with whatever work needs doing.
Jane Fonda is an excellent example of how to slow down the passage of years and recently appeared on the cover of Time magazine.
Gloria Steinem, 90, offers a strong voice and opinions and is as woman-friendly as ever.
I have found that aging incorporates this broad spectrum, which is why I cannot accept the results of a new survey that resolutely declares that people consider old age to begin now at age 74, not a day earlier or a day later.
According to research from the Humboldt University of Berlin, the concept of old age has changed. We used to think we were old at 60 when the free bus pass was available and when retirement was often required.
I agree that old age is getting older, but why stop at 74? This means that in a little less than a month, on my birthday, I will be considered “elderly.”
Many of those surveyed (more than 14,000) said that old age begins at 74.7 years. However, those aged 75 saw old age begin at 76.8 years. Clearly none of us want to be considered “old.” I still work, so I refuse to accept that I am… oh, horror! — a retiree. Although I am grateful for the £975.82 state pension that arrives in my account each month.
I was lucky to be one of the women who qualified for the state pension at the age of 60, before the qualifying age was increasingly raised with the recognition of longer life expectancy, thanks to better nutrition and better medical care.
I couldn’t live comfortably on what the state provides. I have a private pension saved for years and years; there are no attractive BBC pensions for the self-employed.
I won’t touch that pension until it’s absolutely necessary. I will continue to work for a living, which will keep my brain young. It’s a strange thing with this aging. You know you are who you have always been. You read the same articles and new, challenging books. You do your best to go to the theater regularly, despite the exorbitant cost of tickets.
You reject anyone who says, “You can’t do that at your age” and do it anyway. But there are days when you look at your arms, which were once as smooth as silk, and wonder how the now dry and sagging skin came about. Perhaps better suited to an armadillo.
Sian Phillips, ex-wife of Peter O’Toole, is 90 years old, beautiful, fit and planning her next role
One of the most interesting aspects of the survey confirms what I suspect we all knew anyway: women age much better than men, and the initial two-year difference extends over time.
Why might this be? Could it be that men retire, relieved that they no longer have to work harder? Have you never learned the true value of friends, so don’t bother keeping up with anyone you’ve talked to in the past?
Do they feel alone, with loneliness being an important factor in aging poorly?
Women work much harder to stay young. A battle that seems to begin at 50 years old. Look at any age group and you’ll see that women look and act at least a decade younger than their men. We meet up with friends and congratulate each other on how good we look. We share stories of trips to the gym or the pool. We make plans for the future.
The only thing that hasn’t changed for me in all this time is my beauty routine. Regular visits to the hairdresser are essential and my makeup hasn’t changed since I was 16. Moisturizing cream but without base. A little dark brown powder on the eyelids. Black kohl lining top and bottom. Black mascara and a smear of rouge on both cheeks. Without lipstick, I never needed it.
I dreamed of long red nails, but school didn’t allow it. I have them now.
Jane Fonda is an excellent example of how to hold back the passing of the years. On the cover of Time magazine, at the age of 86 this month, she looks incredible next to the ‘Jane Fonda’s Next Act’ cover.
Last week I saw actress Sian Phillips, ex-wife of Peter O’Toole, talking about her life on television.
She’s 90 years old, beautiful, fit and planning her next role. Then there’s Gloria Steinem, also 90, speaking on the radio: strong voice and opinions and as friendly to women as ever.
My conclusion? Go ahead and remember that you are as old as you feel: 103 some days, but 16 is infinitely better!
So Posh CAN let her hair down
A loving David walked Victoria to the car after a seemingly great night out for her 50th birthday celebrations.
She’s always been Posh Spice: controlled, calm, eating nothing but fish and vegetables. But boy, did she enjoy her 50th birthday party! Not many husbands would carry their legless wife to the car. Full marks for David Beckham.
Cillian doesn’t look skinny to me
Peaky Blinders star Tommy Shelby is tough and badass and will return in an upcoming film.
Cillian Murphy is tough, handsome and beautiful. Why did he think he had to get his face done for the Oscars? The number of men who are attracted to adjustments is increasing; In this case, Murphy apparently used a laser “portable face-lift device.” How is he going to play tough old Tommy Shelby from Peaky Blinders in the next movie if he puts on a baby face?
It has been found that patients are less likely to die if their doctor is a woman. Thank goodness I changed mine in the end. year and my current, very caring GP is a woman.
Look where Charlie turned up.
A new television obsession takes hold. The second series of BBC 1’s Blue Lights, set in Belfast, is enlightening, exciting and terrifying: young police officers fall in love and try to keep an uneasy peace.
This week, a young lawyer went to the home of a former police officer seeking information about a bomb in the riots. He slammed the door in her face. For a moment I thought I recognized the bearded, worried old man.
Oh my god, it was Derek Thompson, Charlie from Casualty. So he also has a next act.
At last, the Mail’s tenacious wipes campaign has been successful. they are Be banned. I have I never understood how anyone thought that. It was okay to throw them in the bathroom. it was not Is it obvious that they would block your drains?
