You know you're getting old when..

[Copernicium]

20 years ago really does feel like a long time ago and like yesterday at the same time. Getting older is weird.

That reminds me of the start of a Larkin poem:

I Have Started To Say by Philip Larkin

I have started to say
"A quarter of a century"
Or "thirty years back"
About my own life.

It makes me breathless
It's like falling and recovering
In huge gesturing loops
Through an empty sky.


(I have omitted the final verse because it is too gloomy.)

[Sisyphus]

.. the last verse stops looking gloomy.

^^ I feel like a five year old inside, just with sore knees.

I didn't know knees could hurt so much. How did the song go? "Be kind to your knees, you will miss them when they are gone."

P.s. chiorgirl, if you don't know who Sir Andrew Dilnot is then you may have missed my point.

[choirgirl]

Ah no I didn't. I get it now.
And I meant internet, not no internet.
Like the poem.

[T]

Originally Posted by Purplesnarf

Every ache and pain makes you think you have arthritis, heart disease or a stroke on the very near horizon or I'm just a hypochondriac

Yep I'm feeling the aches n pains now since I'm turned 40 yikes

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[Marco]

... you readily fall asleep on the sofa while watching TV, etc. Happens to me a lot these days lol

[gregarious_introvert]

***8230; the only dark hairs you can find in the shaving mirror are the ones growing out of your ears.

[gregarious_introvert]

***8230; you arrive home from B&M Bargains with your first-ever pair of thermal long johns.

[Kipling]

When you hear that Kym Marsh is to become a grandmother.

[GoldFish]

Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed 20 years ago.

Tame Impala is an old band from "Like ten years ago man", "that is like, so old"...."y'know, gosh, they must be ancient".

I still think of them as new. That's when you know you are an ancient imperial has been.

[slrrrrp]

^but those are probably people who think something released a month ago is old and out of date.

-----------------------
Dan
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[Orwell20]

...when

- Time speeds up.

- Life no longer seems like something all ahead of you but something you are trying to make the most of before it goes.

- You no longer feel that vague sense of hope and optimism that keeps you going when you are young.

- Nothing seems to matter anymore. Nothing seems solid, real or meaningful (or that could just be depression).

- You feel scared, bewildered and lost.

- New experiences are no longer welcome. When you are young, they seem like adventures, plus you hope to learn from them, or maybe to use them as interesting anecdotes. As you get older, there's no point learning from anything.

- You just want to be left alone.

- You hate noise and crave space and silence.

[Moksha]

Originally Posted by Jimmy77

- You hate noise and crave space and silence.

Good luck finding those two things. In 21st-century Britain you need to be a multi-millionaire to afford somewhere quiet and spacious!!

Another big change is the loss of meaning or intensity. As you get older, you feel sort of detached from the world, like it's not quite real, or doesn't matter. Maybe it's a psychological defence? A way of preparing yourself for death? Then again, maybe I feel like that because I don't have kids.

[Dougella]

When you start enjoying watching Poirot on the TV.

[gregarious_introvert]

When you open a new tab on your web browser and immediately can't remember why (it's like the technological equivalent of not remembering why you went upstairs, but at least with going upstairs some time has passed and you have an excuse!).

[Dougella]

Originally Posted by Kooky Monster

^ The ABC murders or old Poirot? I'm currently watching the former and rather enjoying it.

Yes, the ABC murders. I'm quite enjoying it too.

[Messer]

Originally Posted by gregarious_introvert

… the only dark hairs you can find in the shaving mirror are the ones growing out of your ears.

My female equivalent of this is the ones growing out of my chin

[Dougella]

When a band called Psychedelic Porn Crumpets comes on the radio.

[Tembo]

^

When children I work with were not even born when I left university.

[limey123]

David Beckham's son is (or was) seeing women nearly in their 30s...

[Mr. Nobody]

When you've lost your bank card twice in as many weeks

[Mo34]

I used to get excited that the Brit awards were on, now watching it i'm like meh.
And looking for something to watch online instead.

[Moksha]

Since turning 40 I've noticed a massive change. When I was in my early to mid 30s, I could still fool myself that I was young, that my life was something ahead of me. It's like climbing a hill. Until your late 30s you feel that you are going up. And at the top of the hill is a sun-drenched paradise. No matter how sh*t things are, you can fool yourself that you are working towards something, some kind of promised land. Meeting new people, having new experiences, all of this is useful and will help you reach your destination.

Turning 40 is like reaching the top of that hill. But instead of a sun-drenched palace, you find a roadside cafe under lead-grey skies!! And now you are no longer going up but down. I really miss those comforting illusions. You know you are getting old when you no longer have any hope. I don't mean you can't be happy. On the contrary, even old people can be very happy. But it's happiness without hope (unless you are religious). When you are young you don't believe in death. You know it's real and inevitable, but somehow it doesn't apply to you. Rationally you know you are going to die, but emotionally you know you are going to live forever. When you turn 40 that all goes.

[Ronnie_Pickering]

When a colleague at work doesn't know who Take That are

[Indigo_]

^ Lucky her

[Ronnie_Pickering]

true

[Mo34]

When you have to start drinking diet coke that's caffeine free after 7pm ish otherwise you won't sleep.

[Mole58]

When you are talking on the phone to an American girl and she doesn't know who the singer Neil Young is.

[Dougella]

^^ Well then I must be old because I know who he is!

[gregarious_introvert]

^^^ I must be old, I've just realised it's 25 years since I last saw him live!

I'm guessing she's not into folky country rock, as there are quite a few young Americans who do know him.

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[choirgirl]

LOL yes! It's also why it becomes ever more ridiculous to be still treated as a child. It's like, Dad, I remember you when you were younger than I am now! This 'I am right about everything because I am the adult' thing becomes less and less convincing each year.