February 19, 2008

I have reached middle-age. I am a child of the 60s, a teen of the 70s, and a mom since the 80s.

I’d much prefer to watch old reruns of

• “I Love Lucy”
• The Dick Van Dyke Show
• Get Smart
• The Honeymooners
• Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In, and
• old James Bond movies, and other classic offerings from Carey, Audrey (and the like)

…over the crap they call entertainment today. Reality TV - who needs it, really! Watching someone else’s shortcomings makes us feel better about ourselves? Maybe it appeals to some, surely doesn’t me. And special effects and stunts? Paleeeeze. Give me great dialog and a decent plot. It doesn’t take much to hold my interest.

At this point in my life, experiences have formed the person I am today. And proudly so, dammit.

And music. Music used to be a thing of great creativity and talent. Now anyone can go into a studio and digitally record a song - even though they’re totally tone-deaf or otherwise lacking in talent. Granted there are still a handful who are truly talented, but the bulk of the crop are reproducible me-toos. No, I’m talking about the classic greats, such as

• The Queens and Kings of the blues - Ella, Etta, BB, Fats, et al
• Karen Carpenter, the ultimate lady crooner
• Dino, Frank, Sammy, and
• Elvis.

And kids. I’ve watched two generations of children now come of age, and wonder what the hell happened to common decency and common sense, for that matter. There’s no respect. Back in the day, we’d get the begeezus beaten out of us if we were half as disrespectful as these kids are today.

Sheez.

I reckoned with and fought it for a while, but have come to the conclusion that I fit the classic stereotype of middle-aged. Note I didn’t say ’sad realization’ - for I’m really not sad about it. Rather, coming out of the closet and freely admitting it. I’m not old. But I am set in my ways, opinionated, and wishing for days gone by. But that’s okay. At this point in my life, experiences have formed the person I am today. And proudly so, dammit.

For those who haven’t reached that milestone in their lives yet, it is something to pleasantly look forward to. And once you, too, have achieved middle-age, take pause and reflect back on your life. At how far you’ve come, and what still lies ahead.

For those who have, salute!

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