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The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

theatlantic.com

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Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#171

Post by racked »

DataJunkie wrote: post #116

I am in my late 30s. I feel like after the pandemic I started visually aging. Part of the problem was that I lost a lot of weight at the same time, so I do actually look a bit different. People tell me I am crazy. I feel like my hair is receding though nobody notices it and in photos it really looks the same for the past 10 years. I feel like there is me at my age, there is some illusion of me at my age, and me at th…

Don't worry so much about it. Really. Stop worrying. Allow it to just be and surround you as a fact of life.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#172

Post by simonblack »

Aeolun wrote: post #125
simonblack wrote: post #91

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"I have a lot of things i want to do and a lot of them need to be done while I am still relatively young enough for them to be plausible." Do those things that are 'on your list' as soon as possible. There is an old saying 'Life is what happens while you're making other plans'. I discovered that I had, in practice, a mere six (6!) years in retrospect where it was possible do do things that were 'on MY list. If you mi…

If you were 10 years younger you might not have had the means to do that?

That is true in theory, but if you really want to do something, you will find a way. (And strangely enough, for some reason, the Universe will assist you.)

I once was working only part-time but I made it a goal to get to "Paris in April". That was 29 years ago. I can't remember now how we managed it, but somehow or other, we achieved that 'Paris in April' as part of a six-week round-the-world trip.

About 3 years after that, some friends invited us to spend a few weeks in Spain in their time-share holiday. We didn't have the money. They said 'Put it on the card'. So we did. Several months later, I received a very rare Tax Refund which allowed us to pay the credit card off. Twelve months later, the tax man took all the refund and more, back off me. So I sometimes say "The Tax Department lent us the money to go to Spain. We'd never have been able to that, otherwise."

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#173

Post by simonblack »

incompatible wrote: post #136
simonblack wrote: post #3

I've felt about 22 for decades. Probably until my mid forties, I felt I was only about 19. That leads quite often to the situation where you are looking in shock at some elderly, bald person in the mirror while thinking "Who's that old bastard?". Or the sudden realisation "My God! I'm only two and a bit years off 80!" As the article says, there's a difference between the age you feel you are 'in your head' and the ag…

What does it mean to "feel about 22"? I don't feel like any particular age. I know what my age is, from subtracting my date of birth from the current date, and I don't see how it could be anything else. Edit: I suppose I feel now much the same as when I was actually 22, but all that suggests is that there isn't any "age feeling".

What does it mean to "feel about 22"?

I suppose, like you, that I feel no differently now than I felt at 22, so in a sense, I reckon I have stayed at 22 'in my head'.

But that is why it is a shock at times to look in the mirror and see somebody who doesn't at all look like I looked at 22.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#174

Post by larati »

setheron wrote: post #4

Does anyone ever feel older in their head than their body after their 20s?

Way older. I can't imagine saying I feel 22. I am still in good shape pushing 50 but not like at 22. On the mental side though I was utterly clueless at 22. Pretty clueless at 40 even.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#175

Post by hasbot »

dehrmann wrote: post #61
jacquesm wrote: post #13

"Inside every old person is a young person that wonders what the fuck happened".

When we're young, the world is full of opportunities. As we get older, the doors to those opportunities close, and fewer things seem possible.

When we're young, the world is full of dreams and aspirations. Over the years we discover that many of those dreams aren't realistic or possible. Sometimes we actually accomplish those dreams and we find it isn't as great as we thought. Or maybe we're happy with the result and are now content and stop dreaming.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#176

Post by hnthrowaway0315 »

adastra22 wrote: post #169
hnthrowaway0315 wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel that after kid was born. Chronic sleep deprivation and depression are the reasons. Not sure when will nd hopefully not too long.

About 18 years.

Nooooooooooo!

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#177

Post by srean »

JALTU wrote: post #68

I wonder if others here found their mental age aging more rapidly after certain life events? The wake of aging parents transitioning (death, stroke/care home) has without doubt accelerated my mental age, which in turn has changed what I'd call my horizon. When younger and prior to said events, the horizon was far away; time enough for everything/anything. Not so much anymore, much greater sense of uncertainty.

People do not age so much according to calendar years. It is incidents and experiences that age you

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#178

Post by xen2xen1 »

JALTU wrote: post #68

I wonder if others here found their mental age aging more rapidly after certain life events? The wake of aging parents transitioning (death, stroke/care home) has without doubt accelerated my mental age, which in turn has changed what I'd call my horizon. When younger and prior to said events, the horizon was far away; time enough for everything/anything. Not so much anymore, much greater sense of uncertainty.

Yes. My father's death and my mother going in a nursing home has affected my view (late 40s) of myself a lot. I mostly ignore my age and refuse to "be old", but that's getting harder and harder.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#179

Post by wrycoder »

alchemist1e9 wrote: post #154
wrycoder wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a lot of fun. I'm back to my old interest - small systems programming on the bare metal. I did Nand2Tetris several years ago, and now I'm following the work of people like Tunney and DeVault as they bootstrap de novo. 100rabbits is also fascinating. I'm working on an electronics program for the local makerspace - some combination of ham radio topics, microcontrollers and sensors - trying to figure out some good…

Thank you for the response. I really like the idea that in older years I can keep coding and be on HN. Of course we all can once we think about it. Why not. Your comment also illustrates something I already feel, that software and systems knowledge can be lost over time and that wisdom from long experience can be valuable to younger generations as we get older. It’s too bad FOSS is such a battle. One odd Linux deskto…

I like Alpine with i3 for its simplicity.

I'm thinking that if I show them the Alpine installer script, they can get a feel for (and even participate in) the system construction without going all the way down to Linux from Scratch.

Re: The gap between how old you are and how old you think you are

#180

Post by BobbyJo »

xyzelement wrote: post #93
yencabulator wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just so you know, "haven't taken on the appropriate responsibility" really sounds like you are judging people whose life choices differ from yours. Nobody has a responsibility to procreate.

I am talking about responsibility as in being responsible for people (spouse, kids, grandkids in this case.) It's easier to "feel young" when you don't have that.

It's the "appropriate" that gives it the negative connotation. Maybe you meant "the responsibilities necessary to feel an age", but it came off as "the responsibilities you should have at an age".
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