The weirdest thing about getting older is...your peer group starts dying. Relationships that have spanned decades suddenly vanish.

There's a strange routine that happens when people die...and it seems really tragic to me. People recognize how someone dying deserves attention. Every culture offers some recognition of those who are left behind. People feel a responsibility to show up to demonstrate their support...then they leave. It's as if it was a social visit. But it wasn't. It was a wake or a graveside service or a funeral.

People who are grieving need to be present with those offering them support - not just a visit, but in an ongoing way. Social mores that require "not making a pest of yourself" would require staying gone for the customary amount of time until the next visit. There are so many ways to grieve, that friends and family often feel awkward offering their help and wonder if they're supposed to "leave alone" the whole issue. They know bringing up the "elephant in the room" will hurt the person, so they more commonly back off.

Those feeling grief are confused and so often feel awkward initiating contact again with their friends who know they are grieving. So everyone is more often left to suffer alone and isolated...which is probably not so constructive. Perhaps asking for more contact, it's against the customs of what constitutes a "Social Visit?" Somehow the grieving person is supposed to "get over it" in a "reasonable" amount of time. Nobody defines what is "reasonable" about how much time that is.

It's just not even a necessary suffering. If those who are vulnerable would somehow indicate to their friends they need more contact... Or something like that.

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I've been watching a 24 year old guy on YouTube who's interviewing older people he meets randomly and asks them how old they are and other general questions about what it's like to be the age they are.

I thought I might answer some of these here, now that I'm older myself.

If I answered the first question about my age, I don't think my answer would be useful to many people because of the unique choices I've made about how I wanted to live my life. One of the best things has been that I've avoided getting addicted to "adult" type pastimes. I've only had to deal with getting paunchier from not knowing how to deal with what might be unique dietary issues. You cannot imagine how much respect over the years I've received from those who got to know me - all from not having adopted vices.

This is this phenomena that my best friend refers to as "Beer Thinking."  But I imagine it's better explained with the term, "Productive Procrastination." 

For instance, I bought these "desert boots" to walk on this road pictured above when it's raining and muddy. These boots need to be sprayed with some Rustoleum concoction that seals the leather so rain and mud roll off of it. I haven't done it yet, because it needs to be pre-sealed before the final treatment.

I write by hand quite often.

Mostly I do so because I enjoy it.
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WOOFer Warnings

There are some worldwide hospitality membership clubs that seem to work to forge some interesting scenes. But watch out for the model of accepting temporary work using the "WOOFer" model!

WOOF stands for "Workers On Organic Farms". It evolved because farmers couldn't pay the prevailing wage to keep its workers there to do the farm work required.

Why doesn't "no" mean "no" when a guy propositions a gal?

Guys don't understand what's going on when a woman is afraid of a man who seems to has the potential to get angry at a woman for rejecting him personally.

Coming home from college in the mid 1970s, I was riding in the back of the bus at night when I heard a man going through the pockets of a lone sleeping child with a knife, ripping the pockets of the kid's pack and coat. Rather loudly, (which could be explained because of the sound of the bus) I started talking about anything to distract the thief.

Suddenly, three very large black men moved in behind me, next to and in front of me in the empty seats that were available.

Logic says, "the only time another way is necessary to seek out is when current ways are blocked." I know ways to be more creative. Creative ways are "unexploited alternatives," usually in addition to "tradition." So a creative person looks for alternatives, even when there already exists serviceable answers.

I found that formally studying thinking skills has been the most useful to me in developing the ability to communicate my creative abilities...and to invite them to happen with others.

The weirdest thing about getting older is...your peer group starts dying. Relationships that have spanned decades suddenly vanish.

There's a strange routine that happens when people die...and it seems really tragic to me. People recognize how someone dying deserves attention. Every culture offers some recognition of those who are left behind. People feel a responsibility to show up to demonstrate their support...then they leave. It's as if it was a social visit. But it wasn't.

Just so I can attach this to an email...

I have quite a few friends who are passionate and feel responsible to become activists. I am thankful that questions opened by serious issues have inspired involvement and activism on a whole new level.

But really, I hate politics. It's an arena where cultural cliche`and manipulation is at its worst. I do not listen to the news on purpose, because of the sensationalism. I regularly impose a "news-fast" state for myself, mostly through music listening - often music without words.
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