Birthday Blues? Not me!

It’s that time of year when I begin looking forward to my Birthday.

In a little over two weeks I will be officially another year older. For some this might be an occasion to dread, but for me, I am ambivalent. 

Another year, so what! Who cares! Life is measured in more than merely age. For me, it’s what I’m doing with the years that means more than the age I am, have been or will be. 

I am not one of those people who wish to be eighteen again; never liked being eighteen when I was eighteen, so why would I want to go back and re-live it! Although, I do have friends who would give their right arm to be eighteen again, and I wonder why. What is so lack lustre about their current time and space that makes being eighteen again look so appealing? 

I might not be eighteen, but I’m not exactly Methuselah either. Just yesterday I got asked for ID to purchase alcohol, I was highly bemused. I wasn’t afraid to produce the said ID and declare my age, I was more mortified of the fact my drivers licence has such a ghastly picture on it; I cringe every time I have to show it to a stranger! 

So why does age, an increase in a number, bother us so much?

What makes eighteen OK and thirty (plus) such a shameful thing? 

Why do people feel their life is over once they leave their teens or even their twenties? I just don’t get it! 

I think this is where Spanish makes me smile. ¿Cuántos años tienes? Which is asking, how many years do you have. It’s not asking, how OLD are you, it’s asking about the years of life you have under your belt. It’s far nicer than discussing oldness! 

Who is old anyway?

No one feels old. What does old feel like? 

We’re all just subjects of our time and space, we don’t wake up one day and say; ‘you know what, I feel old’. 

This is where western society seems to hold the answer. It is obsessed with age, oldness, wrinkles, grey hair, plastic surgery, recapturing a lost youth. Well, growing older is going to happen to all of us at some time or another. That’s what we share, a commonality, we will age. No amount of plastic surgery will change a biological age, it won’t stop time from ticking by. 

We are not Dorian Grey, we are not immortal, we are human and we all age! 

So, I may be looking at another year under my belt, but, my life won’t come to an end. Time marches on regardless of my age, time ticks on and so it should. I am not going to dread being older, I am not going to cry, I am older and wiser and more experienced.

 

Your life is an occasion, so rise to it!

I do not fear a number! I am made if sterner stuff than that! So, bring on my Birthday, I can’t wait for the cake! 

 

‘Ageism’ He Says……..

The one and only John McCririck.

Funny how when the tables are turned on Channel 4 Horse Racing pundit John McCririck he suddenly screams discrimination!

This from the chap who outwardly admits his derision for women! Viewing them as mere tools to be used by the greater and more powerful men in the world, himself included (or deluded)!

This cry of unfair dismissal was raised when the 72 year old was told by CH4 that they no longer required his ‘unique’ presenting skills. They have decided to reboot their programming, and Mr McCririck was not going to be part of it.

Mr McCririck then claimed it was his age, CH4 were being discriminatory against him. Perhaps CH4 had merely had enough of his ridiculous antics, not to mention the constant complaints from his female colleagues regarding his sexism!

Regardless, McCririck is determined to take this to court.

Seems that now he is on the receiving end of something he deems unfair, he has transformed himself it this paragon of virtue, this crusader of rights (as long as they don’t include women’s rights of course).

This screams sour grapes on McCririck part. It is a deed being done for his own wallet, not to highlight or prevent work place discrimination. John McCririck maybe many things, but an advocate of fairness and equality he is not, nor ever has he been! Just ask his long suffering servant, I mean his wife!

So, it seems that after years of hating women and treating them like dirt, he is finally reaping what he has sown. Albeit, in his own head, not in reality. Yet, even if CH4 were ageist they would be in good company; McCririck has disregarded discrimination laws and in fact advocated discrimination for many years. So, how can he now claim to be suffering at the hands of something he once heralded as a good thing?

I cannot keep a straight face over his absolute gall! I’m not sure how anyone listening to or partaking in these following court proceedings will either.

Lets just hope he gets an all woman jury! Fingers crossed, though I know that will be an outsider chance to beat any odds McCririck has ever given during his time as racing pundit!