Role Models

I’m growing increasingly aware of age as I approach 80 years old.  After all, I read that the 70s represent “old” but the 80s represent “old-old.”  That to me means sitting around waiting.

But thanks to my neighbors, I’m rethinking what “old-old” means.

When I met Fred, next door neighbor, he was in the garage cutting wood with a band saw.  He was 90 at the time.  Almost every day, he was in the garage working on one project or another.  He said, “I can’t sit.”  Fred died at 92 with dignity after a short illness.

The neighbor on the other side is now 84 years old.  We’ve been playing golf on and off for almost three years.  He told me yesterday that he just bought a new set of golf clubs.  I love that spirit.  Ray is one of my closest friends in Carolina Preserve..

Roy, who lives next to Ray is 86 years old.  He also is often in the garage working on projects.  He lectures at the Cary Senior Citizen Center on how to repair lamps and small appliances.  When I go to the clubhouse to workout, Roy is usually there.

My new neighbor, Mickey, is also 86 years old.  He and his wife have only been living here for a few months, but he is already playing golf with Ray and me.  And he bought a new set of golf clubs a  week or so before Ray.  I just admire their attitudes so much.

So my neighbors are helping me rethink what it means to be old.

Maybe I should get a new set of golf clubs?

Seasoned Man

stevelem117@gmail.com

Bird Personalities

Every evening during spring, summer and fall, we sit on the deck to watch our plants grow and to talk.  But this time of the year, most of our chuckles come from the birds.  We have a suet feeder that the birds love and a birdbath that Aloma changes the water at least twice a day.  She says it gets dirty when the birds bathe.

The main birds that come to the suet feeder are: mockingbirds, bluebirds, brown thrushes, robins and black birds that we think are starlings.  The starlings come in flocks, noisy and unruly, and eat more than their share.  To keep the starlings from eating everything, we take the suet down when we go inside for the night and return it about 5:00 the next evening.

At about 5:00 p.m., the mockingbird swoops in and lands on our swing about 6 feet away and looks at us.  We know he’s saying, “Where’s my food.”  We get the suet out and he enjoys it first.  Then a brown thrush comes and has supper.  Meanwhile Mr. and Mrs. Bluebird are sitting in the tree waiting their turn.  A robin is usually around and picks up crumbs that fall from the feeder.

The mockingbirds are the aristocrats.  The have beautiful bodies and seem really smart and are certainly aggressive.  The robin has become territorial and chases the bluebirds away - but they are so patient and come right back.  Aloma is angry and yells at the robin, but I don’t think he understands.

We enjoy seeing the robin and brown thrush race across the mulch on the bank, suddenly stop and start digging.  Half the time they pull up a worm or a grub.  They locate bugs by sound and sight, so I learned from “OK Google.”

Other birds that don’t eat suet but either bathe or enjoy our plants are:  hummingbirds, goldfinches, purple finches, cardinals and doves. We enjoy them all.

Aloma said last night, “I’m so happy we can enjoy our plants and  laugh at our birds - together.

Seasoned Man

stevelem117@gmail.com

BirdBird

Dancing With The Stars

We’ve watched the  TV show, “Dancing With The Stars,” since its first showing.  We enjoy the magnificent dancing by the pros, and it's fun to see the stars get a little bit better each week.  While now we record the shows, watch the dances, maybe listen to one judge’s comments and check the scores and fast-forward through everything else, we still have a smile when we watch.

Jennifer knew how much we enjoyed watching the dancing so she gave us tickets to their live, summer show in Durham.  We had a late lunch at a favorite restaurant and then went to the theater for a 5:00 p.m. performance.

The show more than met our expectations.  Most of the pros were there, to our delight, and Rashad Jennings, the winner of the last  competition,  played a major role in the performance.  A variety of different dances and different formats kept us spellbound for almost two hours.

I was so impressed with the athleticism  and the endurance of the dancers.  And what bodies they have!  And to think they will repeat the performance with an 8:00 show.

During intermission I struggled up about 15 steps to the mezzanine and realized that my day to try out for Dancing With The Stars is long gone.

Seasoned Man

stevelem17@gmail.com