Fat Bottom Girl Humor

I wore a new pair of jeans to work the other day, and walking from the one end to the other, my co-worker was behind me. 
She said "Your butt looks good in those jeans!"

I turned and laughed when I said "Girl, when you're my age it's more important that your ass is covered than what it looks like!
But thanks!"

Age and Random Thoughts

Age is just a number, and it's never bothered me.  I turned 30, 40 and 50 without any qualms.  I think my favorite age was 45, and I'm not sure why!?   This year, I turn 58.  Just another number, but .. it's so much easier to slip into thoughts about being on the "other side" of things.  I'm not sure why.  Probably because in truth, I'm more than "half way there".  I won't live to 116, so .... numerically speaking....

I just signed up and paid for my annual AARP membership.  THAT for me was more a turning point than anything else.  hehehe   I have been avoiding notices from them for six years, and figured it's time to jump on the bandwagon.   

(Saw this cartoon, thought it funny! 

of course, Y M C A was a huge hit in 1978)

In other news, my car finally rolled over 1000 miles.  Weird having a car with such low mileage.  I must say, I'm loving the new car thing tho!   It's clean, inside and out!  This heated summer, I'm really liking the custom window tints the car came with.  It drives smooth, it's 2 feet shorter than my Impala, and 3" narrower (not that big of a difference!) and weighs 500lbs less that the Impala as well.  And I'm really noticing it at the gas pump!  I'm saving about $10 a fill-up, and that's quite the savings!  All the little high tech stuff .. I have 4G network in the car, but since I'm the driver, and can't utilize it while I'm driving, it's sort of a non essential.  I like that the bluetooth on my phone hooks up to the car, I can drive and talk "hands free".  The only drawback in the heat is it automatically lowers the AC fan - and I need that on high when I'm driving home from work!  It's the little things :)

We're in Monsoon season here in the Valley of the Sun, and lately, it's been one round of clouds and humidity after another.  Most of the rain hits in the foothills before it reaches me, but the wind that blows through can be rather nice!  It's knocking down more palm fronds, I won't be paying anyone to come trim that tree this year!  But they're a pain in the but to snap in half to fit in the garbage can.  I had to clean up another seven fronds on Thursday.  And what did I find when I came home on Friday?  Yep, two more fronds.  lol   Such are the things in my life!

My last advice on growing older:  

Don't spend your time wishing for things to be different;  you'll never be this age, and you can't go back and be younger again (and frankly, who'd want to?)  Be happy with each day, with each moment, so that when you look back, you have no regrets. 

Old Souls

Old Souls is an expression I've heard off and on throughout life.  And I've found over the years that I am drawn to old souls, as if recognizing an old friend, even if we've never met.  They are few and far between for me, and come in all kinds of ages.  Many of them are younger, and drawing into a relationship with them at my age can sometimes cause issues.   So I thought I'd do a little research and see if I can find some more enlightenment about old souls.

"The old soul doesn't see the purpose of pursuing things that can be easily taken away from them. Additionally, old souls have little time and interest for the short-lived things in life, as they bring little meaning or long lasting fulfillment for them." - LonerWolf

If you didn't know your chronological age, what age would you guess yourself to be?  When I was in my 20s, I already felt like I was in my 40s - or older.    I always felt like I was born in the wrong time period.  But in checking up on "signs that you're an old soul", I read that they're a solitary loner, they like knowledge, wisdom and truth; spiritually inclined, thoughtful and introspective.    Well.  That all fits, for sure.   I also found this interesting:   "Those undergoing the fifth and final stage of reincarnation are known as old souls. In this stage of soul evolvement there is a search for balance and completion, and an urge to pass on the torch before the end of reincarnation.  They tend to be drawn to the quiet life away from the noise of the city.  "

So where does all that leave a person who feels like an old soul?

Of that I'm never certain.  I have moments where I feel like I shouldn't be an old soul, that I should be doing things different, doing more things .... but when it comes down to it, I am an old soul, and am comfortable with the way things are.  I've never been the kind who wants to go out and make a difference in the world, nor do I want to have a job where I make lots of money and have the materialistic things to show for it.  I've always been happy having a job that I enjoy doing, no matter what the pay is (or isn't), I don't go for buying a lot of showy things.  I'm a simple, down to earth kind of gal, with simple needs.

When I was in my 20s, my goal was to own my own house
by the time I'm 50.  Mission accomplished!
The rest of it has been good,
I've had good times, good family, good memories,
but nothing like what others consider as "successful".

And this "old soul" is OK with that!

Pat on the Back

Tuesday's Laments ... For some reason all day, I thought it was Wednesday -- wishful thinking for the weekend to get here faster???   hehehe Maybe so.  But probably more related to my lack of quality sleep time.  With a very windy storm that blew through the Valley, the evening/night wasn't very quiet, and poor Sadie had to wake up and bark at every little noise.  Of course, when she wakes up, I wake up.  I had dozed off just past 8pm.  by 11:15, I had been up with her 5 different times. I finally dragged her into my son's room and said "YOU take care of her, I'm trying to sleep!"   About an hour later, she was back in my bed, and snoozing the rest of the night away.  I think.  I dunno, I was sound asleep myself.  hehehee

Gym time ... was a success in my book!  I hopped on the treadmill and set it to the preprogrammed "interval" setting, which changes the speed and the incline every 2 minutes.  I set it for a 3.0 incline at 4.0mph, and 4.2mph on the flat.  When I had extra energy, I would manually up the speed on the flat to 5.0 and run for a minute or so. 

Personal Best:  4.0miles in 58:44

At Lunch ... I was sitting off by myself, not really paying much attention until one of the guys came in and started chuckling as he played a song on his phone... it was "Love Child" .. and he says "Now I'm starting to show my age..."  and of course, this version is some kind of 80s rocking version, which he said was done by some "Pajama Party" ??  I googled, couldn't find it.  I believe it was done in the 80's by Expose`.  But I didn't take the time to peruse the entire Google catalog of "love child" postings (there are too many!).  But what would he have said if I told him that hit was an original by Diana Ross and the Supremes back in 1968... ?    hehehe  Now I'm showing MY age!

Honorable Mention ... Yesterday at the gym, I'm doin' my thing, and working some weight machines, and a lil old guy says "You're really working hard at this!"  I smiled, he kept prattling, "I see you here every day, I see you working with a trainer... you must be proud of yourself!"  I smiled again and said, "I am!"  And its true, I -am- proud of myself and my accomplishments.  I've improved my health and well being by doing my thing at the gym.  Even if it doesn't show on the scale (the way I want it to), its still effective.  I bought me some new jammies one size smaller -- and I can wear them :)  Now that's enough to make this Gal smile!

Age Signs

Lately, I'm noticing that thing I did with ease, things I took for granted, are now a little different as I get older. Of course, the first thing to go was the eyes. Reading used to be my greatest pleasure. Thanks to large print books, and the ability to increase the font on my computers and the kindle, I can still have this pleasure, its just adjusted a little bit. But with reading glasses, it all works out fine. Well, mostly fine.

When I send or receive a text message on my phone, I need my glasses. I keep both my glasses, and my phone, next to my bed -- in case I get some all important message (ie: "play BBKing's song!!) or just the little good morning's or hello's that tend to come across my phone. So Saturday morning, I'm slowly waking up, it's early, and my phone beeps, I have a new text. Ok, so I grab glasses and stick them on, and try to read my phone. And I'm thinking "Maaaan, either my eyes are really tired, or I need to get my eyes checked. I can barely see my phone this morning!!" Squinting away, I answer my text and roll over to catch just a few more minutes under the warm snuggly covers. Later, when I was fully awake and getting up, I look over at my phone, and the glasses I'd tried to read my phone with. I had myself a really good laugh when I realized that I'd put on my sunglasses instead of reading glasses. hehehehhee

*Sigh* some days.... :)

Life, Part Two

Life after 50 ..... Is there? Nobody warns you about old age, it just creeps up on you and makes tracks across your face. It's terribly rude and inconsiderate. The next thing you know, your body sags, your vision fails, and you wrench your back picking up a book! When we're young, we envision ourselves being fit and lean in the middle of a race against time!! At this stage in life, we become a Maintenance Woman. It becomes top priority. We do things differently now. When I was younger, I took a multivitamin and thought nothing of washing it down with a Coke and doing my own daily things. Now, I take more than just a multivitamin, and each one says "take with a full glass of water". I can do those OK, but the ones that are for taking at bedtime with a full glass of water.... um, nope! unless "bedtime" is now like 7pm... and lets face it, some days, it could very well be that!!! Life is full of transitions — changes in careers, the beginning and ending of relationships, living in new locations, coping with the loss of loved ones — to name just a few. Now that I've reached 50, I know I have a few more years before I become "elderly" ;) And while there are many options at this stage in life to explore new things, new ideals, to start new relationships, travel the world, or exploring in my own backyard, the one thing I notice is that there aren't many guidelines for how to make this transition. Check your local library: There are all kinds of self help books for loads of specific life changes (such as divorce, new parenthood, single parenting) and there are bunches of others related to the elderly side of life. But what about us who are entering our 50's, a whole new phase of life? This is a time full of new opportunities and responsibilities, but it also takes investments of time, money and energy to find out what those phases will be; to discover new goals, develop new life plans, learn new skills, or find our new passions in life. What is noticeably absent are the helps and supports to manage and succeed in this stage life. With new opportunities and responsibilities come the requisite investments of time, money and energy necessary to discover their goals and passions, develop new life plans, learn new skills, and find a balance of purpose and meaning.

So what do you do to find these new adventures? What are the key elements?

• Stay healthy; watch what you eat
• Be more open minded; try new things!
• Live outside the box; do something you've never done before
• Try something with a little bit of risk: white water rafting? sky diving?
• Get out and meet new people
• Travel
• Awaken the "kid" in you: laugh, have fun, be spontaneous and silly!!

It ain't easy being fifty.... but I"m not the only one, see what else turned 50.... Crayola's 64-count box, The Peace Sign, Gibson Guitar's Flying V, and Legos. (the above were from 2008, but they seemed noteworthy mentions!) Famous women who turned 50 in 2009:

• Actress Linda Blair most famous for her role as the possessed in ‘The Exorcist’ Deborah Meaden, multi-millionaire business woman Marcia Mitzman Gaven, actress Academy award winning actress Emma Thompson Kerry Kennedy, daughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy and human rights activist Olympic gold-medal pairs skater Tai Babilonia Entertainer Marie Osmond Sarah Ferguson, Dutchess of York Former prosecutor and legal commentator Nancy Grace Paula Poundstone, Comedienne

and last but not least, Barbie!! And with one last thought .....

turning 50 is a little like paddling a canoe down a stream, and hearing a waterfall ahead.... there's no turning back!!!!!

50 HUGS for everyone!