Getting up in years has made me quite a bit more philosophical. I'm sure everyone goes through the same thing as they age--the realization of mortality maybe. It makes you think about all the shit you did, didn't do, should have done, or should not have done. All of the crossroads and decisions in our lives seem to come up from time to time--the "What-if's" if you will. I think it manifests itself with every person that gets old at some point or another.
But I wasn't briefed about oldness.
Remember what people in their mid sixties looked like when we were kids? Growing up in the sixties, I remember--they looked old. I mean, they looked old. They acted old, dressed old, and had old people hairstyles. To be fair, people really didn't have much in the way of elderly, stylish role models to inspire them back in the day. Old people then just chose comfort and functionality. Ladies' hair was short or permed for ease of maintenance, and it seemed like watching Lawrence Welk on TV was a rite of passage to the aged. It's almost as if old people had 'given up' at a certain age so they could become old. It was expected. I guess old meant sitting in the background offering tidbits of wisdom or criticism, whether anyone wanted to hear them or not.
And all the while while looking old.
I learned a lot of things in school (and should have learned a lot more), but why didn't we get some idea of what was in front of us when we got older? We got nothing.
Lately, I've become somewhat--I dunno--frustrated? Angry? I feel like the world as we know it has arrived at a place I would have never imagined while I was growing up. The new technologies and discoveries are off the charts. One of the most profound memories I've had of late: When SpaceX successfully landed rocket stages back on earth. I was flabbergasted. Rockets descending backwards towards Earth in slow motion like the cover of old science-fiction stories I read when as a kid!
During my life, I've witnessed (figuratively) a lot of things. I've witnessed party-line (look it up) phones evolve into pocket-sized cell phones that link the world instantaneously, typewriters evolved into full-on speak-to-text computers, film cameras to digital, and fully-manual gas-guzzling cars evolve into electric vehicles that can drive themselves. Paper maps? Extinct. GPS on our devices will get us there easily, and while speaking to us with the worldly accent of our choice. Try to find a typewriter anywhere outside of a museum. Computers have replaced them. All of those new electronic devices we use daily connect magically with no wires. The whole world is connected via the Internet, and worldwide news is instantaneous.
I think I'm sorta pissed that I'm going to miss the rest.
I'm not really bitter because I've been privileged to see a lot of great, great things during my lifetime, but I feel like the movie is only part way over and someone turned the lights on. I'm not a mover and shaker by any means, and I've not contributed anything to the world of any consequence other than my daughter, Sarah. Her being a teacher means she is spreading the seeds of knowledge and inspiration to young minds. She is my legacy.
I've watched so many products grow and die, replaced by things that were faster, cheaper, or flashier than the things they replaced, only to have fraction of the shelf life . I've watched car manufacturing gradually turn from steel to plastic. Hell, I've watched almost everything go from steel to plastic. Yeah, it bothers me that the world has gotten so hungry for the latest and greatest that we've become a throwaway society. The world has sped up. Because we humans are instantly connected to each other 24/7, everything anyone does, says, or invents now has a huge ripple effect.
It used to take a long time for very little change, but we're at a point where it now happens almost instantly.
While perusing other people's words of wit and wisdom on the internet, I've come across two things that have gotten me to thinking. More like upset me a little.
The first one was centered around the meme here on the right. The more often I read this the more frustrated I became. I know there is no requirement to leave a lasting impression on the world, but it sort of makes me feel like I've been just wasting time.
It also makes me wonder about mankind, and how we are just a teeny dust speck in the grand scheme of things. It makes me sad to think of the shit that people squander. Their time, their lives, their interactions with other humans--so much of it is taken for granted because we don't know anything otherwise. We know there is life out there (come on, admit it--you know) but it's almost embarrassing to think of how amazing we think we are. Some still believe our opposable thumbs have made us superior beings! We can create anything we desire! Funny--how do those folks explain the fact that chimpanzees have opposable thumbs on their hands and feet... and they're still chimps.
Why aren't they "amazingly advanced" like us?
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