tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post6613034486614605560..comments2023-06-28T22:58:28.247+10:00Comments on Sixth In Line: Late night trumpet callsElisabethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comBlogger76125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-17098638974092335052012-02-07T10:46:37.093+11:002012-02-07T10:46:37.093+11:00I agree, Syd, attitude to age, your own and that o...I agree, Syd, attitude to age, your own and that of others makes all the difference. <br /><br />There is a great deal of ageism in our society here in Australia, going on both directions. The young are deemed too young to be effective and the older folk are deemed to old to be useful. Neither is true, but still we tend to cling to our ferocious certainties and exclude people on the basis of our prejudice. It's sad ad the only way to fight it is to override that prejudice in whatever ways we can. <br /><br />Thanks, Syd.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-74442613328608817122012-02-05T13:55:38.218+11:002012-02-05T13:55:38.218+11:00I can feel age creeping on some days but most peop...I can feel age creeping on some days but most people think that I am much younger than my years. Attitude makes a big difference.Sydhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05642843245634635843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-64724750308076096312012-02-04T21:42:16.323+11:002012-02-04T21:42:16.323+11:00It's not easy, Kass, and there are times when ...It's not easy, Kass, and there are times when I fear I do not visit enough of my fellow bloggers' blogs as I'd like. There are some stunning blogs. The best I figure I can do is attend to my own blog first and foremost and that includes responding to every comment that comes my way. I do not always respond immediately, though. And often I wait until I have a spare hour or so in which I try to respond to as many comments as I can. <br /><br />I tend to write fairly quickly and the comments that most people send are generally so warm and heartfelt that it's easy to get going in response. I enjoy conversation and the sorts of conversations that are possible on line cheer me enormously, but as you say they are time-consuming. <br /><br />I have to discipline myself to spend only so much time blogging, especially when I have other writing tasks at hand. I have always written in what I consider to be the nooks and crannies of the day, and so I get by, but just.<br /><br />Thanks, Kass.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-38933051059939177232012-02-04T05:33:15.755+11:002012-02-04T05:33:15.755+11:00Lis - Once again, I'm amazed at how you respon...Lis - Once again, I'm amazed at how you respond to the responses. Do these thoughts come quickly and are you able to just whip them out on the keyboard? When I look at the volume of comments and your careful consideration in responding, I wonder how you have time to do anything else. It's one of the reasons I took such a big break. It was taking me at least 2 hours a day to keep up with my blogging friends.<br /><br />How do you do it? And with such brilliance?Kasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05233330248952156754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-85263784274275261002012-02-03T11:00:27.246+11:002012-02-03T11:00:27.246+11:00My brother in law is dying at the moment, Kass, bu...My brother in law is dying at the moment, Kass, but his death is not one I'd call dignified, in large part because he is in denial, not so much about the fact that he is dying but about the fact that he has feelings about his dying, as do others, his siblings and friends mainly because he is not in an intimate relationship and has no children. <br /><br />On the other hand, there is my mother, and yours too I imagine, whose deaths are able to be acknowledged at least to some extent. It makes it easier for those left behind. <br /><br />I hope that when and if I get to a point where I know that I am dying that I take time to talk about it with others. It's painful perhaps but to my way of thinking it's the one great thing that helps besides painkillers and the treatment of the pain.<br /><br />Death and aging are of course inextricably linked. the older we get the closer we come to dying.<br /><br />Thanks, Kath.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-66607855508226273012012-02-03T05:12:43.135+11:002012-02-03T05:12:43.135+11:00I think a lot about growing older and older and dy...I think a lot about growing older and older and dying the kind of death my mom did. On the positive side, I look forward to the health benefits I will receive a year from April when I turn 65. In a lot of ways I feel the same as when I was in High School so it's shocking when people refer to me as that older lady.<br /><br />The noise of breathing when one is less than conscious - hmmmm. I know I was always irritated at how my ex-husband could drop off to sleep so quickly and taunt me with the noise of it.Kasshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05233330248952156754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-88638427959201336992012-02-01T21:10:20.475+11:002012-02-01T21:10:20.475+11:00What a combination, TaraDharma, a freight train an...What a combination, TaraDharma, a freight train and a cow, that is some case of snoring. <br /><br />I, too, am not far off being eligible for government assistance if I need it. I'm hoping I won't. In Australia the government is urging people to stay on at work for as long as possible - a good thing I think. Certainly I'm a long way from retirement. In fact I don't that I will ever retire as such, just hopefully slow down<br /><br />Thanks, TaraDharma.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-50487072748301584572012-02-01T21:05:27.306+11:002012-02-01T21:05:27.306+11:00Thanks for telling me about the Fish memoir prize,...Thanks for telling me about the Fish memoir prize, Rachel. I'd heard of it but I'm grateful for the reminder and for the connection.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-25317761330704393772012-02-01T20:26:50.769+11:002012-02-01T20:26:50.769+11:00Thanks for the link, erin. What a beautiful and s...Thanks for the link, erin. What a beautiful and soothing place. A place that can feed souls, as you say, and help perhaps to overcome some of our angst about mortality, foolish as we may be not to want to reflect on it. <br /><br />Thanks, erin.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-20559839844125658682012-02-01T20:17:42.531+11:002012-02-01T20:17:42.531+11:00It's lovely to see you here, Elizabeth Grimes....It's lovely to see you here, Elizabeth Grimes. You are young as is your husband - early days yet. I hope snoring doesn't become a problem for you, as for aging I hope you both live long enough to complain like the rest of us. Aging is both a blessing and a curse. <br /><br />Thanks, Elizabeth.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-89756026134015825962012-02-01T20:10:32.896+11:002012-02-01T20:10:32.896+11:00Ah Cuby Poet, 55 and not too many grey hairs yet. ...Ah Cuby Poet, 55 and not too many grey hairs yet. Lucky you. My husband started to go grey in his early thirties and his sisters both sported a grey patch on the front of their otherwise brown heads of hair as early as their twenties. My daughters are terrified of following in their aunts' footsteps. But at least it's not unusual for women to get help from a bottle. <br /><br />As for snoring, as you say, it is another matter.<br /><br />Thanks, Cuby Poet.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-54634943635670441662012-02-01T20:06:15.727+11:002012-02-01T20:06:15.727+11:00I think you may be right, Persiflage, the business...I think you may be right, Persiflage, the business of missing someone is a daytime experience, or perhaps more an awake experience. <br /><br />I can imagine that in the middle of the night when you are awake, aware of being alone and sleep evades you, you might on the other hand be much more susceptible to the loneliness. <br /><br />I can be cavalier about preferring my bed alone when it's a temporary separation, Persiflage. I don't know how I'd go were it a permanent one, like yours. <br /><br />As for aging, it must have been hard to watch your husband deteriorate so much over time and of course such an experience must stir up feelings about one's own mortality. Anyone's ill health, aging or deterioration does.<br /><br />Thanks, Persiflage.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-37130258547074362562012-02-01T10:20:01.870+11:002012-02-01T10:20:01.870+11:00After reading some information on Social Security ...After reading some information on Social Security benefits in the U.S. I realized I am a mere 7 years away from collecting my benefit. Somehow that makes me feel very old. And yet, it's the best alternative, the only other one being death.<br /><br />I used to snore horribly -- horribly!! Then I lost 100 lbs. and now only snore a little. My snoring was so bad that no one could share a room with me -- my wife recording me once. I sounded like a combination of a freight train and unhappy cow. Imagine!Taradharmahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17665801586196931603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-74210296634726718442012-02-01T08:11:00.565+11:002012-02-01T08:11:00.565+11:00Lis, I imagine you may know of this already but Fi...Lis, I imagine you may know of this already but Fish Publishing are doing a memoir competition now and I thought of you. Sorry I cannot get the link to paste.Rachel Fentonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10046917627054462214noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-11325112004962937202012-02-01T02:49:22.751+11:002012-02-01T02:49:22.751+11:00the pinpoint of all of our ailments is our inabili...the pinpoint of all of our ailments is our inability to admit our mortality. what a foolish lot we are.<br /><br />there is a wonderful blog on which dean posts thoughtful pieces which focus on life and death, our being, and thoughtful living. <br /><br />it is here http://beautywelove.blogspot.com/<br /> <br />it polishes beliefs i have arrived at on my own and helps to point me gently, sometimes, in new directions.<br /><br />xo<br />erinerinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16636371927224076866noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-14975203319663861862012-02-01T01:12:26.291+11:002012-02-01T01:12:26.291+11:00I hope you got some restful sleep. I suppose I sho...I hope you got some restful sleep. I suppose I should be thankful that my husband doesn't snore, but maybe some day down the line one of us will begin. Thanks for visiting my blog and my website. Sorry about the background noise, I'll have to do some investigating to find out why that was! Thanks again!Elizabeth Grimeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13283397561867581379noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-29567117983281083452012-01-31T22:46:08.107+11:002012-01-31T22:46:08.107+11:00A friend of mine said the other day that when she ...A friend of mine said the other day that when she looks in the mirror first thing she is always dismayed at the wrinkled person looking back. Oh dear! My genes are on my side as at 55 I have very few grey hairs which is so cheering as for snoring that is another matter!I do I'm told.Cubyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12925180435458519715noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-21060043142243824082012-01-31T20:28:59.115+11:002012-01-31T20:28:59.115+11:00Aging. It is a hard one. It is not something which...Aging. It is a hard one. It is not something which has ever bothered me, but now, widowed, I wonder how many good years I have left. Having watched the physical and mental deterioration, the self-absosrption,the dwindling of energy and being able to take the trouble, the rigidity of mind, makes me wonder 'Can these things be avoided? To what extent are they choices, or are they inevitable changes for most of us?"<br /><br />I hope for ten good years. But who knows?<br /><br />My first husband jerked and twitched in his sleep, and it was difficult for me to fall asleep. I have always had difficulty getting to sleep. My second husband shook the bed whenever he turned over, and he got up frequently during the night. Eventually I slept alone. That was so much better - from the sleep point of view.<br />Perhaps missing someone is more of a daytime experience, and for most of the night time it is different. Except when there is the need to snuggle up together, whether for sex or togetherness or both.persiflagehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05161607100227748374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-2082231739048622212012-01-31T18:49:38.405+11:002012-01-31T18:49:38.405+11:00I don't suppose you can afford to let yourself...I don't suppose you can afford to let yourself worry, Karen, it won't help put you into the long lived group from your ancestry, Karen. But I hope you make one of the long lived souls, assuming that's what you want and your quality of life stays good enough. <br /><br />Thanks again, Karen. Don't worry about ADD. I don't reckon I suffer from it but I, too, am forever running off on tangents. To me it's more a case of lateral thinking.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-13095918280690431082012-01-31T18:46:17.582+11:002012-01-31T18:46:17.582+11:00Meryl Streep, Tracy, Meryl Streep alright. Her ta...Meryl Streep, Tracy, Meryl Streep alright. Her talent defies the limitations of any age. I've heard about the need for actors to stay young especially the female ones. It must be dreadful. To us 'ordinary' folk you're gorgeous but to the power moguls of the media who prefer inbuilt redundancy even for humans, you're too long on the shelf. Ridiculous. You can't become the likes of Meryl Streep if you don't get positions over time through which to hone your skills. <br /><br />As for your old boyfriend, it's a good thing by the sound of things that it's over.<br /><br />Thanks, Tracy.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-84761026168682116942012-01-31T12:11:33.399+11:002012-01-31T12:11:33.399+11:00It's my ADD Elisabeth (lol). I read the first ...It's my ADD Elisabeth (lol). I read the first few lines and take off at a tangent.<br />I turned 30 happily and pregnant with my first and turned 40 with grace but turning 50 made me feel more dead than alive knowing that I had left more productive years behind me than were in front of me. It's a mind thing, I know.<br />My mother, father and both my in-laws all died in their early 60's but the previous generation lived well into their 80's or 90's.<br />Should I be worried? Which direction will the trend go?<br />Karen CAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-83271403453890730642012-01-31T12:09:05.709+11:002012-01-31T12:09:05.709+11:00America is one of the most age-obsessed cultures i...America is one of the most age-obsessed cultures in the west, and on top of that, I live in Hollywood, and on top of that, I'm trying to make my living as an actress. So, yes. I get it. I never thought I'd be someone who lies about her age, or dodges the question, or changes the subject. I thought no matter what age I was, I'd always feel like I had unlimited, untapped potential. But it's hard (although I still try my damndest) to do this in Hollywood, where women lose jobs if they are over 30, and people start asking you what your back up plan is if you aren't a major movie star by 25. I just grit my teeth and think, Meryl Streep, Meryl Streep, Meryl Streep...<br /><br />As for the snoring, a boyfriend of mine snored badly during the winter when he was congested, and I spent a majority of our December's and January's on our couch. And I won't lie... it was hard. I'm glad you are getting good sleep for a few days :)Phoenixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07477498671080132176noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-64496179245266384012012-01-31T10:39:57.352+11:002012-01-31T10:39:57.352+11:00I used to use earplugs, Rose, but even with them i...I used to use earplugs, Rose, but even with them in place, even as they blocked some of the sound, I could still feel the vibrations through the bed. I'm sensitive perhaps. <br /><br />As for worrying about growing older, you're right, it only makes you more likely to develop more worry lines, in other words, as you say, to grow more wrinkly.<br /><br />Thanks, Rose.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-16650398768200518932012-01-31T10:36:50.786+11:002012-01-31T10:36:50.786+11:00I'd never have picked you for fifty from your ...I'd never have picked you for fifty from your profile picture, Eryl. How deceptive these profiles can sometimes be. They stay put as we grow older. <br /><br />As for your husband tugging off the blankets. My husband accuses me of this, but it's a joke I think because he is the more restless sleeper and I fear each time he tosses in my direction he sends more blankets over to me. It's not that I take them from him, but it's all in the perception. Who's to know the facts of this? We're both asleep through it. <br /><br />It sounds like a wonderfully peaceful place to live, in your corner of rural Scotland. Life's more hectic here it would seem. <br /><br />Thanks, ErylElisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28133718.post-49259249650307650962012-01-31T10:32:03.058+11:002012-01-31T10:32:03.058+11:00That's an extraordinary story, Jane. I wonder...That's an extraordinary story, Jane. I wonder what's in those hot springs that they should cure your husband of his snoring? And now you sleep alone, the snoring but a memory. I suppose the experience is mixed. <br /><br />As for your thoughts on the inevitability of life and death, I'm with you there.<br /><br />Thanks, Jane Healy.Elisabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04015624747225433940noreply@blogger.com