Huh? What's Up With That?

Witty or sarcastic?!   Part of the brilliance of the hit television show Seinfeld was the wonderful sarcasm combined with simple humor and plausible situations made into outrageous, but believable scenes.  You have no doubt been in real-life situations where the person speaking to you is sarcastic, impatient, or just plain rude.  That's when I say to myself, HUH ? What's up with that ? Of course, I generally blame younger people, but if I was younger, it would be the fault of older people. See what I mean?  But, in all fairness, there are times when it does seem it takes older people three times as long to do something as someone half his age.   Recently, I was in a drug store waiting patiently for an elderly gentleman to pay the cashier.  Do you think he heard those imaginary groans from people behind him when he dug into his pocket looking for the exact coins to pay his bill?  Of course, as if it had been scripted, he dropped a dime or ...

WOW! That was special!   It doesn't take much for HUH? What's up with that ? to become a WOW !   Did you see that ? moment! So many slights, rebuffs, or rude actions towards senior citizens catch my attention, but just as many wonderful displays of respect are shown too!  I would be remiss in my reporting if I didn't take the time to tell you about a few select happenings.  Let's begin where it would be so easy to neglect or be rude to older people, a nursing home.   My mother is the oldest person in her current residence in Indianapolis.  By any other name, a nursing home is still a nursing home, but to me it's a staging area.  However, the people who work in places such as nursing homes, hospitals and other care-giving jobs are exceptional human beings.   If I had to guess, I'd say Roberta is 28-30 years old.  We had not met until a week ago when I last visited my mom.  Roberta came up to my mother, smiled at her and as...

You're back?   Each week, I try to share some real-life conversations or events that were said to me or to someone close to me.  Many times, what is said is thoughtless or inconsiderate, if not downright rude.  That's what makes me want to say, HUH? What's up with that ?  I am of course referring to  bad attitudes shown to older people because they are guilty of nothing more than....being older.  Generally, retirement from a job or occupation comes a lot earlier than it did for me.  I stuck around several years beyond normal retirement age before I pulled the proverbial plug . At the time, I had been very fortunate to have worked in education for a number of years. It was my second career.   Jim, my former English chair, always said teaching was ...your encore performance !  It was true. After spending most of my adult life in radio and television, the change in direction was wonderful.  Being around high school age students was e...

OUCH! That hurt!   Many times while talking to someone, my mind is thinking, HUH? What's up with that ?  All of us say and do silly things, but, most of the time we don't knowingly offend someone or say something offensive on purpose.  But, it does seem like today's older generation is often times slighted or openly disrespected by younger people.   Maybe it has always been like this and I didn't pay attention to it until my so-called senior years arrived!   The lyrics of a Johnny Rivers song called The Only Thing That's Permanent is Change repeatedly come to mind as I travel this often-changing road called retirement. It seems every week, or at the least, every other week, my car is on a side road off the retirement highway heading to a medical office.  Growing up, doctors were Gods to me and my three brothers, or at a minimum, we held them in pretty high regard.  It's only been the last few years it has occurred to me, people in medical offices...

What HUH? What's up with that? is all about!   If you are below 60 years of age, you probably won't find this blog to be of much interest.  However, if you want a peek into your possible future as told by someone who is well into his senior years, feel free to continue.    A positive person who enjoys life and life's challenges.  That's me.  Sure, we all have our bad days , but limiting that kind of mindset is vital to my overall well-being.  The theory of never having a bad day, some are just better than others is appealing.  That's me.  Not normally known as a smiley person,  I am in reality as happy as the next person and on any given day perhaps even happier.  So, my blog is not meant to be a constant gripe about other people, but rather a glimpse of reality.  The intent is not to be a downer, as much as it is a reminder we are all human and as such, we sometimes say and do things without thinking, regardless of ...