Best part of being a writer is you can do it sitting down.

     Finally returning to the ostensible topic of this blog – Being Old.  I’ve decided to list the doors that have closed,  and when I put them all together, it’s an impressive collection.


Yes, I wore these!

Wearing high heels – old ladies wear those sneakers for good reasons.
Teaching  -- can’t stand for 50 minutes (can’t stand for five minutes if it comes to that) and it’s exhausting as well. 
 Scuba – took my last dive on my 80^th birthday, did not enjoy it.  Can’t depend on the muscles.
     Playing in the band -- sitting in front of the trumpets, even with earplugs, damaging.  And my back couldn't make it through rehearsals.                   
    Making music at home -- lips have lazy muscles too.  Oboe and both clarinets have gone on ebay.
    Going to the movies  – dialog escapes me.  With Netflix at home I can pull up captions.
    Lectures – I keep trying, but it all depends on the timbre of the speaker’s voice.  Hearing aids can only do so much.
     Live theature – see above.  I get about one-third of the dialog.
     Music – this is a big loss.  Doctor says it’s not the ears, it’s the brain.  Orchestras sound like so much jumbled cacophony.  Singers sound off-key.  Sometimes individual guitar or cello is okay, but that’s about it.
      Concerts – see above.
      Records, CDs – see above.
      Late-night radio -- Used to listen to our PBS station when I couldn’t sleep, but now they broadcast the BBC all night, and it’s hard to understand even the slightest accent.
     Cosmetics – trying to do anything beyond lipstick was a poor idea once the wrinkles got serious.  No great loss.
    Guided walks – the last one I took several years ago (fascinating tour of the city’s largest cemetery) I barely kept up, and I noticed one guide was evidently delegated to drop back and worry about me.
     Bird Walks – yes, these are slower if not completely stagnant, but I can’t stand up that long.
     Binoculars – yes, I can use them but not standing up – balance problem.
     National conferences -- see Lecture problem above.
     Shopping -- that's out, but buying on the Internet was invented just for me.
     Visiting the kids. This involves Airports – I’m still conflicted on this one. Resolved never to fly again, but then decided to give it one more try next week. Stay tuned.
      So if any of this rings a bell with you, do click on that little blue word "comment" below -- your responses are very much enjoyed.