How Old Are The Members of The Fedora Lounge?

[AtomicEraTom]

Ha! Still better than what most folks go out in public in.

You don't have any of those leisure suits stored away?lol

 

[jamespowers]

Ha! Still better than what most folks go out in public in.

Now you ARE scaring me.:eeek::eusa_doh:

 

[AtomicEraTom]

I know, they're godawful, but at least the waistline of the pants covers that of the underpants.

And here's some leisure suit heaven for you!

[video=youtube;d2aeRg_yMSE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2aeRg_yMSE[/video]

Now you ARE scaring me.:eeek::eusa_doh:

 

[scooter]

Not to interrupt the good natured banter, but I am 56, soon to be 57. Or, to phrase it another way, too old to take an a$$ whippin, and too young to die. That courtesy of my friend Rick, when asked why he carries a gun!

 

[150719541]

I am 56 years old ¡¡¡¡¡¡

 

[jamespowers]

Not to interrupt the good natured banter, but I am 56, soon to be 57. Or, to phrase it another way, too old to take an a$$ whippin, and too young to die. That courtesy of my friend Rick, when asked why he carries a gun!

57 ain't that old. You're middle aged if you plan to live to 114. I know I do.
I used to say that I want to outlive all my enemies but a 75 year old friend of mine said that you just make new ones over time. So my new phrase is that I want to outlive all my old enemies and make some new ones.

 

[shazzabanazza]

Im 26 Will be 27 in May

 

[Diamondback]

@JP and The Usual Suspects: Yeah, well, long life ain't necessarily all it's cracked up to be--we've already heard me discuss what I'm staring down the barrel of, and between the combination of long life-expectancy and weakness for older (like, around ten years or less older, plus or minus a couple years) women, another catastrophic nervous breakdown is quite likely... it is very conceivable that there may come a time when dealing out my Ace of Spades would be an act of mercy, repugnant as the idea is.

Guess the lesson for the crowd my age and younger is, make the most of what you have while you have it.

 

[hutch]

42...will be 43 this April. When I was a teenager/early 20-something I thought 40's was old. Thank God I was wrong!

 

[CigarSmokePhilosopher]

I'm so glad that in the last few years nearly all 40+ year olds have adopted the use of the internet, specifically that of communities and forums.

It's so refreshing and brings a much-needed maturity to the table. I hate immaturity. Plus, in forums like this, and my cigar forum, everyone is sophisticated enough that little to no flaming occurs...

can't say the same about my honda forum... ugh... Put a million 25 year olds on a message board and things are bound to get annoying and fast.

 

[Mr Badger]

I'm so glad that in the last few years nearly all 40+ year olds have adopted the use of the internet, specifically that of communities and forums.

It's so refreshing and brings a much-needed maturity to the table. I hate immaturity...

Put a million 25 year olds on a message board and things are bound to get annoying and fast.

Too true, it's strange that a large number of the people who really use and appreciate the internet in all of its aspects are those who were around way before it. And as to your second assertion, yup, I concur wholeheartedly. As with many things in life, I feel that that what you don't say or do is as much a part of the picture as affirmative action in any sense. Mebbe that's the diff between being 25 and 41... we're all part of the solution and the problem, which is pretty difficult to grasp when you're younger and everything (gloriously!) seems just black or white... older folks who cling to the clear cut viewpoint when it comes to anything are refusing to acknowledge the everyday contrary'n'complicated nature of human existence and, IMNSHO, failing to take responsibility for their own actions.

I have had a few ales, BTW...

 

[PrettySquareGal]

42...will be 43 this April. When I was a teenager/early 20-something I thought 40's was old. Thank God I was wrong!

Thank yourself, too. I find that the 40's is when self-care and attitude is more important than ever! It seems to me that the 40's is when some people start to feel old while others are just blossoming!

 

[LizzieMaine]

I think the fact that we *didn't* grow up with the internet is precisely why we use it differently than kids do. I think people my age see it mostly as a *tool,* something to be used for a specific purpose, but not otherwise indispensible to our lives. We haven't spent our whole conscious lives tethered to it, and for the most part we aren't a part of the culture that's grown up around it, the kind of culture where HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL passes for acceptable discourse.

The question is, what happens when the HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL kids of today are the 45-and-overs of tomorrow? Will they grow out of it? Does modern culture offer any incentive for them to grow out of it?

 

[Tango Yankee]

I think the fact that we *didn't* grow up with the internet is precisely why we use it differently than kids do. I think people my age see it mostly as a *tool,* something to be used for a specific purpose, but not otherwise indispensible to our lives. We haven't spent our whole conscious lives tethered to it, and for the most part we aren't a part of the culture that's grown up around it, the kind of culture where HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL passes for acceptable discourse.

The question is, what happens when the HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL kids of today are the 45-and-overs of tomorrow? Will they grow out of it? Does modern culture offer any incentive for them to grow out of it?

While I do agree that we're more likely to see it as and to use it as a tool, I have found that for me it is an indespensible tool. I wouldn't want to go without access to it for any great length of time; it's just too useful. In fact, one of my greatest annoyances in life right now is the fact that my Internet access is via satellite, through Hughes.net, the world's lousiest Internet provider. It can take several times as long for me to complete basic tasks online from home as it might from work--if I'm able to do it at all.

As for whether or not modern culture offers any incentives for the LOL kids to grow out of it, the answer is "No." Not when the mindset in the culture continues to be that fast is better than accurate and when schools don't seem to put a premium on proper spelling and use of grammar with an eye to phasing out cursive writing.

What's funny, though, is that it was our age group that created and started using things like LOL and emoticons. We recognized that the medium did a poor job of indicating emotional context of what was written and things that were intended as humorous were read as attacks.

Regards,
Tom

 

[PrettySquareGal]

I think the fact that we *didn't* grow up with the internet is precisely why we use it differently than kids do. I think people my age see it mostly as a *tool,* something to be used for a specific purpose, but not otherwise indispensible to our lives. We haven't spent our whole conscious lives tethered to it, and for the most part we aren't a part of the culture that's grown up around it, the kind of culture where HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL passes for acceptable discourse.

The question is, what happens when the HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL kids of today are the 45-and-overs of tomorrow? Will they grow out of it? Does modern culture offer any incentive for them to grow out of it?

I think what adds to this is that we (40 somethings and up) learned about conflict resolution and frustration tolerance in person whereas now most kids are socializing electronically and simply close a window or block someone as a way to "deal" with conflict.

 

[Old Rogue]

I'm 52. PrettySquareGal is right. I've tried a few other chat rooms and blogs, and was simply dumbfounded at incivility and outright vitriol that runs rampant in those forums. The Fedora Lounge is like a breath of fresh air (yea, I know it's an old cliche, but it's accurate nonetheless). People can have grown-up discussions and even disagree while remaining polite and respectful. The fact the lounge is dedicated to a subject that we all love is just icing on the cake (sorry, couldn't resist another cliche!).

 

[Mr Badger]

I think the fact that we *didn't* grow up with the internet is precisely why we use it differently than kids do. I think people my age see it mostly as a *tool,* something to be used for a specific purpose, but not otherwise indispensible to our lives. We haven't spent our whole conscious lives tethered to it, and for the most part we aren't a part of the culture that's grown up around it, the kind of culture where HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL passes for acceptable discourse.

The question is, what happens when the HAHAHA U SUK LOL LOL kids of today are the 45-and-overs of tomorrow? Will they grow out of it? Does modern culture offer any incentive for them to grow out of it?

I concur. I use the internet every day, at work and at home, and it's great for many different uses, but it's no substitute for personal interaction. Happily, there are very good online communities, including FL, which enable a wider and deeper virtual interaction on a genuinely beneficial and enjoyable level.

I think that the social skills of the current generation are different and it's gonna take a while to see how that pans out. I mean, didn't we all used to use some kind of greasy kids slang when we were young? I'm guessing that there aren't many FLers who, fer instance, still yell "Sock it to me!", say "NOT!", or do the kid from The Simpsons' "HA-ha!" all the time...

I wouldn't necessarily say that the abilities of teachers are lesser – the ones I know are a darn sight more intelligent and hard-working than those I had when I was a kid – but the lack of structure is worrying. I had a terrible education but I still turned out all right – I'm an editor at a large magazine publisher and just finished the UK Musicians' Union Handbook before Xmas. Nevertheless, all of the useful skills (grammar, spelling, basic numeracy, how to interpret information, etc) were taught to me by rote, from a blackboard, between the ages of five and 10. When I got to secondary education and it was all project-based, I learnt nothing and quickly became an autodidact... I think it's gonna depend on whether the innate curiosity of kids wins out over LOL kultchur, and the internet allows them to explore the world in a different but (hopefully) equally expansive way. If I was being paranoid (having read enough Philip K Dick in my time!), I'd say that the 'stay in your home, fear everyone' push from the mainstream media is a bigger threat to the future of personal interaction and acceptable/reasonable discourse!

 

[MissMittens]

This is a difficult one for me. I'm on the cusp, where I remember a time without internet, but don't remember a time without a computer or email.
I remember hogging Compuserve as a little kid to send and receive email, where you had to put the telephone handset on top of a box and dial out. I was probably 7 or 8.

So while I didn't always have internet as we know it, I did grow up around the technology that became the internet. I just can't believe it's as useless as it is now...seems everyone is trying to sell something nowadays.

 

[CharlieB]

I think that the social skills of the current generation are different and it's gonna take a while to see how that pans out. I mean, didn't we all used to use some kind of greasy kids slang when we were young? I'm guessing that there aren't many FLers who, fer instance, still yell "Sock it to me!", say "NOT!", or do the kid from The Simpsons' "HA-ha!" all the time...

Some excellent points, Mr Badger. The other thing to look at is how technology is either replaced or incorporated into new media very rapidly. My kids are both in their 20's and grew up with the technology of the internet, e-mail, etc. The strange thing is, that many teens and younger don't even use e-mail anymore - text messaging ( I refuse to accept "text" as a verb) has made it almost obsolete outside business or those over 30.

I think I will go listen to my 8-tracks while wearing my leisure suit and accompanied by my pet rock...

 

[jamespowers]

Some excellent points, Mr Badger. The other thing to look at is how technology is either replaced or incorporated into new media very rapidly. My kids are both in their 20's and grew up with the technology of the internet, e-mail, etc. The strange thing is, that many teens and younger don't even use e-mail anymore - text messaging ( I refuse to accept "text" as a verb) has made it almost obsolete outside business or those over 30.

I think I will go listen to my 8-tracks while wearing my leisure suit and accompanied by my pet rock...

Leisure suit!?:eeek::eusa_doh: