You know you are getting old when:

[GHT]

There are thousands of jokes on the internet about this, like your back goes out more times than you do, but do you have any anecdotes that have made you walk away thinking: "I must be getting old?"

For most of my purchases, I pay cash. The bank note type of cash. Small traders, no problem, employees working in the large conglomerates, big problem. Twice this week I have been subjected to an inquisition that more or less implied that I was a money launderer. Huh! I should be so lucky.

I read a story in today's paper about trying to purchase a goldfish from a company called: Pets At Home. It regales the stupidity of today's society, so much so, that someone has created a forum see here.

Looking after Daughter's gold fish, one dies and decide to replace it. Go to Pets at Home and experience the bloody 'Spanish inquisition'! Some bloody jobs worth asked me size of tank, what filter system did I have and wait for it... What experience did I have of fish? Explained very slowly that I was just looking after Daughter's fish and one died and NO, tank didn't have filter system, but I planned to transfer fish to pond. Told it was company policy not to sell fish to customers without filter systems! Got asked to leave store when wife pointed out that most of their fish had fin rot and how could they moralise when their fish were in such a poor state!

We have come a long way in my life time, but sometimes I can't help but feel that with every pace forward, we take two back.

And none more so than the internet. How many times has your purchase failed, because you mis-read those distorted hieroglyphics that is supposed to prevent some sort of snooping. In exasperation, you pick up the phone, only to go on another merry-go-round?

Is it just me getting old, or am I turning into Jeff Dunham's caustic side-kick: "Walter?"

 

[LizzieMaine]

You know you're getting old when you drop something on the floor and have to think about whether it's actually worth bending over to pick it up.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

For most of my purchases, I pay cash. The bank note type of cash. Small traders, no problem, employees working in the large conglomerates, big problem. Twice this week I have been subjected to an inquisition that more or less implied that I was a money launderer. Huh! I should be so lucky.

Several years ago I ran up a small credit card debt that went into collection. So the collection agency calls me and says that I owe so much money, so I said, fine, who do I make the check out to? They said that they didn't take checks and they wouldn't even give me their mailing address! So I asked them what form of payment do they accept and they said credit card only!

Hello??? That's the reason why I didn't have a credit card at the time!!! :doh:

Well, back to the topic. You know you're getting old when your doctor is younger than you.

 

[GHT]

Several years ago I ran up a small credit card debt that went into collection. So the collection agency calls me and says that I owe so much money, so I said, fine, who do I make the check out to? They said that they didn't take checks and they wouldn't even give me their mailing address! So I asked them what form of payment do they accept and they said credit card only!
Hello??? That's the reason why I didn't have a credit card at the time!!!

That's not off topic at all, it's exactly what I am talking about. In my youth I thought that the UK had the monopoly on crass stupidity.
Saying: "I must be getting old," was a euphemistic way of telling someone that they were an idiot. The coming of the internet, I then thought that it was the english speaking countries of the world that took crass stupidity to new heights. Now I realise that anyone in the public sector can have a moment of glory.

The expression job's worth, used by the guy in the pet shop trying to buy a replacement fish, is so succinct. It was coined by Esther Rantzen, she presented a TV show in the 70's called: "That's Life." It lampooned the worker who would say: "It's more than my job's worth."

It made me smile when, on a trip to the States, back in the late seventies, I took some travellers cheques into the post office.
I was treated to, much sucking of air through closed teeth, shaking of head and shrugging of shoulders. My crime? Wife and I held a joint passport. They are no longer issued, and America didn't have them, so the post office counter assistant, having never seen one, instead of letting me explain, went into, 'more than my job's worth' mode.

 

[Stanley Doble]

When you hear someone is having a party, when you are young you are afraid you won't be invited. When you are old you are afraid you will.

 

[LizzieMaine]

You know you're getting old when your shoes are older than anyone you work with.

 

[jamespowers]

You know you are old when your some of your undergarments are older than some of the people you work with.

 

[Touchofevil]

You know you are old when your some of your undergarments are older than some of the people you work with.

That sounds more like a hygiene issue.

 

[HudsonHawk]

You know you're getting old when your shoes are older than anyone you work with.

We have a few new young guys on our baseball team this year, and the other night, we were talking about the upcoming game on Saturday. One of the youngsters says "cool...I'm going to be 20 on Saturday." I said "20 what?" He looked puzzled for a second and said "years...it's my birthday...I'll be 20 years old on Saturday." I said "you're only 20? Geez...my cup is older than you." Broke the boys up.

 

[Gingerella72]

I feel old whenever I see a new installment of Kids React:


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

 

[Gingerella72]

[video=youtube;Uk_vV-JRZ6E]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk_vV-JRZ6E[/video]

 

[LizzieMaine]

You know you're getting old when you think third-base coaches are cute.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

You know you're getting old when you realize that most young people today are three generations removed from the World War II Generation.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

[video=youtube;Uk_vV-JRZ6E]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk_vV-JRZ6E[/video]

The saddest part is that many kids seem have even less awareness of a time before their own than when we were their age!

 

[jamespowers]

That sounds more like a hygiene issue.

Well, normal people wash them you know. :doh:

 

[Sloan1874]

The saddest part is that many kids seem have even less awareness of a time before their own than when we were their age!

Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me, or at least terminally lazy. Most kids, even nowadays, would pick up the words 'eject' and 'play' as clues.

 

[F. J.]

Oh dear, children these days . . .

Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me [...]

Quite. Especially since they thought that 'texting' was a possibility on a WE 500. The thought of sending a telegram--of which 'texting' is a reasonable modern-day equivalent--would never have occurred to them.

I also couldn't help noticing that none of them knew what to call the various parts, such as handset, fingerstop, cradle, fingerwheel (dial), etc., or even knew what a busy signal or dial tone was.

Another thing was that one kid commenting to the effect that rotary telephones are a technology of only ten years ago. My goodness! The WE 500 was developed in 1949! That's a tad more than ten years, or perhaps my arithmetic is behind the times . . .


I only hope that you're right about this bunch, and that they do not represent the majority of their generation.

Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me, or at least terminally lazy. [...]

 

[stevew443]

You know you are getting old when you are old enough to be your new co-worker's grandfather. I was working at this job for 10 years before they were born.

 

[LizzieMaine]

You know you're getting old when people thirty years younger than you are worried about getting grey hair.

 

[sheeplady]

You know you're getting old when you have to tell the cashier how to make change.