How dumb I can be
I retired early, last spring, so I could spend more time caring for my out-of-state 93 yo mother. I thought I was all prepared for reduced income. I thought I had my lifetime set of bikes; a Felt road, a Terry tourer, and a MTB modified into a city bike. At 5'0", these were hard to find and were set up with the shortest stems available for road bikes. Late last fall I suddenly noticed that the reach was feeling long, so it shouldn't have been a shock when my MD told me I was only 4'11". I've changed handlebars to help with the fit some. About the only way I can get a shorter stem is to get a DH stem, which will look bad on my bikes. Another year and another inch and I will probably need a new bike,which I hadn't budgeted. When I had already been diagnosed with osteoporosis, and every time I hug my mother (who was taller than me) I notice that my chin rests on her head; how could I have not planned for my own loss of height? I even worked for a guy that was always saying "Denial is not a river in Egypt". It is hard to make the transition from "grown-up" to "shrinking".