Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Fifty Plus (50+)
Reload this Page >

The older I get the less I care

Notices
Fifty Plus (50+) Share the victories, challenges, successes and special concerns of bicyclists 50 and older. Especially useful for those entering or reentering bicycling.

The older I get the less I care

Old 12-31-18, 10:48 PM
  #51  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Originally Posted by jefscolnago
You consider 51 in any way old? Gimme a break!
not really old lol so I am a newbie to 50+ I always related better to the older crowd even when I was 20-40 yes I understand the people that were 25 years old when I was born back in 1968 that I知 still a puppy. I知 just preparing to hopefully have a healthy fit existence for here on out.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 12-31-18, 10:51 PM
  #52  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
I love that website and when at Walmart I see similar people lol.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 12-31-18, 11:01 PM
  #53  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Originally Posted by Rowan
Hondo, you know how close I came to dying this year in a workplace accident.

Yeah, there were a few things in my life that I didn't care about since my mid to late 30s. But after the incident last March, I care a much more about my health, thinking about the safety level of the things I might be thinking of doing, and above all else, thinking positively about the people who saved my life, and/or expressed their care and attention, and are still active in their efforts..

My wife, Machka, fits most of all in that entirely.

There always will be the selfish, self-centred few who exist and make themselves known to me in a negative way, but they oddly have virtually no influence over what I think about staying alive, or my return to a comparatively normal life.

And take it from me... your and other 50+ forum members' postings in Machka's post on me has (a) generated huge respect for others' expressions about my welfare and health, and (b) been hugely valuable to me in giving me reason for surviving (with cycling as the truly fundamental part of my life after Machka).
In all seriousness when I saw all the people that genuinely cared about you and you池e well being to recovery it gave me a better outlook on humans. And how Machka kept this cycling community informed on the progress and how everyone responded with support and care. It is not quite 2019 yet here in South Texas but down under y誕ll already in 2019. So, You and Machka have a great 2019 with many more cycling adventures.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 01-01-19, 02:16 AM
  #54  
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: La-la Land, CA
Posts: 3,623

Bikes: Cannondale Quick SL1 Bike - 2014

Mentioned: 32 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3405 Post(s)
Liked 240 Times in 185 Posts
Only now do I realize how much nonsense older people give out. Especially those that claim they don't care. Either you're not saying what you mean or just being disingenuous.
Originally Posted by bogydave
By the age of 50
most have figured out what’s important
...
the rest of the stuff ...
we don’t waste much time thinking or caring about it

at 60, there’s some adjustments made
Retirement refines it some more

Then
Expect subtle changes to continually occur.

?what was the question?
More likely just given up trying. Most people stop maturing at 16. Sure they learn more stuff, but not how to apply it to become better people. After that, they just get older. Its like our technological developments. They get more advancements but we don't.

Even the poorest of us is much better off than our ancestors were back then. But Is there any wonder mankind is just as selfish today as he was 1000 years ago, and 1000 years before that. He's still emotionally 16.
KraneXL is offline  
Old 01-01-19, 09:52 AM
  #55  
Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Chicago suburbs
Posts: 40

Bikes: My Schwinn World GSE and Wifes CurrieTech Path+

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Caring

I just turned 80 and was thinking about the comments on this subject and ......sorry, forgot what I wanted to write. Maybe nobody will care
Richard60463 is offline  
Old 05-12-19, 09:28 AM
  #56  
Rebuilding
 
Join Date: Jun 2018
Location: New Rockford, North Dakota
Posts: 24

Bikes: Schwinns: 72 Sports Tourer, 74? Super Sport; Tresome 2.0 Hybrid

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times in 2 Posts
Spot on today's world

Holy . . . I think you nailed it. I'm printing this off b/c too much of today is extremes. We have to have empathy whether we agree with them or not. Listen & learn - we can all make up our own minds, but a closed system never grows.

KCC74

Originally Posted by canklecat
If by "don't care" you mean different priorities, that's a normal part of aging.

At 61, having spent much of the past 20 years as a caregiver for three successive older family members until they died, I've watched the effects of aging and, now, am experiencing it firsthand.

I used to joke that old people drove recklessly, carelessly or indifferently because their attitude was "I'm old, dammit, get outta my way. I don't care anymore!" Actually it turned out most of them simply have diminished vision, reflexes, and situational awareness.

But it doesn't affect everyone the same. For example, there's a bit of conventional wisdom tossed around the media and pop culture that claims most people become more "conservative" with age. That hasn't been my experience at all. They do tend to become more intolerant. But that doesn't indicate anything about their views on politics, the economy, religion, etc.

Some of my friends my age and older, including a couple I've known since college, range from extreme right to extreme left. What they share is the same intolerance for opposing views. They aren't interested in conversations or persuasion, only in shoving their opinions at everyone else. On Facebook they just meme at each other, posting a dozen or more times a day, all extremist right or left articles, images, etc.

A few folks are still very tolerant and moderate in views, but they don't express themselves often. In part that's because our acquaintances who hold extreme left or right views tend to regard with mistrust or contempt anyone who has a moderate or balanced perspective. So I tend to avoid conversations or debates with some of my acquaintances because their attitude is usually "My way or the highway. Disagree in the slightest tiny detail and I'll unfriend you."

So in that regard they care. They care about their own perspective and no one else's. They don't care about other people's differing or nuanced perspectives or experiences. They've lost some capacity for empathy. I've watched it happen gradually over the past decade. It's not just due to social media or pop culture or anything else. They've gotten older and, facing imminent mortality, they feel there's no time to waste on anyone or anything who doesn't meet their standards and demands. They care. They just don't care about you.

Retaining a sense of empathy, compassion or a moderate and flexible perspective takes a lot of effort. It's harder to hold onto as we see death around us, experience the effects of aging -- less energy, chronic pain, diminishing physical functions -- and see others committing the same mistakes we made when we were younger.

Caring is a PITA. It means I can't just drag rude and reckless drivers out of their vehicles after they've nearly killed me and beat them like pinatas until the candy spills out. It means we have to show equal regard for deaths of loved ones of friends as we do for births, despite not having the right words to offer in a show of compassion. It's easier to find something to be angry about as a distraction, because it feeds our brain chemical triggers that invigorate us and make us feel alive. We rarely feel more alive than when we're under the sway of righteous indignation.
KCC74 is offline  
Likes For KCC74:
Old 05-12-19, 11:19 AM
  #57  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Tucson Az
Posts: 1,655

Bikes: 2015 Ridley Fenix, 1983 Team Fuji, 2019 Marin Nail Trail 6

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 332 Post(s)
Liked 205 Times in 128 Posts
I think as you get older, you care more about what's import to you, and you start to care less about the stuff that isn't, along with the things you have no control over anyway.

When I find I'm bothered by the days events, I go ride, or hit the gym and lift it out of me.
Wileyrat is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 08:57 AM
  #58  
Full Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Sartell, MN
Posts: 329

Bikes: Trek Millennia, Trek 400, Raleigh Superbe, Giant OCR3, Bianchi Milano

Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 124 Post(s)
Liked 62 Times in 41 Posts
I stopped caring when I was pretty young. I realized early on that people fail to consider the consequence of their actions. Myself included. We often merely push forward in some awkward social competition where the outcome doesn't really mean anything of value. So what do you do for fun when the people you know are good but they keep putting themselves into failure loops? Or their beliefs are out of touch with the reality in which they live? You seek out an activity where you're with those you really care about but may not have a parity of stuff to bring to the proverbial table of conversation. You ride motorcycles.

And when the idiots who can't put their cell phones down long enough to drive without crossing center lines or fog lines cross your threshold of tolerance, you trade those motorcycles for a highly visible truck. Because then at least these fools won't kill you.

Somewhere along the timeline between trading motorized two wheelers for human powered two wheelers I had a pretty good bout of cancer. But death never was a personal fear of mine. It's once you have a family that things begin to change. You're living for others more than you are for yourself. So you want to live for those who matter to you and because you matter to them. Your life really isn't yours anymore. And what you do care about changes. Or, I should say, you begin to care about things. You realize family is the most important entity you can care about and opinions, not so much. Not that opinions ever meant that much even though we like to think ours are "new and improved". (My personal inner circle is partly comprised of people who vehemently oppose my political views yet we have been there for each other in the worst of times.)

I think an irony might be when a person decides he or she stops caring and then discovers a hole in their life. A vacuum. Ya can't let that exist and fester. Humans seem predisposed to care about something. Apathy can lead to narcissism if the will is stronger than the conscience.

more to say, gotta run
shrtdstncrdr is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 09:35 AM
  #59  
Senior Member
 
Maelochs's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 15,453

Bikes: 2015 Workswell 066, 2017 Workswell 093, 2014 Dawes Sheila, 1983 Cannondale 500, 1984 Raleigh Olympian, 2007 Cannondale Rize 4, 2017 Fuji Sportif 1 LE

Mentioned: 144 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 7628 Post(s)
Liked 3,450 Times in 1,823 Posts
I'd respond to all this ... but OP wouldn't care.
Maelochs is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 10:02 AM
  #60  
- Soli Deo Gloria -
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northwest Georgia
Posts: 14,782

Bikes: 2018 Rodriguez Custom Fixed Gear, 2017 Niner RLT 9 RDO, 2015 Bianchi Pista, 2002 Fuji Robaix

Mentioned: 235 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6844 Post(s)
Liked 736 Times in 469 Posts
Nobody cares what I think.
TimothyH is offline  
Likes For TimothyH:
Old 05-22-19, 11:55 AM
  #61  
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: La-la Land, CA
Posts: 3,623

Bikes: Cannondale Quick SL1 Bike - 2014

Mentioned: 32 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3405 Post(s)
Liked 240 Times in 185 Posts
Originally Posted by Richard60463
I just turned 80 and was thinking about the comments on this subject and ......sorry, forgot what I wanted to write. Maybe nobody will care
I've loved learning all my life, and even though I'm aging I'm still always trying to learn something new. When I was growing up I was one of the few kids that hated summers because there was no school, no structure and nothing new to learn.

I made a promise back then to never stop leaning, and that's a promise I can say I've kept up to this point. If you think nobody cares then you're not surrounding yourself with the right type of people.

With age comes knowledge and wisdom, and anyone around you would be foolish not to listen. I did listen to my elders, but still sometimes wish I had listened more.

Last edited by KraneXL; 05-22-19 at 12:58 PM.
KraneXL is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 12:47 PM
  #62  
Senior Member
 
rumrunn6's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: 25 miles northwest of Boston
Posts: 29,520

Bikes: Bottecchia Sprint, GT Timberline 29r, Marin Muirwoods 29er, Trek FX Alpha 7.0

Mentioned: 112 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 5218 Post(s)
Liked 3,564 Times in 2,331 Posts
Yo Hondo, I'm thinkin' it's time for a new girlfriend, right?
rumrunn6 is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 12:54 PM
  #63  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Originally Posted by rumrunn6
Yo Hondo, I'm thinkin' it's time for a new girlfriend, right?
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO I like the weight my wallet has gained.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Likes For Hondo Gravel:
Old 05-22-19, 04:15 PM
  #64  
- Soli Deo Gloria -
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northwest Georgia
Posts: 14,782

Bikes: 2018 Rodriguez Custom Fixed Gear, 2017 Niner RLT 9 RDO, 2015 Bianchi Pista, 2002 Fuji Robaix

Mentioned: 235 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6844 Post(s)
Liked 736 Times in 469 Posts
Originally Posted by Hondo Gravel
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO I like the weight my wallet has gained.
"She's so fine, there's no tellin' where the money went."
- Robert Palmer


-Tim-
TimothyH is offline  
Old 05-22-19, 11:55 PM
  #65  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Originally Posted by TimothyH
"She's so fine, there's no tellin' where the money went."
- Robert Palmer


-Tim-
from our era
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 06:38 AM
  #66  
- Soli Deo Gloria -
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northwest Georgia
Posts: 14,782

Bikes: 2018 Rodriguez Custom Fixed Gear, 2017 Niner RLT 9 RDO, 2015 Bianchi Pista, 2002 Fuji Robaix

Mentioned: 235 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6844 Post(s)
Liked 736 Times in 469 Posts
Robert Palmer has great hair.

But I don't care.


-Tim-
TimothyH is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 07:39 AM
  #67  
Senior Member
 
Maelochs's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 15,453

Bikes: 2015 Workswell 066, 2017 Workswell 093, 2014 Dawes Sheila, 1983 Cannondale 500, 1984 Raleigh Olympian, 2007 Cannondale Rize 4, 2017 Fuji Sportif 1 LE

Mentioned: 144 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 7628 Post(s)
Liked 3,450 Times in 1,823 Posts
Robert Palmer is almost certainly over 50 by now ... doubt he cares.
Maelochs is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 08:52 AM
  #68  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Robert Palmer dead at 54 in 2003 I thought he was still alive.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 09:01 AM
  #69  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Spotsylvania, VA
Posts: 90

Bikes: Specialized Sirrus, Cannondale Catalyst, Diamond Back Extreme TG, Schwinn Mesa Runner with an 88cc 2 stroke engine

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 47 Post(s)
Liked 25 Times in 15 Posts
Originally Posted by Hondo Gravel
Pushing 51 and I have noticed that as time passes by the less I care. Is this normal when being 50+? I知 a newbie so any insight will be helpful.
Guy Clark said "turning 50 is great, your give a ****ter stops working"
frogbiscuit is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 09:46 AM
  #70  
 
Join Date: Feb 2015
Location: La-la Land, CA
Posts: 3,623

Bikes: Cannondale Quick SL1 Bike - 2014

Mentioned: 32 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3405 Post(s)
Liked 240 Times in 185 Posts
Exactly what is it you stop caring about? Self? Family? People? Global warming? The state of the Union? I know once a man gets married he stops caring about how he looks, regardless of age.

Last edited by KraneXL; 05-23-19 at 11:43 AM.
KraneXL is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 11:36 AM
  #71  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
Originally Posted by KraneXL
Exactly what is it you stop caring about? Self? Family? People? Global warming? The state of the Union? I know once a man gets married he stops caring about how then looks, regardless of age.
EVERYTHING I do care about my bikes functioning properly so I keep them tuned up.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 05:44 PM
  #72  
- Soli Deo Gloria -
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Northwest Georgia
Posts: 14,782

Bikes: 2018 Rodriguez Custom Fixed Gear, 2017 Niner RLT 9 RDO, 2015 Bianchi Pista, 2002 Fuji Robaix

Mentioned: 235 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 6844 Post(s)
Liked 736 Times in 469 Posts
Originally Posted by Hondo Gravel
Robert Palmer dead at 54 in 2003 I thought he was still alive.
May God have mercy on his soul, and ours.

-PAX-
TimothyH is offline  
Old 05-23-19, 10:19 PM
  #73  
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 16,771
Mentioned: 125 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1454 Post(s)
Liked 85 Times in 40 Posts
Originally Posted by Hondo Gravel
Robert Palmer dead at 54 in 2003 I thought he was still alive.
Yes, it was a bit of a surprise to hear at the time, but I am one of those who thinks his music was good enough to continue hearing despite him no longer being around. Same with a few others like John Lennon and George Harrison.

Outside the general thrust of the thread, there have been deaths of people I know personally, including one last week and another several months ago both involved in cycling (although not the cause of their departure), to make me care a little more rather than less.

And while the behaviour of some young people I have seen recently means less care about their own personal futures, I have seen plenty of good ones --including nursing staff and some other workers, and bus travellers who can thank the driver as they get off -- who deserve care and thought from me about what they do.
Rowan is offline  
Old 05-24-19, 07:52 AM
  #74  
Life Feeds On Life
Thread Starter
 
Hondo Gravel's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Hondo,Texas
Posts: 2,143

Bikes: Too many Motobecanes

Mentioned: 11 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 4385 Post(s)
Liked 4,496 Times in 3,008 Posts
I remember back in 1986 when the video for the song Sledgehammer came out and at that time it was the best music video ever made and probably still is today IMO.
Hondo Gravel is offline  
Old 05-24-19, 03:34 PM
  #75  
Senior Member
 
gnappi's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: So. Flo. U.S.A
Posts: 62

Bikes: All are vintage... Schwinn 564, Cannondale Criterium 600, Cannondale F300 MB

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 21 Post(s)
Liked 17 Times in 12 Posts
Originally Posted by Hondo Gravel
Pushing 51 and I have noticed that as time passes by the less I care. Is this normal when being 50+? I知 a newbie so any insight will be helpful.
At 67, I care less about things I should care about, even less than things I need to care about, and not at all regarding things some others around me care about.
gnappi is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.