Signs that I am Growing Old

First: Last night, I had a little time to catch up some stuff I TiVo'd. (I still haven't decided what to think of this show. It's not great but it's not bad. It has an interesting premise and yet I still can't figure out why the character Barb would agree to this. And I don't really get what the women see in Bill Paxton's character. Sure, he seems like a nice guy and all but not someone I'd love so much that I'd put up sharing him with others. But I digress.) Anyway, on the show, someone mentions that the first Gulf War was 15 years ago. Fifteen YEARS ago? How can that be? That means that Gulf War is as ancient history to today's 20-somethings as the Vietnam war was to me. I'm old.

Next: I was listening to the radio and Madonna's "Into the Groove" came on. I never even cared for that song but, since it took me back 21 years, I had to turn it up. I'm a teenager again and I'm boy-crazy and looking forward to the summer. And then Guns and Roses' "Paradise City" came on. Before I know it I'm driving along in a minivan with "Paradise City" blasting. WTF? Now, I never that GNR was bad but I didn't really rock out to them either. But suddenly it's the late '80s and I'm maybe 21 or 22. I'm hanging out with a girl who's a little wilder than me. She dates a drummer in a rock 'n' roll band and we travel around the southeast to see them play. We hang out at the band house. (Flashforward 15 years later: I lose track of the band but then, whaddya know? The lead singer has sobered up and married one of my friends. I NEVER would have predicted that.)

Finally: I've been feeling so nostalgic lately. Is it my age? I have a milestone birthday coming up (a few months from now) and I've been thinking a lot about people I've known over the years. I'm happy with my personal life, my job is ok, everything seems fine. But I have become so sentimental lately.

A simple errand at night reminds me of driving around aimlessly with one of my high school friends. REM or Jason and the Scorchers are playing. We talk about music and boys and music again. We don't know where we're going, literally or figuratively, but it's night time, the breeze is warm, the music is good, and the air is full of promise.