MetaChat - Another middle-aged moment.

I recently got the same reaction for telling some youngsters "Sigourney Weaver" to the same question. They laughed and then when they realized I was serious gave me the "how old ARE you??!!" look.

posted by Slack-a-gogo 12 July | 19:06

I hear ya. Today, a handsome young guy came up to me and asked for help in finding an obscure item in the store. Even though it wasn't my department, I had an idea, and led him to it, chatting all the way. He was very friendly, with striking blue eyes. I actually found the item, and he thanked me very much for my help. Then he added the dreaded "Ma'am." (translation: you could be my mom). Sigh. No, scratch that. Sob. I'm a ma'am now. Old lady. Cougar, you could say. (Rawr). Mention certain tv shows to younger coworkers, and I only get blank stares. Rats.

posted by redvixen 12 July | 19:08

On the plus side, I did get wolf-whistled at the other day. Does it matter that the whistler was in his 70s?

posted by redvixen 12 July | 19:10

One of my old girlfriends in Seattle once hosted an '80s Revival Party and was really pleased that I was her man because I was actually ALIVE back then and could verify their costumes.

I don't know which was weirder - that, or the fact that same girlfriend had no idea who the Who were.

"Hey Nineteen, she don't remember Queen of Soul..."

posted by Lipstick Thespian 12 July | 19:12

Susan Sarandon is so beautiful and smart. She always comes across as even-tempered and graceful, even when she is being interviewed by Bill O'Reilly.

I would kill for Sigourney Weaver's voice. She is another favorite actress of mine.

I love Andy Garcia. He's old and has a big belly but he cleans up nicely.

About seven years ago when I was working in the ICU a couple of coworkers and I were discussing Sheryl Crow. We were saying that we liked her music, she was talented, etc. Then I said something very dumb. One of my very good friends said, "she's really pretty", and I said, "she's looking kind of old." At that moment I regretted saying that. It was stupid. Where did that come from? Ugh.

posted by LoriFLA 12 July | 19:14

Hell, the only women who flirt with me attractive are over 50. Take it where you find it, vix.

(late 30's/early 40's is kind of a no man's land, especially if you haven't started a family/done the house-in-the-burbs thing/become some kind of big shot. You feel kind of alienated from both the dewy-eyed youngsters and the 'back-in-my-day' old farts).

posted by jonmc 12 July | 19:15

And Andy Garcia isn't "old". You know what I mean. Older than Justin Timberlake.

posted by LoriFLA 12 July | 19:17

Yeah, I turn 42 on Monday, and I thought I was okay with it, but a tumbler full of vodka and cranberry tonight may beg to differ.

And the other day I saw a before and after of a tummy tuck/boob lift combo on TV and, instead of my usual "no way," found myself thinking, "hmm, that doesn't look so bad..." and "I wonder how much."

posted by Pips 12 July | 19:18

(Jon wouldn't have to lift my boob up to lick it. ; )

posted by Pips 12 July | 19:21

I would kill for Sigourney Weaver's voice. She is another favorite actress of mine.

She DOES have an incredibly sexy voice.

I think people whose sexiness comes from inside, and isn't just "painted on," tend to stay sexy well into old age. Sean Connery is older than dirt and I still think he's gorgeous.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 19:31

I don't know which was weirder - that, or the fact that same girlfriend had no idea who the Who were.

The first time I met a co-worker who didn't know who Lou Reed was, I died a little inside.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 19:33

You could say the same about Lauren Bacall. She's old enough to me grandma and still gets my motor racing.

Somebody like say Brad Pitt (no offense to him, I like him as an actor),..well, people once thought Jan Michael Vincent was the new Adonis, too.

The first time I met a co-worker who didn't know who Lou Reed was, I died a little inside.

I had a similar experience involving Parliament-Funkadelic, and the kid in question was a DJ.

posted by jonmc 12 July | 19:34

Pips, I have a feeling he doesn't mind....

posted by bunnyfire 12 July | 19:36

I had a similar experience involving Parliament-Funkadelic, and the kid in question was a DJ.

That is possibly even worse. (Because of him being a DJ.)

Brad Pitt, now, he just keeps getting hotter, IMO. (We're the same age... he gives me hope.) I never liked it when he looked too Hollywood-pretty, so age suits him IMO.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 19:42

Well, he'll never be a better actor than when he played the stoned couch guy Floyd in True Romance, so in that sense, he peaked early (and to his credit, he uglied himself up for the role).

posted by jonmc 12 July | 19:48

I think Tyler Durden in Fight Club was his best role, but I have to admit if I was gonna spend one night with Mr Pitt, I'd want him to look like the redneck in Kalifornia. Rawr.

I probably shouldn't admit this, but you can guess from this what a couple of my exes looked like. Heh.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 20:00

and to his credit, he uglied himself up for the role

I always felt that Brad Pitt exerted his talents in inverse proportion to his conventional attractiveness in any given role. Tweaked out, with a patchy haircut, and dressed like a guy who dances for nickels outside the bus depot, he delivers great performances. Sleek and handsome and well-dressed, he bores me stupid.

posted by Elsa 12 July | 20:30

*buys some beer. and cleaning products.*

(that's still his best comedic moment. he needs to be funny more. wait a minute, how did a discussion of my descent into geezerhood turn into a Brad Pitt thread. Fuckin' pretty boys...)

posted by jonmc 12 July | 20:39

he needs to be funny more.

There, we agree, j. Hence my love of him as Tyler Durden. It's amazing how many people didn't get that Fight Club was a (very dark) comedy.

I always felt that Brad Pitt exerted his talents in inverse proportion to his conventional attractiveness in any given role.

That's true, Elsa! I think it's because of the kind of movie... movies where he's cast as a "heart throb" are generally mainstream Hollywood dreck. The less-slick movies where they cast him as kind of crazy let him ham it up a bit, and he's great at that.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 21:29

Heh, I had to explain George Clinton to this young kid (early 20's) recently. His parents, who were there, had no clue either. Some people just don't have it I guess. I just hope the kid takes some lessons from it and expands his horizons.

As far as my geezerhood, I'm finding young, pretty girls in their early 20's disgustingly young. Not that I don't find them attractive, but sexually they just don't do it for me anymore. Being 43, shit almost 44, there's other things I find more appealing. I guess being a hermit does that to a person...

posted by eekacat 12 July | 21:36

Pips

Yeah, I turn 42 on Monday, and I thought I was okay with it, but a tumbler full of vodka and cranberry tonight may beg to differ.

Pips. I turned 42 today and I've got to say that I'm still really digging getting older. I hate to go with the tired "you're as young as you feel" thing, but I think it's true. I have some peers that seemed to have thrown in the towel and started acting old and losing their spark, and others that seem to take it in stride. The bones are a bit creakier now and I'm paying a bit more attention to how old people are when they die, but I still laugh my ass off, thrive on the same curiosity I did thirty years ago, and genuinely enjoy my life. My advice (as a man two days older thn you!!!) is to just roll with it. Although vodka is always good to have on hand...

posted by Slack-a-gogo 12 July | 21:52

Happy Birthday, Slack-a-gogo!

posted by LoriFLA 12 July | 22:00

Thanks for the encouragement, slack (and bunnyfire)... I appreciate it.

And Happy Birthday!

posted by Pips 12 July | 22:00

and I'm paying a bit more attention to how old people are when they die

Yeah, I do this, too. John Ritter threw me a few years back, and today, with Tony Snow, at 53. Of colon cancer. My father first got colon cancer around age 50. And I had an uncle that died of it in his forties, before I was born. (Yet I'm still foolishly hoping to put off my first colonoscopy for another year or so.) My father was luckier, though. No recurrence for 25 years. It's so sad watching that footage of Snow, how you can want to live so badly and it just doesn't matter. You die anyway.

(sorry to be morbid on your birthday)

posted by Pips 12 July | 22:20

It's so sad watching that footage of Snow, how you can want to live so badly and it just doesn't matter. You die anyway.

That gets me, too. I resolutely DID NOT LIKE the guy, but I wanted him to survive and am really sad that he didn't.

posted by BoringPostcards 12 July | 22:24

Yeah, I do this, too. John Ritter threw me a few years back

That one got me too. There are some celebrities that for some reason you consider "one of us", and those hit a bit closer to home.

(sorry to be morbid on your birthday)

Hey, Mrs Slack made cupcakes for me, so it's going to take more than that to bum me out!!!

posted by Slack-a-gogo 12 July | 22:27

I feel guilty for being upset about 29 now.
But, my grandmother just turned 81. She tells everyone she's 78.

posted by kellydamnit 12 July | 22:28

Get off my lawn, kellydamnit!

posted by jonmc 12 July | 22:30

Ooo, cupcakes... cupcakes make everything better. :)

posted by Pips 12 July | 22:43

"You could say the same about Lauren Bacall. She's old enough to me grandma and still gets my motor racing."

At the age of 19, as Slim (named after director Howard Hawks's wife). in To Have and Have Not Bacall was not just hot but a match for the much older Bogart. Lots of young actors are hot but few have the presence of Bacall and fewer still are sexy so many years on.

posted by arse_hat 13 July | 00:16

This is one of the benefits of living on another planet - the locals don't know any of these people regardless of age. Never heard of Aretha Franklin? Makes sense, as you've also never heard of Justin Timberlake or Tom Cruise or 50 cent or...

posted by Meatbomb 13 July | 08:57

(late 30's/early 40's is kind of a no man's land, especially if you haven't started a family/done the house-in-the-burbs thing/become some kind of big shot. You feel kind of alienated from both the dewy-eyed youngsters and the 'back-in-my-day' old farts).

Nod, nod. I was at a house party in the country last weekend (wow, that sounds so English -- there was no fox hunting). The party-goers were all 29 to 31 or so, plus some parents who were 60ish. At 42, I was nowhere. I was also sad that one of the 30-year-olds had already made millions, hence the country property. Ooops, I forgot to make any money or to acquire any property.

posted by Claudia_SF 13 July | 12:34

I think Julie Newmar is still amazingly hot, but some of the young kids just give me blank stares when I mentioned her name recently. So I said, "You know, CatWoman?" and they say "Oooohhhh...Halle Berry!"
*facepalm*

posted by redvixen 13 July | 15:07

Well, Halle is hotter than Georgia Asphalt.

posted by jonmc 13 July | 16:10

Charlotte Rampling still plays sex symbols.....I haven't seen all of the Sex in the City series (and still need to in order to find out Charlotte's husband's personality), but after seeing the movie I think the best thing for Samantha to do would be to go to Paris and collect a pack of Cheri's who have their own money.

posted by brujita 13 July | 16:23

I hate to go with the tired "you're as young as you feel" thing, but I think it's true. I have some peers that seemed to have thrown in the towel and started acting old and losing their spark, and others that seem to take it in stride.
Well, they say 40 is the new 30 and, at 46 (47 in a matter of weeks), I still feel as well (hell, better) in most ways than I did when I was 30. I'm fitter, happier (hey, I was starting from a low base) and much more content in general. The only thing that worries me about getting older is making sure that I don't end up having to work into my 80s the way my grandfather did, because retirement will be the time when I finally get to do all the stuff I've always wanted to but have never had the independence (financially or otherwise) to do so.

I honestly believe that you are really as young as you feel - I see many people my age or younger that I think are much older than me, inside where it counts. You know, people who complain about loud music and young people generally. Hell, I can't stand the company of young people for too long because they tend to be so fucking stupid and self-absorbed (as were we all), but I don't hate them, although I'm a bit jealous of the fact that they have their life all ahead of them. If I knew then what I know now ...

posted by dg 13 July | 16:31

I honestly believe that you are really as young as you feel

well, I've felt like a crochety middle-aged man since I was about 17.

posted by jonmc 13 July | 16:44

I honestly believe that you are really as young as you feel

well, I've felt like a crochety middle-aged man since I was about 17.

Almost a matched set there, jonmc. People were telling me I was a little old lady when I was 10.

posted by lysdexic 13 July | 17:05

12 July 2008