DH and I took his 94 year-old mother to a Reds game today for her birthday. He dropped us off in front of the stadium before parking the car but MIL walked to her seat on her own. No cane, no walker, no wheelchair. We had to take two escalators each way but she stepped on and off with perfect balance and timing. She has excellent insurance but she takes only a blood pressure pill, a potassium pill, and a water pill making her drug bill $10 a month. She could probably use a new hearing aid but her glass is always half full. The only thing she really complains about is the quality of the food at her assisted living facility. Doesn't get much better than that!
I can only hope to be doing this well at 94
- Thread starter Buckeye
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Amazing! Quite a contrast to what I see on a day to day basis (I work in a nursing home). You should ask them what their "secret" is - I always love hearing those responses from the fit elderly that I have worked with in the past. Usually staying active all their life and having a positive "can do" attitude is what I hear. Of course good genetics doesn't hurt either
In contrast, I've seen some 65 year olds that your 90-something year old parents/grandparents could run circles around! The variation in physical abilities as we age is amazing. Seeing what I see every day is a constant reminder to eat well, exercise, and be thankful for the simple things in life!
In contrast, I've seen some 65 year olds that your 90-something year old parents/grandparents could run circles around! The variation in physical abilities as we age is amazing. Seeing what I see every day is a constant reminder to eat well, exercise, and be thankful for the simple things in life!
ziggy29
Moderator Emeritus
Yep. I see plenty of 60-year-olds who seem to look and feel 90, and some 90-year-olds that seem to look and feel 60.
Usually it's a matter of staying active and engaged with the world around you. Oh, and good genes don't hurt either.
ls99
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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In the local obit's yesterday was a man who passed, after retiring many years ago from the same company that I retired from last year.
My age - 60
His age (at passing) - 103
Since my/DW's retirement plan forecast is "only" up to age 100, we're rethinking about going back to work
...
(no, not really
)
- Ron
My age - 60
His age (at passing) - 103
Since my/DW's retirement plan forecast is "only" up to age 100, we're rethinking about going back to work
...(no, not really
)- Ron
REWahoo
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give
I'm planning on holding off any thoughts of going back to w*rk until I'm absolutely certain I have no other choice to survive. I've run lots of calculations and know that if I live to 95 I'm definitely going to have to reenter the work force. Depressing, yes. But I must face reality...
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I met a 65 year old woman yesterday who was caring for her 85 year old sister AND her 104 year old mother at home!!!!
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Isn't it though? She had a total of 6 kids. This is the youngest and the oldest that I am referring to.
aaronc879
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
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Planning to make savings last past 100? I expect to have begun rotting in the ground 25 years earlier. I guess every family is different. I'll be shocked if i'm physically independent into my 70's. I'm in my late 20's and have as hard a time getting up a flight of stairs as my 59 year old overweight dad who has heart problems. And I have about 20 years left of 12 hour shifts in a factory. I'll be lucky to be without a walker by the time social security kicks in. I "plan" to live until age 75. That seems very optomistic for me. I have a strong feeling if i'm still alive past that age that i'll wish I wasn't.
I'm hoping that a combination of inherited genes and better life style will keep me healthy and long-lived.
DW just un-earthed my Great Grandfather's Military Record. This was a man who I knew very well and used to run errands for. He was mentally sharp right up to his death at age 92 when I was age 14, and was still walking around with the aid of a stick.
We have photos of his medals including a medal for bravery (Mlitary Medal) rescuing a horse-drawn artillery piece under fire in 1917. He was a deep mine coal miner all his working life and joined the reserves (in England) in 1909, served throughout the war (1914 - 1918) including Flanders and both battles of The Somme. He was gassed twice and shot in the right arm. In 1919 he was discharged age 40 and 60% disabled according to his record. He never ever spoke about the war to me so reading his record was fascinating.
He went back down the mines and in 1938 (age 59) fell down a mine shaft and shattered both legs, one of which had to be amputated above the knee, so I always knew him with a "wooden" leg. The last few years of his life he lived with one of his daughters and her family. Like all my family he was also a heavy smoker.
DW just un-earthed my Great Grandfather's Military Record. This was a man who I knew very well and used to run errands for. He was mentally sharp right up to his death at age 92 when I was age 14, and was still walking around with the aid of a stick.
We have photos of his medals including a medal for bravery (Mlitary Medal) rescuing a horse-drawn artillery piece under fire in 1917. He was a deep mine coal miner all his working life and joined the reserves (in England) in 1909, served throughout the war (1914 - 1918) including Flanders and both battles of The Somme. He was gassed twice and shot in the right arm. In 1919 he was discharged age 40 and 60% disabled according to his record. He never ever spoke about the war to me so reading his record was fascinating.
He went back down the mines and in 1938 (age 59) fell down a mine shaft and shattered both legs, one of which had to be amputated above the knee, so I always knew him with a "wooden" leg. The last few years of his life he lived with one of his daughters and her family. Like all my family he was also a heavy smoker.
All four of spouse's grandparents were Russian (pre-Soviet) Ashkenazi emigrés who lied about their ages so many times that they couldn't remember their actual birthdates.
But all four were documented well into their 90s and probably all joined the century club. Her parents are the same so far. My surviving grandparents & parent show the same longevity tendencies. We've planned accordingly for lifespans of 120 years.
If we undershoot, we won't care. If we overshoot, we'll be immortalized as holographic Wal-Galaxy greeters...
But all four were documented well into their 90s and probably all joined the century club. Her parents are the same so far. My surviving grandparents & parent show the same longevity tendencies. We've planned accordingly for lifespans of 120 years.
If we undershoot, we won't care. If we overshoot, we'll be immortalized as holographic Wal-Galaxy greeters...
mews
Recycles dryer sheets
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Plan ahead - My brother, years ago, had neighbors down the block - daughter was 80+, and doing fine, mother was 100+, and doing fine, and the cat was 20-something. We wondered about the pipes ....
Ta,
mews
Ta,
mews
Jay_Gatsby
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
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My grandfather just turned 97 years old, and he still dances, swims three times a week, walks 2 miles every day and occasionally lifts weights. He does wear bifocals has 2 hearing aids, and in terms of drugs he takes Aricept to slow any mental degradation (and there have been signs over the past couple of years).
Surprisingly, he still drives extremely well -- better than most of my family at times. I chalk this up to the fact that he used to teach defensive driving for ticket recipients.
I think his secret to longevity is the fact that he has stayed active every day of his life. He is the last of seven brothers by many years, but interestingly enough, wasn't the youngest (I think he was one of the middle brothers).
Surprisingly, he still drives extremely well -- better than most of my family at times. I chalk this up to the fact that he used to teach defensive driving for ticket recipients.
I think his secret to longevity is the fact that he has stayed active every day of his life. He is the last of seven brothers by many years, but interestingly enough, wasn't the youngest (I think he was one of the middle brothers).
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