Aging

Driving by Pioneer Park in Walla Walla on the way to the grandkid's house.

Got some things resolved yesterday and relaxed enough to fall asleep by 8:30 in the evening last night and got up late.  It snowed again last night and its 29.  What the heck?  The weatherman sayeth it's the arctic vortex once more.  Supposed to be 36 by afternoon but quite a surprise to me.

I got a good checkup from my pulmonologist.  The asthma is under control and the coughing is some inflammation in my windpipe left over from the New Year's flu.  I actually feel pretty good.  I cancelled my cable TV, haven't been watching it lately and they just figured out a new way to charge everyone more.  The basic cable that I had will no longer include the PBS channels or the one movie channel they had.  Netflix I am yours.  Beginning March 11, they have manipulated the signal so no TV set no matter how digital or HD ready it is can get a signal without one of their boxes which will be free and then later have to be rented, not one but one each if you have multiple sets, which I don't.  I've been meaning to do this, they just gave me the extra push to complete it. I watch most things online or via Netflix anyway.  Are you happy with your cable provider?

I saw this article in the online Oregonian yesterday.  Tom Hallman a columnist for the paper is inviting readers to write in their stories on what aging means to them.  I am debating with myself about doing that.  What caught my eye was the approaching 60ish woman speaking of reaching the age that her mother died.

I'm getting within two years of the age my mother was when she died of complications from emphysema. I am trying to decide if that is meaningful to me.  This morning I don't think so.  Mom smoked like a coal factory all her life and didn't stop until 60 after being told she wouldn't live another 5 years unless she did.  She died at 74 a far younger age than any other woman in our family.  Meanwhile second hand smoke left all her daughters with asthma to a greater or lessor degree.  But there are drugs now to treat it, when Mom was young and had asthma, there were no drugs for that except later adrenalin shots.  So aging now at least means with Medicare, and newer medicines I will likely live longer and better shape than she did.  I will have to think about what else it means to me.