Thread: Do you know any really old fogies?

What do they do, to fill their days?

(In case you hadn’t caught up, I’m an old fogey)

My fiction writing has seriously fizzled out, for a variety of reasons. Now I’m wondering what else there is to do, besides reading, while I wait to be measured for my shroud.

I’m not handy, so making stuff is out. I don’t collect things either. And having led a somewhat fragmented life - which comes from having a mind like a can of worms - means there’s little I can write expertly in the non-fiction field.

You might feel inclined to say, the only other thing that’s left for me, besides reading, is to join an old people’s club. That’s where everyone sits around wearing silly hats, eating cake, and blowing those fool roll-out paper whistles. Thanks, but no thanks. Besides, I’m anti-social, too.

Over to you.

Hello, friend.

My Nanny watches a lot of TV. She's 89 but still completely there, mentally.
We buy her box sets of DVDs for Christmas. New as well as old stuff. She also likes to go to the pokies. A lot.

So there are two suggestions. Gambling or the idiot box.

I had a customer in his late 80s who claimed to have a hot Russian girlfriend in her late 60s. He did terrible watercolour paintings, of her and other things.
Once asked if I wanted to pose nude for him. He also used to write a lot of letters to politicans.

Another two - making official complaints or finding a hot Russian girlfriend.

i'm an "old fogey"...or at least i feel like one nowadays. I'm 42 years old. you know what that means?
that means I need glasses and can kick your ass. but really......people disregard old people nowadays.
that's why the world is turning to ****. we look down upon wisdom and seek emotional fortitude..and there
is zero progress in that. the world of "non-fiction" is rarely based on reality today. it's a real problem.

Originally Posted by Like a Fox

making official complaints or finding a hot Russian girlfriend.

You've been reading my mail.

Charity work? If you're anti-social you could choose something that didn't involve working with other people- like with animals or in nature. Might help you get your mind off your own impending mortality.

Or, since you are computer literate and thus different from many other old fogies I know, maybe you could start a blog detailing what it's like to be an old fogie so that those of us that aren't there yet know what to expect?

There's always organised crime.

One of my best friends for a few years was a former Pom in his 80's. He did work with the Guide Dogs and was responsible for the complete recreation of a suburban park. I'm actually working on a project which will hopefully result in another type of non-brain-dead activity for senior citizens (and hopefully a few younger ones as well) in my area; but that's currently a finger's crossed.

Originally Posted by BabaYaga

There's always organised crime.

Crime really doesn't pay. Seriously. And we're not talking about law enforcement or that.

When I read about how a couple of robbers have spent days to rob a 7/11 of $400, I thin what idiots they are. I wouldn't even bother getting out of bed for it; particularly when getting a normal job pays better. But anyway, off topic.

Originally Posted by Rustgold

Crime really doesn't pay. Seriously. .. I wouldn't even bother getting out of bed for it.

Well, that's why I said, organised crime, you know, you could plan heists in your part time (from bed) and then outsource it to younger, stupider people.

It's almost like an underground form of employment creation- so I guess I've gone full circle with my advice.

Originally Posted by BabaYaga

Well, that's why I said, organised crime, you know, you could plan heists in your part time (from bed) and then outsource it to younger, stupider people.

It's almost like an underground form of employment creation- so I guess I've gone full circle with my advice.

I could prove the general economic unviability of this, but that would be for a different thread.

Originally Posted by Rustgold

I could prove the general economic unviability of this, but that would be for a different thread.

I know... I just thought it would make a nice hobby...

Originally Posted by BabaYaga

Well, that's why I said, organised crime, you know, you could plan heists in your part time (from bed) and then outsource it to younger, stupider people.

I actually like this. Seriously. I do have an administrative streak. And it could also be an idea for a humorous short story. Maybe I haven't fizzled out after all. Maybe it was just the so-and-so novel getting to me.

I meet one everyday when I'm shaving.

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

What do they do, to fill their days?

(In case you hadn’t caught up, I’m an old fogey)

My fiction writing has seriously fizzled out, for a variety of reasons. Now I’m wondering what else there is to do, besides reading, while I wait to be measured for my shroud.

I’m not handy, so making stuff is out. I don’t collect things either. And having led a somewhat fragmented life - which comes from having a mind like a can of worms - means there’s little I can write expertly in the non-fiction field.

You might feel inclined to say, the only other thing that’s left for me, besides reading, is to join an old people’s club. That’s where everyone sits around wearing silly hats, eating cake, and blowing those fool roll-out paper whistles. Thanks, but no thanks. Besides, I’m anti-social, too.

Over to you.

Two things immediately come to mind, one being more useful (on a general level) than the other:

1. Learn a language. As John Bridges says, and as I have always maintained, is that a gentleman should be able to speak at least one other language, excluding his mother tongue, to some degree of proficiency.

2. Acquaint yourself with common loan words, primarily those in French, German, and the myriad of expressions used frequently in Latin. Some might say this is is superfluous, so long as you communicate effectively, though there are expressions in other languages which transmit the same meaning in fewer words, and more often than not, much more eloquently.

That's all I've got.

Originally Posted by philistine

1. Learn a language. As John Bridges says, and as I have always maintained, is that a gentleman should be able to speak at least one other language, excluding his mother tongue, to some degree of proficiency.

About 30 years ago I began learning French. I advanced to the point where I could think in French. Then I stopped. Today it’s all gone.

2. Acquaint yourself with common loan words, primarily those in French, German, and the myriad of expressions used frequently in Latin. Some might say this is is superfluous, so long as you communicate effectively, though there are expressions in other languages which transmit the same meaning in fewer words, and more often than not, much more eloquently.

I already do this. Doesn’t everybody?

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

About 30 years ago I began learning French. I advanced to the point where I could think in French. Then I stopped. Today it’s all gone.

That's a damn shame.

Originally Posted by The Backward OX

I already do this. Doesn’t everybody?

You'd think so, but no.

Perhaps some geriatric crocodile hunting could be on the books?

My grandmother-in-law is 96, and seems to fill her days mostly with cooking. She is a 1st generation American child of Italian immigrants, and makes the absolute best homemade pasta dishes I've ever had. Her ravioli is legendary.