This describes my recent life to a tee: recovering from hip surgery. Heck, I had 3 grabbers, one for each room in my apartment. I've "rehabbed" but I still can't easily bend down and then also, you know, get up. I have taken pliers and screwdriver to those diabolical caps, to remove the liner. Then, I save the non-childproof cap for the next bottle that I need to be able to open.
A robot vacuum is the best investment I've made! I cannot fix the cultural problem you mention but I will be damned if I ever intend to apologize for getting old. You should consider retraining your brain to a new standard ;)
I hear you LOUD and clear, dear Erica! You are certainly not alone. I have adopted some of your practices, i.e. the pliers, grabber, the slowing down after a life of being told by so many, "Gail, slow down! You'll catch on fire!" The apologizing for having old age issues that interfere with someone else's immediate comfort. I'm really going to start biting my tongue on that one. It's humiliating.
One thing that has helped me is running tight lids under hot water if the pliers don't work or even if they do. It's a little safer, I've found, since the pliers do slip. Eventually the water melts the plastic that's basically welded the caps on and the bottles, I've found, open quite easily.
As far as valuing elders, not in this country. We had better like ourselves A LOT because, you're right, we are seen as pitas. I'd like to see aging folks treat *each other* better than I've observed us doing. We need to form a secret society and be kind and thoughtful when we encounter each other ANYWHERE. Just think how amazing it would be to have so many friends who think highly of and love you *because* you're older. No apologies necessary. Best as always to you. Be well.
I hear you, Erica, and I'm right there with you, using grabbers, fighting with lids, trying to get out of couches. I write about aging now and then, too, and I think more of us should. Especially women. We're not invisible and we shouldn't be diminished simply because we've grown old. Many of us have been fighting unfair battles almost all of our lives, mainly because of our gender. We're old warriors, even with our physical frailties. And even now, we're fighting like hell to get through our days.
I won't let anyone diminish me simply because I've lived this long. I don't expect special treatment (okay, sometimes I do), but I do expect an attempt at understanding who I was, who I am, and who I'm yet to be.
Our dreams don't end because we age, they're simply altered. We're smart enough to know there are things we'll never be able to do, either again or for the first time, but I'm not done yet and I'm not going to curl up and watch the world go by.
This describes my recent life to a tee: recovering from hip surgery. Heck, I had 3 grabbers, one for each room in my apartment. I've "rehabbed" but I still can't easily bend down and then also, you know, get up. I have taken pliers and screwdriver to those diabolical caps, to remove the liner. Then, I save the non-childproof cap for the next bottle that I need to be able to open.
A robot vacuum is the best investment I've made! I cannot fix the cultural problem you mention but I will be damned if I ever intend to apologize for getting old. You should consider retraining your brain to a new standard ;)
I hear you LOUD and clear, dear Erica! You are certainly not alone. I have adopted some of your practices, i.e. the pliers, grabber, the slowing down after a life of being told by so many, "Gail, slow down! You'll catch on fire!" The apologizing for having old age issues that interfere with someone else's immediate comfort. I'm really going to start biting my tongue on that one. It's humiliating.
One thing that has helped me is running tight lids under hot water if the pliers don't work or even if they do. It's a little safer, I've found, since the pliers do slip. Eventually the water melts the plastic that's basically welded the caps on and the bottles, I've found, open quite easily.
As far as valuing elders, not in this country. We had better like ourselves A LOT because, you're right, we are seen as pitas. I'd like to see aging folks treat *each other* better than I've observed us doing. We need to form a secret society and be kind and thoughtful when we encounter each other ANYWHERE. Just think how amazing it would be to have so many friends who think highly of and love you *because* you're older. No apologies necessary. Best as always to you. Be well.
I hear you, Erica, and I'm right there with you, using grabbers, fighting with lids, trying to get out of couches. I write about aging now and then, too, and I think more of us should. Especially women. We're not invisible and we shouldn't be diminished simply because we've grown old. Many of us have been fighting unfair battles almost all of our lives, mainly because of our gender. We're old warriors, even with our physical frailties. And even now, we're fighting like hell to get through our days.
I won't let anyone diminish me simply because I've lived this long. I don't expect special treatment (okay, sometimes I do), but I do expect an attempt at understanding who I was, who I am, and who I'm yet to be.
Our dreams don't end because we age, they're simply altered. We're smart enough to know there are things we'll never be able to do, either again or for the first time, but I'm not done yet and I'm not going to curl up and watch the world go by.
And I have no problem letting it be known.