"Old Guys Rule!"

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by DeepFrz

What was the Bob Hope line. Something about trying to push a car up a hill with a rope??

Poor old Bob Hope (one of the richest - and stingiest - men in Hollywood) . . . born a few decades too soon to have Viagra or Cialis put a little lead in his pencil. Still, he had a (deserved?) reputation for entertaining the young eye candy (sorry, starlets? ingenues?) on his USO tours after he entertained the troops.

TaoJones

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by TaoJones

born a few decades too soon to have Viagra or Cialis put a little lead in his pencil.
TaoJones

Of all the worlds achievements, Viagra is at the top of my list. Cancer, baldness, Aids etc. It's good the scientists are spending the research money on the right stuff.

Driving a porsche is fun, turbocharging is a bonus.

As for getting old? Bah... Keep sailing till you can't and then motor...


While many of us are past the mid-point it's always good to keep perspective - from 0-20 most of us learned readin', rightin' and cypherin', moved out from our parents homes and learned how to drink, sail and chase girls. 20-40 we got married, had kids, got debt, got rid of debt, made mistakes and had a mid-life crisis.

Think of all the things you can do in 20 years! Then just go do them...

[TaoJones]

From today's 'Lectronic Latitude, comes a report on last evening's gathering at Oakland Yacht Club to honor John Guzzwell. From the report:

* * *

"It’s a pretty amazing evening when many of your heroes gather to celebrate one of their heroes."

* * *

To read the full report on the event, go to "Guzzwell Talk Draws a Crowd" at:

Latitude 38 - The West's Premier Sailing & Marine Magazine

TaoJones

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Joli

16.5:1

[moonrsn]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

"Revered"????????????

Give it a break! You old buggers ought to meekly go to pasture... hopefully far from the coast as possible.

Who needs to dredge up your knowledge of splicing and main braces?

Over 60 and you're past your use by date, ready for recycling, and only good to hobble into some bar and sit and dribble the world away. And don't make it some sailors snug harbour - I can't listen to the tall stories of "When I kilt me a pirate" or "Back in the big bust of '09... or was it '08?"

And computer forums? Don't be silly. But you can play Wii computer bowls at the nursing home. Maybe one of us young bucks will write a sailing program, featuring an old tea clipper, so you can while away the hours.....


Mark

Why is it that those with the least experience always think they know the most?

[TaoJones]

"Half-Century Mark's" jabs are all in fun, moonrsn - it's just his Ozzie sense of humor (make that, sense of humour). He enjoys winding people up, then watching them spin wildly about as they vent. It can be amusing.

As to his experience, well, he's no neophyte - he and his young bride sailed their present vessel home to Australia from Florida, I think, or the Caribbean, anyway. I doubt he wants any of us as guests on his unending cruise, but I can well-imagine that spending some time aboard with Mark and Nic would be a hoot!

So let's give it to the guy. Seriously, any fifty-year-old man who can squire a pretty, young lady, then get her to actually marry him is worthy of our esteem, it seems to me. And, anyway, after that next twenty year period that Dan mentioned earlier in this thread, Mark will find a 70-year-old geezer staring out at him from the mirror as he shaves.

TaoJones

[MoonlightShadow]

How do YOU intend to spend your last moments?

Sitting uncomfortably in a chair in an old peoples home, smelling of urine, dribbling mash potatoes down your chin, or crashing through a gale in The Southern Ocean?

Just a thought...

PS. No need for Mark to think about this one yet.

[Christian Van H]

Naw Moonlight, I want to go peacefully in my sleep like Grandpa, not terrified and screaming like everyone else in his car...

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by MoonlightShadow

How do YOU intend to spend your last moments?

Sitting uncomfortably in a chair in an old peoples home, smelling of urine, dribbling mash potatoes down your chin, or crashing through a gale in The Southern Ocean?

Well, Moonie, I doubt that those are the only two options available (and sincerely hope they aren't.) Anyway, what a person intends to be doing when the moment arrives to cash in his chips is no different than any other free-floating, hazily-defined dream that may or may not ever come to fruition, even if it does become more sharply focused.

As they say: Want to make God laugh? Tell him your plans.

My dad was in remarkably good health when he passed away at 91, and, at that, he died six years sooner than his father. He still lived in, and took care of, his own home. He walked over three miles every day (in Denver, in all weather) and attended to my mother's needs (at 86, her knees were shot and she was deaf as a post.)

I just turned 61, still weigh what I did the day I graduated from high school, have always been athletic and still exercise regularly. Mashed potatoes aren't included on my menu , nor am I tempted by junk food, sweets, alcohol, coffee or eating anything beyond what my body tells me is enough. Staying up past the 11 o'clock news is pointless, as it interferes with rising early the next day well-before the markets open in New York (6:30 am, PDT.) Driving fast and/or not wearing a seatbelt are stupid risks, in my view, as are any stunts undertaken to "impress" someone.

I like my odds, Moonie, but should everyone live as I do? No, most people probably wouldn't like it for very long, and, anyway, each one of us has to find what works best for him/her.

Originally Posted by Christian Van H

Naw Moonlight, I want to go peacefully in my sleep like Grandpa, not terrified and screaming like everyone else in his car...

I like that one, Chris. My old flying instructor had several funny items like that, but adapted to flying. He would say:

"I want to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather, not screaming and crying hysterically like his passengers."

"Any landing you walk away from is a good landing."

"There are three useless things in flying: Altitude above you, runway behind you and fuel in the truck."

Good stuff!

TaoJones

[moonrsn]

I had t-shirts made a few years ago for my riding buddies that read "I want to die peacefully in my sleep like my grandfather not screaming like the bitch on the back of his bike".

[MoonlightShadow]

Well, Toa, I can't argue with that. I shall probably never reach the Southern Ocean the way things are going at the moment. More of a figurative post. Good to hear that you are still fit. I am just a few years or so behind you, and 6 stone more than I was when I left school - McDonalds and chips have taken their toll, so I'd opt for Joli's Leccy winches. But there's still a few thousand nautical miles in me yet God willing. My point really was that we didn't ought to give up doing what we want to do, just because we might be getting too old to do it. Or am I being irresponsible?

[TaoJones]

Originally Posted by MoonlightShadow

My point really was that we didn't ought to give up doing what we want to do, just because we might be getting too old to do it. Or am I being irresponsible?

Not at all, Moonie! Can I get an amen?!

TaoJones

[MoonlightShadow]

Yeah. Amen Brother.

[Christian Van H]

How 'bout; Never jump out of a perfectly good airplane, and never board a life raft unless it's a step up. Words to live by...

[TaoJones]

Well, I haven't had to step into a life raft yet, Chris, but I have jumped out of a perfectly good airplane. (I was young . . . there was this girl . . .) My flying instructor also thought saying "Cheated death one more time" was the perfect way to end a lesson as we taxied back to the tie-down area.

TaoJones