on 10-01-2012 06:23 AM
"This is for the Senior members of CS, those born before 1947. Baby Boomers and Generations X & Y are welcome providing you are over 18 🙂
But this is definitely for people who are facing the last long haul. We have survived babyhood, childhood, being teens and twenties... We have learned to read and write, to drive, have probably been married and the women have survived child birth.
The challenges are constant and the near misses of death are also there. If we have become a senior we have learned to survive so much, and along the way we have, of course, gathered a great deal of knowledge about life.
The belief that age diminishes us is not true, it changes us and not all of it is bad. Yes there can be various forms of dementia for some, but that is also a disease that can happen in younger people. Alzheimer's can also occur - it is another form of dementia and generally occurs in people over 65, although that can occur much earlier too and not everyone is going to get it.
Most of us keep our mental alertness up to the moment of death, even if we lose our hearing and our eyesight, but of course this can happen at any age too.
What changes is our physical strength, which diminishes but our mental strength and patience grows, it has to of course, to deal with this aging thing.
Arthritis, heart trouble, strokes - all these things associated with age can happen at any time in your life - arthritis can happen when you are a child but they don't like giving out new hips and knees until you are in your 50s and 60s or later. We can talk about that too.
Cancer can happen any time and that is also something we can discuss here if you like.
The point of this thread is to give the Seniors a chance to talk about how they are coping with age, the challenges it presents and the fears that can come with it... loss of hearing or sight, aging spouses, living alone, retirement villages, even death...
So I will ask that the Juniors treat us in kindly fashion and remember, all this is going to happen to you too - providing you avoid death before you get here 🙂
So, onward and upward. Let's go...."
on 06-09-2012 08:25 AM
Oh and... I have been going for remedial massage with a lady who has a practice nearby... she's very good BUT... how I wish she would not talk to me as if I was 85.
She has told me that I can get help any time I want it, that I can be driven to the shops, and that 'they' are now making it possible for us to stay in our own homes.
Yesterday she asked me if I had a walking stick because my back makes me a bit wobbly... not all that wobbly 😞
I come away feeling my back is great but I have aged 10 years. I really must put her right on this.
on 06-09-2012 09:03 AM
My goodness darki!
That remedial massage lady doesn't know what dangerous ground she's walking on:^O
I've looked into the Reverse Mortgage thing before, but let it go. It's about spending your kids inheritance before you fall off your twig. For a house value say of approx. $400K, we're eligible for a loan of up to $100K....For a loan of say $50K, that would need to be repaid when the last owner dies, or the house is sold, the final repayment would be approx $100K if sold in 10 years, depending on interest rates of course....it goes on a variable rate, which is about 5.5% at the moment, and compounded.
And of course I'd expect the value of the house (hopefully) would go up over that 10 years, so I'm thinking we should have about $350K to buy into a retirement village....but then again units in there would prob. go up in cost too?
I don't really want to go into one, but it will get to be inevitable I fear....can't expect any of my kids to look after me. We're already accessing Gov. sponsored in house (cleaning) and transport, and there are more things available to "keep us in our own home"......
on 06-09-2012 09:20 AM
Something to look forward to eh?:|
on 06-09-2012 10:17 AM
Morning all:-)
thankgoodness the gale force winds have stopped, 4 huge gums fell near us yesterday.
My auntie had a reverse mortgage on her house, and when she died, the bank took out of her estate $100K..........which was alot, she had only taken it out the yr. before she died, and as I was sole benificery, my auntie said she didnt think the bank would take much as she didnt borrow much..........she would be turning in her grave if she knew.
It is something that I wouldnt do, as I dont want to leave a hassle like that for my daughter to deal with.
on 06-09-2012 12:36 PM
she must have taken out a loan of a substantial amount to have to pay $100K back one year later?
on 06-09-2012 12:38 PM
I plan to sell this house before twig time, so all my kids will have to deal with is selling the unit in the retirement village...they'd have to sell something anyway...wherever I was living.
Or the executor would.
on 07-09-2012 08:56 AM
When I was in the ambulance gilli I went to several retirement homes in this area and some of them were lovely. Cottages with gardens, reasonable size and not something you would find at all dismal.
It depends of course on what's on offer up there, but as the Baby Boomers age the homes are improving :^O
Yes I will have to have a word to Kay... I was a bit surprised when she mentioned volunteer drivers... I have no thought of giving up driving yet, but will if I feel I am a problem to others on the road... but that's a long way off I'm sure.
Still waiting to here is wolf cub has got an offer on his property... he said he will email you when he has, he's really delighted at the thought of those tools :^O
on 07-09-2012 08:57 AM
Yes I will know when I am a problem driver.. I will do what all the oldies do... drive at 20 klm under the speed limit, not pull over and totally ignore the long line of traffic behind them X-(
on 07-09-2012 08:58 AM
NOT!
:^O
on 07-09-2012 09:08 AM
morning all♥
As far as retirement villages go, it'll depend on whether and when my 2 cats and 2 dogs pass. Most villages (some don't) allow one small pet.....can't imagine not having a pet. If I'm still physically and mentally able, I'll stay here as long as I can.
Great gran =104.....Nan....95.....mum.....94....so have good genes in that direction...also they were all fine physicallly and mentallly right up to the end. The day Mum went, we'd been playing Euchre, and she beat me all three games!