2016 - Page 2 of 3 - My New Old Self

RIP VCR

Aug

4

2016

The world’s last new Video Cassette Recorder (VCR) rolled off the assembly line at Funai Electric in Japan last week. This marked the end of the original home video format, 60 years after Ampex pioneered the technology and 40 years after JVC introduced it to the mass market. The Video Home System (VHS) was once ...

How to sprout – with e-Help

Jul

23

2016

Older people have a not undeserved reputation for complaining. Something we often complain about is technology. It has been challenging for Baby Boomers to master the ever evolving technological advancements of the digital age. Those born between 1946 and 1964 have straddled the analogue and digital eras. We were well into adulthood when we started transitioning ...

Generations at War post-Brexit 1

Jul

7

2016

Intergenerational war has broken out in the UK. Battle lines were drawn in the recent referendum on Britain’s EU membership, whose result is known as Brexit. For young people the enemy is easily recognisable – by their grey hair and wrinkles. All over our economically fragile world the older generation is getting the blame for ...

Live longer – and better!

Jun

24

2016

When I saw this cartoon it depressed me. “These are them?” All this effort to stay young – and all it gets us is more years of being old? Wait a minute. Let’s refill that half-glass of water, abandoning such pessimistic measurement of its emptiness. Readers of this column will know how fond My New Old Self ...

Ali Aged Well 1

Jun

12

2016

A champion with his fists and his mouth, Muhammad Ali was also a champion at getting old. And a champ at living, and aging, with Parkinson’s disease. The contrast between the Ali we remember dancing like a butterfly in his gorgeous youth and the sight of him starting to lurch, slur and tremble could have ...

To Do: Nothing 1

May

27

2016

Here is some praise for an activity that gets a lot of criticism: Doing Nothing. We are endlessly exhorted to Do Things. To be active, to keep moving – forward. What is this relentless busy-ness aimed at? Achieving goals. Our To Do lists are full of goals: to exercise more, to eat less, to kick ...

Same Old Same Old for Women at Cannes

May

11

2016

There are more women directors with movies in competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. But in terms of older women it looks like Same Old Same Old. The Cannes 2016 main jury is headed by George Miller, director of the Mad Max action movie franchise. At 71 he is NSP (No Spring Chicken) but I haven’t ...

A ping does not make my heart sing 1

Apr

28

2016

A young person’s phone is the love of their life… Ask me about my phone and I’ll tell you there is little love lost between us. I actually miss the days when phones were not mobile but rooted in the earth. I miss rushing to answer a ringing phone. I miss the chats I used to ...

Studies show (sometimes): what we know 1

Apr

16

2016

“Studies show” – you’ve read that here before. My New Old Self often cites research findings from studies on ageing. Studies can offer revelations and insights. Sometimes, however, they seem to simply confirm the intuitively obvious. Like a recent study revealing that pop music lyrics show “negative representations” of older people. Duh, our youth-loving, age-denying ...

To be happier and healthier: retire! 3

Apr

6

2016

Do you want to improve your health, live longer and feel happier? Then retire. A new study shows that retirement is good for your health and wellbeing. When people stop work it makes them more active. They do less sitting, which readers of this column will know is a health risk. They even sleep better. ...