MY new old WORLD Archives - My New Old Self

Grandparents as parents – again 1

Jul

28

2017

A grandmother in a hut in rural South Africa and a granny in a house in a US suburb may have more in common than just their ages. Increasing numbers of grandparents are parenting again. This is because their own children have passed away. AIDS has been a top killer in Africa. In the West, ...

I’m with Stupid – that’s the post-truth 2

Nov

19

2016

You have probably seen that T-shirt with the words “I’m with Stupid” and an arrow pointing to whoever is walking next to you. Now there’s a new version of that joke online, a satirical response to the US presidential election results that flummoxed the pollsters and shocked the world. This comparison of the June referendum ...

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 ...

10 Tips on Holiday Travel 1

Dec

16

2015

Whether you go to relatives for the holidays or use the December-January break to take a vacation, you have to spend time getting there. Travelling during the busiest time of the year can be stressful. ‘Tis the season, but by the time you arrive at your destination you may be less than jolly. So it’s worth ...

Waking at night (you know why) 2

Aug

27

2015

More people in Africa have cellphones than toilets. This statistic comes to mind when I wake up in the middle of the night. Which often happens when you get older. There’s no gender divide on this one. Both men and women tend to experience interrupted sleep as we age. You know the reason most of ...

Aging, Change and History 1

Jul

3

2015

South Africa is not usually an international trendsetter but in one area the country has recently been a world leader, with the United States belatedly following its example. That is in dealing with historical symbols of racism. Nearly 150 years since American slavery was abolished by the Civil War, the US is only now getting rid of ...

Much ado about manuals 1

Jun

22

2015

What is it like to get old in South Africa? It’s okay when the lights are on – but since late last year the country has been experiencing rolling blackouts known locally as “loadshedding”. Every block in the national grid has a 2-hour daily slot without power. So you listen to the radio or check your phone app to find out if loadshedding is on. If ...

Older women at Cannes 2

May

22

2015

Nowhere is the media’s double standard in aging between male and female more glaringly obvious than at that annual glamathon on the French Riviera, the Cannes Film Festival. This year the main Cannes jury was headed by writer-director-producers the Coen Brothers, the first time two people have shared this role. The most lauded film of ...

Happy 21st Birthday, South Africa! 1

Apr

27

2015

South Africa’s non-racial democracy celebrates its 21st today so My New Old Self is republishing this personal exhibit of anti-apartheid badges (or political buttons or whatever you call them) worn by My Old Young Self 30-40 years ago. Those were the days when many of us around the world protested against apartheid in South Africa and campaigned ...

It’s Hard Out Here for a Gogo! 3

Mar

25

2015

My New Old Self decided to find out what it’s like to get old in the countryside. I visited the bucolic Ofafa Valley in South Africa’s province of KwaZulu Natal, described by author Alan Paton in his famous novel. “There is a lovely road that runs from Ixopo into the hills. These hills are grass-covered and rolling, ...