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You know you are getting old when:

GHT

I'll Lock Up
Messages
9,279
Location
New Forest
There are thousands of jokes on the internet about this, like your back goes out more times than you do, but do you have any anecdotes that have made you walk away thinking: "I must be getting old?"

For most of my purchases, I pay cash. The bank note type of cash. Small traders, no problem, employees working in the large conglomerates, big problem. Twice this week I have been subjected to an inquisition that more or less implied that I was a money launderer. Huh! I should be so lucky.

I read a story in today's paper about trying to purchase a goldfish from a company called: Pets At Home. It regales the stupidity of today's society, so much so, that someone has created a forum see here.

Looking after Daughter's gold fish, one dies and decide to replace it. Go to Pets at Home and experience the bloody 'Spanish inquisition'! Some bloody jobs worth asked me size of tank, what filter system did I have and wait for it... What experience did I have of fish? Explained very slowly that I was just looking after Daughter's fish and one died and NO, tank didn't have filter system, but I planned to transfer fish to pond. Told it was company policy not to sell fish to customers without filter systems! Got asked to leave store when wife pointed out that most of their fish had fin rot and how could they moralise when their fish were in such a poor state!

We have come a long way in my life time, but sometimes I can't help but feel that with every pace forward, we take two back.

And none more so than the internet. How many times has your purchase failed, because you mis-read those distorted hieroglyphics that is supposed to prevent some sort of snooping. In exasperation, you pick up the phone, only to go on another merry-go-round?

Is it just me getting old, or am I turning into Jeff Dunham's caustic side-kick: "Walter?"
 
Messages
13,369
Location
Orange County, CA
For most of my purchases, I pay cash. The bank note type of cash. Small traders, no problem, employees working in the large conglomerates, big problem. Twice this week I have been subjected to an inquisition that more or less implied that I was a money launderer. Huh! I should be so lucky.

Several years ago I ran up a small credit card debt that went into collection. So the collection agency calls me and says that I owe so much money, so I said, fine, who do I make the check out to? They said that they didn't take checks and they wouldn't even give me their mailing address! So I asked them what form of payment do they accept and they said credit card only!

Hello??? That's the reason why I didn't have a credit card at the time!!! :doh:

Well, back to the topic. You know you're getting old when your doctor is younger than you.
 
Last edited:

GHT

I'll Lock Up
Messages
9,279
Location
New Forest
Several years ago I ran up a small credit card debt that went into collection. So the collection agency calls me and says that I owe so much money, so I said, fine, who do I make the check out to? They said that they didn't take checks and they wouldn't even give me their mailing address! So I asked them what form of payment do they accept and they said credit card only!
Hello??? That's the reason why I didn't have a credit card at the time!!!

That's not off topic at all, it's exactly what I am talking about. In my youth I thought that the UK had the monopoly on crass stupidity.
Saying: "I must be getting old," was a euphemistic way of telling someone that they were an idiot. The coming of the internet, I then thought that it was the english speaking countries of the world that took crass stupidity to new heights. Now I realise that anyone in the public sector can have a moment of glory.

The expression job's worth, used by the guy in the pet shop trying to buy a replacement fish, is so succinct. It was coined by Esther Rantzen, she presented a TV show in the 70's called: "That's Life." It lampooned the worker who would say: "It's more than my job's worth."

It made me smile when, on a trip to the States, back in the late seventies, I took some travellers cheques into the post office.
I was treated to, much sucking of air through closed teeth, shaking of head and shrugging of shoulders. My crime? Wife and I held a joint passport. They are no longer issued, and America didn't have them, so the post office counter assistant, having never seen one, instead of letting me explain, went into, 'more than my job's worth' mode.
 
You know you're getting old when your shoes are older than anyone you work with.

We have a few new young guys on our baseball team this year, and the other night, we were talking about the upcoming game on Saturday. One of the youngsters says "cool...I'm going to be 20 on Saturday." I said "20 what?" He looked puzzled for a second and said "years...it's my birthday...I'll be 20 years old on Saturday." I said "you're only 20? Geez...my cup is older than you." Broke the boys up.
 

Sloan1874

I'll Lock Up
Messages
8,418
Location
Glasgow
The saddest part is that many kids seem have even less awareness of a time before their own than when we were their age!

Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me, or at least terminally lazy. Most kids, even nowadays, would pick up the words 'eject' and 'play' as clues.
 

F. J.

One of the Regulars
Messages
221
Location
The Magnolia State
Oh dear, children these days . . .

Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me [...]
Quite. Especially since they thought that 'texting' was a possibility on a WE 500. The thought of sending a telegram--of which 'texting' is a reasonable modern-day equivalent--would never have occurred to them.

I also couldn't help noticing that none of them knew what to call the various parts, such as handset, fingerstop, cradle, fingerwheel (dial), etc., or even knew what a busy signal or dial tone was.

Another thing was that one kid commenting to the effect that rotary telephones are a technology of only ten years ago. My goodness! The WE 500 was developed in 1949! That's a tad more than ten years, or perhaps my arithmetic is behind the times . . .


I only hope that you're right about this bunch, and that they do not represent the majority of their generation.
Quite honestly, this bunch seem a little 'special' if you ask me, or at least terminally lazy. [...]
 

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