they're so cool.
Random Observation/Comment #225: My grandparents have such a boring daily routine that I’m surprised that they still know what day of the week it is. It’s a continuous cycle that basically involves the following activities: walking, shopping for groceries, cooking, eating, napping, and watching TV. I wonder if I will do this when I’m their age or if I’ll just always be stuck to the computer immersed in my virtual life that will forever stay young online. When I accept that I’m old, my screen name will probably be: see lemons always sleeping.
Retired people have so much free time that they don’t even know what to do with themselves. They wind up picking up some interesting hobbies and joining communities to stay connected to a fun group. When they still have their health, they can probably play some sports, like tennis or golf, or maybe just continue their love for carpentry. Let’s hope that their age gives them the ability to do what they mostly enjoyed doing before they started working and getting sucked into that grown-up life. I think about this because I see the routine my grandparents have acquired and I wish they were more familiar with some more fun things. Sitting around all day and watching TV just isn’t the way to live (especially for those who aren’t immobile yet – cough).
Perhaps it will be more interesting in the next 10 years when the internet boom adults move into their retirement age. Imagine how much internet advertisement will shift to accommodate the new age groups. Of course they’re going to probably have a profile somewhere for everyone which will feed back to the major advertising firms to send specialized advertisements to those logged in. I wonder how many people who are retired now are actually using the Internet?
There are so many unknowns ahead of us, and to my immediate family and friends, it seems the idea of retirement is one of them. When you have that free time, what would you do with yourself? Write memoirs? Take pictures of everything you see? Start watching every major TV series possible? Cook healthier meals and take more walks? Travel the world?
When my dad retires, I hope he will be able to drive really cool cars and listen to the best stereo systems. I hope he’ll do something crafty, like build his own car or start making furniture for the house. For my mom, I’m sure she’ll continue to be the master of home economics. I can’t wait for the interior design of the house to be revamped with stickies and hand-knit pillow cases. They would probably be looking to improve the little things they’ve always complained about in their life and enjoyed the process of achieving it.
My parents’ age group during retirement will definitely use the internet much more. This means that they will begin looking for websites that are geared more towards their needs. Thus, there’s probably going to be a good market for retired people looking for things to do with their free time. Whether it’s joining specific communities or just looking up different things that they might be worried about, I have a hunch there will be something for them. It’s probably going to involve some stalking of children and grandchildren with facebook, but hopefully they’ll get more creative and start learning things that genuinely interest them.
So what of our generation? When we grow older and retire, will we just spend all day playing video games (PS5?!? Xbox in Spherical coordinates?!?!) and surfing the internet? Isn’t that what we do now anyways? Is there something for us that will change, or will we just be vegetative as consumers of this internet media. There are so many more channels than the TV generation, but isn’t it cool that you can contribute to the content? Imagine senior citizens updating facebook status updates? Imagine a new feature in senior-citizen-facebook where you poll whether your friends are dead or not? The future is so scary.
The worst thing that can happen to someone in our generation is to be left behind in technology. Remember how you snickered when your parents first asked you “Have you heard of this thing called facebook?” Imagine being the one hearing about it too late. There’s just so much to keep up with that I think it’s imperative to keep your focus and really love what you love. If your thing is graffiti and tattoos, you better know everything about graffiti and tattoos. If you love the Rangers, you should know when they’re playing and how their doing in the league. If you love religion, you should probably memorize some verses and be true to yourself (or whatever). What do you love? It will determine your retirement activities.
~See Lemons Love to Ponder
Plan to die young.