On March 17 (St. Paddy's Day) I hit 70, which is why I decided to start a blog. Being an official septuagenarian means I'm spinning out of the far turn and heading into life's home stretch, with the finish line drawing ever nearer. The difference between a horse race and life, however, is that we can never be sure where the finish line lies.
Now let's play the numbers game. Some might call it life's lottery. Whatever you call it, one thing is clear: it's all a freakin' gamble. Note the following stats on longevity:
At age 10, a male can expect to live another 66.9 years; at age 20, another 52.2 years; age 60, another 21.5 years; and at age 70, another 14 years. In each instance, you can add another couple of years for a female.
Looking at these longevity numbers another way, a 20 year old has a 0.05 chance of dying the next year; at 40 years of age, the risk of dying the following year is three times greater; at age 60 that number jumps to 16 times greater; and at the dear sweet age of 70, my chances of dying next year leap to 50 times greater. Which means there's no point in my buying a 30 year Treasury. On the other hand, if a bank wants to float me a 30 year mortgage, that's on them.
Please don't get the impression I'm obsessed with death and dying. I truly am not. but as that expiration date draws closer, I find the finite aspect of life to be utterly fascinating. Life truly is an adventure. Think of all the things that have occurred in your life that you would never have predicted or anticipated--both good and bad. As I glide into the golden years (Why golden when everything is turning gray?) I'm thinking about the prospect of dramatic changes--physical, mental and emotional. How long will I remain physically active? Will I lose my mental acuity and succumb to dementia? The things that interest me now--how long will I remain interested, or will I fall into apathy and passivity?
For the record, I hit the ground running at 70. I work out 7 days a week, 3 days weight training, the other 4 days biking, walking, or both. At 5'6" " (I'm actually tall for my height) I weigh 130 lbs., with a body mass index of 21. My blood pressure is 99/59, blood sugar is 84, triglycerides are 77, HDL's are 54. Several months ago I had a colonoscopy and prostate exam, both giving me a clean bill of health. Mentally, I'm still relatively sharp (although some may argue about that). I recently completed a novel, and in recent months have had 2 of my poems published. Go to Amazon.com and you can find 2 more of my novels and a collection of my poetry.
Some folks my age turn to religion as they see a dirt nap looming in their future. Personally, I do not believe in an afterlife. Human beings are so desperate to cling to life, we've even created a place of eternal damnation and suffering called Hell. Apparently an eternity of pain and horror beats nothingness. So what is death like for someone like me who doesn't believe in an afterlife? I believe this: Death for us will feel the same way we all did in 1820. That is to say, we won't exist. Nothing. Nada.
So fuck the afterlife. The here and now is too exciting and challenging, and the most challenging years are yet to come. The final ones usually are. I want to use this blog to record this adventure in all its highs and lows, laughter and tears for as long as I am physically and mentally able. I invite you to come along for the ride. Let's hope it's a goddamn long one.
