old people....

[Gustavus]

Bleep,
There is another "old" guy -- meaning he is the same general vintage as you and I -- with a background in cryptography; Wayne G. Barker. He runs the Aegean Park Press in California which is systematically republishing all of the classic works in cryptography. You may know him, or know of him. We are old friends -- double entendre intended.

 

[FlashG]

Right now I'm taking care of my elderly Dad (89) and mother in law (74) in my own home. I dearly love them both but the shufflers can be a bit demanding at times.

I don't know why, but the older they are, the more time demanding and impatient they seam to get.

"Why do I have to wait in line? Why can't you do this for me know?"

I just tell my kids to be prepared for me when I get that old. Cause I'm probably going to be the same way.

If were lucky we might live long enough to be a burden on our kids.

 

[UG]

Ultravox;

<...flasher on for miles at a time...>

That's from a branch of Motorist Philosopoy known as Eventualism.

 

[Gustavus]

My daughter, who is a nurse that has worked in geriatric care, just told me a cute story which I can safely tell in this thread since I am probably the oldest member of these forums.

An elderly couple were sitting on their front porch. The wife said to her husband; You know what I'd really like is a dish of ice cream. Would you get one for me? OK he said. You know how forgetful you are the wife said, so write it down. He dutifully jotted it down. While you are at it, why don't you put some of that Hershey chocolate syrup on it to fancy it up? Write it down so you don't forget. He wrote it down. Just as he was getting ready to go in, she added; And put some of those pecans in the cupboard on it to make it a sundae. Write it down or you'll forget. Again he wrote it down.

He was in the house for a long time and finally came out with a plate of bacon and eggs for his wife. Where's the toast she said. I told you to write it down.

 

[Russ]

My shop is in a downtown area. Within a couple of blocks of me are several Senior housing projects, so many of them frequently poke their head in the door (usually, by mistake because they meant to go to the mini-mart next door), so I get quite a bit of opportunity to chat.

It's interesting how two people of aproximately the same age (say late 70's early 80's) and physical health can be COMPLETELY different from one and other.

One might be vibrant, youthful, active and aware and you'd never be able to guess their age if they weren't standing right in front of you. The other might seem lost and lethargic and you KNOW they're old.

An ex-employee of mine from when I owned my deli, who was 75 years old when I finally closed the place, tells me that it's all about attitude. She thinks that some believe retirement is the end, when it should be the beginning. Incidentally, she worked for me for about ten years, and she could work every other employee I ever had in to the ground, so I find her opinion to be a valid one.

Russ, NCNE

 

[DataFly]

LOL Gustavus. My Grandpa told me the exact same story/joke.

This grandpa is one of the smartest people I know, yet he has trouble using even an iMac. Yes, an iMac. The problem for him is that the environment is completely alien. His eyes almost glaze over when I try to explain how to open a &quot;file&quot; or send an email. The software tutorials aren't too helpful because it's damn near impossible to have something that you want to learn to use teach you how to use it. Imagine reading a book about how to read to learn to read. You can't do it!

Has this client's mother in law ever used a computer before? If not, RUN!!!

 

[cardiac]

Bleep, since you wrote for QST, are you an amateur operator? My call is K9YH and I do love playing with RTTY.
BTW, I'm a youngster @ 39

Bob - K9YH

 

[Soybomb]

KB9KES here 19....got it at like 14.....

 

[jadinolf]

Man, look at the hams here.

I'm W6OHI. Licensed since 1968!

 

[chess9]

Ultravox:

If I had a dime every time a young male sat at a traffic light whoopin' it up with his buddies while the light was green, or changed lanes 50 times in one block, or left his turn signal on for miles on end, or got a speeding ticket, or had an accident, or, er, uh, well, you get the idea. There is a reason why insurance rates for youngsters are so high. They are so f***ing stupid when they get behind the wheel. But, hey, you be cool!

 

[JellyBaby]

chess9,

*honk, honk!* Stop trying to get your senior citziens discount on that value meal and drive through, will ya?!

j/k

 

[Susan]

You're right, Russ. Attitude is very much a part of how people act when they're elderly. For instance, my dad is 72 and act's like he's 80 and can't walk to the end of the drive. I work with a man of 70 who is non-stop all day at work, at lunch he goes to the gym, and then after work goes home and mows his back and front lawns. He amazes me.

I have some winners on my block - my dad, the 74 year old across the street that has backed into two of our cars over the last month, and then there's the 80 year woman down the street that decided to ring my phone off the hook the other day at 6:55 am. We slept through it, so she came and rang the doorbell at 7. What for? To see if I could fix her printer.

 

[Dan]

Soybomb: more important than your client's age is the fact that you are learning that there are some folks you just don't want as customers. (Regardless of their age!)

I also repair and upgrade systems for people and build the occassional new system. One rule of thumb: I never build a system for someone who is getting their very first computer. I always steer them to Dell, Gateway, Compaq, etc. I figure the level of hand-holding they require will eat up any profits I may build in to the sale.

Second rule of thumb: anybody who gets too demanding, picky, etc. during the sale gets steered to a name brand system. I just don't need the headaches. Fortunately, the whole thing for me is a hobby, not my livelihood. That means I can be extremely selective about whom I build systems for.

 

[chess9]

JellyBaby:

If MickeyDees gave those cholesterol sandwiches away I wouldn't eat one. Blech! Please, real food. By the way, how can people work in those places? The smell emanating from them is enough to make me toss my cookies. I run by a Wendy's every morning and think I'm going to have a cardiac infarction just breathing that dreck.

I'm &quot;only&quot; 57, anyway. Too young!