I'm only 31, and I'm not old, but I feel that way. I think part of it's due to the fact that as we age, time seems to compress, and that modern society as a whole is moving faster in terms of perception and in terms of innovation. We're seeing so many more things, much of it due to the internet and it's ability to bring the latest everything to us mere moments after they happen, or even as they happen.
We're inundated by music, movies, television shows, news events, everything all at once, and those who are outside the reach of the internet (which are very few) still notice that things are moving forward rapidly. It makes me think of the 1930s to the 1950s, where technology made leaps and bounds, and world events were placed right on our doorstep.
Now, it doesn't help me, because I read a lot, and my favorite subject is often early turn of the (20th) century history. That's another thing. Now when I have to say "turn of the century" in recent historical context, I have to reference the 20th century specifically.
Anyway, I'm drifting off my point. What it is, is that I love the cultural flavor of the early 1900s all the way up to now, and so I use words people haven't used in a hundred years. I'm like the Bing Crosby of my day. As I'm sure many of you know, the man was a veritable fountain of colloquialisms that simply did not have an original owner, but he mashed them together and they worked.
As I said, I'm not old. 31 is still considered young (for now), but I can't help thinking about all the intervening years, and that does pull at my soul a bit. My mother used to tell me I was an old soul, that I was far too mature for someone my age (at the time I first recall her telling me, it was when I was 6 and reading a science book while my cousins played in the dirt in our front yard). She said I used to talk about old ideas like they were current, and she's right. I've always felt much older than my years, but not in a negative way, just that I feel like I've lived a dozen lifetimes. Who knows.
Anyway, the popular media really can make you feel old. Most things are geared for the 15-25 year old demographic, and you start getting edged out once you pass that point. I didn't feel different at 16, 18, 21, or 25, but at 30, something clicked and I felt very different, like I missed something somewhere along the way, something that can't be recaptured.
Well, I'm rambling now, like an old fella.
