A Trip To The Diner

I was sitting at the local diner with Sky having a really shitty breakfast at 1pm. The old man next to us has been talking non-stop to the younger woman across the table since the dawn of time. I'm thinking perhaps she is deaf because I can't tell if she is even aware he is still rambling. I'm usually pretty good at blocking out other people but fairly quickly I realized both Sky and myself were totally silent and engrossed in what this man was talking about. He covered an array of topics with intense passion and commitment. You couldn't help eavesdropping. After all, he is only a foot away from me. So he says something about youth and how young people don't talk to their ancestors about history and how they could learn something from it. Possibly stop making the same mistakes. But the kids aren't interested. So I chimed in,

"Well, WE are interested!"

Whoa.

He turned to me and peered at me with his one working eye as it started to tear up and began a beautiful one person conversation that lasted for the next three hours. Oh yes. Three hours.

Turns out the younger woman across the table was his new wife. They just got married last year. He told us all about his abusive parents that raped him as a child and how he was autistic for 34 years and could barley move. He told us a lot about Winnicott whom he obviously adores. He is Jewish but kept saying he didn't believe in a God that could do the things that have happened to so many humans. Then he spoke of the Holocaust and the rape his wife endured in her prior marriage. He spoke of many religions and ideas and countries and people. He spoke of philosophers. He spoke quickly. I couldn't absorb it all.

Okay this is what I'm getting at. I walked into this diner expecting same old same old and ignoring what I assumed was a crazy old man. I ended up having an amazing eye and ear opening experience with enough information to count as an entire college course. Maybe you should consider having a long talk with someone in their eighties or nineties. I bet they could teach you something. Oh, and don't lose the chance to collect the stories of your family history because as my new friend said "when it's gone, it's gone" and lost forever.

Aren't you hungry for diner food now?

When did I get old?

I have friends from many walks of life. Different ages, races, religions, and species make up my facebook friend page. Even with this being the case I've come to realize that the majority of my close friends are older than me. Why? Recently I keep finding myself in situations with friends of friends that are in their early twenties. I was trying to figure out why I usually like the people but they can quickly get on my nerves. Am I just a crotchety, cranky old person? Am I ageist? Does their youth offend me? Now that I'm so aware of it I'm sure people must feel this way about me as well. It makes me overly conscious of the level of maturity I'm projecting even while hanging out at the bar. How can this be when I'm still young?

Last night I was out with, well, a bunch of people throughout the course of the night. Earlier on and up until about 1am I was with some of my favorite people alive. I probably drank a little too much vodka and whisky at the drag show before moving on the the late night group but that can't be the whole reason I'm cranky and old. I met up with a person that is becoming a good friend and two younger girls that I don't know very well but usually enjoy. I had a very good time when the numbers were low. We played a little pool and danced a bit. Then we went to an all night cafe where another two young girls (friends of our friends) worked and suddenly I was annoyed. Too much youth. Annoying conversation. I got bitchy. At the time I didn't think it was an age thing. I just thought everyone was obnoxious. It was later when I was trying to explain my discomfort to my boyfriend that he pointed out I'm older than them and therefore, don't enjoy the same "fun" things. I still don't know what that comment means. So basically this is the first time in my life where I was told to my face that I'm not young anymore. It sucked. I have found a way to deal with it though! I have decided to get rid of all people in my life that know and associate with people younger than me. That way I am eternally youthful and never have to worry about this again. I think this also means I have to get rid of my boyfriend. He shouldn't have called me old.

Okay, I won't be that extreme but thanks for letting me vent.