Far from the series of the same name … (which was all about discovering yourself in adolescence), my WonderYears rambling starts more like “I wonder how I got to be 50 something?”. Last time I looked, I was cruising toward 40 and wondering “is this what it feels like to be grown up?”… well here I am and I am still wondering.
Don’t get me wrong … I’m not desperately clinging to my youth and refusing to accept the natural order of things, I just wonder how I woke up one day and found my life at least half spent ???
I’ve never been one to let the grass grow under, my feet … but I feel like this new revelation has hit me between the eyes. While some of my friends are talking about kicking back and taking it easy … I feel myself become terrified of winding down …and worse still becoming “beige”.
Recently while on holiday, we had lunch at a gorgeous little boathouse in a sleepy village on the north coast. After soaking up the sun and sipping on a champagne and watching the pelicans for a while …I suddenly became aware of our dining companions. Dotted around the deck of the boathouse were half dead couples, retirees who all looked like they had retired not only from work, but also from living, laughing and loving. “aaarrrgh”… they were BEIGE… bland boring and beige!!
Growing up doesn’t mean being boring….I may be 50 something but I’m not dead yet!!
Wonder Years 
I always feel like I’m looking for “more” and not satisfied with what I’ve got but perhaps I’m just not wanting to be “beige”:)
No harm looking for more Deb ….just as long as “more” means challenges and excitement rather than “stuff”
We are lucky and in a great place right now Louise. Loving life. Enjoy seeing our kids dealing with young adulthood and responsiblities. Enjoying companionship, love AND sex with our partners. Travelling. Dining out. Financial Pressure easing. Having time to explore. Im loving my life right now. I may wear beige sometimes, but the mind definately isnt beige – its a rainbow.
hear hear Cath!! LUCKY we are. Life is great whatever colour it is (and it’s sure better than the alternative 🙂
Here are my quick thoughts on a very interesting subject! It’s my theory (it hasn’t yet gained the status of ‘belief’ lol) that we all have an innate colour within us. Some are born beige and spend the first 50 years of their lives feigning interest in things to cover the fact that they’d rather just be watching life go by than being an active participant. Others… the NEONS lol… spend their first 50 years dulling down who they really are so that they blend a little…. and the rest fall somewhere in between 🙂 The beauty of being 50+ is that it’s easier to be who we are… and we have the time and resources (and hopefully the energy?) to do it. The beiges can head to the coast and reenact scenes from ‘Dawn of the Dead’. The neons can move to Antarctica and set up hot dog stands for the penguins…. and we can all rejoice in the fact that we know who we are and what we want out of life….and we’re not afraid to show it ;)!
Hot Dog stands in Antarctica … were DEFINITELY on my to-do list!!!!
Thanks for sharing your theory Frankie-I think it might be the subject of my thesis (when I get there lol)
Yes…the nature/nurture issue as it applies to blandness (or should I say beigeness) could be an interesting topic to pursue 🙂 It did occur to me though, while I was rolling out my ‘theory’ lol, that each person may have a range of colours inside them. The beige folk you observed in the restaurant may be magenta behind closed doors. You never know! 😉