“I'm not just getting older — I am getting OLD” (a continuing series)

I may have said this here before (too lazy to check, sorry) but my very first “I'm not just getting older — I am getting OLD” moment was when I realized, in my late-20s, that most of the hockey players in the NHL playoffs were younger than I.

Prior to that, and even into my early 30s, I could perform a variety of mental gymnastics to persuade myself I was kinda-sorta in these dudes' athletic league. I mean, sure, they could take the puck and skate circles around me. But I took a decent stab at taking care of myself, was religious about the gym routine, etc. I wasn't that far removed from their esteemed company, surely. Now, what happened to the beer in this bottle?

I have traveled quite the psychic distance from those years of giddy self-deception. The latest such realization to hit me was actually expressed by another guitar-playing friend in his mid-50s. “I can either practice/play the guitar — or I can work out. I don't have it in me to do both.”

Yep. If I work out then try to play guitar — forget it. And sure, I can play then work out — playing isn't that physically demanding. But the recovery period required from such a day is longer than the usual 24 hours — more like 36-to-48. During those two days, if I'm not stretching and sticking to lighter activities (walking) instead of picking up the guitar, I am actively inviting injury that will keep me from playing and working out.

So working out is a thing of the past, basically. I walk or ride bike, and attend to custodial matters at home and at church. And I play guitar — because I want to engage in something I love. And I love playing more than I do working out.

Not sure I'll ever catch up with Bob Wood, though -- even if I get another 30 years.