People say age is nothing but a number, or maybe it's a state of mind.
In my case, it's mostly a state of bladder.
In all fairness to my bladder, I'm not even 5 feet tall so it would be weird if I had some enormous elephantine organ.
I've always had to pee a lot ... but now I'm almost 40 and have a few pregnancies under my belt and honestly it's easier for me to just announce when I DON'T have to pee.
It's never. The answer is never.
Don't even ask me.
Yes, I have to pee.
And I'm not the only one.
Reddit user NordicModro asked:
"What is a clear sign of you getting older?"
Before Leaving
"You don't dare leave the house without peeing."
- GrimmRetails
"Especially in the winter."
"One of my biggest fears is getting into a car accident and pissing my pants, laying in the snow in wet pants waiting for the EMTS, ambulance, freezing my ass and Vjay off."
"I HATE being cold, but wet cold is hell."
- gerrywasi
"Oh yeah, and before you sleep, and when we wake up in the middle of the night and then the second time."
- docsav0103
"Whenever I see large sport championship parades or events like NYE in Times Square the first thing I think is: Where do they pee? I also will not go anywhere without knowing beforehand there will be enough facilities LOL."
- Capital_Pea
GiphyThe Elder Scrolls
"When you are asked your birthday online and you realize how much you have to scroll to get to your birth year."
- ManicPrincessofKink
"It feels like I'm spinning the wheel on The Price is Right."
- Bubbly-Explanation
"The Elder Scrolls"
- NearbyBreakfast
"I had to travel in the early days of covid and my state required an online travel declaration before arrival."
"The web page only let you enter your birthdate through a calendar widget. I had to manually scroll back 598 months."
- needlenozened
"I was setting up my online bank account and they wanted my birthday. To get to it you had to click the calendar back month by month."
"I was born in 1964. That's over 680 clicks to get to my birthdate."
"That system was designed by a blithering idiot. Probably a teenaged blithering idiot."
- PaperPlaythings
GiphyUntil...
"I saw this somewhere yesterday, you live your 30's just like your 20's until 'the injury' or 'the diagnosis.' "
- -Words-Words-Words-
"This is me."
"No injury, but life-changing (not life-ending) diagnosis -and the following ramifications- at 33 signaled the end of the good times, and forced me to come to terms with my mortality."
"Now my Friday/Saturday nights consist of couch, Cooper’s Hawk (home by 10), or DnD. Youth, and life, is precious ya’ll. Don’t waste it."
- deltavictory
"I feel attacked."
"Ate sh*t on a snowboard last year and dislocated my shoulder to the point it needed surgery. Now I walk like an old man on slippery surfaces for fear that something else is gonna fall apart on me if I go down."
- Puzzled_Reply_4618
"Yup. I strained the hell out of my back when I was 35 and In good shape - sitting on the ground pulling a weed. Could not move on my own. Needed to go to the ER for meds! That was like smacking into a wall"
- JohnExcrement
GiphySneaking Out
"I used to sneak out of home to go to parties."
"Now I sneak out of parties to go home."
- TheYoungWan
"Your next stage of old is not going to parties in the first place."
- YouveGotItMister
"I hate you and feel attacked by this comment. This is amazing. And hurts."
- Phoenixapartment
"Fact! My husband and I have a code word for when it’s time to go."
- Notjustapornacct
GiphyAction Movies
" 'Ooh I like their cabinetry' while watching an exciting action movie."
-SpatulaJamtown
" 'Who is going to pay for all this?' after an explosion"
- AtmospherePerfect532
" 'As if they'd furnish a million dollar penthouse with Ikea furniture. How unrealistic' - Me watching Hawkeye"
- BCS24
"Haha, I've been telling my husband about the cabinetry in the second season of the Punisher for two years now!"
- CallieCatsup
GiphyLegitimate Comfort
"You don't feel as compelled to engage as much. For better or for worse I suppose."
"I'm in my early 40's. And at this point I've learned to be ok with people being wrong. Used to feel like some sort of crusade to make sure everyone had the right information. Like many things in life, you always have to ask yourself if the juice is worth the squeeze."
"End of a game of Overwatch, had a bad game? Some random says 'Wow thanks for throwing, you were trash' My response? 'gg' "
"Someone cuts me off? Give them room."
"I just leave people the fuck alone as I want left alone. It's kind of become my life's mission. Fuck all that bs about pushing yourself."
"Seek some goddamn legitimate comfort because life will never stop throwing you bs to maintain that hobby of dealing with challenges. But what life will never offer you without you making it for yourself is comfort."
"And I find comfort in ignoring almost everyone. Most of the time. Not from a lack of compassion. Just don't like the volume that loud you know?"
-
GiphyNo Longer Static
"The biggest one for me is realizing and recognizing that my parents are getting older."
"For my childhood, they were these static, never changing figures. But now, they're older and I can see that. It's definitely pretty saddening and worrying."
- Kaidsburg100
"I had this realization last year."
"My dad is almost 60. I've always had young parents but the years are finally starting to show and it freaked me out. Like a glass shattered moment. '
'I hate it."
- PirateQueenDani
"Had this realization last week when my dad turned 70, it just made me sad."
- stevio87
GiphyZombies
"After sitting still for a long period of time, standing and walking involves shambling about like a zombie."
"You're fine after a seconds of movement, but initially nothing works right."
"To be honest, it can be solved by more movement in our lives."
"Daily walks, stretching exercises, yoga, that sort of thing. Aerobics would be great, but nothing high impact."
"The older you get, the worse being sedentary is for you; sitting down without moving or stretching for long periods (over a few hours) is fine when you're 20. When you're 40, it means your joints lock up, your muscles fall asleep, and you get cramps."
"If we moved every hour or so (even just standing up and doing a few stretches), it would likely go away."
- Kiyohara
GiphyEarlier
"I schedule plans with friends earlier and earlier every passing year."
"There's just something so satisfying about getting dinner and drinks at 6p and being back at home wearing my comfy fit binging the show du jour by 9p."
- cheerioguvna
"Yep. I'm 34 and now limit evening activities as much as possible."
"Just can't be bothered anymore."
"It's wet, cold, dark, you have to drag yourself out when you really don't want to then have the effort of getting home again afterwards."
"Screw that. I'd rather do stuff during the day and just have a quiet evening in to myself."
- _spookyvision_
GiphyThe Grumpy Neighbor
"You know that movie trope where some kids play baseball or something and break an old guy’s windows?"
"As a kid I thought that guy was a grump. Now I just think about what a pain it would be to have your windows replaced."
"So yeah, that’s my sign I’m getting old."
- KickedInTheDonuts
GiphyWelp ... after having read all of this I am now more convinced than ever I'm really, really, old—and maybe I always have been.
Time for a nap.
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People Share The Exact Moment They Realized 'Sh*t, I'm Old'
How many years do I have left?
Age isn't just a number, it's a part of life. That doesn't mean we sulk about it. We can still be vibrant at all ages, but acknowledging that time is running out is just accepting fact.
There are signs everyday to remind us. For me, its the loud music. Was music always this loud? And if so, why? We all get to that moment when we feel it, the turn of an era. The old era.
Redditor u/tamedreckless wanted everyone to share about the times in life so many have come upon the truth that.... the sand has run out of the hourglass by asking.... At what moment did you realize "Damn I'm old"?Get Velcro
shoes GIFGiphyWhen I find myself grunting and groaning just to bend over to tie my shoes.
At 36....
When I fell down at work and no one laughed. Instead three people came running over to make sure I was ok.
Edited to clarify: I'm only 36. I was walking in our break room and stepped down wrong I guess. I fell into the stove and rolled my ankle. Thank you all for the awards. Kinda weird that my most popular post is about me falling down. Let me assure all of you that I was ok after this fall and have gone on to fall down two different sets of stairs and trip over my dogs on multiple occasions.
Take me Home
When I went to a music festival and slept in a tent after five or so years of not doing so. My God. I need to get home and take a real shower.
Truth! I slept on an air mattress for the first time in years and holy hell did I ache the next day. Gone are the days I could fall asleep on cold concrete contorted like the best circus act and wake up feeling as refreshed as a spring chicken.
The Wardrobe
dragon ball closet GIFGiphyMy 12 yr old daughter's friend told her "the amount of times your mom has worn that outfit is ASTRONOMICAL" and when my daughter repeated it to me all my hopes of being a "cool" mom were crushed and I felt older than I ever have.
Hey Grandpa...
When I was in my late 20s I dated a girl who had a daughter. The daughter and I got along great, played a bunch of Katamari together, etc.
Years later, that girl and I have long since broken up. I did some volunteer teaching at one of the local alternative schools with my wife. And one of students in the film class we taught was my ex girlfriends daughter, now 18 years old.
At some point in your life, whether you have kids or not, you realize you're technically old enough to be a grandparent. And that feels very old.
Surpassing....
When my son could outrun me.
I went obstacle course running with my oldest (6 years at that time) and he asked if we could still be doing that in 10 years. I told him I would be 50 so sure. You know what that little shit said? "Cool, I will hold back for you dad".
He is probably right but I will keep training to not make it easy for him to pass me.
being 38....
I used to drive for Uber and one night I realized the college girls I picked up could have been my adult daughters.
I'm not quite that old yet; I'm 38, but the really crazy thing to think about is that you don't feel it happening AT ALL. Like, with the exception that for some reason I emit a noise when lifting something light like a box of Cokes, I literally feel exactly the way I think I remember feeling in my 20s, only now there's this number that feels like a freaking toe tag.
Hair issues
shaving shave GIF by Shawn MendesGiphyInstead of growing facial hair to look older, I'm shaving it to look younger.
"The accident"
I saw a picture on Facebook of a friend from college and thought, damn he got fat and old. I immediately realized... I also got fat and old.
My two New Years Resolutions are: #1, get back into the shape i was before the accident; #2, stop referring to letting myself go and getting fat as "The accident."
Who am I?
old man smile GIF by F*CK, THAT'S DELICIOUSGiphyI was playing basketball alone and a bunch of kids smashed a beer bottle on the other side of the court just for fun.
I shouted at them, told them to pick up the pieces and warned them not to do that crap ever again.
They got scared shirtless and apologized. I had never felt older.
D.O.B
When I'm signing up for an account on a website, I have to scroll back pretty far to find my birth year now.
According to most websites I was born on January 1, 1901.
I got kicked off of an alcohol site for entering my birth year as "19" (not realizing it only allowed 2 digits). As a 30-something, i am offended that they don't think a 100 year old can use the internet!
Classics
green day GIF by AMAsGiphyThey played Green Day and The Offspring on the "classic rock" radio station.
Then the announcer says something about it being "released on this day 20 years ago" ... WTF!
papa can you hear me?
Coming around the corner of a department store and seeing my dad come around the corner at the same time.
It was a mirror.
I occasionally say things and hear my father's voice coming out of my mouth. I even notice I have the same half smile he does when I think I'm being clever. It's worrisome.
Nobody We KnowÂ
When I see popular Reddit posts mentioning celebrities with weird, crazy names and I'm like, who the heck are these people?
This isn't just age, it's also a product of the internet era. It used to be that everyone watched the same shows on the same few channels or listened to the same few radio stations, or whatever, so everyone knew the same celebrities.
In this age where the monoculture has been shattered, everyone is watching different shows on Netflix, YouTube, etc, it's so much easier to find niches, no one knows the same set of celebrities anymore.
Mac Who?
sunglasses deal with it GIFGiphyI was teaching a class last week and told my audience that they may need to MacGyver a solution if they come upon a certain problem. No one knew what that meant.
Because someone asked, it was an EMT refresher course. These are the people you trust with your life!
But I'm just 16!Â
When my oldest daughter was in 1st grade, she brought a note home from the teacher, saying that my daughter had misbehaved. I had to sign it and send it back. My daughter was scared and tearful and it suddenly struck me: holy crap - I'm the adult here. I'm the authority figure who a little girl is scared to be in trouble with. To me, I was the same person I was when I was 16.
What am I Thinking?!
I was walking through Sheffield after work, about 7pm, around December 2013 I think. - it was f,f,f,freezing. A bunch of students rounded the corner and a couple of the girls were wearing really short dresses, no coats.
Thought 1: she must be freezing
Thought 2: that's something my dad might have said
Thought 3: I'm OLD enough to be her dad
Thought 4: why did I not think "she was fit!"
Thought 5: when the hell did I start thinking like this?
These thoughts passed through my head in what must have been only half a second.
The Little Things
Getting excited over things like a new vacuum, new water heater, or a not plastic silverware tray. Realizing the Lincoln Park album i like is 20 years old. Laughing when someone invites me out, especially if the start of the event is 9 pm.
It only seems like a couple of years ago that I was spending most of my money on synths and other music gear and preparing to go on tour again.
This morning I was giddy because the Amazon driver delivered my new cushion covers and comfy slippers.
Damn.
deep in thought
I was at work and had a meeting with an ex Olympic gymnast. She was stunning and had cosmetic surgery to 'enlarge her frontage' She was also wearing quite a low cut top that had metal spikes in the shoulders. All (supposedly) very distracting stuff.
My very first thought - 'I bet that jumper makes a noise in the tumble dryer!'
My second thought - 'Damn I'm old!'
Bless You
dana carvey sneezing GIF by Saturday Night LiveGiphyI'll add mine since it was the reason I thought to ask this question.... Last week I sneezed and it threw my back out.
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Growing into middle and old age is a gradual process that occurs over the course of many years. Youth burns bright and fades slowly. Those youngest years depart at a churning pace, relentless and constant.
But our perspective of the transition is not aligned with that gradual piece. Us humans tend to understand things in a much more staccato way. We're prone to epiphanies and sudden realizations.
And few epiphanies feel more significant than the discovery that middle or old age has arrived. Though the evidence often comes along during a day's most mundane moments, the conclusion feels grand. After all, this is mortality we're talking about here.
A recent Reddit thread encouraged folks to recall a time that a minor occurrence tipped them off to the harsh truth: they were getting older.
LollipopDreamscape asked, "What was the moment where you thought, 'I'm getting old?' "
Middle Aged Inception
"I had a dream the other day about being in high school again, then I woke up and realized I was 28. Then it dawned on me that I'm actually 38..." -- dick-nipples
"Same. These last 10 years might as well have been a year." -- PhoneJazz
"I still have recurring college dreams when I'm stressed. I'll be 41 in less than a month." -- Happy_Fun_Balll
"It's like your subconscious is trying to hurt you lol" -- Tutuformypoopoo
"Don't Screw This Up, Kid"
"When I was older than my doctor." -- Panda-Head
"My grandmom described her doctor being lovely young man. My aunt told us he was actually in his mid 60's." -- fantsukissa
"That one hurts. When I moved I had to find a new GP, and I swear she looks like she's a teenager." -- FormalMango
New Priorities
"My wife and I went to a party, we brought guacamole. We left the party and forgot the bowl."
"My wife and I talked the next two days about how we need the bowl back and when we finally coordinated with the other couple and got our bowl back we were extremely happy."
-- 11BINF
Health Takes a Front Seat
"My wife and I had a 20-minute long discussion about fiber. That was it. We were officially old right then." -- kayser3373
"Literally was just talking about fiber not 15 minutes ago." -- siegewolf
"I will talk about fiber to anyone who will listen. Even better if they share my fibrous passion. It's so great for you and I long for the day when it's added to foods like protein is." -- TheOpus
Out of the Loop
"I have no idea what's happening in music right now. And I don't mean that in a lewronggeneration, 'back in my day!' Kind if way."
"I mean that I literally have no idea what is happening. I used to be so plugged in. I knew all the coolest bands and went to all the best shows. I was giving recommendations to people, I was making mix cds, it was my dream job to be a music supervisor for tv."
"Now...I don't know anything any more. I try, but it's overwhelming."
Safety First!
"I was driving and saw a very attractive younger guy running shirtless on the sidewalk. My immediate thought was 'OMG dude! I hope you wore enough sunscreen today!' " -- LadyBatman
"Similar, but I saw a guy in the parking lot of the grocery store and thought DAYUM....he was 55 at least and all grey." -- icamom
"Or when you watch college sports and think to yourself 'he's hot!' And then hope to God he's over 18." -- IHateRicotta
The Brutal Calendar
"When the new person I was training at work told me she was born in 2002." -- FormalMango
" 'Where were you on 9/11?'...'Not born yet.' Fuuuu**..." -- DeathSpiral321
"I was doing urban exploring and bumped into some teens. They asked me when was the first time I visited this location. I answered. It was the year they were born." -- I_love_pillows
PAIN ALWAYS
"When everything started hurting all the time. Get up from sitting down, back pain. getting up in the morning, full body pain. Do any type of exercise, excruciating pain for multiple days."
"Started taking ibuprofen like motha f***in tic tacs"
-- hireds87
Tis the Season for Utility
"One year I didn't get any socks for Christmas and was disappointed" -- Urethra_tormentor
"For me it was when I realized I was more excited about how Christmas was a day to sleep in rather than about getting gifts. Now that I have a (soon to be) 4 year old, I'm going to have to go back to getting up early once she grasps the concept of Christmas Morning." -- Dimonah
When Sleeping Becomes Strenuous
"When I couldn't sleep without hurting something on me. Currently stuck awake because I hurt my shoulder sleeping." -- applejackrr
"Sleep on the floor for a few days" -- xxrambo45xx
"And then, as you're lying awake, you start thinking about how the same injury used to be better the next day, and now it takes three days and some pain killers to start to get back to 'normal.' " -- markscourtney
A Place Where You Belong
"Went back to my university town for a wedding. Group of friends went to the club we all used to go, left in shock 5min later because everyone there looked about 12 years old."
"Ended up going to the 'oldies pub' instead."
-- Taylor_made2
Pop Cultural Differences
"Not one moment. But anytime I hear a song I grew up with played on a oldies or classic station" -- cantfindmykeys
"When you bring up events, actors, music or shows that everyone knows about, and discover that no one knows what you are taking about" -- feral_philosopher
"Or reading about current celebrities and having no clue who any of them are or what they do." -- darkbee83
Not So Fast
"I tried to skip steps on the stairs. Brain was totally unaware legs couldn't do it. Ate sh**." -- wouldja916
"oooofffff" -- Useless_bumbling_oaf
"But did people laugh or help? That is the real sign." -- announcerkitty
Gotta Get That Value
"Reading reviews on Amazon for lightbulbs" -- greenbean1969
"That's pretty bright of you." -- Thinks_Like_A_Man
"Daaaaadddd" -- Phoenie81
Spanning Multiple Eras
"When I saw three rookies start playing in Major League baseball and realized that I saw all their fathers play as well." -- loosethegales
"Same with hockey now. Every time the World Juniors are on or you follow the draft and you remember having their dads on your fantasy team not too long ago." -- LetsTalkDinosaurs
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