What Pisses Me Off: Over 60s denying age stereotypes but living them!

I love that people crusade against ageist attitudes. I love that we don’t take any nonsense. I love that we don’t like being called old or aged. Just because we’re over 60 doesn’t mean that we can’t do things, don’t enjoy things or aren’t fun anymore, in fact I know lots of people who are doing more exciting things now than ever before. But I hate it when someone who hates those labels and will give someone a gob full for treating them as “old” and then turn around and do something that is, to be frank, old.

For example, I saw a comment on a Starts at 60 Facebook post that said something about how the young ones think we’re all old, picky and grumpy so they treat us like it. I thought to myself that yes, this is sometimes very true. But then two days later on another post there was a comment from the same person saying, “Starts at 60 it is their not there. You would think a writer would know the difference. Please get better editing”.

Now, that person had specifically referenced being ‘picky’ and while yes, this mistake is plain wrong, was it necessary to comment about it in that fashion? No. It was being picky. It was an interesting and insightful article and all they could get out of it was the grammatical error. What about the positive and uplifting message of the article? Why did they choose to be grumpy instead of go with the flow?

While I was standing at the supermarket checkout last week, during what I call “peak shopping hours”, I witnessed another example. We were standing in a very long queue and a woman standing in front of me finally got to the registers and started telling the operator off for not being competent enough and slowing things down. Every register lane in the supermarket was open at that time and the young man was doing what I assume is the best he could. The lady continues to make rude comments and then said to him, “I’m 72 and I could do a better job than you!”

The ageing stereotype is exactly that: bitter, old and grumpy. Why couldn’t she have continued on with her day, kept her uncalled for comments to herself and got on with it?

I’m so sick of our generation complaining that we aren’t treated as we’d like and that our stereotypes are completely wrong when our actions prove otherwise.

My fellow over 60s, if you don’t want the “old” stereotypes to exist then don’t live with the attitudes they represent.

Do you think that some can be hypocrites when it comes to ageing stereotypes? Do you think that more people need to just go with the flow instead of finding the negatives? Share your thoughts in the comments below…