“Temperance” the Virtue of the Boomers

I Tweet! Nobody tweeted in my Dad's generation. It's even difficult to say "I Tweet". I'm a "Boomer." My boy's tell me I'm cool because "I don't try to act cool or "phat" or "sick" or whatever the hip young lingo is today-whatev!

Truth is, I'm ok being a youthful 50 year old guy, who doesn't take himself too seriously-life's too short for all this naval gazing. But you will never see me wearing "Docker" short pants that come just above the knee, a cheesy Hawaiian shirt and a fanny pack. Nor will I wear a T shirt that say's "I Dated Your Girlfriend." (But I do wear a sweatshirt that say's "Old Guy's Rule" just to remind the kids I'm not dead yet.)

50 is a key age. My friend Jennifer say's we're not "ratcheting it up" we are "ratcheting it down" in regards to our career goals. My friend Perry said "turning 50 is like sitting on a mountain peak, where you could look in the distance 30 years and see 80. Then turn and look 30 years behind you and see 20". 50 is the equi-center-my task is to find a balance between feeling like a 25 year old and not acting like one-enter the Virtue of Temperance.

Temperance is a cool virtue for a 50 year old guy like me. Temperance keeps me balanced between being creepy and being cool-it forces me to use "reason" before acting on my impulses. As blogger Doug Mc Manaman say's "It brings order to the emotions of love, hate, sensible satisfaction, desire, aversion and sorrow as they bear upon a pleasant good." http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/education/ed0281.html

So I will tweet with temperance and try to put my thoughts in 140 characters-yikes.

Turning 50

I'm at Starbucks listening to Todd Rundgren's "Hello It's Me" on my iTunes-a retro song on a new gadget. I've been in this "time warp" lately. My mind is being transported back to the days of my youth. You see I turned 50 a few days ago and I'm trying to wrap my head around it. Am I getting old or am I getting older? "Older" I can live with, but "Old" sounds, well-Old.

Turning 50 for a Man today has its challenges. Men need to have a purpose. Turning 50 in a young man's world gives me pause. I'm not whining and I refuse to be a victim. Turning 50 has its advantages and I still enjoy hanging out with my younger friends. But I began to notice some changes in the way I thought about my future, my life and my manhood. I noticed that the ambitions I had at 30 were no longer relevant at 50. When I was 30, I wanted to climb the corporate ladder. But at 50 I'm climbing down that ladder. When I was 30, the race was before me-at 50 the finish line is before me. It's time to pass the baton-which is my legacy.

My friend Perry said "turning 50 is like sitting on a mountain peak, where you could look in the distance 30 years and see 80. Then turn and look 30 years behind you and see 20". 50 is the equi-center and I am now entering the second half. My task is to find a balance between feeling like a 25 year old and not acting like one.

There's a difference between being Cool and being Creepy. I can enjoy the company of my young friends without trying desperately to be like them. I use the "cool and creepy" test for most my interactions, like what I put on my Facebook status, to how I talk to a young lady.

The other thing I began to notice was, the things that bothered me in the past were no longer the "pebble in my shoe" today. I asked myself if the regrets and unresolved issues of my past are really worth carrying into the next phase. I could see the finish line. I want to finish the race without out that old baggage weighing me down.

Turning 50 is a gateway to the next phase of life and I'm going into it without the hang-ups of the past. Turning 50 helped me clarify what is most important in life and that is My Faith-My Family and My Friends.

Turning 50 is cool.