Today is my 55th birthday. I usually am not concerned or take a lot of notice of birthdays that are not ones that push me into a new decade. 25 was the last time that a ‘five year’ birthday was important to me since that’s when I turned a quarter century. But for some reason 55 feels like a much bigger deal. Maybe it’s because I actually start to qualify for some senior discounts now, though I don’t know if that’s a good or a bad thing! What’s really getting me is the fact that in 10 years, the next time I have a five year birthday, I’ll be 65. Now that is really senior status, at least in the US. I’ll qualify for Medicare and pretty much will be considered a senior for all purposes. It’s also technically retirement age, though I don’t see that happening. At this point I don’t even have a job to retire from! All this is to say that it’s been interesting musing about turning 55. For some reason in some ways, it feels significantly older than 50, though I don’t feel any older. In fact, after having had this time of exploration, if anything, I feel younger than I did this time last year when I turned 54. Having a lot less responsibility on my shoulders and a lot more freedom to do what I want, challenging myself to do things especially on my own has been great for my sense of self-esteem and just general youthfulness. Quitting work is like getting a facelift???!
I decided to treat myself to a Philz Coffee this morning. I cut back on my coffee consumption drastically a couple of weeks ago as it was starting to affect my stomach, especially if I had a second or third cup. So this was the 2nd cup of coffee I was going to have an almost 2 weeks (the first cup was iced coffee I had last night). It was about a 40 or so minute walk to the closest Philz from where I am staying, and it entailed a decent amount of uphill climb on both city streets and staircases. In fact, I ended up hiking up via Twin Peaks on the way. It was foggy so there was no view, but lots of beautiful water drops on flowers and plants. I got my Jacob’s Wonderbar and headed back home. Margot and I hung out, I was still a little tired since I got home late the night before and was still buzzing from the great music (and the post dinner iced coffee!)
Emmy came by and took me out to lunch at Pancake Boy in Noe Valley where I had a scrumptious crabcake egg benedict with crispy potatoes. Emmy got the fried chicken french toast which seemed like enough to feed three people! We had a lovely time hanging out, she came back and since it was still foggy, we put our feet in the hot tub. It was a lovely way to spend a birthday afternoon. Margot is doing better, she definitely has a but more energy, bringing me dog toys she wants to play with. Hopefully she will be back to normal soon.
After Emmy left I started reading a book about the first woman to through hike the Appalachian Trail, Grandma Gatewood‘s Walk. She was 67 years old and set off with no tent or sleeping bag, wearing Keds and just a little bit of food. That woman was a total bad ass! I can’t wait to learn more of her story.
I received birthday texts and Facebook notifications all day from friends and family which was a real treat. Monday is our family zoom call, so I got to hear birthday wishes from my mom and sisters.
I’m so happy to have such great folks in my life both near and far. I’ve been very, very lucky in my life with everything from getting fantastic parents to being given a healthy body and mind, from growing up in a beautiful place to learning from trusting adults, from having wonderful relatives to making incredible friends, from parenting amazing children to receiving challenging opportunities to stretch myself and most of all feeling loved and supported by so many people.
As I headed to bed, I could see the beautiful purple and pink glow coming from the nearby Sutro Tower – what an awesome site to end my night.
