It's an Uphill Climb to a Downhill Slide
Have you ever experienced a time when it seems that the whole world is out to prove the old saying. “Time marches on” is true. I have just experienced such a time. Seems that I have read and heard, and the places that I have been recently have been a reminder that time is marching on and I am bopping along to the beat of the drummer. I guess the best four word description to explain how I feel is “Plain old middle-aged.”
It started happening when I innocently picked up the Greeley Tribune and turned to the Home-Garden section. The headline read, “50s FUN.” Now I remember the fifties like they were yesterday, so I read on. The next thing I read was, “Nostalgic furnishings are popular.“In this article, one paragraph stated that “according to Cara Greenberg author of Mid-Century Modern: Furniture of the 1950s collectors are snapping up examples of the ‘50s furniture, lamps and other items”. Also one New York retailer said that the prices are ranging from a few hundred dollars to $10.000, depending on, among other things, historic importance. Now surely they have to be kidding. I can not imagine anyone wanting to pay perfectly good money for the ugly blonde dining room table and chairs that used to grace my dining room in the late 50s. It took me years to get rid of it and I don’t recall getting anything close to $20.00 for it. Now they are telling me that if I still had the ugly old thing and had invited President Eisenhower for dinner in 1959. I could sell it today for $10.000.00. Just my luck, all the junky old furniture in the house that I couldn’t wait to replace with new modern furniture are (according to Ms. Greenberg) now…“priceless anti- ques”. Maybe I have some of my priceless objects of art from the old days (when I was young) hidden away with all the junk in the storage room. I also wonder if the crummy old jewelry box, that I have had forever, is worth a mint.
The second thing that happened to make me feel like one of Ms. Greenberg’s “Priceless antiques” was the announcement of this years top Emmey nominees. First we have Tina Turner, the lady who has a hairdo that looks like she lives in a world with static electricity completely out of control. She was nominated for her song titled. “What does love have to do with it.” Okay! Then we have Cyndi Lauper, the lady with static problems with her orange hair, who was nominated for her video magic and the song. “She’s so unusual.” In this video she sings her song, while half dressed people are screaming and jumping around, with purple and red lights flashing in the background At least the title of her song is descriptive. And the third nominee is “Prince.” the black rocker that I will not attempt to describe, for his rendition of “Purple Rain.” I know I must be getting old because I had never heard of these people until I saw the announcement on TV that they had been nominated for music’s greatest honor. What ever happened to combed hair, usual people and “Blue eyes cryin’ in the rain?”
To top the week off in fine fashion, Sunday we were invited to a friends 50th birthday party. And wouldn’t you know it, all the clowns that came to pay their respects were dressed in black. Everyone looked like they were attending an unorganized wake instead of a birth day party
So as you can see, it is a bit depressing to read that the furniture that I couldn’t wait to get rid of, are now nostalgic antiques and starting to look right again. The music that is number one on the charts, is the music that I can’t understand the titles of, much less the words. And my friends are starting to hold wakes for the living instead of birthday par ties. It has to be middle age, it can’t be anything else
I can describe it one way….Middle Age: is the landing at the top, after the uphill climb on your way to the downhill slide into the world of…“WHO CARES?”
