(I’m always pleased to spend time with my dear friends, the fiesty crew at Jungle Red Writers. On this guest appearance we had some fun discussing aging.)

Hank Phillippi RyanHANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Happy Saturday!  I noticed the other day that my ankle was puffy.  (I promise this has a point.) So I looked up “puffy ankle” (in Web MD, as usual) to see if it was maybe malaria or dengue fever or something horrible that hasn’t been discovered yet. Turns out, in all likelihood, it has to do with, um, getting old.

Really? A puffy ANKLE? Are you KIDDING ME? It went away, but I fear that…well, we shall see.

Anyway, I am delighted to tell you I am not alone in the REALLY? Are you kidding me? neck of the woods. My dear pal Laura DiSilverio (who is much younger than I am, just saying) has been thinking along the same lines.

Those lines being, sadly, in her face.

Wanna talk about this? And, just because it might help–wanna take a QUIZ?

******************************************

Laura DiSilverioLAURA DISILVERIO: Hello to everyone in Jungle Red land, and thanks to the brilliant Reds for inviting me back.  Or course, I’m here in part to publicize the release of ALL SALES FATAL, the second in my Mall Cop Mystery series, but I’ve got something else to talk about, too, so let’s stipulate that ASF is funny, engaging, and a great read, and that you’re going to pre-order it at once, and move on.

What I really want to discuss today, and get your thoughts on, is aging.  More specifically, aging gracefully.  I’m coming up on the big five-oh and I’m pretty sure there’s nothing “graceful” about the way I’m doing it.  Hallie’s sister Nora wrote a hysterically funny collection of essays on the subject, I Feel Bad about My Neck, and I’ll admit those essays resonate more now than they did when I first read the book.

I feel okay about my neck, but I think it’s grossly unfair that I’ve been re-afflicted with acne as my hormones go menopausal. Wrinkles are bad enough, but wrinkles with acne is just wrong. I’m also not fond of muscles that take four times as long to recover from a hard workout, or the way the flesh around my knees sags like it’s trying to visit my ankles.

To facilitate this discussion, I’ve put together the following short quiz. Take it and see how you score on the “Graceful Aging” scale.

See the whole post and take the quiz at Jungle Red Writers

Don't Miss a Thing

Get exclusive offers, special promos, and advance news.

Thanks! You're in the club.