Quote of the Week…“Regardless of their age, most folks are not as old as they hope to be.”

—CC—

Next week I will celebrate my 73 ^rd birthday. Robert Hall is also 73 and wrote the following, which applies to him and me.

I’m 73 and I’m tired

I’m 73.

Except for one semester in college when jobs were scarce and a six-month period when I was between jobs, but job-hunting every day, I’ve worked, hard, since I was 18.

Despite some health challenges, I still put in 50-hour weeks, and haven’t called in sick in seven or eight years. I make a good salary, but I didn’t inherit my job or my income, and I worked to get where I am. Given the economy, there’s no retirement in sight, and I’m tired. Very tired.

I’m tired of being told that I have to “spread the wealth” to people who don’t have my work ethic. I’m tired of being told the government will take the money I earned, by force if necessary, and give it to people too lazy to earn it.

I’m tired of being told that Islam is a “Religion of Peace,” when every day I can read dozens of stories of Muslim men killing their sisters, wives and daughters for their family “honor”; of Muslims rioting over some slight offense; of Muslims murdering Christian and Jews because they aren’t “believers;” of Muslims burning schools for girls; of Muslims stoning teenage rape victims to death for “adultery;” of Muslims mutilating the genitals of little girls; all in the name of Allah, because the Qur’an and Sharia law tells them to.

I’m tired of being told that, out of “tolerance for other cultures,” we must let Saudi Arabia use our oil money to fund mosques and madrassa Islamic schools to preach hate in America and Canada, while no American nor Canadian group is allowed to fund a church, synagogue or religious school in Saudi Arabia to teach love and tolerance.

I’m tired of being told I must lower my living standard to fight global warming, which no one is allowed to debate.

I’m tired of being told that drug addicts have a disease, and I must help support and treat them, and pay for the damage they do. Did a giant germ rush out of a dark alley, grab them, and stuff white powder up their noses while they tried to fight it off?

I’m tired of hearing wealthy athletes, entertainers and politicians of both parties talking about innocent mistakes, stupid mistakes or youthful mistakes, when we all know they think their only mistake was getting caught. I’m tired of people with a sense of entitlement, rich or poor.

I’m real tired of people who don’t take responsibility for their lives and actions. I’m tired of hearing them blame the government, or discrimination or bigwhatever for their problems.

Yes, I’m damn tired. But I’m also glad to be 73.. Because, mostly, I’m not going to have to see the world these people are making. I’m just sorry for my granddaughters and grandson.

Robert A. Hall is a Marine Vietnam veteran who served fi ve terms in the Massachusetts State Senate.

—CC—

My best friend Bob Irby always has to one-up me. Recently I showed him my new pill case with compartments I use for all my medication. The next day he came by to show me the tackle box he uses for his. I just can’t win!

—CC—

As I continue my journey to “old age” I thought of Dayna when I read the following . . .

A woman accompanied her elderly husband to his doctor’s appointment. After a thorough examination, the doctor took the wife to his office to speak privately with her.

“If you don’t follow my instructions carefully, your husband may not have long to live. Every morning, wake him gently with a nice back rub, make him fresh squeezed orange juice, and only prepare his favorite foods at all meals, in the healthiest ways possible. Read the newspaper to him. Never bother him with problems or ask him to help around the house. Draw him a warm bath every night, and as you tuck him into bed, give him a foot rub to end the day.”

On the car ride home, the husband asked his wife what the doctor had said.

She replied, “We need to make sure your will is in order.”

—CC—

My dear friend, the late Kenny Conn, a few years back sent me the following “advice.” The older we get the more confused we get about how we should present ourselves.

We’re unsure about the kind of image we are projecting and whether or not we are correct as we try to conform to current fashion. Despite what you may have seen on the streets, the following combinations DO NOT go together and should be avoided:

1. A nose ring and bifocals

2. Spiked hair and bald spots

3. A pierced tongue and dentures

4. Miniskirts and support hose

5. Ankle bracelets and corn pads

6. Speedo’s and cellulite

7. A belly button ring and a gall bladder surgery scar

8. Unbuttoned disco shirts and a heart monitor

9. Midriff shirts and a midriff bulge

10. Bikinis and liver spots

11. Short shorts and varicose veins

12. Inline skates and a walker And last, but not least . . . my personal favorite:

13. Thongs and depends

Please keep these basic guidelines foremost in your mind when you shop.

—CC—

And last of all, my favorite story of the week . . .

Older women have a sense of humor about their “mature” husbands. One was telling her friend about her husband’s unexplained and mysterious disappearance.

“I haven’t seen him for a week,” she said. “I went to the police to describe him and told them all about him—he’d lost his hair, his eyesight was gone, he didn’t have many teeth. In fact, I told them that most of him was missing before he was!”