We are all demographed to death. If we don't long for the little purple pill, the latest botox scheme, the cruise for "our kind," we are not in. Karl Rove took his scheme to new heights when he classified every voting district by its buying habits. Agism, sexism, racism, and a number of other isms are all minor in comparison to consumerism.
I am not one who wants to live on Walden Pond, but I am also one who can't abide TV ads. It's why I believe we go down the wrong path when we count campaigners' war chest. And of course California gets a bad rap for exotic bahavior. Hollywood had its part in that. I remember when I wore bright red lipstick and sucked on a cigarette to show I was sophisticated. Very adolescent!
I have two doctors I'm proud of. One is responsible for prescribing my pacemaker. I have an appointment twice a year to get an electronic readout, and then I talk to a man who listens. The last time we met we discussed the article in the New York Times about how aging can be done without becoming frail. He deplored obesity in children because it was going to be a national crisis later on. He wanted more public transportation to save our air. I mentioned that Jim Haslam, mayor of Knoxville who owns a gasoline distribution company and is a major supporter of Bush, would not like to see a monorail installed on the parkway from Oak Ridge to Knoxville. Light bulb! If not a Democrat, at least a more educated Republican. I assume all doctors are Republicans. At least I've never had one who wasn't.
My other doctor is an ophthalmogist who just performed cataract surgery on my one seeing eye. My friend who drove me to the office had his grandmother as her 5th grade teacher. She is living at home at the age of 96.
The heart doctor's father is 90 plus and had a stroke making it necessary to use a wheelchair part time. The loving son wanted to buy him a motorized wheelchair and the old man was affronted. He prefers the one which he can push, like a shopping cart, because it keeps his muscles strong.
I'll stop now before I tell you about my friends at the warm water arthitis aerobics class.