Social Signs Of Ageing

[Drusilla]

I'm in my mid thirties and physically, I've never felt better, but when I peek into Chatterbank on this site, I feel quite old because I just don't get it. What is it that makes you feel 'socially old' ?? Is it spotty faced policemen; music; your children's use of language, or something else? Ps. I'm not having a go at Chatterbankers, it's just I feel I'm in an alien world in there; a bit like a child in a new school, where everyone seems bigger than me.

[lady_p_gold]

Aw Drusilla don't feel like that .. I am older than you and I don't feel like that at all! And being able to reply to some of the answers on there with true experience I find quite uplifting. You are a mere babe! I think you just need to celebrate where you are. I would add that being on the computer a lot helps to keep you in touch with the world and also having children and hearing what they talk about too. The only time I sometimes feel it is when you mention some TV star and then find nobody has heard of them (or remembering Sooty's first Daddy for instance!)

[Le Chat]

The main thing that makes me feel old on AB, is my correct spelling, grammar and punctuation!! You can generally tell who is under 30, by their lack of care over these points, especially spelling!!

Once I have written my question or answer, I check back over it all! If I am not sure about a spelling, I look it up! It pains me to see the lack of educational standard in our language and also the lack of care when applying it to paper or screen!!

[Drusilla]

I never use paragraphs in my questions, or replies on AB, Le Chat, because the spacing seems so excessive and spoils the flow of the language.

[jno]

I suspect Drusilla that older people have been brought up to read a few sentences at a time, then pause for reflection (hence the use of paragraphs); young people, who use paragraphs less, talk without stopping. (That sounds a bit sarcastic, but it isn't meant to be, just an observation.)
If you want less space between paragraphs, like this, hit the shift key with the return key.

[jno]

(sorry, that looked much clearer when I was writing it, at least on the screen I'm using at present. Shift+return starts a new para without the line space.)

[lady_p_gold]

I agree with Le Chat about that. I went into Boots yesterday and they have had a refit and in huge letters above one of the aisles was STATIONARY ... and I am sure they were not telling me to stand still !!!!

[Drusilla]

Thanks for the tip, jno. I really should know these things at my age. You wouldn't believe I attended a six weeks course at college last April to update my computer skills. Slow learner!!!!

[aka pixi]

hi drusilla, what makes me feel old is when my lad says to me 'you know in the olden days when you were young...' >psst I'm always in cb and I bet I'm not bigger than you, I'm not even 5 foot tall lol<

[Drusilla]

Hi pixi. There's a great example in your question. What does lol mean? I'm beginning to wonder how I've missed all this stuff.

[charliebaps]

lol is an acronym for laugh out loud.

Don't worry about it - I am 30 so on the cusp of feeling like an outsider on chatterbank.

[jno]

lol = laughing out loud. Long list of abbreviations here - not all that many of them actually used on AB, but you might like to drop some into letters to your gran.

[maggie01]

If you feel old in your thirties, then I should be pushing up the daises. I do know what you mean though. As for paragraphs, commas, question marks etc. I get it wrong all the time so I don't think you can tell a persons age from that. One thing that makes me feel old, is the fact that my grandson leaves school next year for college and I wonder where the years went. I don't know everyones ages on CB but I would think the majority are your age or maybe younger. Sorry if I am wrong.

[mycatis]

Loads of people on CB are much older tha you Drusilla! tee hee, sorry folks.
I'm not sure if your question is more about feeling older or about CB. If it's about CB then please just dive in and don't feel awkward, we change our way of talking depending on the type of question, honestly.
If it's about feeling a certain age then I totally understand what you mean. I'm 28 and getting really freaked out about hitting 30, because in my mind 30 year old women are, grown up, confidant, sensible people, (well not Pixi obviously) who have their lives sorted, jobs, home, car, relationship etc and I really don't feel like that

[OBonio]

All this bru-ha-ha about hoodies. I used to have one of them! Kids would deny that history repeats itself though and that they are merely copying a trend from over a decade ago.

Older people feel happy talking to me. Also, OAPs don't cross the road when I walk down the street.

Txt t4lk!

[mullein3]

i dont understand what some people in cb are talking about either..so i avoid them..their are plenty of us your age and older that would answer your posts in cb if you posted them..younger people seem to have their own code of language...i shall be socially old soon mr m is taking me to a xmas dinner and disco...but he hastened to tell me "we wont be dancing we are to old" so that told me..

[BigMac]

Obonio, obonio, if only it were just a decade since the first hoodies.
Mine was in the 1970s....

[Buddy]

What is the big deal about peoples spelling and grammar.I find it down right patronising to pick people up on minor details like that - in fact I firmly beleive some people are put off posting in case they are fundamentally ridiculed for their apparent lact of writing skills.

PLEASE - people are being bereaved as we speak and some ABers are bothered if someone has punctuated properly.Replies to questions are hardly spontaneous if you are going back every while to check your spelling etc.

Just my humble opinion.

[Buddy]

This might end up duplicated Drusilla as I posted it but it hasnt appeared!CB is like a private members club - I've tried a couple of times.

What is froggers BTW (By the way)?Anyone any idea or is it just an in-joke?

[Drusilla]

I've just popped in between jobs and am amazed at the amount of responses to this question. Many thanks to you all! Obonio's comments about hoodies made me laugh because I've a photo of my father wearing a hoody in 1975.
jno's attachment is excellent for anyone wishing to update their online chat.

[stevie_c2it]

I didn�t think I was old until I found myself struggling to understand a recent post where someone had typed the word �no� in places where it should have been �know�, �now� and �no�. Most confusing. I guess it can seem excessively lazy not to bother with spelling or punctuation when most computers come with some sort of spell checker.