40=20 And 50=30

[Mike Burke]

Only 30% of aging is genetic. The other 70% is lifestyle. As such, for
many women today, 40 is the new 20 (Alyssa Milano / Carmen Electra), and
50 is the new 30 (Elizabeth Vargas / Virginia Madsen). The fact that
Carmen has no kids may help a little, but Alyssa, Elizabeth, and
Virginia are all mothers who are just as hot and sexy.

The longer you live, the older you get, and you can't undo the past.
Those who abuse themselves when they are younger, are really going to
pay for it when they are older, pending the abuse itself doesn't kill
them when they are doing it.

Having spent sometime as a resident in a nursing and rehab center (from
ages 32 to 34), I saw everyday what self-abuse can do. Walking with a
cane is okay, as I used one myself for a while. However, if you are in
your 70's, and you need a walker and/or a wheelchair to get around, and
you don't have a disease or spinal-cord injury that prevents you from
doing so, you are feeling the residual effects of self-abuse when
younger. As my roommate said on his 85th birthday:

"If I knew that I was going to be around this long, I would have taken
much better care of myself when I was younger."

--
Mike Burke

[Julie Bove]

Post by Mike Burke
Only 30% of aging is genetic. The other 70% is lifestyle. As such, for
many women today, 40 is the new 20 (Alyssa Milano / Carmen Electra),
and 50 is the new 30 (Elizabeth Vargas / Virginia Madsen). The fact
that Carmen has no kids may help a little, but Alyssa, Elizabeth, and
Virginia are all mothers who are just as hot and sexy.
The longer you live, the older you get, and you can't undo the past.
Those who abuse themselves when they are younger, are really going to
pay for it when they are older, pending the abuse itself doesn't kill
them when they are doing it.
Having spent sometime as a resident in a nursing and rehab center
(from ages 32 to 34), I saw everyday what self-abuse can do. Walking
with a cane is okay, as I used one myself for a while. However, if
you are in your 70's, and you need a walker and/or a wheelchair to
get around, and you don't have a disease or spinal-cord injury that
prevents you from doing so, you are feeling the residual effects of
"If I knew that I was going to be around this long, I would have taken
much better care of myself when I was younger."

I am disabled due to medical problems. For a time I could not walk at all.
Just crawl or scoot along the floor. I progressed (at home) to a walker
then a cane. I still can't walk well but I can do it now. And I look
young.

[Mike Burke]

Post by Julie Bove
I am disabled due to medical problems.
For a time I could not walk at all. Just
crawl or scoot along the floor. I
progressed (at home) to a walker then a
cane. I still can't walk well but I can do it
now. And I look young.

"It's the lowest level of human existence, that a human being can exist
on, next to being dead."

The above quote comes from Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, who spent more than
20 years in prison, for a crime he did not commit. What he said about
prison, is exactly what I felt every single day in that nursing home. My
90-year-old grandfather would rather die than be put in a nursing home.
He has been living alone for the past 20 years. I check on him everyday,
and all is well. He believes that 90 is the new 70.

--
Mike Burke

[Julie Bove]

Post by Mike Burke

Post by Julie Bove
I am disabled due to medical problems.
For a time I could not walk at all. Just
crawl or scoot along the floor. I
progressed (at home) to a walker then a
cane. I still can't walk well but I can do it
now. And I look young.

"It's the lowest level of human existence, that a human being can
exist on, next to being dead."
The above quote comes from Rubin "Hurricane" Carter, who spent more
than 20 years in prison, for a crime he did not commit. What he said
about prison, is exactly what I felt every single day in that nursing
home. My 90-year-old grandfather would rather die than be put in a
nursing home. He has been living alone for the past 20 years. I check
on him everyday, and all is well. He believes that 90 is the new 70.

That could be. My MIL seems to be doing well in the nursing home she is in.
Her mind seems to be all there although she is compelled to do strange stuff
that she never did before. Such as ripping things out of magazines that she
says don't belong there. There seems to be no rhyme nor reason to what she
tears out but it seems to make her happy.

I know I would not have been happy in that rehab place where my dad was.
The only pleasant places were the Internet Cafe, the waiting room inside the
door and perhaps the dining room. There was an awful stench in that place
to me. My dad noticed it too but the rest of the family didn't seem to
notice. And something in the air that made me itch all over while I was
there and for a few hours after I left. The beds were horrible. Hospital
style in an assortment of styles that didn't match. But all were tiny and
looked cheap with uncomfortable mattresses on them. And the rooms were so
tiny that there was no way for my dad to get his wheelchair beyond the sink
without ripping the arm of it a little more each time. For over $13,000 a
month I would expect more than that.

Although my MIL's room does have a hospital bed in it, and she needs that
type of bed, the room is furnished nicely and although small there is still
enough room for visitors without making them feel like they are infringing
on the roommate's space. She also had a little more storage space than what
my dad had at the rehab place.

Now what made me feel like not living was the day and thankfully just that
one day where I was having to use the toilet three times every hour. When I
tried to sleep, I could only sleep for an hour. I had nightmares about
water flooding everywhere, flooding toilets. I did once manage to sleep for
two hours but felt like I was going to explode and couldn't get to the
bathroom fast enough. I was ready to go to the ER and have them remove my
bladder surgically. Of course I had no clue what I might do beyond that
but... I felt like doing it.

[Mike Burke]

Since Mike Burke is not my real name, I feel very safe when I say that
"Jacobi Medical Center" in The Bronx (New York City) is Hell On Earth.
The ONLY good thing there was the food. As for "East Haven Nursing &
Rehab Center" also in The Bronx (New York City), the ONLY good thing
there, is that there were some very good looking (and nice) girls /
women who worked there.

In any case, being a patient in a hospital, or being a resident in a
nursing home, is not normal by any stretch of the imagination. And at my
age, I was younger than some of the employees there. To be exact, from
Monday morning July 9 (2007), to Wednesday afternoon July 22 (2009), was
a 2 year odyssey into the REAL Twilight Zone.

--
Mike Burke

[Julie Bove]

Post by Mike Burke
Since Mike Burke is not my real name, I feel very safe when I say that
"Jacobi Medical Center" in The Bronx (New York City) is Hell On Earth.
The ONLY good thing there was the food. As for "East Haven Nursing &
Rehab Center" also in The Bronx (New York City), the ONLY good thing
there, is that there were some very good looking (and nice) girls /
women who worked there.
In any case, being a patient in a hospital, or being a resident in a
nursing home, is not normal by any stretch of the imagination. And at my
age, I was younger than some of the employees there. To be exact, from
Monday morning July 9 (2007), to Wednesday afternoon July 22 (2009), was
a 2 year odyssey into the REAL Twilight Zone.

Sorry!

[Mike Burke]

Post by Julie Bove
Sorry!

Thank you. In the end, it was a learning experience, that I wish I never
had. I believe that I have mild PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)
because of it. The only bad thing about having a very good memory, is
that you can't forget stuff that you really want to forget.

--
Mike Burke