The Half-Century Mark

I can remember, when I was younger, thinking "Oh my God, in the year 2000, I'll be 44 years old."

Funny to think that I didn't look any further ahead than that. The thought of being 50 didn't even occur to me. And now, here I am a little over a week away from the half century mark, the BIG FIVE-OH and I'm trying to decide how I feel about it.

I don't think of myself as old, I don't really even think of myself as middle-aged. I still have this personal impression of myself, how I see myself, as being permanently 30-something. I guess that's a good thing -- they say you are as old as you feel.

And, since I made the effort last year to lose weight and get in shape, I'm in better health and physical fitness than I have been in decades. I certainly plan on trying to stay this fit and healthy for many more years.

Having Eric in my life now certainly gives me the incentive to take care of myself. We want to have as many healthy, happy years together as we can.

I guess being 50 won't be so bad. Wonder how I'll feel at 60? 70? 80?

They say you should grow old gracefully. Well, I plan to fight it every step of the way!

Meet The Family

Since Eric and I have become officially engaged, I've had a chance to meet some of his family, my future in-laws. Eric's mom lives up in Indiana with one of his brothers and his sister. A couple of weeks ago, Eric and I flew in to Indianapolis (he from SF, me from Houston) and stayed the weekend.

To say I had been nervous would be an understatement. It's funny how, even though Eric and I are officially middle-aged (I'll be 50 in a couple of weeks) we still feel like we need parental approval. I'm sure he went through the same thing when he met my parents last Thanksgiving.

I'm pleased to report the visit went very well. I love his mom, she is a real peach. She's got plenty of fire in her, in spite of failing health. She's got a sharp mind and a good sense of humor. I'm glad she felt well enough while I was visiting.

I enjoyed meeting Eric's brother and sister too. His sister Michelle, especially, I felt like I could really hit it off with. She's a very energetic person and we share quite a few interests. I've never had a sister-in-law before and I think I'm going to enjoy have her as mine:) And, after the visit, I *think* I can say they liked me too :)

As an aside, several months ago, Eric got me a 3D graphics program for my computer and although I had toyed with it, it was pretty complicated and I didn't do much with it. However, Michelle has the same program and is very prolific with her art. She really got me fired up over it and since I've been home, I've been doing som tutorials in the program and really learning how it works. Michelle was my motivator.

Now I understand it better, I've been able to produce some quite nice work. Eric is thrilled because computer art is one of his passions too and we've been able to bounce ideas off each other. Eric has even learned some new things he didn't know before -- and all because I'm reading the tutorials. (It's amazing what happens when you read the instructions!)