THE JOIE OF GROWING OLD

~ Why, beyond middle age, people get happier as they get older ~

"ASK people how they feel about getting older, and they will probably reply in the same vein as Maurice Chevalier:

“Old age isn’t so bad when you consider the alternative.”

Stiffening joints, weakening muscles, fading eyesight and the clouding of memory, coupled with the modern world’s careless contempt for the old, seem a fearful prospect—better than death, perhaps, but not much.

Yet mankind is wrong to dread ageing.

Life is not a long slow decline from sunlit uplands towards the valley of death. It is, rather, a U-bend.

"[Since then] interest in the U-bend has been growing. Its effect on happiness is significant—about half as much, from the nadir of middle age to the elderly peak, as that of unemployment.

It appears all over the world: David Blanchflower, professor of economics at Dartmouth College, and Mr Oswald looked at the figures for 72 countries. The nadir varies among countries—Ukrainians, at the top of the range, are at their most miserable at 62, and Swiss, at the bottom, at 35—but in the great majority of countries people are at their unhappiest in their 40s and early 50s.

The global average is 46".

Commentaria

I knew he'd insert his ever-youthful rudolphian proboscis somewhere.

Talkin' about My Generation ~ Dorian Badass ~ he who can't bear to see an article about the 'A' word.

Bosh and no man's a fool, you only have to vada his bogus Sledging in Handsworth Park effort to see the poor chap is desperate.

• Classic Cast List:
  • Annnonceur ~ Eager beaver commentator able to stre-e-tch the simple word 'Away' into 4 syllables

  • The Kid ~ Babyface Bieber lookalike, platypus tilt of nose, 'Jeep'-capped mouthy yoof avec façonnable accent [to feed the chick interest.]

    You just know he will zoom down with savoir slalomer aplomb.

  • Fall Guy [to ensure Baddeley looks good on his Luge]. Brilliant coup to get Berlusconi: well past scope-by date, happy to play slapstick buffoon.

    Of course, we know why Silvio joined the fun: to make a play for:

  • Essex Babe ~ Even as we watch in horror/glee as Il Brilliantino heads for the prang, La Dumberene calls the shots.

    "Fence, fe-e-nce ... the fence will stop him"

    Watch closely, it's as if she's on some profanity button time delay, predicting fence and crash a half second after they actually happen. Right up Berli's street.

• Alarums off: enter Lord Badass wearing a bear-skin (for it is He).

  "Everyone ready? Sled-rail hidden so it looks as if c'est moi steering?

  Are you sure Guy's going to look enough of a twit? Bona idea, have Amy-Liz burble something idiotic about the fence. De-synch her for good measure so it looks like I'm hemmed in by imbeciles"

• Stand by, Houston - Sledging & Handjobs, take 1

• Director:

  "Just so I know, is this the stuntman on the blocks or the grey-haired geezer himself?"

  'It's the Old Grey Whistler, chief. The stuntman came a cropper on the first practice run'

  "Oh that's great, that is. Very well - cue 'Ace'.

  And action!

  Here we go ... I knew it, straight into the ... good lord, he actually missed it. Bravo Snow Fogey!

  I say, look at the blighter go. And he's done it!"

• "Lucinda, quick, darling, before Simon comes sniffing ...

  'Savvy sleddin': Sexagenarian Silver Fox slides sleek; susses snowy slope'

  .That sort of thing, have the creative boys run this up for the evening edition.

  Dead cert viral for Youtube.

  They adoore this sort of thing.

  Makes like they've still got one slipper off the zimmer."