I share my birthday with a wonderful and truly inspirational
man, Martin Luther King. He would have been 84 today. I feel honored to share
this day with King, who opened the door and brought the fresh air of “all
people created equal” into our current society. Sure, the ideology hasn’t stuck
for everyone, but some people don’t have the education to be that open and
accepting, let alone the experience to know what it feels like to be
discriminated against. So, here’s to a noble countryman who gave of his ideology
and his life so the lives of black people everywhere could be better. In my
opinion, us white folks are better for it too!
So, its official: I’m a legitimate, card-carrying Medicare recipient
and I’m entitled to social security, which I’ve been receiving since I was 62 (a
story for another day). When I turned 55, many establishments (movie theaters,
some restaurants and retail stores), would give me a senior discount. I
had to chuckle though at those places where the 20-year-old clerks were required
to ask if I wanted the senior rate or not. At first I felt super old. They must
be asking because I looked old. That wasn’t the case, however, when I pressed
the issue. It was similar to being carded; if you even remotely looked like you
could be 55, the clerks were required to ask. They always asked with down-cast
eyes.
I’m thrilled to be 65; no, seriously I am.
