Who is Right? Who is Bright? And Who is Not?

As you get older you believe you get wiser by learning from experiences both good and bad! Yet with the 21st century technology revolution that may no longer be true. By not embracing the rapidly changing tech scene one may find oneself left behind.

Someone I once considered a good friend basically told me “You think you are smart but you are really are stupid.” Boy did that sting, but the more I thought about it I realized how true what he said was and what a favor he did me by saying that. Why? Because now as a senior I am looking out for individuals smarter than me who look to take advantage of old folks like me who believe in honor, loyalty and fairness. Old-time behavior that is slowly being eroded by the need to get real rich, real fast and taking care of number one only.

Sadly I hear of too many stories of folks cheated by giving a deposit to an unscrupulous contractor for work that never gets done or worse ends up costing twice as much. Hourly I get scam emails trying to get my bank information. How many people do you know of who had this actually had this happen? I know a few and it’s awful.

When I was in my twenties a friend who was a stock broker mislead me so that I lost almost all my savings! Thank god at the time it was around $5000 but in 1976-77 one could buy a BMW 320 i with a sunroof, Blaupunkt radio, and coco-mats for $6700 after taxes.

Does anyone ever remember being told never to talk about religion or politics when being social? Now that seems to be all everyone talks about when they are talking at all and not glued to their devices! It’s true there was a time when folks read the paper daily to stay in touch now who reads more than 50 words at all before moving on.

Is there a benefit to not being informed? To not knowing one day the earth will be too hot to live on there won’t be any drinking water and there won’t be enough food to feed everybody? Every year more folks than ever before fly private, own million dollar homes and make the most money they ever made. However every year the opposite is true too. Older folks watch the world change a few times in a long lifetime. They witness wars, famines, disasters and boom periods.

At the end of their lifetime younger folks look at the non-achievers as losers or pathetic individuals. Maybe they are right but maybe they are wrong. A good life isn’t just registered on a spread sheet, it is measured in laughs, smiles, quality time with quality people and most of all experiencing joy and even some disappointments.