My story: Reflections on being (yikes!) elderly . . .
- Rita Rose
- 20 hours ago
- 4 min read
So, I recently did a thing. I turned 80.
EIGHTY. Eight zero. A number that sounds . . . elderly.
OK, I need to own that because, as we all know, the alternative is worse. Reflecting on life at this milestone can take a lot of different paths. I can think of things I regret, and things I’m grateful for.
Looking back, I am very grateful that I grew up when I did, in the 1950s and ’60s, when childhood was innocent and worries were few. There were no cell phones or video games to distract us from kidhood.
Some good memories:
As kids, we played outside, sometimes after dark or until our mothers yelled our first and middle names. We rode bikes, played hopscotch and jump rope, had marathon Monopoly games at some kid’s house and never worried about being snatched by a boogeyman. There was always a ball game going on and I was right in the middle of it. We had vacant lots to play in because someone’s dad kept the grass cut.
I had my best teacher ever in fourth grade, Carol Coate. She encouraged my writing, and we reconnected many years later. I wish she had lived long enough to see the three books I wrote. You never forget that special teacher.
I was obsessed with “The Mickey Mouse Club.” My mom worked and I had after-school babysitters until she got home. But when I turned 9 and got a house key in my hot little
hand, she always knew where I was at 4 p.m., watching my favorite Mouseketeer, Annette Funicello.
In high school I started following Annette’s career as an actress and singer, and at 15 I started a fan club for her that lasted 28 years. We became friends and I was even invited to her wedding when I was 18! Talk about a heady experience. After she passed away from MS in 2013, I was invited to speak at her Celebration of Life at Disney Studios. That’s an honor I’ll never forget.
I also loved “Lassie” and wanted Jeff (Tommy Rettig) to be my best friend. My first fan letter went to him and I got an autographed photo. Then there was “Ozzie and Harriet,” where I couldn’t wait till the end of the show to see Ricky Nelson sing.
This Baby Boomer is grateful to have lived in the era of teen idols who were talented, clean cut and weren’t involved in any scandals (that we know of). I had teen magazine pix of Frankie, Fabian, Bobby, Ricky, Annette, Connie and Brenda on my bedroom wall. You know their last names.
My first rock concert was the Beatles in 1964. I saw Elvis three times. Wowzer.
Animals were an important part of my life. I had three dogs and a parakeet (who lived to age 22) growing up, plus an assortment of turtles, fish and even a chameleon. As an adult, cats fit better in my working life.
At 18 I started working at The Indianapolis Star, a gig that lasted 42 years. I interviewed celebrities and local performers, reviewed plays and movies, learned how to do layout and design and became a capable copy editor. I worked with some incredible people over the years who were talented and dedicated to journalism. Many are still my friends including my mentor, Lynn Hopper, who taught me way more than college ever could.
After retirement, I reached out to an acquaintance: WISH-TV news anchor and entertainment reporter Patty Spitler. She also was retired and I asked what she was doing, which resulted in a trip to her house to meet her cats and handsome Bernese Mountain Dog, Louie. She said she was starting a pet show, and I ended up writing about this new venture for The Star. Seventeen years later, “Pet Pals TV” has set a record for independent programming!
Along the way, she started “Great Day TV,” and I became her personal assistant, pet-sitter and TV show helper. Sometimes it’s challenging, but mostly it’s fun and a great way to spend “retirement”! So that’s where I am now, learning about TV after a long newspaper life.
Regrets? Oh yeah. Failed relationships, losing friends to death and politics, making bad financial decisions. But there are no do-overs.
Jack Benny had a good idea staying at 39 but you see where that got him. My neck met the turkey farm long before Nora Ephron wrote a book called I Hate My Neck. So, despite the fact that when I turn my arm a certain way it looks like a stormy day at Big Sur, I am making friends with being 80.
I’m in good company. Cher, Sally Field, Hayley Mills and Liza Minnelli are all turning 80 this year. If Pollyanna can embrace 80, so can I.
Aside from some neuropathy, vertigo and an achy back, my health is good. I have many wonderful friends, two awesome kitties and an older car that has a CD player. I even have an “80 for Brady” shirt left over from a 2023 movie party.
In my geezerhood, I aspired to be a single, childless, elderly cat lady on a fixed income who watches a lot of MeTV. Looks like I made it.
