re: #159 Barefoot Grin

Yes, you can catch many of them gathering at the local McDonalds in the mornings for companionship in misery through the daily recitation of the same goddamn stories (last summer I used a McDonalds for its wifi while my son was at soccer camp one week; I got to know about “I don’t care about my gambling—I’m having fun,” and “they’re all using the welfare and that’s why we don’t get no raise in our benefits,” etc.).

This was a fate my mother sought to avoid. My dad toyed with the idea of retiring to some retirement community in Florida, until Mom put her foot down and said there was no way she was going to live with a bunch of old people. That ended the discussion.

As I am now edging up to my 60th birthday, I can understand why she was so adamant. Stick with people who are like you too much, and you become a fossil.