Do you have any close relatives over 90?

[SteveSS]

I would like to hear your/their stories. Where are they from? What are some of the hardships they faced in their youth?

For instance, my mom is 93. She is still with it mentally and can tell me about her youth. Her name is Haldis, as you know we came from Norway. Her father got a homestead in extreme NE Montana. There are lots of Swedes and Norwegians up there. They lived on a farm and the winters were harsh. Since she was born in 1930 the country was just starting the depression. They were poor. She talks about the winters when they would hold their pillows against the widows so they didn't blow out in a blizzard. They had to have a rope from the house to the barn so that in a snowstorm, they wouldn't get lost and freeze to death. They didn't have indoor bathrooms, I don't know about a well. They had a windmill that charged up batteries for power. All the names were Norwegian. Ingrid, Ingeborg, Gunneborg, Jon, Mikkel, etc. Mom said their school bus in the winter was an enclosed sleigh with a pot belly stove in it for heat. Mom went to Minneapolis to become an RN. My dad was a geologist from Oklahoma working on a project in Montana. She said they did have a car and it was stolen once but recovered.


Share your stories so they don't get lost forever.

 

[Richard Cranium]

Share your stories so they don't get lost forever.

I looked up my family tree and found out I was the sap.

 

[Ray70Chrg]

My dear dad made it to 94. He smoked since he was 12 and drank a lot of beer and enjoyed martini’s, cutting that all out in his mid-80’s. He smoked non-filtered grits for 40 years before going the healthier lighter-butt route. He was still pretty sharp to his end, could tell you where any particular tool was in his shop, even a few years after he was no longer able to do much and still helpful when asking him about one fix-it or another. He always stayed active until his body wouldn’t let him anymore. Had a bowel obstruction that killed him, rejecting going to the doc until he couldn’t stand the pain, after numerous pleas to take him to the doc. Easiest going guy you could ever meet; but stubborn as hell. He’d be 106 now. Anyone look forward to living that long? Lol

Good thing is he didn’t have to spend one friggin day in a nursing home. My MIL is 96, mind is still there, terrible hearing even with aids. She’s been there about 4 years now; but considering the five-figure monthly pay her estate pays, she gets treated about as well as any NH resident does – like crap.

Makes me wonder about the advantages of – advanced age.

Dan, couple of houses down from me, is 99 and still works in his yard and has an amazing memory. He has 3 kids, all in their 60's and 1 lives with him full time. He can hold a conversation on any topic and follows the news. He is very concerned about the state of affairs in this country. I don't blame him.

 

[Runcharger]

My Dad made it to 92, worked for everything they had and never looked back although I'm sure he remembered the depression years. For a glimpse of his personality, he owned his own truck for several years and one of the things he did was haul coal to peoples houses for heating. He told me one of the things he did was always try to be at the coal warehouse first in the morning. They had to hand shovel the coal onto the truck and if you were the first guy in line the other drivers would help you shovel so they could get going sooner. Beats the attitude of a lot of youth today that can't get off their phones and figure the govt. owes them everything, My parents didn't figure they were owed anything from anybody.

 

[gkent]

My mother is 92. She is an introvert with no friends but the cleanest house you've ever seen. My aunt (mother's sister) is 97. Both still live in their own homes. My aunt has always been athletic as well as outgoing. She danced for the troops in WWII. Frank Sinatra taught her the proper way to eat spaghetti (twirling it with fork and spoon). She has SEVEN holes in one top her credit - SIX are confirmed. Arnold Palmer witnessed on of them and bought her drinks all evening. She dined with the remaining members of Led Zeppelin shortly after the death of Bonham and was given a back stage pass for that night's concert. She had no clue who they were and already had plans so she gave the pass to a bellhop - who nearly had a heart attack!! She owned a condo in Cocoa Beach and has met most of the early shuttle crews. Sally Ride was a close friend. She once heard Robert Redford was staying at the Cocoa Holiday Inn so her and a bunch of women from the condo went to see if they could get autographs but he only signed a couple then was whisked away. My aunt figured he had to come out sooner or later so she hung around. Sure enough about a half hour later he emerged. She went up and explained how she had a bunch of ladies at her condo dying to meet him and would he mind coming over. After checking with his (agent?) he said they had a few minutes to spare. Being the great host she is she offered him a beer. He stayed and chattered for close to three hours! My uncle was something too and I owe both of them a huge debt of gratitude since they never had children they treated me as their own. My uncle (who passed away in 2011 at the age of 91) was also an amazing athlete - a great catcher in baseball - some say he would have gone pro if not for the war, a fantastic golfer and an amazing curler. But I think his greatest accomplishment was flying THREE tours in bombers during WWII - a couple missions towards the end was dropping cupcakes to starving Dutch in Holland when their supply lines had been cut off by the Nazis. Back to my aunt ... she had a heart attack a few months back but is back home now. She lives seven hours away from me so I can't get there as often as I'd like or should but because she's so outgoing she has fantastic neighbours who check on her, take her to appointments, etc.. However, we are all worried and doing our best to convince her to go into a home where she'll have a much easier time with things and people to better care for her - especially now that winter is here. Up to this point she has not been terribly enthusiastic about the idea!

 

[SteveSS]

That's impressive gkent. My mom lives alone in a big house which is spotless. She still keeps a wonderful flower garden. I'm her main caretaker but she really doesn't need much help.

My dad passed at 85 as all men do in my family. Dirt poor in the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma but every kid in that family got a college education. My parents worked their way up to the upper middle class in the Greatest Generation of America. They deserve to have their stories remembered.

 

[Ceedawg]

Dad turned 95 on July 6th, gets around ok and still drives. Been by himself for 10 years but now my niece and her daughter (teen) moved in with him, both happy. Went thru bladder and prostrate cancer 23 years ago. His family all lived well into the 90s so I have something to look forward to I guess, I’m 74 older sis is 76 younger sis is 70. They both falling apart though and wants me to move down there with them, no way, something in the water lol. Mom died at 85 fell broke hip and just never came back after that. Miss her much!
Just visited this past weekend, 400 miles away.

 

[F4R/T]

Some amazing folks / stories... you need to record them almost as a interview just to keep for the best memories only in real time... old folks are priceless I hope I make it there some day.

 

[ESOXER]

My Grandfather is 95. He stopped working and sold his business 6 months ago due to health issues. He's bored out of his mind. My Grandmother died almost 30 years ago, five years later he found a girlfriend. She's bat **** crazy, owns a ton of properties and her kids are leeches. They are hoarders and my Grandmother is rolling in her grave if she saw the house my mother and the kids grew up in. I haven't been there in years but I used to play in and yard drive his 1925 hardtop model T. Hope he still has it, always kept in the garage and was started and ran regularly.

 

[YY1]

My mom is 85 this year.

Won't let me hire a lawn service for her.

Gets borderline angry if I bring it up.

 

[Scott Engelhardt]

I used to hunt with my grandpa and great uncle. The last year we hunted grandpa was 88 and great uncle was 92. I was very lucky to hear the stories they would share. Over the 20 plus years I got to deer hunt with them, they share lots of stories, most of them around=d the weather. Years that they would pick corn in shirt sleeves December and January. Other years they would have snow drifts 15 feet high from Thanksgiving till mid March.
My grandpa would tell me stories from when he was in the Navy. My favorite was how he got my M1 carbine. He made a false bottom for his commanding officers footlocker so he could sneak one out for himself. Grandpa did it but under the condition he would get one fo my grandpa. He forgot about it, but 20 years later his Co showed up at grandpas house with the carbine. New never fired. He told grandpa that the Navy made it really hard for him not to break his promise but he tracked grandpa down. Grandpa gave me the gun on my 40th birthday.

 

[j-c-c-62]

My Mom just turned 94. This is a mural in her assisted living facility taken at Christmas she just finished last week. She has painted her entire life.
That is one talent I do not share.
Disneyworld in Orlando wanted to hire her as some higher up in the art department, but she turned them down as I am not sure she felt corporate enough.
They did make her honorary Grand Marshall for the daily main street parade though.

 

[XS22J8R]

My mom just turned 90 on Monday, born one year before Elvis. She’s doing pretty well, body is getting frail but her mind is still sharp, which is the most important thing.
My female relatives on her side of the family tend to live into their early to mid 90s.

 

[Richard Cranium]

If I can live to age 90, it'll be a miracle given the age my parent and grandparents died. I don't want to live to be so old that I can't live at home and take care of myself as I'm sure that none of us do.

Regarding longevity, every once in a while the news will have a segment on someone who turns 100 & in almost all cases, they are in a nursing home & in a wheelchair. At that age, you've outlived all of your friends, your spouse, most of your relatives and maybe some of your kids. No way do I want to live to be that old. 85-ish is probably my expiration date, although at any age, I'll always be fresh.

 

[ESOXER]

I agree, I've always told the wife I don't want to die in a hospital, wheel me to the lake put a fishing pole in my right hand and a beer in the left.

 

[j-c-c-62]

I agree, I've always told the wife I don't want to die in a hospital, wheel me to the lake put a fishing pole in my right hand and a beer in the left.

My Mom always said if I buy her a bottle of Scotch, she knows it's time for her to find an ice flow, Eskimo style exit.

 

[YY1]

Saw a 100 year old vet honored at a hockey game last year.

Standing on the ice through the national anthem.

You go, sir!

 

[YY1]

My family ranges from 42, to 99 (or more because there were no paper records).

So it's a crapshoot for me.

 

[#41]

I lost my Dad a year ago Jan 29. People are surprised when I tell them he grew up in a home with no electricity, phone, or indoor plumbing. With 5 feet of snow and minus 20 degrees... you still got up at 5AM, did farm chores, walked to school, and more farm chores when you got home. He was a smart kid so they advanced him and he graduated school at 15. This was from the proverbial one room school house ...... 1st through 12th grades all in one room.

He grew up in a world that was not far removed from the pioneering days that is inconceivable to most people today. It was the kind of life that made people resilient, humble, and thankful for the smallest things in life. Certainly not the kind of people that we are churning out today.

 

[Richard Cranium]

I lost my Dad a year ago Jan 29. People are surprised when I tell them he grew up in a home with no electricity, phone, or indoor plumbing. With 5 feet of snow and minus 20 degrees... you still got up at 5AM, did farm chores, walked to school, and more farm chores when you got home. He was a smart kid so they advanced him and he graduated school at 15. This was from the proverbial one room school house ...... 1st through 12th grades all in one room.

He grew up in a world that was not far removed from the pioneering days that is inconceivable to most people today. It was the kind of life that made people resilient, humble, and thankful for the smallest things in life. Certainly not the kind of people that we are churning out today.

I've often said that my grandparent's generation (born in the late 1800's-early 1900's) have lived through more human advancement in their lifetimes than all others before, combined. Those people who grew up with no cars, electricity or indoor plumbing saw the first airplanes fly and 50 years later, men landing on the moon. Our generation, and younger, have a far more comfortable lifestyle with more technological advances to make our lives easier so we don't have to tough it out like they did, although I'm not sure if that's good or bad.