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Continue reading →: Memory, Google, and the Generational CheatI can still rattle off my childhood phone number from fifty years ago without hesitation. Ask me my best friend’s cell number today, though, and I’ll freeze like a deer in headlights. I don’t dial her digits — I tap her face on my phone. My husband’s Social Security number?…
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Continue reading →: If I Am Not What I Do, Who Am I?I’ve never met a firefighter who didn’t still call himself a firefighter, even years after hanging up the gear. Same goes for teachers, nurses, soldiers, pastors, professors. Once you’ve lived inside a role that long, it doesn’t just describe what you did — it becomes who you are. That’s the…
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Continue reading →: Age Smarter, Ask Better QuestionsAging comes with questions — some practical, some ridiculous, some that keep us up at night. What’s that new ache? Did I already take my pills? Should I downsize? Can I retire? Why did I walk into this room, and why does it happen three times a day? And then…
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Continue reading →: Growing Older, Playing SmallerRemember when people said aging was supposed to mean freedom? The golden years, fewer rules, time to finally relax and do what you wanted? Yet when I look around, so much of the messaging about growing older is really about playing smaller. Smaller homes. Smaller wardrobes. Smaller ambitions. Smaller voices.…
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Continue reading →: The Big “M”Oh, honey, I’ve got a fan blowing on me all day long, even when it’s 30 outside,” says my new friend at a recent cocktail party. “Yeah, that radiation starts in my belly and grows out to my fingers!” laughs another. A third, helpful friend leaps into a monologue about…
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Continue reading →: Fit After 50 (Without Giving Up Ice Cream): A Love Letter to Movement, Muscle, and the SofaThere’s a woman on Instagram right now doing one-armed handstands on a beach in a turquoise unitard. She’s 67, apparently. Glowing, sculpted, and captioning her reel with something like: “Age is just a number. You’re only as old as your mindset!” Good for her.Also: I want to throw my heating…
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Continue reading →: Where are the Gen-X Women?Generation X women, born between 1965 and 1981, prioritize independence and personal choice, leading them to form small social circles rather than join traditional organizations. Their commitments often revolve around work and caregiving. They prefer interest-based, low-commitment social groups over formal organizations like the Red Hat Society, which struggle to…
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Continue reading →: Good Girls…DoThe content explores societal expectations of women regarding sexuality and behavior. It contrasts the “good girl” persona with a hidden, more liberated identity, emphasizing how women are often shamed for expressing sexual agency. The author critiques the legacy of inadequate sexual education and advocates for open discussions about women’s health…
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Continue reading →: Be Humble, but Know Your WorthHumility contrasts with pride, urging modesty in a world that values arrogance. While self-praise is fine, we must balance it with authenticity to avoid oversharing.
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Continue reading →: And in the end…My first experience with death, live and up close, was on my second shift as a cardiac technician. I was 20, and had already worked in healthcare for seven years, starting as a candy-striper, then as a CNA in a burn and HIV unit. I thought I was prepared to…
Hello!
👋 I’m Pam Abbott-Enz, a gerontologist, educator, teacher, writer, and fellow traveler in the messy, funny, and deeply human work of growing older. Welcome to my world! Here, I share stories, sparks, and reflections from a life spent studying aging while living through its plot twists myself.
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