The 100 Years Club Installment #37: The Golden Bachelor, My New “Semester,” and the Epic Field Trip

As September draws to a close, I reflect on my many learnings (which is appropriate because I had dubbed the month “Back to School Season.”)

I’m getting ready to co-host a baby shower for my younger daughter, which prompted me to think about the lives of new working mothers everywhere.

Life has changed since I took my maternity leave 35 years ago (and rushed back to work eight weeks later because I feared losing my job and women were either at work or at home. Remote work was impossible because computers didn’t exist).

Technology and respect for working parenthood have evolved over the past 3+ decades indeed! And I’m now a working nana, able to free up time to hang with my grandkids, which is pretty sweet.

But enough about benefits, bagels, and balloons. What else did I do this month?

• I have renewed faith in professionals hiring other experienced talent rather than grads and bots. I have three very active, innovative, fun, and challenging writing clients, and my work life and schedule are pretty damned balanced. Yes…I use AI…but I still consider myself the robot overlord, and I consider it an assistant, not a strategist.
• Making time for my “passion projects” has been key, and I re-launched Bleisure Living® this month and recorded the first episode of my new podcast —The Geezer Proofer™. And yes, I watched “The Golden Bachelor” and critiqued it.
• Perhaps my most important adventure this month came when I road-tested my digital nomad status. Although I love the weather and lifestyle in Arizona, it will never quite feel like home to me, so I returned to the East Coast (Westchester, East Hampton, Manhattan, Princeton, and Maryland) to see friends, support a non-profit, and work from the road.

So, what does MY life have to do with YOUR life >50?

Here’s where I get all school-marmy and give you life tips:

1. Craft a plan for each month and stick to it. If you want to give it a “theme,” go for it. It helps you focus on specific categories of goals.
2. Make time to see or connect with friends and family from the past. If possible, limit your list to people who will bring you joy and insights.
3. Don’t give up on work if you enjoy it. Just find something you love to do and people you love to do it for. If you’re retired, volunteering may fit the bill.
4. Travel can feed the soul. Seeing new people and experiencing novel things keeps us youthful and engaged.
5. Discover and learn new technologies that will make your life better and richer. You don’t need to be tethered to ChatGPT or Facebook to have a tech-centric life, and keep in mind that automation can ultimately help us connect, communicate, stay healthy, and perform tasks faster and easier. Pick one or two new skills each month and master them! My mother got her first tablet at 94. You’re never too late.

So, let’s all fall into October, when my theme will be “FEARLESS,” as I tackle some of my many remaining insecurities, mini-terrors, and biases.

Class dismissed (for now).

P.S. As for the feature photo, it’s a montage of memorable moments — from the rustic Chappaqua Inn to a photo opp with the Yonkers mayor to my upcoming podcast to a wonderful dinner with a friend I’ve known for 40+ years to my epic suite at the Bryant Park Hotel. Only a small sample of the past couple of weeks!