10 Signs You're Getting "Old" (Even If You Aren't)

Lately, I've been feeling my age. All almost 36 years of it. But seriously, I've been feeling old. Partly, it's because I am old... compared to a good number of my friends who are just entering their 30s this year. Partly, it's because I've been married, divorced, engaged, unengaged, owned a house, sold the house to my now ex-husband, been diagnosed with a chronic lifelong illness, and spent the last five years trying to find the best combination of meds and therapy for said illness. Partly, it's because I know that I've now reached the age of "high risk" for pregnancy and in four years time will have to start thinking about things like mammograms for no reason other than my age.

But, I think most of us, even if they're not in the impending mammogram age bracket, can equate with feeling older than your years in at least some respects. Since a few of my posts have been quite serious lately (I blog about mental health, after all), I thought for Friday, I'd do something a bit lighter: 10 signs that you're getting "old", even if you aren't.

1. The time that you used to be leaving the house to go out for the night has now become the time by which you hope you're home, and possibly in bed.

2. You find yourself unnaturally excited about subject lines such as "Your Keurig order has shipped!" or "Your Costco coupons are on their way!".

3. "I can't go because I'm washing my hair" has now become a completely legitimate reason, instead of a petty excuse. Seriously, work/home life has been so busy that this is the first time you've had to wash you're hair all week, and dammit, you won't give up this precious opportunity.

4. Casual Friday is a misnomer: Jeans are not casual. Pajamas are.

5. "I can't go, I have to work in the morning" has become an excellent way to get out of social gatherings you'd rather avoid, as opposed to an unfortunate reason for not being able to join the fun.

6. You find yourself using the word "kids" to describe people who are actually old enough to have graduated college.

7. The word "club" is generally preceded by words like "book" or "knitting".

8. You've find yourself frequently shaking your head in disbelief and uttering phrases like "back when I was growing up...".

9. "Going for a drink" more often than not means grabbing coffee. And if it is alcohol, you only drink the "good stuff". If it's not hand crafted or aged a certain number of years, it's not for you.

10.  You occassionally slip up and say words like "walkman" or "VCR" and have to endure strange looks from those for whom these are foreign. You try to save yourself by explaining the beauty of making a mixed tape for someone you love. This digs you into a deeper hole.

Feeling old yet? Feel free to add your "this made me feel old" stories in the comments below! Happy Friday!