This is 60 (!!!)
I had a great birthday eve at Oldster's first in-person event. Plus: Welcoming new subscribers.
Readers,
First of all, welcome to the many new subscribers who joined yesterday after learning about Oldster Magazine through The New York Times’ Modern Love podcast, the latest episode of which featured Gail Rice talking about her Oldster Magazine essay, “For My 70th Birthday, I Hired an Escort.”
In case you missed Gail’s essay, here it is, plus the follow up:
***
Second: It’s official—as of today I’m 60, a rite of passage not everyone gets to participate in. In the past year I’ve written a bit about aspects of turning this age, including my anxiety around moving into the third act of my life. But in recent weeks I’ve shifted from anxiety to gratitude. (I’ll write more about it soon.) I survived my 50s. That’s something neither of my grandmothers got to do, a fact that’s dogged me my whole life.
My birthday got off to the best possible start: Last night, on the eve of the occasion, I held the first ever Oldster in-person event, and it was incredible. It was called “The Oldster Magazine Variety Hour Presents: What I Did For Love—an evening of story and song,” and it surpassed my dreams of what the evening could be. Everyone who performed stories and songs was amazing—Carolita Johnson, Chris Wells, Joan Juliet Buck, Francesca Hoffman, Brian Macaluso, Amy Rigby, Paul Leschen, and Marta Waterman. The audience loved it.
Soon I’ll share the video from the evening with paid subscribers. And I’ll definitely do more of these, in different areas. I hope NYC is next. I’m talking with some established storytelling shows about collaborating. Stay tuned!
Unfortunately, I was so wrapped up in producing the show and performing myself that I forgot to get photos! (Besides, my phone was being used to shoot the video.) In that square above are blurry screen shots from the video. They’ll have to do for now. (If you were there and you snapped pictures, will you send them to me?)
Thank you to all of last night’s performers, and to everyone who attended. The success of last night was the best birthday present ever.
Thanks, too, to all of you, my subscribers. I’m so happy to have so many of you reading Oldster week after week. Special thanks to the paid subscribers who support my work here so I can keep doing it, and keep paying essayists and journalists who conduct interviews. 🙏💝
Yours at 60,
These landmark birthdays seem like SUCH a big thing! Until you pass them, and realize—oh, right, there are 15m other people experiencing the same thing the same year! Gratitude is the answer, plus 100 friends to share the night with. You had both! HB🎉🍾
Happy birthday! I’m right behind you, and thank you for your inspiring content, and the reminder that aging is a privilege. Hope this new decade is filled with joy!