Reaching 60 makes me old, or not

By: Steve Rose, Chairman

Turning 60, which I did last week, can be very confusing. Is it old or not? I am among tens of millions of Baby Boomers who are confronting that same question.

Clearly, I have to start reading the obituaries regularly. Last month I lost two 60-year-old chums who go way back to grade school. That was a stark reminder that we Boomers are no longer young. But are we old?

I think we are at the tipping point. Some of us are becoming old. Some of us look and act young. And there doesn't seem to be much in between.

I see some of my peers winding down. They either have retired, or they are getting ready to retire. It is like some switch was pulled, and, abruptly, they have lost their zest for work and are seeking stress-free tranquility. They have a new mindset.

It is not always a mindset change that leads to retirement, however. Sometimes there is a physical change. My friend Mike, who is 61 and a cardiac surgeon, just announced his retirement, not because he wants to leave his occupation, but because he says his fine motor skills have declined enough that he is uncomfortable performing surgery.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, I know countless business executives who are not even close to thinking about retirement. They will blow by 60 without missing a beat.

I am talking about people like Bob Regnier, who is the founder and CEO of Bank of Blue Valley. Regnier is closing in on 60. He is something else. Almost every day, I read about his taking on more leadership roles in the community. He is chairman or vice chairman of just about everything, including the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and Union Station, and is heading up a capital campaign for a hospital, and sits on too many other civic boards to enumerate. And he is running a $700 million asset bank, which is in a major expansion mode. Bob is winding up, not down. Suppose I put this question to a jury. Is 60 old or not?

The attorney supporting the view that 60 is considered old would present hard evidence that, indeed, 60 is old. He would present the ticket prices at a host of movie theaters where senior discounts are offered to those 60 and over. He then would present advertising material from assisted-living and independent-living facilities, targeting those who are 60 or older. Next, the attorney would present letters from Social Security that are being sent to those who are 60, reminding them that they will be eligible shortly. Then, finally, he would seat a witness who is 60 who looks old, with lots of wrinkles, a slow gait, and plenty of aches and pains.

The counter lawyer would then present his hard evidence. He would show the jury membership lists of fitness clubs that include many who are 60 or over, with videos of them working out and huffing and puffing alongside 20-somethings. He, too, would bring in ticket prices from other movie theaters, but those say you have to be 65 to earn a senior discount. And for his trump card, in would strut in George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, both 61. He rests his case.

As for me, I cannot decide if 60 is old or not, although my vibrant 86-year-old mother, needless to say, thinks I am quite young.

But I want to take no chances. I decided to give myself a birthday adventure to Cuba, which I can legally do as a journalist, before Fidel Castro and his brother die, and before Cuba becomes a booming capitalist island. And I wanted to turn 60 far away from any surprise parties.

You will read about Cuba when I return, but hopefully you won't read about my birthday angst for 10 more years.