Slow News Day

Really. Dog names. The news today included a report on what names are popular with baby boomers when it comes to naming their pets. Seriously. It was in the news.

The report noted that Millennials were keen to give their pets human names such as Luna or Max. Sure enough, if you do a search for the current popular dog names of 2022, they skew towards actual people names. Luna was number one, followed by Bella, Charlie, Max, Daisy, Lucy, Cooper, Bailey, Milo, Coco, Lily, Zoe, Lola, Buddy, Sadie, Stella, Bear, Rocky, Molly, Teddy, Maggie, Penny, Duke and Leo.

Boomers, on the other hand, relied on popular culture sources such as comics, film and music.

The source of this startling news? Dog name trend reports (whatever those are) and anecdotal evidence. And there it is. The old anecdotal evidence trope. You might as well say you’re making this crap up, but okay, let’s have it. It’s a slow news day.

1. Snoopy – Really. The cartoon dog has a special place in boomers’ hearts (according to anecdotes).

2. Maggie – They give the Rod Stewart song credit for this one.

3. Dolly – Dolly Pawton. Need we say more.

4. Charlie – Because JFK had a terrier by that name.

5. Lassie – Timmy fell in the well and well, what else do you need to know?

6. Toto – Yellow brick road says it all.

7. Buddy – Because he/she truly is your best friend.

8. Major – Presidents Biden and Franklin D. Roosevelt had German Shepherds with this name.

9. Benji – The movie scores again.

10. Bear – Because your dog looks like a bear?

11. Chewy – Either the Star Wars influence or the dog is really mouthy.

12. Lady – Go back to 1955 for the Disney movie influence or just blame it on the Tramp.

13. Cujo – Who turns to Stephen King for dog name inspiration?

14. Fido – Sheesh! Does any self-respecting boomer call their dog Fido? According to anecdotal evidence, yes!

I hope this information has been useful to you, or at least entertaining. I know that I feel better informed now. At least anecdotally.

Jay Harrison is a writer and creative consultant for DesignConcept. You can also visit his author page here. His newest mystery novel, Rio Puerco Demise is available on Amazon. His first mystery novel, Head Above Water, is also available on Amazon.

 

Definition of Terms

Old. Is that what we are now? If you are someone born in let’s say 1947 to 1953, do you think of yourself as old? We’re talking about 70 and 75 year-olds – the leading edge of the baby boomer generation.

Wouldn’t a 75-year old tell you that old is 90? Works for me. Old is anyone, at any time, who is 15 years older than me. I don’t know what the hell I’ll do if I make it to 90, which is not improbable given that my mother lived to 106.

You could go with mature. That makes you sound level-headed at the very least. Instead of gentle yoga, you could sign up for mature yoga. There’s no fun-loving aspect to it however, and we still just want to have fun.

Deep-rooted could work but there are too many plant and tree connotations. Then there’s that whole dust to dust thing that is just plain depressing. Let’s bury that one.

Ripe sounds great even though it harkens back to puberty. Is there anything wrong with that? We’re lucky if we can even remember puberty never mine relive it as old people. Besides, it was really our awkward phase and there’s no point in repeating that when these days your main goal is not to fall over when you pull on your socks.

Long-standing has a nice ring to it, but as I write this, I’m at one of those stand-up desks and I would really like to lower it about now and take a seat. Being upright for long periods of time is not as much fun as it used to be. But better than perpetually reclined (there’s a great euphemism!).

Antiquated is a non-starter for obvious reasons. At least it’s obvious to anyone who has ever been told that the true definition of an antique is something that is 100 years old or more.

You can cross off ancient on the same grounds. You may feel ancient after sitting cross-legged on the floor for 10 minutes on some project, and then trying to get your limbs to move back into something resembling standing.

Aged is my final shot at a reasonable term for baby boomers who are on their way to 80. Like cheese or fine wine, aged says you’re getting better all the time. Not as limber of body or sharp in brain power, but aging quite nicely, thank you.

Face it. We have more in common with Parmigiano-Reggiano or Gorgonzola. Brie or ricotta are long past in the rear view mirror.

Jay Harrison is a writer and creative consultant for DesignConcept. You can also visit his author page here. His newest mystery novel, Rio Puerco Demise is available on Amazon. His first mystery novel, Head Above Water, is also available on Amazon.

 

Solo or So Low?

About 26 million Americans 50 or over live alone. It’s now the fastest-growing demographic in this country.

There’s a lot of reasons but key among them is that women have had more opportunities for career advancement, home ownership and financial independence. So, no surprise, women make up about 60% of the total.

And many of these live-alones feel positive about their circumstances. This, despite the fact that research clearly shows that they will face worse physical and mental health outcomes, as well as shorter life spans. Many of these individuals do not have children, which raises the additional quandary of who/how will they fit into any kind of elder care scheme.

Downsizing is problematic due to a lack of smaller scale housing. Despite the surge in single-person households, builders are focused on bigger and bigger homes. So many of these live-alones are forced to live in more space than they really need or can afford.

While they may prize their solo lifestyle, many of these boomers are freaked out by the looming elder care issue. Who are they going to call when a serious illness arises or a physical limitation makes it harder to live in their larger than needed home?

The solution may lie in some type of communal living option, where live-alones can continue to have the independence of living alone, but in a supportive atmosphere that at least assures their safety and emotional well-being. The co-operative housing movement is picking up steam but will it be large enough and soon enough to meet the demand of 26 million seniors is a big question. If you know a fellow boomer who is living alone, it would not be considered rude to discuss the co-op housing with them. The future for live-alone boomers could be bleak unless we boomers pull together to look for solutions.

It’s the least we can do for each other.

Jay Harrison is a writer and creative consultant for DesignConcept. You can also visit his author page here. His newest mystery novel, Rio Puerco Demise is available on Amazon. His first mystery novel, Head Above Water, is also available on Amazon.