THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Aging with a serious damn attitude
It seems like every day, a couple of new web sites pop up in my regular business file.
Most of them, it’s simply a matter of hitting “Delete” — and if they reappear, you sigh and go down to the place where it says: “Unsubscribe.”
Ah, but every so often, something you aren’t expecting appears in the file and you say: “Yes! That’s me!”
Just a week ago, I found one of these strange new sites and decided that I not only wanted to re-visit it, but…
I deemed that it should be my guiding light.
My very own North Star.
The site is called “Aging with an Attitude,” and I’m telling you now, brothers and sisters, I am going all in on that.
Here’s our life thought from Phillip Remaker, the site’s unofficial problem solver: “Don’t let anyone control your self-image, but laugh when they try to.”
NOT GOING to lie here.
Every time I read or write about an athlete pushing the boundaries of age, I’m cheering.
I can’t say I’ve ever been a huge fan of Tom Brady, whose life is just too damn good to believe, but if Tom says he plans to be an elite quarterback for Tampa Bay until he’s 50…
Bless him.
Researching the history of the Mariners (it was a rainy day), I turned up the fact that they’ve had two players make the everyday starting lineup past the age of 40 — with considerable distinction.
Ken Griffey Jr. is in the Hall of Fame, and Ichiro will be handed a first-ballot ticket to Cooperstown.
That’s not even counting Jamie Moyer, the crafty lefthander who pitched effectively (more or less) for Seattle until he was 43, then won 56 more games for the Phillies over the next 5 1/2 years.
Moyer even had a cup of coffee with the Rockies (and went 2-5) at the age of 49.
These tales make it easier to deal with the fact that my eyes will have to be recalibrated after retina reattachment surgery in March.
And the fact that an unexpected blast from an AR-15 just a few feet away left me with a permanent ringing in my ears — along with too many cases of missing bits of conversation and saying, “I’m sorry?”
AND YES, I’ve just had minor back surgery, which apparently was batting practice for the real deal in a couple of months.
A very good surgeon from Ghana is going to shave parts of the bone along my spine, hoping to increase poor blood flow from stenosis — which they say is probably the result of all that long-distance running I’ve done.
Apparently, marathons are not kind to the spine.
It’s reached the point that walking is unpleasant, so whatever this surgeon aims to do…
Fine.
I’m not sure what the doc would consider a happy result, but my goals are simple: No more pain and enough flexibility to play golf.
For that, for the freedom to hit from the white tees and enjoy the game…
I’ll gleefully call it a success.
More than that, I promise to attend boring physical therapy sessions and even do all those tedious stretches every day.
I’ll go with whatever the medics say is necessary, because I really want to play.
I mean, REALLY!
No intentions to quit, not here.
After all, I’m aging with a serious damn attitude.
Email: scameron@cdapress.com
Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. “Moments, Memories and Madness,” his reminiscences from several decades as a sports journalist, runs each Sunday.
Steve also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball, once per month during the offseason.