Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Blogging our way into old age

We receive the AARP magazine in the mail. I'm not retired and I'm just 51, but in reality, it's Ed's name on the label, and he is 8 years older than I am, so that's only proper. Now that the Baby Boomer generation is gearing up for retirement, AARP has retooled its focus to produce a magazine which is supposed to sound more modern and less archaic. No longer does the acronym AARP mean only white-haired ladies and gentleman hobbling on their canes. This month's issue has stories like "Back to College at Fifty-Plus" and "7 Ways Fitness Makes You Smart, Sexy, Pain-Free." I doubt if they ever had the word "sexy" on the cover twenty years ago.

At any rate, in this edition I found a short article on the proliferation of bloggers over 50. "Keyboard-tapping fiftysomethings are writing, ranting, and reflecting online." "Only 5 percent of bloggers are over 50, according to a recent study, but most Web experts believe that number will grow. Blogster.com, a site where users create their own Web pages, says 22 percent of its bloggers are now older than 50, a 20 percent increase since October 2005."

On their list is www.jenett.org/ageless which "...has links to an array of blogs created by people 50 and older." Of course, I made haste to go there and submit my blog for their list. Finally - an advantage to being 51!

Oh, yes - my sister Joy might want to keep that link handy, because in July she can submit her blog. (The countdown has begun, Joy!)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I don't recall them asking--or me giving--them my age when I started my blog. So they can just keep leaving me off their list, even when I turn 50!