"ACT YOUR AGE!" It's an expression that we've ALL heard...maybe even said at one time or another. We all know what it means...or do we really??? Not too long ago, my husband and I got into a fight. I can't remember what it was about...nothing really important...but I do remember that it was over a difference of opinion concerning SOMETHING that I was doing that he found inappropriate. I remember him looking at me before he walked out of our room with disgust and saying "Why don't you just ACT YOUR AGE for once?!?!" I had no response, but I remember being angry and thinking..."Act my age??? What the hell does that MEAN anyways?!?"
You see...here's the thing...you could not find 2 more different people than me and my husband, P, at times. We don't fight too much...we usually get along just fine...and we do love each other...but sometimes I feel like a child...a bad, rebellious child. I'm a good person. I do the right thing...but I have a wild streak I guess you could say. P NEVER swears. I'm sorry...but I find it necessary to use certain words to get my point across...MANY have 4 letters. And if I stub my toe...I will most likely scream "S***!"
He hates that about me. I love music...and I love all kinds...especially LOUD, hard, angry music. I also enjoy the occasional hip-hop song. I'm careful about what I play in front of my kids, but alone...anything goes. P believes that if a song has the
"F bomb" (as he "affectionately refers to it) in it or if a CD says "explicit content"...it should be OFF-LIMITS. I am much more tolerant. I like to look sexy...he is uber conservative. I always feel like I am consciously "toning myself down" for him. I could go on and on, but you get the point and it makes sense that he would say something to me like "ACT YOUR AGE!".
"F bomb" (as he "affectionately refers to it) in it or if a CD says "explicit content"...it should be OFF-LIMITS. I am much more tolerant. I like to look sexy...he is uber conservative. I always feel like I am consciously "toning myself down" for him. I could go on and on, but you get the point and it makes sense that he would say something to me like "ACT YOUR AGE!".
I know that it was supposed to be an insult...but in the end...TO ME...it wasn't. I mean what does it mean to "act your age" anyway? Does it mean that you have to be serious and uptight? Does it mean that you have to look and behave like a prude? Does it mean sitting at home and going to bed early? Does it mean refraining from loud laughter and being offended when the boys at the gym make jokes or a rapper sings about big butts? I mean really...what does it MEAN to "ACT MY AGE"? How is a 39 yr old SUPPOSED to act?
I've decided that the answer doesn't matter. It doesn't matter because I am who I am. So what if I swear...or laugh too loud sometimes...or listen to music marked explicit...or wanna look sexy... Maybe I don't want to act my age!
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