Medicare, here I come!

Today is the day! I've been waiting for this day for a long time! Did I say I've been waiting HAPPILY for this day? No, not necessarily.

You see, today is my first day on Medicare. This is the month that I turn that golden wonderful age where there is no longer any denying that you are a SENIOR CITIZEN! They may argue it when you are 55, or 60, or even 62, but Medicare age (see I can't even bring myself to type it!) is definitely the defining moment of SENIOR CITIZENSHIP.

This summer when TC and I were traveling, one stop we made was at Historic Jamestown, VA. This area is manned by the National Parks Service. You have to pay $15 or something per head to get in. We only had an hour to spend there, so a high fee to get in would definitely not be used to the fullest. But this was a destination that I was so looking forward to seeing that I was willing to pay anything. One of the ladies who was manning the information desk said, "If either of you are 62, you can get a Golden Eagle Pass which is good forever, and you can bring in a guest. The Pass costs $10." Well that sounded good, and she rightly assessed that one of the two of us would qualify for that. But we had to go to another desk to purchase this.

As I walked up to the desk, I asked to purchase a Golden Eagle pass. The young man at the desk said very seriously, "Well, m'am, I've got bad news for you, you have to be 62 to purchase one of those." Well, I just about jumped over the counter to give him a big kiss! I resisted, but I know I professed my love for him right on the spot! Was he kidding around, or was he serious? Oh well, it doesn't matter, it was a big boost to my ego to have to SHOW MY ID to prove that I was old enough for a Golden Eagle Pass.

It sort of rings back to the time we had to show our ID's to prove we were old enough to buy alcohol, now we have to prove we are old enough to qualify for senior citizen cup of coffee. I guess that's one perk to attaining this Golden Age!