Officially Old

I'll admit it. I'm old. No, it's not the wrinkles on my face or the sagginess of my…um…chin. It's the fact that with every passing year I've seen fewer of the movies that are nominated for Academy Awards, and now this year for the first time I haven't seen ANY of them. Ten films nominated for best picture, and I haven't got a clue. That's the best way I know to gauge a person's advancing age: Is the person aware of popular culture? In my case, the answer seems to be a resounding NO!

Years ago, I used to get a kick out of my grandmother because she was completely out of touch when it came to current TV shows, new movies, and books. Oh, she could tell you about old stuff like "I Love Lucy" and "Gone with the Wind," but anything that happened since the Cuban Missile Crisis was a mystery. This year's Academy Award nominees prove that I'm becoming my grandmother. Only in my case, I could tell you all you'd want to know about the original "Star Wars" movies, but I can't tell you who the current James Bond is.

I haven't seen any of the newest films yet because my husband and I rarely go to the movies any more. We used to, but now we prefer to wait until movies are on video or HBO. That way we don't have to 1) leave the house and 2) sit in a dark theater surrounded by annoying strangers. Who wouldn't rather stay home wearing sweatpants than get dressed up and go out in the cold? Like I said, we're very, very, very old. Going out and engaging in social interactions is a young person's game. Comfy sofas, cups of herbal tea, and roomy flannel pants are way more up my alley these days.

I'm not completely detached from all current culture quite yet. I saw "Sherlock Holmes" at the theater, which was nominated for best art direction this year. My husband and I almost went to see "Avatar" a couple of weeks ago, but we talked ourselves out of it because it's pretty long and we didn't want to sit in those theater chairs for more than two hours. Do I sound like your grandmother yet?

I'm actually only a couple of years behind the rest of the world when it comes to movies. On Christmas, I finally saw "Slumdog Millionaire," which was awesome. Next on the agenda: either "Gran Turino" or "No Country for Old Men," depending on which one pops up on cable first. And maybe next year, I'll get around to seeing "Avatar." I hear "Up" is pretty good, too. There's a cranky old man in it. Finally, a movie character I can identify with!

Peace and good movies!
Kimberly Garland