This is 64: Susie Answers the Oldster Magazine Questionnaire
MARCH 25, 2022
Q. How old are you?1
A. I’m 64 today.
Is there another age you associate with yourself in your mind?
Yes. My current age always seems like a sharp surprise to me, as if someone bumped into me on the street while I wasn’t looking.
When I was prepubescent, I remember longing to be 16, then longing to be 27, and again longing to be 30—all the way to longing to be post-menopause.
If you do associate your current self with a particular age, what is it?
This question is a popular one to ask women.
You don’t often hear a man asked, what “age” he is, in his mind. There’s something infantilizing about it—but also imaginative.
I was first posed this question, “What is your inner age?” when I was a teenager. Not a lot of years to consider! I answered, “7” For some reason, that’s the age that has stuck with me, even though it hardly takes in my entirety.
When I was prepubescent, I remember longing to be 16, then longing to be 27, and again longing to be 30—all the way to longing to be post-m…