Mike,
You just had to bring this subject up this week didn't you. Tuesday I hit 60 and my youngest son (who's 31) informed me that I was OFFICIALLY an old man. May club him the next time I see him. Ah, the joys of growing old. You have the opportunity to join the BBF&T club (that's the Bald, Blind, Flat and Toothless club). And the pain. About 50 or so, your body starts cashing all the checks that you wrote on it when you were young and immortal. I've heard it said that if you're over 55, and you wake up one morning and aren't in pain, most likely you're dead. So pain is your friend (i guess). And class reunions. You wonder around all evening thinking "Did I really go to school with all these old farts?"
Over all though it's been fun. Married a good woman (cause she decided to keep me I guess), raised two good boys, and got three beautiful grandchildren. Been lucky enough to work in a profession that I loved and in the process got to work on a bunch of warbirds (although lawyers have managed to take a lot of fun out of that so have moved on to something else). Built a whole bunch of models over the years. Beginning to learn that I can say what I really feel and not necessarly worry about it (ever notice that old people and young kids tend to say what they think? That's because in one case they don't know any better and in the other they don' t give a rats ass. (What're you going to do - dress me in a tan, black and brown suit and ship me to Bagdad?) And as far as being called Sir, I tell em the same thing that I told the guys when I was an NCO - "Don't call me sir - I work for a living and I know who both my parents were!"
You are all going to grow old. You can't stop it. So you might as well relax and enjoy it as much as possible. And always remember - Inside every old person there is a young person asking "What the hell happened?"