Don’t Let Age Get in the Way (Season 3 | Episode 139)

Don’t Let Age Get in the Way with Ashton Applewhite and Kyrie Carpenter

(Season 3 | Episode 139)

[TESSA]  This episode is all about NOT trying to stay young. Because, if you think about it… none of us are going to stay young.

Rather this episode is about all that goes with aging. In fact, we spend a considerable amount of time talking about ageism. We take a hard look at the names we ascribe to ourselves and to others as we grow older. What about that comment we hear and may even use “You look so good for your age.” Hmmm… maybe that’s not actually the compliment that we may think it is.

We discuss dating outside of our age range. Good idea? Bad idea?

Should we strive to look, act, and earn like a younger person than we are?

We have two experts on this topic, a returning guest, Ashton Applewhite, and Kyrie Carpenter, who is very active in this space.

Through the beauty of this podcast medium, you have the opportunity to listen in on our conversation which I found to be so stimulating. To continue the conversation jump on our private Facebook group or send me a note at tessa@theopennesters.com.

DON’T LET AGE GET IN THE WAY

Ashton Applewhite

I didn’t set out to become a writer. I went into publishing because I loved to read and didn’t have any better ideas. I had a weakness for the kind of jokes that make you cringe and guffaw at the same time, my boss kept telling me to write them down, and the collection turned into the best-selling paperback of 1982. I was a clue on “Jeopardy” (“Who is the author of Truly Tasteless Jokes?” Answer: “Blanche Knott.”), and as Blanche made publishing history by occupying four of the fifteen spots on the New York Times bestseller list. I regret having written the books, but I wrote them.

My first serious book, Cutting Loose: Why Women Who End Their Marriages Do So Well, was published by HarperCollins in 1997. Ms.magazine called it “rocket fuel for launching new lives,” and it landed me on Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum enemies list. It also got me invited to join the board of the nascent Council on Contemporary Families, a group of distinguished family scholars. I belonged to the Artist’s Network of Refuse & Resist group that originated the anti-Iraq-invasion slogan and performance pieces titled “Our Grief is Not a Cry for War.” As a contributing editor of IEEE Spectrum magazine, I went to Laos to cover a village getting internet access via a bicycle-powered computer. I was on staff at the American Museum of Natural History for 17 years, where I wrote about everything under the Sun, quitting in 2017 to become a full-time activist.

The catalyst for Cutting Loose was puzzlement: why was our notion of women’s lives after divorce (visualize depressed dame on barstool) so different from the happy and energized reality? A similar question gave rise to This Chair Rocks: why is our view of late life so unrelievedly grim when the lived reality is so different? I began blogging about aging and ageism in 2007 and started speaking on the subject in July, 2012, which is also when I started the Yo, Is This Ageist? blog.

Kyrie Carpenter

• Interested in booking me for a talk or workshop? Reach out via email here.
• Combat ageism by getting plugged in with OldSchool.info the anti-ageism resource clearinghouse I co-founded with Ashton Applewhite and Ryan Backer.
• Looking to learn? Sign up for my next Certified Eden Associate online training, or take my free on-demand course on identity and intersectionality right now!
• Just curious? explore content I have created about aging and dementia.

Kyrie reminds us: “Don’t Let Age Get in the Way”

About Tessa

Tessa Krone is the engine behind and the face of The Open Nesters.

Tessa holds an MA in Consciousness Studies and is a speaker, coach, program, and journey facilitator & leader, author, and, of course, Podcaster.

Her offerings are based on her mission to help people open to their most self-expressed, loving selves. Tessa’s specialties include embodiment from all the senses and elements of our inner and outer lives, ranging from mindfulness, dance, play, and sensory exploration in nature. If she had one superpower, it would be to help people, especially as they age, to live more open-hearted lives.

Please email Tessa to make a connection. And visit her page here on the Open Nesters Website. If you like, please answer the question:

What do you need to OPEN your NEST? In your LIFE. In your BODY. In your SPIRIT. Do you need MORE…

• Adventure
•  Freedom of Expression
•  Exploration and Fun
•  Body Movement
•  New circles of friends
•  Deep love relationships