I was thinking this the other day while waiting for an appointment with my physical therapist. Recent back problems have slowed me down and made me think about age.  My wife says that turning fifty is why I’m suddenly worrying about age, which is probably true too.

I thought having a midlife crisis was going to be about buying a Harley or a sports car and trading my wife in for a younger model. Unfortunately, I don’t like motorcycles or sports cars much, and as my wife puts it “I’ve put too much effort in training her to trade her in now.”  (I’m pretty sure I’m the one who has been trained, but whatever.)  Besides, I’m not sure I could find a better model—newer maybe but not better.

So this midlife thing is less about young girls and fast cars, and more about worry. I never used to be a worrier.  My motto has always been take it as it comes and don’t worry about the small stuff.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve always been goal oriented and highly motivated to reach that next goal.  I never worried about where I was going because I always had it planned out.

Now, I’m feeling like it’s time to get off the hamster wheel and do something else. I guess this means I’m in the “Need to do something with my life” midlife category.  Luckily for me, I’ve been working towards this for some time.  My new goal is to do this writing thing full time.  So I’m officially making my plans to make this happen.  Okay, I’m a detail person, and not a quick planner, so I’m not holding my breath, but I’ve finally come to the conclusion that this is what I want to do next.  Let’s call it my 5-year plan.

It feels better just saying it out loud—or in print—you know what I mean.