Aging in Reverse

January 31, 2006

Last Summer, I noticed an odd new mole on my shoulder. It was skinny, and it stuck up enough that you could wiggle it back and forth. When Summer ended, I started wearing a shirt more often, and since it was at the base of my neck where I couldn't see, I forgot all about it. Heck, it might have gone away altogether.

Last week, in this same spot, I noticed my mole again. It had gotten sore and turned red. This was a bit worrisome, so I made an appointment with a dermatologist to get it checked removed.

But while I waited the few days for my appointment, my body took care of itself. Saturday morning, I was bored, and I wiggled it around a little just to pass the time. It was harder than before, and gave me more wiggle room. Nervous about this change, I went to check it out in the mirror.

It had turned into a scab and was to the point of almost falling off. I gave it a sort of vigorous rub with a flat hand, and voila! I was cured. A barely discernable red spot was left on normal looking skin.

I suppose that now that I'm on the express train to middle age, I can expect more weird growths and pains. But maybe -- just maybe -- I'm a freak who's aging in reverse. Have you ever heard on anyone else's weird growths just taking care of themselves?

Speaking of aging, there's an Italian restaurant near our house called Monjuni's. Their food is pretty good, but their staff appears to be made up entirely of sixteen year olds, and their service is expectedly poor. We ate there Saturday night (mere hours after my miracle healing), and I was quite surprised that the waiter we had had on our previously visit was still employed there.

The oddest thing about Monjuni's is the number of old people with walkers that you see there. I don't want it to sound like I'm making fun of people with walkers. I'm not. I just don't understand why they (as a group) eat at Monjuni's more than at other places in town.

The entrance to Monjuni's, uncharacteristically without a person with a walker.

Before Saturday, I had eaten there in person once, and ordered takeout from there twice. On each visit, I had seen a person with a walker. On Saturday, there were three patrons with walkers. This is way out of line with a random disbursement of patrons with walkers to restaurants in town.

Do older people just have a preference for reasonably priced lasagna with a lot of sugar in the marinara? Do there just tend to be more elderly in our part of town? Are they the only ones with the patience for the youthful wait staff?

I'm not sure.