Old Folks Disease
We all know that Parkinson is an old folks disease, right? Well, not true. In fact, according to the Parkinson’s Foundation website 4% of those diagnosed with Parkinson’s in the United States are below the age of 50. That is the cut off age for having young onset Parkinson’s Disease (YOPD). Well I made the cut by two years when I was diagnosed at 48. I wonder since I made the cut off if I will always have YOPD or when I turned 50 did I become a typical older onset person with Parkinson’s? It is such a fine line that I have to look for clues. As I’ve aged I have tried to remain young-like in order to try to keep my YOPD status. It has been getting harder as I forget stuff, lose my keys more often, and often repeat myself. Did I say I lose my keys more often?
Well, now I can stop fighting it. I have lapsed back to the oldest, nerdiest and folksiest hobby on the planet. Stamp collecting. That’s right, I dug out my 6 inch philately tongs (the professional philatelist’s preferred stamp tweezer) and started sorting a collection I received recently. And by collection, I mean hundreds of thousands of worldwide stamps. So here I sit, where I always write this blog, surrounded by my perforation gauge, magnifying glass and huge pile of mint-never-hinged, mint-hinged and used stamps.
As I review the stamps I received I reminisce about when I was a child and I would collect some of these very stamps. I remember how fun it was to learn about the countries and cultures. I tear up a bit when I think about soaking the stamps off the envelopes with my mother. I cry not because I miss her. She lives less than an hour away. I cry because it was a colossal waste of time. Most are worth nothing now, so I’m left sorting through worthless mountains of stamps wondering when I lost the title of YOPD. Was it when I turned 50, when I got back into this hobby, or when I had to put on my reading glasses to look through the magnifying glass to see the writing on the stamps? Did I mention I have philately tongs as well?
