WHY BOOMERS NEED MORE

Do Boomers Need More Than Anyone Else? It Looks That Way.

What do you get the person who has everything? That’s a question that starts an avalanche of more questions, such as what is everything?

No one has everything they want, even if every need is answered.

Start with the basics of food, shelter, and clothing.

There’s a nice boomer couple toasting their good fortune in a swanky lodge.

They look happy but don’t be fooled. Boomers need more.

She wants a new car, he wants more hair on his head, and they just learned they’re overpaying for their room.

Then their food shows up in flaming glory and everyone wants to be them.

Cheers.

Except the steak is overdone and the salad dressing isn’t on the side like they ordered and the waiter ignores them.

The moment changes from cautious celebration to indignant in a flash.

If you think you’ll get over on boomers who can’t tell the difference between fine dining and getting worked by a second rate kitchen, think again.

The Food Channel makes everyone an expert.

There’s a nice boomer couple discussing a remodel.

The kitchen needs a new cook top and oven. Why? Is one of them broken? No.

It’s more an update than remodel.

After visiting a Street of Dreams mansion they decided to match one element. It’s a good idea, but why not stick to painting?

Instead, the kitchen island gets ripped up to fit the new cook top and the oven changes from gas to electric.

One contractor said he’d need to cut a channel in the floor and run a 220 line from the fuse box in the garage to the kitchen. It would be a big mess and the man looked like he specialized in big messes.

Boomer said no thanks and found another sparky who said he’s run a 220 line from the kitchen island that already had one.

As we age we don’t want more conflict. At some point good enough is good. That point isn’t here yet.

Boomers need more because we want to feel like we’ve learned something over the years. Like a DIY remodel? Not with expensive stuff that breaks too easily during installs.

How many remember putting stuff together and ending up with extra pieces that don’t fit anywhere? It’s like a cruel trick from the factory: “Let’s throw in an extra bag of screws and brackets for fun.”

It’s not fun thinking you put a bike together that might be a suicide machine. And it’s not fun thinking you’ll either gas or electrocute yourself with those remodel skills you learned from The Property Brothers.

Television makes you feel competent right up until you start the work.

There’s a nice boomer couple in the discount shoe store.

He’s looking at what appears to be Beatle boots while she’s holding a pair of Dr. Scholls slip on loafers.

The shoes he looks at have a roach stomping pointed toe with a high stacked heel. He hears When Doves Cry in his head and sees Prince spinning in his shoes.

She holds up the loafer. He sees the shoe, knee high support hose under Bermuda shorts, and a madras print shirt on the horizon. Obscure Frank Sinatra songs hum in his head.

It’s time to relax, she said, and these are relaxing shoes. But he can’t agree. Why? Boomers need more.

If he’s not getting Prince style Beatle boots to crush his feet and send him to the podiatrist, then he’s not getting Bing Crosby shoes that will send him to the couch with his pipe, dog, and a martini.

They compromise on hiking boots. It’s mostly her compromise because he’ll wear anything that makes him look active and vital.

Romeo slippers? Yes. Velvet footies? No. Goat ropers? Yes. Side zippered ankle highs? No.

Boomers need more than a sign of their mortality. That means more than an early bird special pretending to be a rare treat, more than house crushing ideas from builders who like to fix what they break, more than strapping pillows on their feet.

We learned from older generations, then see peers use what they’ve learned to screw younger generations.

Old men sent young boomers to Vietnam. Boomers came home from running through the jungle, doing REMF stuff in the rear, or from Canada after President Carter’s pardon.

Old boomers forgot Vietnam and sent troops to Iraq and Afghanistan. Why? Because the deferment generation of boomers need to show they’re tough guys as long as they don’t have to show up for war.

Boomers need more education, more mindfulness, and more compassion. Life calls and boomer answers with more.

Here’s asking that younger generations take note of their movers and shakers more than they do their groovers and fakers who put up a good show then fade.

Boomers need more because they ask for more, work for more, and in the end they’ll give more.