My neighbour is one, so dont know what to call her.

I believe they are refered to as 'Seniors' Stateside. I always think that's a nice term; it has a much more respectful tone than OAP.

I can't help smiling when I hear them being referred to as 'Twirleys' though! :hihi:

We're just called Senior Citizens in the States, pensioners i would think collect a pension, but not all senior citizens do.

Although i have a sister in sheffield thats a pensioner, but i prefer to call her AN OLD HAG !:banana:

I prefer --- people who have retired.
You see I don't feel an old age pennsioner, I assosiate that phrase with people who are old and I don't feel that's me.
because I don't feel old.

hazel

Hi Poppins, I love that little man who dances, so expressive

Bids is easier to say.

I just call them old folk.. Or in the case of my Uncle Les, cantankerous old git.. Honestly he moans and whinges even worse than I do..

Originally posted by Rich
I just call them old folk.. Or in the case of my Uncle Les, cantankerous old git.. Honestly he moans and whinges even worse than I do..

... about chavs?

Whoops - I am one of those guilty of referring to pensioners as Twirlies. Something that has sort of clung for a long time since it was brought to my attention.

Why Twirlies? I asked
It has to do with their bus pass mate.
Their bus pass?
They are only allowed to use them after a certain time but they still try even when you tell them they are too early.

Aha! It stuck.

Very embarrassed
Dragon

makes note to self not to be too early when she gets her bus pass .... but quite likes the idea of being a twirly :D

.bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb..

I much prefer being called a Senior instead of an old age pensioner. There would be a geriatric mutiny outside the White house if they tried calling us OAPs. Pensions are paid by the companies we retired from. We are paid benefits by our Government. This reflects the fact that we paid into our retirement while we were working, just as you do over there.

Originally posted by Snook
... about chavs?

Knowing our Les he wouldn't even know who or what a chav is.. He moans about everything else though, and I mean EVERYTHING..

Originally posted by Rich
Knowing our Les he wouldn't even know who or what a chav is.. He moans about everything else though, and I mean EVERYTHING..

With you for a Nephew he's got plenty to moan about :hihi: :hihi: :hihi:

Originally posted by pattricia
Ha-Ha .Poppins. Very funny ! I might just tell her one day what you said. I love Twirlies though,forget about us getting on the bus too early,and imagine someone twirling around and around in a lovely gypsy tiered skirt to "Frank Sinatras" "Strangers in the Night".Trouble is our old fellas a bit too fat now for that sort of thing.Hazel You dont sound like a Pensioner ! But should we sound or write like a pensioner?

Thanks for saying that patricia, I want to sound like I am, not to be judged by age, but neither do you sound like a pensioner.
What does a pensioner sound like.?
Seem to me like Rich's Uncle Les.

hazel

Is it true that 'senior citizens' in the US refers to anyone over the age of 55? Which is obviously quite young - and I can't imagine anyone in this country referring to a 55 year old as an OAP!

I'm not sure which I prefer. I think OAP conjures up images of very old and frail people, but nowadays it tends to be only the very old who are like this. Most 'retirees' in their 60s and 70s are still very fit and active and don't seem old at all. I think this trend will only increase as the baby boomers reach retirement age. But then senior citizen just sounds like yet another Americanism creeping into use over here.

To be honest I don't give a toss whether folk refer to me as an OAP or a Senior Citizen so long as those who are working are paying their taxes to fund my State Pension. :heyhey: :heyhey:

What are people trying to state when they say OAP......Are they saying that people over a certain age are on pension?
There for they are scrounging off the benefits?

THe Term Senior Citizen is the most respectfull way of calling a person that has worked all his life for the low life that now seems to prevail.

A person that has lived to help forge this country or any other IS. A senior citizen in all interpretation of the word senior!

Nothing American about it!

What about 'Q Tips'?

I heard this phrase on a number of occasions when I lived in the US and thought it was a good, graphic description of people of mature years.

Hi Hazel, I'm sure your friends on the forum would like to wish you a very happy birthday, have a wonderful day my friend, and we all wish you many more.

Thanks Mary,

I'm having a lovely day, just waiting now for my eldeest son to visit, he's always a little late.

hazel

Originally posted by Dragon
Why Twirlies? I asked
It has to do with their bus pass mate.
Their bus pass?
They are only allowed to use them after a certain time but they still try even when you tell them they are too early.

Otherwise recounted as them loitering at bus stops at 9.15, stopping buses and asking 'am a twirly?' the answer being 'yes!' :hihi:

.................................................. ..

Originally posted by LordChaverly
What about 'Q Tips'?

I heard this phrase on a number of occasions when I lived in the US and thought it was a good, graphic description of people of mature years.

Trying to "get it" but can't 'Q Tips' :confused:

I must be having a Senior moment !

Oh! i think i just got it, tip of the Q, right ???

Originally posted by poppins
Trying to "get it" but can't 'Q Tips' :confused:

I must be having a Senior moment !

Hi Poppins,

'Q Tips' are matchstick like objects with white blobs on the end. I have never discovered what they are used for (perhaps someone could enlighten me). I first heard this reference when I visited an old people's home in New York. The carers referred to the residents as the 'Q Tips' because of their white hair, which resembled the white blobs referred to earlier. I subsequently heard it on several other occasions in different contexts. Perhaps its a New York thing - or perhaps not. So what are Q Tips used for?

Q tips? For cleaning my husbands ears out.He seems to twist and twist them round and round,now my son does the same.I keep telling them they will bust their ear drums,maybe they want to, then they wont have to listen to me yacking !

Originally posted by LordChaverly
Hi Poppins,

'Q Tips' are matchstick like objects with white blobs on the end. I have never discovered what they are used for (perhaps someone could enlighten me). I first heard this reference when I visited an old people's home in New York. The carers referred to the residents as the 'Q Tips' because of their white hair, which resembled the white blobs referred to earlier. I subsequently heard it on several other occasions in different contexts. Perhaps its a New York thing - or perhaps not. So what are Q Tips used for?

Oh! isn't that funny, and here's me thinking i solved something that was to do with a Qing bus line:blush:

Q tips are used widely in the us, there just for cleaning out the ears, there must be another name for them in the uk, it's a name brand but the name Q tips has stuck.

I use them on my PC sometimes to clean off small areas.

Originally posted by poppins
Q tips are used widely in the us, there just for cleaning out the ears, there must be another name for them in the uk, it's a name brand but the name Q tips has stuck.


That would be cotton buds :)

Originally posted by Escafeldia
To be honest I don't give a toss whether folk refer to me as an OAP or a Senior Citizen so long as those who are working are paying their taxes to fund my State Pension. :heyhey: :heyhey:

Me too ;)

One of my grandchildren says she can't wait to be a pensioner 'cos we don't have to work or go to school; we can just stay at home and do what we want all day, every day, intit nice :D

Surprised I haven't seen the term 'wrinklies' suggested yet !

Oh,aint that nice !

The term I heard used a while ago for people of a certain age was Gold Oats ;)

Originally posted by marycrookes
Hi Hazel, I'm sure your friends on the forum would like to wish you a very happy birthday, have a wonderful day my friend, and we all wish you many more. happy birtday hazel:clap: :clap:

Thanks roughy,
I've had really good day.

I retired at 54 when made redundant. So have enjoyed my "old age."

hazel

Pattricia, I was born and raised in Sheffield. My Uncle Bert used to carry me on his shoulder at Hillsborough Spion Kop whenever the Wednesday played. So my impression about Sheffield and its sense of humour ( See I spelled it with a u!)
was dependent upon whether the Wednesday won or lost. Since the most active thread appears to be a choice between the Big Brother 6 and something to do with Blades or whatever, I would say that Sheffield is increasingly trivial.
55 year olds are not eligible for Social security benefits in USA. You can get reduced benefits at 62, or full ones at 65. Most restaurants, not including the so called fast food joints have special menus where anyone over 55 can get cheaper and smaller portions, or can get early bird specials before 6PM
Not being particularly keen on Liver and Bacon or Chili, or Meat loaf or any of that stuff they think is good for us, I usually enjoy a good steak with plenty of mushrooms, a dry martini or margarita, and a slice of apple pie with the kind of ice cream only America knows how to make. Sorry Walls

How about leisure ladies? Or gents of course. People of leisure. I am not quite there yet but without wishing my life away........I can't wait!! lol. I am not looking forward to a drop in income.........who said people in retirement need less money?? It is all bull.......they need more so that they can jet off all over the world and have FUN before they curl up their toes! 60/65 is where it all begins......or should do. Then is the time to do everything that there was never the time or energy to do before retirement. Just think......get up when you want.......take coffee in the garden if you want. No bus timetables to care about.....or car journeys to make because you have to.
I think that there are only two chances in life to please yourselves.........after leaving school and waiting to work or go onto further ed.......and retirement. I left school and went to work the following week......and have worked ever since. I should have been retiring at 60 but now I find the goalposts have been shifted and I cannot claim my pension until I am nearly 63! Women younger than me will have to work until they are 65 before they can claim their pensions! It won't be too long away before both men and women cannot retire until they are 70! By that time we will all resemble Victor Meldrew! We will all be too knackered to do anything else but crumble into our armchairs. BUT........that is what the government wants to happen........kill us all off and they will be laughing! Everything we have worked so long and so hard for will be spent on keeping all the dross in this country that have no intentions of working.
Anyhow I diversify.....I would like to think of myself upon retirement as a woman that has been granted the freedom from the daily grind. I would like to think that my good health will still be with me and that I can partake of a "worry free" and self indulgent lifestyle. I would like to picture myself as spending some of my time doing all the things that work and family commitments have prevented me from doing during my working life. I doubt that this will happen in reality because of the financial circumstance. We could never afford to pay into a private pension so we can look forward to being rewarded for our contributions to the well being of this country with a paltry pension that will barely cover the basic needs for life.
So perhaps I will change my mind from the title of ladies/gents of leisure to one of "miserable old gits". Just think......even a donkey gets to retire and do what it is good at and what it enjoys most! Ahhhhh.......I am well depressed now!
Owdlad.......do you mean "gold oats" or "old goats"? I also love the "senior twirlies" one......except drop the senior bit.
Wrinklies? Well that is just a state of skin condition and doesn't have any bearing on the old grey matter.
Perhaps the best way forward is to let the younger generation call us what they want...........at the end of the day what does it matter? We all know better than they do and there are benefits to be had here. Grey hair.....wrinkly skin and a pretend dowagers hump all have their benefits when it comes to conning a bus seat out of one of lesser years. They don't know we are on our way to a very active line dancing session. lol.
For all you retiree's........keep young, keep healthy and have a great time during your special years of "me" time.

Here in Oz we are called Senior Citizens by the respectful. Wrinklies by the not so..... my self I prefer Golden Oldies - has a nice ring dont you think. Have a happy one Hazel.

Originally posted by owdlad
The term I heard used a while ago for people of a certain age was Gold Oats ;)

Maybe I heard that wrong Rothschild and it was Old Goat's :hihi: :hihi: :hihi:

When I was working, I was often referred to as a dinosaur, by some of the younger staff. I like to think it was the "T Rex" type. I could still beat most of them to the top of a sand dune.
Now, I still get calls for help from all over the world, via my website. Phone calls in the early morning hours, enquiring about places that I had experience of.
The net is wonderful, I can keep in touch with most of my old mates, who are now retired, some of them in exotic placesDinosaur I may be, but I can still contribute, from the comfort of my little Garret flat.
I take it as a compliment when I am asked to produce my bus pass. I know it is obligatory, but I like to think I don't look old enoughto have one!

The craziest thing happened to me. I was in the supermarket line buying a pack of cigarettes among other things, and the teenage youth behind the counter asked me for my ID. I said I enjoy a joke, kid. However he persisted. The line up behind me were killing themselves with laughing, and so was I. He showed me a directive from his boss which stated that anyone buying beer or cigarettes had to have an ID check to make sure they were older than 18 for cigs, or 21 for beer. I'm 74 years old!

Ah ! Buck,now youve given your age away.Changing the subject though Buck,dont you think those American Diners do great food? Had the best fried eggs in there ever.And their liver and onions is out of this world. They cook it all on the stove top,my those treacle pancakes are something.! (or Maple syrup) Yes Buck, I did notice that you spelt humour the English way. We tried to copy your diners over here but they just dont work somehow.The foods not as good nor the waitresses as quick. Mind you I dont like your bacon,not as good as our English bacon.Dont know why,cause pigs are pigs ! What do you miss about Sheffield Buck ? Now its got to be the pubs surely,as American pubs seem to be full of men only,but in Sheffield the guys hardly get a look in , with gals and their hen partys and mens strip shows.Some of our gals would scare those yanks to death,specially on a Friday night when theve "Had a few" !.

Hi Patricia, 74 and still got me teeth! Folks are sometimes amazed when I tell them my age,cos I'm very active and get on great with young people, I coach soccer, and still go out with my cycling club.
The American diner is an institution in its own right. By rights it should be an old railway carriage converted, and able to be moved anywhere, but its changed a lot. What hasn't changed is the variety of food they cook, the friendly service and the low price. Snobs don't belong in them,cos they'll just get laughed at.
The syrup we usew is corn syrup, not treacle, which we call molasses. Maple syrup is much more expensive but really nice.
American bacon grows on you after a while, but I agree your bacon is much better. I get Irish bacon locally. Its twice the price of ours but worth while.
I was only saying to my wife how much America has changed in the 37 years we've been here. Not all of it for the better, but still a great place to live.
I mostly miss a nice pint on a Sunday before dinner, and I never go out ot a bar at night, though I enjoy one in the afternoon with the guys. Not a lot of girls go out to the pubs
at night. This country is still a bit puritan in ways and other women tend to look down on the bar girls.

Very interesting that American Diners started in railway carriages. Not a lot of people know that ! Fancy you still being able to bike ride at your age. Would kill my arthritis,but maybe not. (Might do it good ) Use to have an exercise bike in the house but our old fella nicked it. You just dont seem to get the atmosphere in American pubs do you ? By the way what do you think to a suggestion by another poster,that we pensioners call ourselves "Leisure Ladies" ? or Gents (As the case may be) Sounds a bit dodgy to me ! Another thing Ienjoyed in America was a Pepperami Beef sandwich.(think thats what they called it)It was layers & Layers of beef piled high on bread.Delicious.Oh,thats made me hungry,Buck,must go for my supper now.I got a bit of dried up cheese,that all folks !

Just to stay in the thread, cos some folks think its a mortal sin to veer off course, I'll say that the thought of Ladies of Leisure is extremely dodgy, as for the guys, my wrist is not limp.
So lets get back to the real subject , food.
Where did you visit in the US? Food varies to some extent from region to region. Here in New England, good seafood is very popular, especially lobster, clams, and white fish. We're also very influenced by European foods, since two of the biggest immiigrant cities were Boston and New York. There's a tendency to concentrate competing restaurants in a close area, along with filling stations, which gives rise to the expression Gasoline Alley. Some are National chains or regional ones
Here are some for your next visit.
Applebees, American and Mexican, very good and reasonable
Olive Garden, Italian, best italian national, some regionals better
outback, Australian, good steaks, but phony Oz offputting
Red Lobster, seafood, OK nationally, but local New England houses much better
Friendly's American family, no liquor or beer, good food, kids like it.
I remember that dinner in UK was a slice of very thin beef, watery veggies, snooty waiters, and slow service. I hope and expect that has changed. Over here they sometimes give too much and we're becoming an obese nation.
I could eat a pepperoni sandwich right now with melted swiss cheese. Its nearly lunch time, better get out of me jammies, get into the Merc and find summat.

Buck, you've mentioned some of my favourite US restaurants.
Of the national chains you mention, I love the Olive Garden, Applebees and Red Lobster. The Olive Garden is my favourite. I wish we had something as good as that over here.

My grandma got called a coffin dodger on the bus the other day...

the person who called it her looked almost offended when she laughed cos she thought it was funny...

I ate mostly in New York (Love those delis). Went to Broadway to see "Cats" and thought Times square was great. Only had one disappointing meal,so cant grumble. By the way your supermarkets are great,think we are catching up though with Tesco & Asda (partly American owned now,by Wal mart) If I can remember they had water spraying on to the fruit and veg to keep it fresh. You could taste anything you wanted before buying,not like over here they look at you gone out if you try to taste anything.I mean you dont want to buy a whole lot of grapes and find they are sour ! The pepparami beef was cut wafer thin , and was on a sandwich.I notice they sell it over here now,but it dont taste the same.I will remember all the names of best restuarants. Cant beat that diner though,thought I was back in the fifties,and the waitresses would jump on the counter and sing "Happy Days" By the way I got my exercise bike back from my hubby.Cost me a lot that at Argos,is it the same as ordinary cycling ? Got to keep fit !

At work if we ask if there are any consessions on the tickets we have to ask if there are any 'Over 60's'..... so not to offend!

;)

Cheers

Angel x