Old People Noises

Don't worry,  I'm not talking about bodily functions.  

I'm talking about the grunts and groans TBG and I make when we change position.  Usually, it's not difficult to move.  When it is,  that's a real groan, not an Old People Noise.

Bending over to load the dishwasher is a very simple task.  All the body parts involved know what to do and when to do it and are willing to participate in the joint effort of shifting my shoulders while holding a plate, bending at the waist, and reaching my arms out and down.

Not to brag, but I do Pilates and lift weights.  I don't make Old People Noises then.

Squatting in Amster's home gym elicits deep breaths and serious exhales, easily mistaken as groans rather than the explosions of energy they are.  There are often grunts; I don't know why they help, but they do.  

The breath is the movement in Pilates; serious exhales are the norm.  They and the grunts are part of my everyday life.  Moving flats of beverages, cleaning out closets, and shifting boxes all require most of the same physical capabilities; my grunts are my workout grunts.  I earn them.

Somehow. bending over to pick up an errant pill results in a very similar if decidedly unearned response.  Standing up from the couch, basically an un-weighted squat, can pretty much be guaranteed to produce a chorus of unearned noises.  Neither deserves an OUCH! unless it really does and then you are obligated to say it so your caregiver can attend to your needs.  

But Old People Noises aren't pleas for help.  Sometimes they signify trepidation at the change of altitude.  Low blood pressure = dizziness = falling and that's not a good thing.  

It's an old person thing.  Watching my grandkids fling themselves over couches and ottomans and beds with nary a touch of unhappiness brought that into specific relief.  TBG and I shared many a rueful smile when the babies wondered if we were okay.... when all we were doing was making Old People Noises.

I'm thinking about this as we plan for our Halloween trip to the Big Grand Kids (BGK).  I don't want them or their parents to think of us as creaky and decrepit.  I thought about practicing here at home, laughing as I made Old People Noises getting up to talk to TBG.  For no reason at all, the same sounds emanated from my unconscious/subconscious/soul/throat when I got up to leave him..... we laughed at the absurdity.  

There was no reason for there to be noises, and yet there they were.... and, until I caught myself, they reappeared as I sat down to finish this post.  

Perhaps I'll just explain the inexplicable and tell the BGKs about Old People Noises.  It seems simpler.