At 79, I\u2019m old enough to understand that I\u2019m not immortal. Put it this way: I don\u2019t take out five-year magazine subscriptions, but I\u2019m still willing to buy green bananas.<\/p>\n
I might have to rethink my position on magazine subscriptions. <\/p>\n
Like many people, I\u2019ve always had an almost superstitious belief that I\u2019ll live only about as long as my parents did. My mother died at 50, and I breathed a sigh of relief when I turned 51. After Mom died, my father became my role model for longevity. He survived to 84, and without thinking much about it, I\u2019ve assumed I\u2019ll probably last until my mid-80s.<\/p>\n
But women outlive men, and Americans today have longer life expectancies than our parents and grandparents did. Recently, I took a two-question test at the Social Security website<\/a>. After asking me to enter my gender and birth date, it informed me that, based on averages, I should be around until I\u2019m about 89, a good five years beyond what I\u2019d assumed was my expiration date. <\/span><\/p>\n