I’ve noticed bloggers like lists.  Here’s a list of five tried-and-true cliches to fall back on when it all seems too much.  Will they make you feel better?  Who knows?  But they’ll give you something else to think about for a while.  Every little bit helps.

1.  “Why me, O God?”  Hurl yourself onto the nearest mattress and shake a fist at the ceiling.  You can even shed a few tears if you want, although you probably won’t. You’ll feel too silly.  Don’t worry; nobody’s looking.

2.  “Old age isn’t for sissies.”  I offered this as a “reply” to a sixty-six-year-old blogger with a lot on her plate who lives In England; she liked it so much she told her ninety-seven-year-old mother about it.  Both of them agree I’m spot on. (Wonderful British expression.  Music to my American ears.) They even want me to do a whole post on the subject. I think this whole blog is on the subject.

3.  “It is what it is.” (Var., “What is, is.”) The Talmudic approach.  You don’t have to be Jewish.  It will make you sound wise.

4.  “The alternative is worse.”  Unless you’d rather be dead.  Well, would you?  Probably not.

5.  “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” We owe this one to G.W. Bush, now back in Texas resting up after his two presidential tours of duty.  He meant it, post 9-11, about Iraq (or maybe Afghanistan), but it works just as well for getting old — hopefully with better results.  Feel like putting those boots back on the ground yet?

6.  “Just pick yourself up, and dust yourself off, and start all over again.”  I found this ditty  — it’s part of a song — about fifteen years ago in a movie called “Home for the Holidays,” although I’m sure the song’s been around longer than that. The movie starred Holly Hunter and a handsome stranger who went on to head up a television series about a law firm specializing in criminal matters. His name escapes me, as many names now do. However, none of that matters, because all three — the movie, Holly and Mr. Handsome — have faded from view.  On the other hand, the dusting yourself off part continues to cheer me.

Okay, enough with the self pity. Break’s over. Time to get up and get on with it.