During a conversation with a friend who also turned 50 this year, she commented how people of a “certain age” don’t like or want to learn new things.  She, for example, thought texting was the best invention of the 20th or 21st centuries but had no clue how to tweet, pin or use any other social medium.  Worse, she didn’t see how any of it could help her in life.  Uh, hello … a tweet is merely a massive text.  Sent to several thousand of your closest friends aka followers.  Yeah, I know … brilliant!

Funny enough, that was me 3 short months ago.  And yes, I think texting is the best invention of this century!

Daily I struggle with Twitter, Tumblr, Pinterest and the blogsphere.  I have very knowledgeable 20-something co-workers who have taken pity on me; hence I blog!

Still, I find my mind, and more importantly, my sense of adventure, contracting as I age.  I feel more unsure of my ability to learn new things (perhaps the unspoken word is “well”), feel less inclined to stretch beyond my comfort zone and in the traffic hell that’s LA, I definitely don’t venture beyond the Westside often!

How do we keep the curiousity and spirit of adventure as we age?  Do our definitions change?

UPDATE 07/05/2012.  I started this post Tuesday night and need to update this:  landed in Raleigh North Carolina and instead of driving to visit my relatives, I opted for a road trip to Asheville, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and a drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Maybe I inspired myself?!

Driving the Blue Ridge Parkway was peaceful and beautiful and, yes, a little stressful in some spots.  But I kept driving.  Definitely expanded my mind today!

More pics in the upcoming Travel post.