Dad is as Pissy, Moany and Crotchety as Ever

Sunday January 5, 1992

We sleep in and have a leisurely morning. It's raining hard all day. In the afternoon we go to Frank's folks house. Frank hooks up the VCR we gave them for Christmas. Dad is as pissy and moany and crotchety as ever. Mom is as nervous and distressed as always. It's a real strain to be around them. Not a very pleasant experience, but a must. We try our best to brighten their day.

Oh my, is this what becomes of all of us as we get older? I see it profoundly in my dad, who is almost 80 years old. He is so incredibly negative about absolutely everything, that it is emotionally draining to talk with him on the phone. No matter how hard I try to change the topic, he always brings it back to how the world is going to hell. His negativity puts me in a funk for 2-3 days almost every time we talk. I was having my hair done yesterday at the local salon and there was a 95-year-old woman there who was getting a perm. She complained loudly (because she was obviously hard-of-hearing) about everything. Do we revert to toddlerhood and throw temper tantrums by the time we are 90? I see my husband becoming more like Frank's dad everyday, pissy and moany, and I see myself becoming more anxious and nervous, especially when I am around my crotchety husband.