Nothing like teens and birthdays to welcome you to the Jungle.I have a birthday coming up this week, and I have to admit for the first time in my life, Friends, I am starting to feel old.Thankfully, I feel fine physically and I am generally in good health. And I have also not yet landed on the AARP mailing list. But it's just the little things that are beginning to remind me that our time is short.Like over the past year, my ability to read smaller print has gotten notably worse. I've always had horrible eye sight when it comes to seeing distances, but now I cannot look at my smartphone without straining to make out words. I was out recently and almost had to ask someone what the bill said because I was having difficulty reading the print out. Putting pharmacy "readers" on my Christmas list this year stung just a little bit.I am also having a much harder time hearing these days. Hard to tell if it is as a result of partaking in too many loud mosh pits over time or just age creeping up on me, but put me in a setting with any background noise, and I cannot hear a damn thing being said. A few weeks back I attended a trivia night in a crowded bar (which, now that I think about it, should have been a telltale sign by itself) with longtime Friend of Dave Michael J. Coyne and at one point I just answered every question with "Daniel Day Lewis" because I couldn't hear anything.,..fine actor, odd that he was my go to answer, but depressing nonetheless.And if that wasn't enough, with two kids in our family now old enough to vote, I am reminded about my increasing age just about every day. Dad, you are too old to "floss", don't do it....Dad, I told you I was going to be out past midnight on Friday earlier this week, did you forget? (ME: no, you ungrateful jerk....I just couldn't read your text or hear you when you told me while I was watching Jeopardy)...Dad (eyes rolling), no one says "fo' shizzle" any more and, ew, please don't say that trivia night was "lit AF"....The other day I actually had to ask my high school aged son to translate something I saw on social media because it referred to a "dank meme" and I had no clue what that meant.I know this all makes my parents smile -- payback is most definitely a bitch. And while I absolutely subscribe to the notion that you are really only as old as you feel, there is no question that the world has been, and always will be, geared toward the young. Whether it is at work, spending time with your not-quite-adult children, or at a bar for trivia night, it can be a tough pill to swallow when you begin to realize (and accept) that "the young" does not necessarily include you any more -- even when your head makes you think otherwise. As Axl Rose once said "Welcome to the Jungle baby....you're gonna die" -- who would have guessed it would turn into an anthem for facing a midlife crisis?And...scene....Two more issues left in the year and I will promise to keep those merry and bright for you. Have a great weekend and enjoy the selections below. If you can resist clicking on "The Last Word" you have much more will power than I did.XOXODave