Is 40 the new 30?
I’ve heard people throwing that term around A LOT lately - or have I just noticed it now because I’m currently in the market for subscribing to the ideology…?
What happened to “life begins at 40”? I heard that a lot when I was growing up and thought it was absolutely ridiculous as 40 was like 10000 to a 7 year old.
And, I mean, if that is the case what the flip have I been doing for the former 39 years ffs!
Scroll to view some pics of birthdays past
But now that I’m here, it doesn’t seem so old any more. I mean, I still feel 21, was told that I look 29 two days ago, and I act about 5. But in my head, the difference between those figures and 40 is that I have actually been through enough to actually continue my life’s journey with the incorporation of informed decisions...you’d think. It’s a good point to look at what I’ve achieved so far, map out what I want in the future, and go for it.
I have a much clearer idea of who I am, what I want, what I don't want, where I want to be and how I’m going to get there.
The origin of the term is rooted in the 20th century. Prior to this, not many lived beyond 40 as life expectancy in medieval England was around 25 years. However, we are now in a time of advanced medicines and technology, so this is a thing of the distant past.
That aside, I am still a big kid at heart and LOVE birthdays - I’ll effortlessly celebrate my birthday 2 weeks either side of it. The entire month of November belongs to me.
This one was a bit different though - as it’s such a ‘serious’ affair.
So I did something that I don’t usually do - I went on a short vacay for my birthday. Trust and believe me when I tell you I took hella photos for my Instagram (the link to which can be found a little lower down on this page).
I’ve been meaning to visit a very close and highly esteemed friend in LA since 2004. By that I mean ‘I have been going’ every year since 2004. It was AMAZING to see him after all this time.
The timing is so right too - I could check out the scene as an up and coming female model and see what LA really has to offer this niche model (as I am entering the scene as a mature model after all).
So what better time to do so than my 40th Birthday right?! The stars will align as well as the events in my life have.
But...is 40 the new 30 though?
My birthday trip was amazing to say the least - I can’t believe that I had left it this long to go experience Hollywood!
I explored, I did 'touristy' things yet still got invited to private parties and clubbed at one of the hottest spots.
I checked off bucket list items - including lifting weights at Muscle Beach as an ambassador of Team Natural Bodies, I met the fabulous Maria Concheta and Enrique Divine, found my future star on the Hollywood walk of fame (I mean it) and learnt that American alcohol “measures” are totally different to the British ‘to the millilitre' approach!
I will give a proper account of my trip to Hollywood in a future blog post (oops I did it again).
I celebrated just as hard as I normally would, and am STILL celebrating it (cue next weekend)...
Scroll to view some pics of birthday present
Reaching 40 doesn’t mean that a new moral compass will automatically download and everything about my mannerisms are going to change. It doesn’t mean that all of a sudden I’m going to shake my head in disapproval to the things that I was actually doing the week before I turned the big 4.0.
Granted I was well behaved on my birthday itself. I saw the 4.0. in entering a private party in West Hollywood, getting a sticker put on my phone’s camera. What happens at the party stays at the party...
However, roll on my UK celebration at the end of this month - I may get up to mischief, and I can already forsee myself getting merry. And why the hell not?!
Some Hollywood snaps
For me, 40 is going to be the decade of completion. By that I mean I am working towards my goals now more than ever, and I will achieve them. I have no time to waste and I have no time for time wasters.
People will try to distract me and take me off course, but they can only do so if I allow them to.
A few may get upset along the way but I have to stick to my agenda rather than fulfil everyone else’s upon request.
So is 40 the new 30?
In my opinion, the black and white of it is that on my 40th birthday I was one day older than [when I was 39] the day before - so it’s all down to perception. You can emphasise the figure or realtime - it’s your choice.
40 is 40 and 30 is 30. I am who I am and I’m gonna do what I’m gonna do. Why should it take reaching a certain age for me to develop certain thought patterns?
But on the flip side, we can’t dis-acknowledge the fact that 40 was once seen as a ripe old frumpy age. It's a new day and 40 isn’t old at all - there are many 40-somethings out there who look much younger than their age.
It’s all down to the school of thought that you choose to subscribe to.
In my case, 40 is the new 20.
How ’bout that.
With that being said, (here comes the customary link) let's pay homage to Hollywood actresses turning 40 in 2019 - there's definitely room on the walk of fame for a new mature model right?!
Keep up with my selfie shenanigans on my modelling profile on Insta: @althie_model
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About the author [that would be me]:
I am a Senior Project Manager by day; by night (aka any other time), you can find me lifting heavy metal things (aka powerlifting), threatening to dust off my belt in the name of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (I will make myself re-worthy of my blue belt), or finding ways to get infront of a camera and labelling it as modelling in some way shape or form.
I put this blog together as an add-on to my modelling portfolio, and it reminded me of how much I love to write. I will continue to write as my model portfolio grows, just so that you can get to know the real me.
Althea James model x
References
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Geat!