According to a longevity test I took, from http://www.livingto100.com/
I'm going to live to 97.2 years. I always told my family and friends I'm
going to live to 92 just to piss people off :)

Would be interesting to know how old some others among us 'might' live,
based on the questionnaire- Harvard Med School prepared it.

Here is actual article from our local paper: ...

Cheers!

Carla

                                          *************

In Afghanistan, it's about 43. In Japan, it's 81. And in the United States,
it's 77. But what is life expectancy but a cold statistic used to compare
countries?

In reality, most of us expertly avoid imagining exactly when our number will
come up. Vague forecasts for the golden years of life - even for those in
the midst of them - are more comforting than the digits of destiny. Such is
the disquieting thrill of an encounter with the Living to 100 Healthspan
Calculator.

Created about five years ago by longevity researchers at Harvard Medical
School and Boston Medical Center, the online calculator
(www.livingto100.com) was recently revised by its lead architect, Dr. Thomas
Perls, to be more user friendly. It is based on a lifestyle and family
history questionnaire that can be completed in minutes. Then, after some
instant data crunching, it displays a number: You're personalized life span,
down to the decimal point. About 4 million people have used the calculator.

"I'm hoping it's a bit of an eye opener," said Mr. Perls, a Harvard
researcher and director of the New England Centenarian Study, a decade-old
project that looks at the health and habits of people who have crossed into
triple digits. "It's not supposed to be some crystal ball."

True, a fortuneteller would probably deliver a more nuanced reading. But
perhaps the calculator has something in common with the medium: Give patrons
a vision of the potential future so they can take steps to change - or
achieve - it.

"If you do bad things, you subtract years. If you do good things (exercise,
shun cigarettes, learn a musical instrument), you add years, or stay where
you are," Mr. Perls said.

Stay where you are indeed; the main message of the calculator seems to be,
first, do no harm to yourself. Second, hope for good genes.

"The calculator was based on the presumption that most people in westernized
countries have the environmental and genetic makeup to get them to their mid
to late 80s. As you get into the really extreme ages, genes become more
important."

As it poses questions with clinical curiosity about your vices ("How often
do you eat sweets such as ice cream, cake/pie/pastry, or candy bars?") and
private habits ("Do you have a bowel movement at least once every two
days?"), the calculator inspires the queasy feeling that tends to accompany
moments of unvarnished introspection about one's health habits.

But when the prognosis of, say, 86.5, is conveyed, and you're wondering how
to take this stark quantification of the years ahead, at least the
calculator doesn't abandon you on the examining table. It's there with a
soothing, albeit computer-generated, message of support.

"Below," read the words after that numeral in bold type, "please find the
reasoning behind the questions which you answered that made your score less
than it should be . . ."

                             *****************


----- Original Message -----
From: "ken barber" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Saturday, August 14, 2004 2:04 PM
Subject: Re: Colorado Trip


> 100!!! wow. if i live to be that old, i'll be saying
> "if i knew i'd live this long, i'd have taken better
> care of myself."
>   i have been on a few roads that i'd have called
> paths. one comes to mind in middle tenn.
>
> --- [log in to unmask] wrote:
>
> > Hey gang,
> >
> >     We returned last Tuesday from a trip to Colorado
> > for my mother in law's
> > 100th birthday. It was 4 days in the car with Judy
> > and her kids(2 days up and 2
> > days back). The kids were great, but my daughter
> > Judy and I had a few
> > disagreements about the back roads we were on. The
> > kids got to see an extinct volcano
> > and many different animals. We went over Raton Pass
> > in the worst electrical
> > storm I have seen. Thank God we were on Interstate
> > 25 at the time, because I
> > have made that pass on two lane black top.. My
> > mother in law seemed to recognize
> > most everyone and each family group had their
> > picture taken with her.
> >
> > Bobby
> >
>
>
>
>
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