I get what you mean. When Everton were 0-2 down against Wimbledon in 1993-94ish and facing relegation, I was in tears. The emotion when they came back to win 3-2 was immense. And that was just from “watching” the game on Ceefax! I would read every edition of Match, Shoot, 442 and any fanzine I could get my hands on.

Towards the end of the century, I went to Goodison on another last day relegation escape against Coventry (Vialli’s Chelsea beat Bolton to keep them up) and again the relief was incredible. If they were relegated this season, it would not preoccupy me at all.

We just have much less time when we are older with family life taking priority, plus interests naturally diversify. I still love the game and will watch YouTube highlights, but I cannot go anywhere close to the depths I would have as a teenager. It was a healthy past-time though. The only kids in the 80s who knew the countries of Liechtenstein and Paraguay existed, or secondary cities in Poland and Norway were football fans.

I’m 43… turning 44 in January. I don’t think I’m quite in the scrap heap when it comes to the job market if I found out I was fired tomorrow.

Perspectives in other countries can be difficult to manage. When my wife’s relatives think I’m earning between $60-80k (in GBP equivalent currency) annually, it’s not just their eyes which light up. 2nd cousin Rolando suddenly makes himself known and that he would very much like a place on this gravy train (and I’ve never told them how much I earn, but a bit of Googling makes it easy for them to get a ballpark figure).

If I earned that in the Philippines, I could live like a king. To them, I am rich. The bit which they don’t understand is the cost of living in the west and how much I lose to taxes. Even after nearly 6 years, they cannot compute that my mortgage has got 18 years left on it. The amount I pay in tax per month would feed and clothe them for 6 months. That said, even after I give them my 1st world problems, the struggles they have far outweigh the struggles that poor people face in the west.

I’m not qualified to talk about US social security. Every US member on 90DF seems compelled to talk about their 401K or something as part of the contrived storyline, so there is clearly more opportunity to save for retirement. I don’t think Potato Corner in Philippines are paying into their employee’s pension fund nor providing their employees the opportunity to earn more than is needed for day to day existence. And that is the big difference. A 50year old in the US or Europe has realistic opportunity to put money aside from their salaries to help later in life. A Filipino in a middle class job might have funds to help for a medical incident, but putting money aside to help in old age… well, not in this lifetime.

Of course you are entitled to bemoan the plight of American retirees and how your country should potentially take better care of them. But putting their plight in the same sentence as a retiree in a developing country is a bit of a nonsense.

In many countries, there is no such thing as an old age pension. There is no social security. Job opportunities once you hit 50 are non-existent. This was a job ad in the Philippines just to serve fastfood. If you’re short and have wonky eyes and limited English, your opportunities become much more limited!

https://preview.redd.it/0lttxo18by2c1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5098bf53f03b7901c81686735d98aec0ebf1880c

The family is the support network. My wife in the UK has those pressures and I support her in assisting her mother back home. The brothers and the aunts…unless life or death, I don’t like the support network extending to them. But parents, there is an obligation for them whether we like it or not.