The time of life to be grumpy －イガイガの時期－

“I charm you and tell you of all the boys I hate,
All the girls I hate,
All the words I hate,
All the clothes I hate,
How I’ll never be anything I hate,
You smile, mention something that you like,
How you’d have a happy life if you did the things you like”
Lyrics from “The dark of the matinee,” by Franz Ferdinand

“The 35 to 54 year old group of men is the grumpiest of any in Britain today: Grumpier than their parents, who survived the war and felt lucky to draw their pensions; Grumpier than their children, who seem perfectly happy taking a lot of drugs and spending all night on the internet.”
From British tv series “Grumpy old men”from 2003

Curmudgeon is a lovely sounding word. But that is not reflected in its meaning. A curmudgeon is a bad-tempered or surly person. Someone who is always grumpy or complaining about life is a curmudgeon. If you go to a flower viewing party and complain that there are too many people, and that there aren’t enough bins, and that those people over there are talking too loudly, then you are probably a curmudgeon.

The thing is, no one likes a young person who is bad tempered. There is a sense that you should be enjoying the prime of your life. But it is kind of acceptable for older people to be curmudgeonly. If you worked hard when you were young only to see the younger generation laugh at you because you struggle to use a smartphone, then perhaps you have a right to be grumpy. If you’ve got various aches and pains which come with old age and you see youngsters running around without effort, maybe it is understandable to be a little envious.

I realised last week that I am taking my first steps towards being a curmudgeon. I was in Kamakura with my wife. We were slowly inching our way up a hill near a famous temple. We were holding onto one another for support and trying not to look too tired from the climb. Then a group of kids came screaming and running down the hill beside us, full of slightly idiotic energy. I spent much of the rest of the afternoon getting irritated by their over enthusiastic displays of energy.

Oh, well. It is my 35^th birthday in a couple of weeks. According to the tv show “Grumpy old men,”which I have quoted above, I am entering the perfect time of life to be a curmudgeon. It’s time to start practicing the phrases I’ll need:

“It’s not like it used to be in the old days.”
“Why do they have to have the music on so loud?”
“Oh, not a party!”
“Why are those kids still awake after 9 pm, anyway?”

I feel a little better already. Being grumpy seems to suit me.
 

Vocabulary:

grumpy – bad tempered and sulky

to draw a pension – to take out or receive money, usually in old age, after you have retired

the prime of one’s life – the best or most important time in one’s life

to inch one’s way (forward/up/down etc.) –to move at a very slow pace, advancing by inches (a few centimetres) at a time