• wizardbeard@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    10 hours ago

    Man, everyone is jumping to the conclusion there’s an age gap. Have none of you met anyone that doesn’t look their age?

    As an aside, my wife and I are 14 years apart. She’s the older one. Started dating when I was 23 (she was 37, so the “rule” would have put her limit at 25.5) and married for nearly a decade now.

    • My partner and I are pretty regularly confused for mother and daughter, which is super weird because we’re only 7 years apart. We’re in similar life stages so we never thought about the age difference at all until someone mistook us in public. It was super awkward all around. Is 36 really that much more than 29?

    • BartyDeCanter@lemmy.sdf.org
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      7 hours ago

      My ex wife is six months older than me but apparently looked much younger than me. When we were in our mid twenties we would regularly get odd looks, she’d get carded and I wouldn’t, etc.

      The funniest time though was when we were at an “adult event”. A friend of mine who hadn’t met her yet saw us together, pulled me aside, and said, “Dude, she’s way too young for you and teenagers aren’t allowed here. Get her out of here before we have to kick you out for good.” We were both 28. 🤣🤣🤣

    • tmyakal@infosec.pub
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      7 hours ago

      My wife and I are eleven months apart. She gets carded and I don’t. Some people just look young.

      … and I spent fifteen years on drugs and heavy drinking.

      • Echo Dot@feddit.uk
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        7 hours ago

        I get carded if I shave and don’t have a beard but that’s only an age difference of 12 years off my real age and to be honest I don’t actually think they think I’m under 21 it just just aren’t 100% certain, so they card me.

        But for my wife to look like my daughter that would have to be at least an apparent 20 year age difference, minimum.

  • TheRealKuni@piefed.social
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    18 hours ago

    When I worked at a restaurant we would occasionally play “America’s FAVORITE game show: DAUGHTER OR MISTRESS?”

  • sparkles@piefed.zip
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    16 hours ago

    This would be my sister. She was 17 or so when she met the 40 y/o who she later had a kid with.

      • sparkles@piefed.zip
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        15 hours ago

        Yep. I’ve been nc for over a decade but I do wonder about how she is doing being his nurse these days.

        • nomad@infosec.pub
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          5 hours ago

          I’m guessing there is more than just the age of her partner that made you break off contact to her? Having family that you can fall back on in situations like hers is essential.

      • M137@lemmy.world
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        10 hours ago

        I agree, the weird thing is that this view seems to be changing among leftist people. I live in a very leftist area in a leftist city in a leftist country and the past ~5 years whenever the topic of age difference has come up among people my age (35) or younger it’s been increasingly “they’re both adults, nothing wrong about it”. And I just can’t agree, it grosses me out and feels wrong in the deepest parts of my soul. Yeah, they’re both adults (when it comes to the youngest being 18+) but that can’t be the only thing that decides if it is or feels wrong.

          • jagungal@aussie.zone
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            8 hours ago

            Even then, there are 18 year olds I’ve met that have the maturity of a 25 year old and 25 year olds that just don’t seem to have a frontal lobe. Age is an important heuristic but certainly not the only important factor when you are thinking about emotional maturity and power dynamics in a relationship.

            • Apytele@sh.itjust.works
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              7 hours ago

              Not saying that this is always the case but it can be substance abuse related. Substances let the brain avoid confronting the “crises” that would otherwise result in psychosocial growth and development. When the person gets sober they have to pick up where they left off meaning if they used for a decade or more they’re quite behind.

          • Sludgeyy@lemmy.world
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            7 hours ago

            Someone signing a lifelong legal binding agreement at 18 is pretty wild

            Like getting your driver’s license and heading on the autobaun first thing

            Just because you can doesn’t mean you should

            18-25, 7 years. That’s half their current life and basically all they can remember. Just to the point where you should really think about marriage.

            No one should feel obligated to get married. If that person cannot wait 7 years to tie the knot then they aren’t ready for the rest of the ~55+ years.

        • Kaerkob@lemmy.world
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          5 hours ago

          If they are both adults it doesn’t matter if we think it’s gross. It’s not our business.

    • peoplebeproblems@midwest.social
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      13 hours ago

      See that’s the problem with age differences.

      If I tell you they are 23 years apart, you think “uhh”.

      If I tell you they are 17 and 40, you think “UHHHHH”

      Lets see if it applies to me:

      Her and I are 11 years apart.

      Her and I are 23 and 34.

      Hmm.

      • merc@sh.itjust.works
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        5 hours ago

        “She and I”

        The easy way to figure it out is to remove the other person from the sentence.

        Is it: “Her are (is) 11 years apart” or “She are (is) 11 years apart?”

      • SkyeStarfall@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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        13 hours ago

        Well, yeah, of course that’s less bad. You’re both older and the difference is less

        Ultimately a lot of it comes down to levels of maturity and the places ones are in their lives anyway. A 17 year old definitively can never be mature enough to have a healthy relationship with a 40 year old

      • tetris11@feddit.uk
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        12 hours ago

        Half the bigger age plus 7 for the younger.

        40/2 + 7 = 27. 17 is ew

        34/2 + 7 = 24. You’re just okay, but should feel bad in bed

  • N0t_5ure@lemmy.world
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    17 hours ago

    As a 60 year old man that dates women in their mid-30s (I want children), I feel this post-it note.

    • Taldan@lemmy.world
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      15 hours ago

      Props for the honesty

      Wanting children in your 60s is selfish. Not only do you put them at much higher risk for birth defects, but you likely won’t be around for most of their life

        • gustofwind@lemmy.world
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          12 hours ago

          true but it is also true that the older the man the more likely it is he produces children with birth defects or genetic conditions

          this has been historically blamed on women and it is now coming to light that old sperm isn’t good

          • zarkanian@sh.itjust.works
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            8 hours ago

            If you want kids at that age, the solution is simple: adopt. Adopting is just a good idea in general, though. There are already too many people. There’s no good reason to make more.

    • arrow74@lemmy.zip
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      16 hours ago

      Respect for saying this out loud.

      But also just a bit yikes, but credit for not going younger than 30s

      • JasonDJ@lemmy.zip
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        16 hours ago

        Ehhh…it breaks the half-plus-7 rule (I’d call 37 ‘late 30s’)…but it beats 20s. I’m only forty and I can barely relate to my 20-something BILs. I couldn’t imagine dating someone in their 20s, and not just because I’m happily married. The culture gap is so real. I could relate to X so much more than Z.

        Still…even mid-30s doesn’t give much time to plant the seed before you have to worry about the first frost. You gotta sow while the soil is warm. Having your own kid is great and all but maybe look for a divorcee/widow with a toddler…

        • arrow74@lemmy.zip
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          16 hours ago

          Also seems kinda cruel having a kid knowing you’ll statistically die before they even graduate high school.

          If he met someone today and had a kid by 61 by the time that kid graduates high school he’d be 79.

          • GingerGoodness@lemmy.world
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            16 hours ago

            My dad was 52 when I was born. Getting real tired of developing chronic conditions that are associated with advanced paternal age, ngl.

          • Taldan@lemmy.world
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            15 hours ago

            Statistically his mean life expectancy is ~20 years left. Keep in mind as you get older your life expectancy goes up since you’ve already survived what killed many others younger

            He’d be expected to die shortly after sending his kid off to college

            Source: https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html

              • N0t_5ure@lemmy.world
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                9 hours ago

                Aging lies at the intersection of genetics and environment, which implies that 1) not everyone ages at the same rate, and 2) by optimizing the environment your body operates in (e.g., optimizing sleep, exercise, nutrition, supplements, and drugs ), you can optimize regeneration/repair and effectively slow the rate of aging. I’m lucky enough to have really good genetics for aging and I take exceptional care of myself, optimizing the above parameters, including the use of rapamycin. I have a long line of ancestors that have lived well into their 90s, even back in the 1700s, so I think there is a good chance my corpse will hold out long enough to see my offspring into adulthood.

        • TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today
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          14 hours ago

          Same, I’m just getting to forty and the older I get the less dating someone half my age makes any kind of sense. I have patients that I have seen from their teens and they’re now in their mid twenties. Thinking about them as anything other than kids just seems unnatural and morally decrepit.

      • N0t_5ure@lemmy.world
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        15 hours ago

        Thank you for commenting. I always appreciate feedback. I’d honestly prefer to date someone a bit closer to my age, as it’s easier to have things in common. However, I’m exceptionally fit (my VO2max is 52), most of my friends are in their mid-40s, I’m very active, and have a couple of genetic SNPs associated with longevity, which I credit with how well I have aged. Most people guess that I’m in my mid 40s, and are shocked to learn my actual age. I’m also fortunate enough to be well-educated, financially stable, and reasonably good looking, so I am able to attract the women I’m interested in. FWIW, I would consider women as young as 25 hypothetically, but in reality I think it’s unlikely that I’d find the type of connection I’m seeking with someone that age. Realistically, 30 is probably my lower limit.

        • TranscendentalEmpire@lemmy.today
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          15 hours ago

          I mean… If you would truly prefer dating someone your own age you would be dating someone your own age. There are more realistic options for you to become a parent and have a quality relationship built on mutual respect.

          I think most people dating people more than half their age tend to prefer people they can control emotionally and financially, and they tend to have more than a dash of narcissism. The older I get the stranger it is for me to see people dating someone they have nothing in common with. Like, what do you talk about with these people?

          You may be in great shape for your 60s, but aging isn’t a gradual progression. It happens in plateaus, and the likelihood of you not starting to have some issues with your memory and physical mobility by the time your child reaches adulthood is slim to none.

        • arrow74@lemmy.zip
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          14 hours ago

          All good points for you. I guess the issue comes down to dating younger specifically to have kids. In a way it’s reductive, you’re not looking for a partner but shopping for a receptacle to give you a child.

          From your additional comment I can see that’s not entirely the case, but if you would refuse to date a woman that is in all regards is a perfect match for you just because she’s closer to your age (and unable to have children) then that’s a bit of an issue.

          Or let’s say you get with a woman that is 35 and start trying to have kids ASAP and that as a partner she’s an ideal match. Then after trying for a year no kid. You go to a fertility specialist, and it turns out that she’s infertile. What does this mean for you?

          In my mind it’s always been partner first then child if we so choose.

          This isn’t to say it’s wrong to want kids, but if that’s the primary factor that can have issues

      • N0t_5ure@lemmy.world
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        11 hours ago

        Meh, once someone is over thirty they’ve typically done enough adulting that the “half your age plus 7” metric isn’t really necessary. There isn’t a power or maturity imbalance, and I’m inclined to think that such women are capable of evaluating the pros and cons of dating me. My current best prospect is a M.D. that is 35.

  • scytale@piefed.zip
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    18 hours ago

    For some people it would be flattering because it means they look younger than their actual age.

    • Perspectivist@feddit.uk
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      17 hours ago

      Sounds like a mutually benefical arrangement assuming she’s with him for the money and he’s with her for her looks.