DEAR ABBY: I have always been interested in comedy, so when I retired at 62, I entered a comedy contest in a cabaret in Encino, Calif. There were 475 young people in the contest and most of them looked at me as if to say, "Why aren't you home watching your arteries get hard?" Well, I made it to the finals and won. I got $1,000 and a nice write-up in the newspaper.
My wife and I moved to Las Vegas a year ago. A comedy contest was held at the Tropicana Hotel. I entered, and won again. I received $1,000 and a nice write-up in the Las Vegas paper.
Your attitude is what makes you old, whether it's in regard to your sense of humor or your everyday attitude. I know many elderly YOUNG people. They're chronologically young, but they have old ideas. If we judged people with our eyes closed instead of with a closed mind, you'd be surprised how the term "elderly" would disappear. -- PAUL ORKIN, LAS VEGAS
DEAR PAUL: If we judged people with our eyes closed instead of with closed minds, I'm sure many of the problems that plague us would disappear. Congratulations on your new career.