Pac-Man's 30th Birthday

Confession makes Gen-Xers uncomfortable, even though at least two-thirds of us have already written memoirs, or at least scribbled down a wry childhood reminiscence that we dream of reciting on “This American Life.”

A.O. Scott

When I heard that PacMan turns 30 years old this month I was surprised he is that young. Quickly, I did the math... let's see, my age minus 30... I could have been PacMan's babysitter and I'd always thought of him as a contemporary.

Last week there was a flurry of emails from fellow Gen Xers forwarding the NYTimes piece on our collective midlife crisis. Seems I am not the only one who blames my lack of bloom on a generational middle child complex. 

Why is it such a shock to look in the mirror and discover you are no longer 26? Does Ms. PacMan face the same dilemma? Are Gen Xers so accustomed to being the Boomers' kid siblings that we cannot accept the realities of post-college existence? In a decade during which we are constantly reminded of Gen-Xers' rapid aging, I consider anyone under 35 to be youthful. Yet it won't be long before our Birthday Boy and Ms. PacMan are contemplating a little boost of Restylane to keep those faces smooth and round.

Perhaps it is time to stop reminiscing with such passionate longing about those endless nights at the arcade wasting lines of quarters on PacMan and Asteroids (but those memories make such great stories). The article in the Times forced me to admit that, at the very least, it is time to ignore the glass ceilings and walls made up of Boomers and their entitled children and pursue life as a big kid, or even as an adult.

Then I read a blog answering the NYT musings. Just as Gen Xers begrudgingly suck it up and agree to grow up, Yers and Millennials declare war on us. Move over? Hurry up? We are just getting started. Patience, Joe Coscarelli, go back to your texting addiction and unfriend me on FB - the adults are finally having a conversation.

This weekend four of us Gen Xers are going together to the Ben Stiller flick Greenberg. Afterwards we will likely enjoy a lively discussion about the pros and cons of our generation. The realities of the mirror often bite (catch that pun?). Generation X is ready for adulthood. But I refuse to wear my carpel tunnel braces when playing video games.