Reading The Boys are Back in Town thread about Oasis took me back to the mid-nineties. Even though I’d just turned 40 I was still curious about pop, and thought maybe this BritPop stuff resurrecting the sound of the sixties might be worth a listen. On that basis I bought Morning Glory. The sound of it was a bit too noisy for me but I could appreciate clever Noel. Making a singalong pop anthem out of the title of a George Harrison electronic film soundtrack? Genius of a kind.
But I digress. I would have bought the album in early 1996, at which point my children were aged 6, 4 and 2. The then six year old, now aged 35, LOVED Wonderwall!
I now have grandchildren aged 6 and 3. The current six year old has recently discovered The Presidents Of The United States of America’s song “Peaches” and screams it out with ear-splitting commitment and energy
But I digress again. In the past we have asked the question “how old are you?’ and “what’s your job?” and so on.
If you have kids and further down-the-line little ones, how old are they.
In this format
Children – 3 (aged 35, 32 and 30)
Grandchildren – 2 (aged 6, 3)
Let’s state current ages even if their birthday is tomorrow. You can include offspring now in your family from a partner’s previous marriage, or not, as you wish.
(This is possibly a seriously stupid idea for a thread so please say so…)
I wonder why certain Afterworders use the word “offspring” to describe their children. I have never heard it used in a normal conversation about one’s own kids.
My daughter is 18, she likes rap music, a fair amount of current pop and the best band of all time, The Beatles.
Offspring as follows:
Two sons, one unfortunately no longer with us .
Oldest son (52 – how can that be?) is a complete music freak with a house stuffed full of vinyl and, to a much lesser extent, CDs. Most of the records seem to be funk reggae jazz by artists I’ve never heard of.
Grandson is nearly 15 and, sweeping generalisation coming up, is on the phone all day long with the attention span of a goldfish on speed. Absolutely no clue what music he plays, not just another world – another universe. Good on him
Children – 2 (aged 24, 22)
Both at University (they both started later due to 2 years compulsory National Service here in Singapore), one at St Andrew’s, UK and one here in Singapore.
1 child. 21. Identifies as metal fan but likes most things in practice. Doing bio med at Brighton.
Girl, 40, with a 7 year old g’dter. Strives on and suffers with the adversities life has chucked her. Has struggled with a poor choice in men, but is a vibrant example of motherhood as a solo necessity. Boy, 38, is a restauranteur in Malmö, Sweden. Could teach his Dad a few things about focus.
Proud of them both, and both are excellent company, each aware of the gift of having a sense of humour, even if oft directed in my direction. Bastards!! (If, strictly speaking, not, stemming from marriage issue number one.)
We have a son who is 40 and a daughter of 38, who had a little girl in 2022, so is 2. All live in Leeds, which is a jaunt from Devon I can tell you.
Daughter is a marketing whizz and has just worked with Adidas on a big Oasis adjacent promotion in Manchester. Son works for a Spanish company who produce household products for the big retailers and spends his time either working from home or jetting off to various places in Europe.
And to think I used to worry about them….
Two kids, daughter aged 24, works in a very well known high end hotel in their Events Team. Lives about 35 miles away with her boyfriend, a lovely guy, who I’ll happily call one of the family. Her musical tastes are varied…a big fan of both Blur and Oasis, both of whom seem to be massive within that age group, she discovered them independently of us really. Also likes quite a few more current indie type things like Courteeners, Arctic Monkeys etc.
Son, aged 22, still lives at home, studied for a career in TV or Broadcasting, currently working freelance for Sky when able, but presently working as a Broadcast Assistant at Wimbledon. (Pretty much access most areas…gets to see loads of tennis.) Musically he ADORES the Beatles. All albums really, not any specific period. Quite likes some of the punk/post-punk he’s absorbed from my listening habits. He also had drum lessons every week for about 10 years which pretty much ended when Covid hit. Unfortunately, to my occasional inward frustration, he seems to have lost interest because he is a genuinely fantastic drummer and some local band would probably give him a berth immediately. He does also have a liking for some other, more modern music that frankly leaves me completely cold like Coldplay and Lewis Capaldi. Theres more than enough in our overlapping venn diagram though. We also go to football together all the time, both have season tickets for our local non-league side. My Dad used to come too, until recent bad health has put paid to this. We miss him being there but love these times together.
2 daughters, aged 21 and 19. Both at uni here in Madrid. They come and see me from time to time and even occasionally stay here, which is nice. The eldest is utterly obsessed with music and is way more open minded about it than I was at her age. We’re going to our firstg gig together in a couple of weeks when Teenage Fanclub and James play the botanical gardens, so I’m looking forward to that. The younger just loves her reggaeton but as far as I can tell just consumes her music in snatches on TikTok. She’s just got tickets to Bad Bunny next year which she seems delighted with!
Two daughters, 14 and 11. One plays violin, the other cello, which kind of match their respective airy and earthy personalities. They wouldn’t want me to say any more about them online, so I won’t. I became a dad at quite a late age, so I’m hoping to stay alive long enough to enjoy what wonderful lives I think they’ll have.
5 of the blighters – 24, 22, 19 and 16 year old twins. I have been very lucky because they have all turned out to be nice and kind people. I blame their mother.
I never wanted kids but when I got together with The Light her daughter, then 13, was part of the package. Wonderful though it was to see her grow into the amazing woman she is I can’t say it made me have any regrets about not having biological kids of my own. She’s now 28, and a teacher in Manchester having stayed there after going to the university. She’s moving into a new place with her current partner, a lovely bloke who is a TA at the same school but about to embark on a PGCE, this month. She doesn’t know if she wants to have children and course we support whatever her decision is.
Daughter – 26 – in social media/journalism – writes for the Daily Mail but tries to keep that bit quiet.
Lovely daughter – beautiful – hopeless with money-
Has a champagne lifestyle but not the wage to match. Has a wicked sense of humour and a fondness for using the word cunt (no idea where she got that from 😀). Lives in London – loves Lana Del Ray and Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood Mac
Son is 35 – lives in Iceland for last 6 years and is a Bar manager.
Loves skateboarding (still) and by extension snowboarding. Taken to heli skiing except he has just done his ACL.
Can appear moody but also has very dry sense of humour – has the same potty mouth as his sister.
Loved Led Zep and Muse as a teenager, 20’s onward Eels, Olafur Arnalds, Radiohead and Sigur Ros.
Massive Birmingham City fan and he watches the games home/away on a subscription service not available in UK so in effect he sees more games than me.
Immensely proud of both.
No grandkids and not in any rush to have any.
We have a daughter, 24 – she’s married, and they have a little one since last year.
She used to be into Hip Hop and Rap Metal in her teens, then discovered Surf and Krautrock (and her mum’s collection of Zappa albums) and Steven Wilson (in all his incarnations…).
A couple of years ago she convinced us to buy a »family ticket« to the Wacken festival – which turned out to be a fabulous time: family-wise, and we saw the legendary Heino on the main stage!
I like this thread.
I have two daughters aged 38 and 35, both have partners but are not married. My eldest works in a magistrates court, and my youngest is a nursery nurse.
I have three grandchildren. My eldest daughter has a little girl age 3, and my youngest daughter has two boys aged 9 and 6. The eldest boy is football mad and wants me to play every time he’s here. That’s when I realise that I’m 64, not 24 anymore, as I’m knackered after about 10 minutes.
Son one (36) works in IT for the Department of Justice lives over in Lancashire actually Greater Manchester with girlfriend. We still go to gigs together sharing some musical tastes. His friends were surprised that we’d go to gigs together.
No grandchildren and do not expect any as he’s adamant (by the way Gerald Harper has died) they’ll not have any. Though we didn’t expect him when my then partner had just moved in with me, which came as a bit of a shock and probably didn’t help with living together, separating soon after.
That’s interesting – I go to gigs either my son too and took him to SXSW in Austin Texas. Never thought anything of it and not aware anyone else did too
We thought nothing of it either, his first festival was at one year of age so he was used to going to concerts etc.
Offspring the Elder (22) is coming with me (again) next week to a local band in a pub. We’ve been to Reading Festival together.
Offspring The Younger (19) and I are going to Portsmouth in two weeks to see The Dawn Chorus return for one night only.
I put it down to a combination of listening to CDs in the car on the school run and that I (55) have yet to grow up.
Two boys, adopted as brothers 18 (yikes!) ago, now 23 and 21. Birth parents drank, drugged, indulged in criminal activities and generally got messed up though were reasonably together during eldest son’s first few months.
Eldest is doing well, decent job in first line IT response, long term girlfriend, Ford Fiesta ST which he loves. Has decks, off to Berlin next month to see Keinemusik …me neither but he’s played me a track where they’ve remixed Out of Touch by Hall and Oates which wasn’t half bad.
Youngest , now 21, had a harder start in life due to neglect as Birth Parents struggles intensified. Struggled at school, dyslexia diagnosed far too late, fell into the wrong crowd despite everyone’s efforts. So, absenteeism from school, low level criminality , weed in early teens followed by much experimenting on much harder stuff. Missing over night countless times, police involvement, crack houses , domestic abuse mainly aimed at Frau Steady, ketamine habit , cocaine which is on going. Drug debts , visits from dealers chasing drug debts. He got a letter last week for a court date for GBH next month. Within all that , there are signs, small signs that he does want to change. He’s managed to get off Ketamine though he really needs to do the same for cocaine now. He has a near full time job, labouring, which he enjoys and is adaptable and picks things up quickly. A real positive. This week we’ve paid for a private ADHD diagnosis which has unsurprisingly proved to be 100% certain. Not an excuse but a mitigation for the court case and we’ve dispensed eith Legal Aid and paid for a private solicitor. Maybe sadly too late but we’ll see.
Neglect is a terrible, terrible thing. Mix and match foetal alcohol syndrome, attachment issues and ADHD and that’s a lot for him and us to deal with.
Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way
So tough, Freddy. Sounds like small steps in the right direction. How amazing that they have both of you there for them.
I am in awe. You and your wife deserve a medal. For some unknown reason, they give them to successful celebrities instead.
Yes. You and Frau Steady are heroes, FS.
Freddy, “hanging on in quiet desperation” means you’re both working incredibly hard each and every day. It’s also one of the answers to the question “what is love?”. Take note, Howard so-called Jones!
Well done, Fred.
How’s the Ruark?
Ah. I have a replacement, just haven’t dared playing a cd yet. Will remedy that later when I construct tea. Stay tuned!
Wow that is a lot to share.
Life moves on from the sixth form common roon at East Norfolk Sixth Form College in many ways.
I wish you well in the future.
Massive respect, Freddy. Hope you guys are able to weather the storm and emerge out the other side to brighter days. This too shall pass. ❤️
That sounds hard Freddy, a heavy load as Paul Rodgers might say. Nothing lasts forever, hopefully things will improve with time.
Echoing everyone else but massive respect Freddy.
Son 37 corporate lawyer – estranged
Daughter art therapist – estranged
Step daughter 32 aboriginal youth projects
Step daughter 25 student , environmental science
Step daughter 25 support work 2 kids
Step grandaughter 6 rare disability MSL3 full time support for life most likely
Step daughter 3 feisty full of beans
Hands full @junior-wells?
Not really Fred. I am pretty hands off both involuntarily and voluntarily.
Ah , soz. Tough though?
Let’s just say that many posting here are very lucky.
I’d concur to some extent. We are all dealt hands we have to navigate I guess
Anyway @junior-wells, back to the cricket…
Windies 3/33 as I retire. As usual our bowlers doing the heavy lifting. Make that 4/33.
Pretty much all over then.
India tonked Engerland!
I am incredibly lucky to have 3 wonderful sons, aged 31, 29 and 24. All in stable relationships and all live locally and own their own homes. We also now have 3 beautiful grandchildren aged 2 and half, 2 and a half (not twins!) and 9 months and they are truly the lights of my life.
Twin daughters, aged 33. Both doing well in their work and their relationships – their partners are lovely guys and the girls seem very happy with them.
No grandchildren as yet.
Both girls like their music. They grew up on a diet of The Beatles at al; not sure they still listen to mum and dad’s music much. One is a big Fontaines dc fan; the other seems to have developed a taste for contemporary (mainly smooth) jazz by artists I have never heard of.
One son aged 19 studying drama and film at Uni. Until a couple of years ago listened to nothing but rap and hip hop but has since started to appreciate Floyd, the clash, the cure etc and has finally seen Andrew Tate for the twat he is. Appearing in a play at this years fringe.
Son 37, 33, daughter 30 and another son aged 25. A very good salesman, an IT person (no idea), a manager of multiple warehouses and a long covid sufferer. The eldest loves dance music, such as Swedish House Mafia, daughter likes the kind of rap I approve of (k-dot & eminem) and youngest likes a variety. All four love Earth, Wind & Fire, of course. 😉 There are two grandsons, 9 & 8, to the eldest, and two grand-daughters, 5 & 3, to second son, who are all wonderful.
We are leaving the planet as we found it.
I like that. Me too.
Apart from all those records you bought 😉
Take only memories, leave nothing but footprints.
As Roy Harper wrote in The Game (Parts 1-5)
“So please leave this world as clean as when you came.”
One son, aged 13.
About to enter his 2nd year at secondary school in Naas. He’s already taller than his mother and has size 11 feet. He is very kind to others which is all we could possibly want from him.
Children:2 (30 and 27)
Step Children: 2 (30 and 28)
Grand Children: 4 (6, 5, 2, 10 months)
Soon to be 4 in 5 months time
Every one of them thinks I’m an idiot
(A badge I wear with pride)
one daughter, aged 17, just finished her A-levels. She’s had a few emotional ups and downs over the last year, but she is a sweet kid who loves live music. She will forever be an only child – once Ms Dynamite (not that one). experienced the joy and wonder of pregnancy and labour we decided to get a dog instead of number two.
No kids and three grandkids. One of those statements is a fib.
Three children – all girls – 32, 26, 25. All good. Eldest is living with her partner in Auckland and teaching. Middle one has just completed a masters in very difficult sums and will be looking towards London maybe for gainful employment. Youngest is a primary teacher in a private school in Dublin. No sign of grandchildren as yet, but I live in hope..
They have all attended gigs with me, but they have their own taste in music as well.
Two kids whom I had later in life tham most on here I would guess, I became a father aged 43.
Daughter 16 who has just completed her GCSEs. Will hopefully be going on to college in September to study law and psychology.
Son 14 with some issues that means I fork out for private schooling but it is working for him. He is a very exceptional writer and drama student. Who knows what next.
44 for me
One daughter, aged 13. She starts GCSEs in September, including music. Been playing the trumpet for about 6 or 7 years and quite a good (if terribly shy) singer. Her music taste moves on pretty much all the time, but her favourite bands at the moment include Vunderbar and Tally Hall (nope, me neither). She thinks everything I listen to is “old man music” and she’s probably right.
I became a step father 3 times over in my 40s to two teen girls and a boy of 10. To say it was a baptism of fire might be a bit strong, but it was more than a little warm at times. There were extended periods of psychological warfare (exclusively the girls domain) but during ceasefires there were a lot of laughs and memorable moments. And only one of them ever came home in a squad car.
I split with their mum in 2020, by which time (now in their 30s / late 20s) they had become simply marvellous people to spend time with. Although we did Zoom calls, WhatsApp groups and birthday cards, seeing them in person became infrequent. Back in April, the first wedding took place and I found myself close to tears several times as I was included as part of the immediate family. When I left at the end of what had been a wonderful celebration I felt quite melancholy, aware of how much they were moving on, out of sight.
I’m now going to become a step ex Grandad. I’ve resolved to try harder to keep in touch (although the baby will arrive in New Zealand as this is where the parents have settled) and have taken a small step by organising a lunch in September. Maybe after that I’ll develop the nerve to make a trip down under.
I have a son, aged 24, who is back living at home after a year living with his now ex girlfriend. He has a good first job after university which he enjoys and is generally responsible and conscientious.
He was with his girlfriend for 5 years and we’re still on good terms with her and I think of her as a daughter, although my wife is a little more distant from her as it’s still a bit raw and she thinks everyone needs some space. We’ll see how that pans out.
My actual daughter is 21 and has just finished the 2nd year of an animation degree. Quite apart from her drawing skills, it’s been amazing to watch her blossom from an anxious kid in her mid teens to a really wise and capable young woman who is President of the university Climbing Society. She still drives us nuts with her scatty, messy, last minute life but she’s come a long way in the years since she finished GCSEs.
Both love music. Well, they would, wouldn’t they?
Son, 46, freelance editor and much involved with urban cycling pressure groups in N. London. Refuses to fly anywhere. Seems to live on air. Lives with his very tall partner who works for Medecins sans Frontieres. She doesn’t want kids which is a sadness.
Daughter, 43, children’s literary agent – a surprise given how much of my career I spent being irritated by literary agents. But she’s made a real go of it – one of her books just won the Carnegie Medal for children’s literature. Mother of 7-year-old twins, married to a record shop owner – another surprise. No idea how the business is going – he seems to spend most of his time entertaining chinstrokers.
When I sold the family home after their mother died I was able to set both of them up with enough to get on the property ladder, which was a relief.
Two boys, 19 and 17. A pair of lovely, gentle, beautiful young men who have never caused us a moment of parental torment.
The eldest is 19 and in his second year at uni studying architecture. He lives in his own world, often only vaguely aware of what is happening around him. Painfully shy, thin and tall (6’5”) but strikingly attractive (something he can thank his gorgeous mother for). He’s finding modern university a reasonably solitary affair which is a bit sad. He spends most of his time developing ultra-accurate digital 3d models of Dr Who bits and bobs, and he has developed an online reputation for these.
The youngest is in final year at school, a wise-cracking loveable smart-arse who is a maths and physics wiz. He will do mechatronic engineering at uni next year, a discipline I had never heard of (electrical, mechanical and robotics, apparently ). A more gentle and good natured kid could not be imagined.
I do worry about the world our sweet kids will have to find their way in, as they have known nothing but love and support.
No offspring, but we did have nine cats at one stage (only one is left now, and she’s quite ancient)
One son- had relatively late in life – just finished GCSEs.
Him, not me that is.
I may have the youngest family here. I’ll turn 60 this August and I have three children aged 10, 8 and 6. Two girls and a boy. They’re not working yet! All three are very bright, genuinely funny and very much themselves rather than just smaller versions of ourselves. I’m so glad I got around to having kids late in life. They’re a joy.
Two kids, one of each. Son is 25, into mostly prog, both types, metal and rock, but likes all sorts. We went to see The Necks a couple of months ago. This month he’s dragging me to see some guy called Bear McCreary, then in a couple of months we have Animals as Leaders, then later in the year, Steven Wilson and Opeth.
Daughter is 23 and again, likes all sorts of music (wonder where they got that from). Lots of female singers, Stevie Nick, Chrissie Hynde, Laura Marling. Anything you can dance to. Queen, Elbow, modern classical. Haven’t got any gigs booked with her so far this year, will need to remedy that.
Both still live at home, have steady jobs, but thanks to Sydney’s ridiculous housing market, show no signs of moving out. Fine by us, it’s nice having them around.
Re Sydney housing prices – our eldest daughter, now 35, was fortunate enough to buy into a whole 4 apartment bock with 3 other parties a couple of years ago. They live in the next street from us in Bondi. Otherwise no way could she ever have afforded an apartment in the eastern suburbs. Our son aged 33 has a canny partner who has saved some money and they’re both aiming to buy somewhere. Our youngest daughter, 30, basically spends everything she earns and seems unlikely to be buying anywhere in Sydney. But we like having her renting literally just up the road.
Son is 30 and a professional whisky taster. That’s his actual job, not a euphemism, and he loves it.
Daughter is 27 and a social worker and passionate about what she does.
They are both happier and more easy-going people than I have ever managed to be, for which I am very thankful. They take after their mother, basically.
I’m 30 years a social worker today. I wish her the best of fortune in her career. It can be a tough station.
I’m in awe of her, Bamber.
S&H will be 21 at the end of the month.
Kid didn’t have an easy upbringing – the longer he lived with his mother, the more he realized how…challenging she was. He went to HS in a state that ranks in the lower 40s for achievement, and managed to turn that into a full ride academic scholarship at an excellent private University.
It will, I think, prove be pivotal for him. Thanks to the summer programms they run, he knows what he is going to be – he’s deadset on being a Public Defender, or Indigent Defence as its fancier title is. He interned at a PD office a yeara go, and is doing criminal defence again this summer.
He’s got an incredibly well defined set of values, and seems to have the compartmentalization skills necessary. It goes without saying I’m incredibly proud of him, and the relationship we’ve built and maintained despite the distances between us.
And I have to add a note about my wife, his step-mother. She has been nothing short of excellent with him, to the point of helping with his expenses and looking at funding law school. She is the S&H-whisperer, and gets him to listen to her very easily.
I’m very lucky with my immediate family.
Having recently become a fifty something, not having had kids tops a long (long!) list of life regrets. Still, a wonderful 12 year old nephew exists although there is something poignant seeing him shed that joyous innocence and start to be .. well, a normal teenage lad.