As someone approaching, or having arrived at, old age I am acutely aware of ‘shelf life’. I am now having a life on the shelf – where I have been since turning 60.
In Australia our journalists and commentariat often talk of our Prime Ministers ‘having the shelf life of Yoghurt’. Rudd – Gillard – Rudd and Abbott – Turnbull – Morrison demonstrating that this idea has bipartisan support, at least in Canberra. This got me thinking about my own situation.
As I’m not, nor have I ever been Prime Minister, I cannot blame the power-seeking ego of a ‘colleague’ for my current status as unemployed. But maybe I can see a closer relationship with Yoghurt as the root cause of my current lot in life?
Yoghurt is widely available, and so can be described as a commodity that can be enjoyed when ‘at its best’. It is easy to source replacement. Further, due to the success of Capitalism, Globalisation and Neoliberalism, it’s cheap enough to be disposed of if beyond its ‘best before’ date.
This is also sadly true of men of my age and background.
So maybe I’m Yoghurt?