Is Anyone Out There?

I've noticed, as I age,

that women past their forties

become more or less invisible

(unless they're a Christie Brinkley

or other beautiful former super model

who hasn't gained an ounce of weight),

at least in American culture.

Many men of a certain age

 seem to be drawn to women

who are,

shall we say delicately,

not age appropriate. . . .

twenty, even thirty years younger

than they are.

But for the most part,

younger men would never think of dating a woman

twenty years older

even ten years older than they are

unless there was a financial benefit involved.

(And yes. . .  I know that Keanu Reeves lusted after

Diane Keaton -- who pined after Jack Nicholson -- 

but that, my friends, was a movie after all.)

I've felt invisible for a long time

out in the world,

no longer a magnet for mens' glances.

It's a relief in some ways. . . 

not having to be fetching all the time

in order to comport with the way men

think I should be.

I have to admit, though,

that I'm feeling invisible in the blogosphere

as well. . . 

wondering if anybody reads my posts anymore

or cares whether I have something to say.

Have blog posts lost their allure?

Does Facebook replace it?

Am I both invisible and mute?

There are more productive ways 

to spend time, after all.

Making art.

Writing short stories.

Cooking gourmet dinners.

Doing a load of laundry.

If a tree falls in the forest

and no one is within miles,

does it make a sound?