Now I don't mean this in a sarcastic way. There is fun in growing older, particularly in terms of one's mind being more subtle than as a young thing, more able to appreciate nuance and things that are truly grown up. I'm reading Le Carre again, this time The Russia house, and it is so good. When I was younger I couldn't appreciate Le Carre, I wondered why people banged on about him so much, but now.... reading a clever writer is like being in the arms of the perfect lover; you trust him (or her) and he trusts that you trust him. I love the way Le Carre never panders to the reader, he doesn't always connect the dots; he trusts that you are clever too, and that he doesn't have to tell you things; you are clever enough to work things out for yourself.
Other things that I've enjoyed as a grown up - the poetry of Emily Dickinson, which was completely opaque to me at eighteen. Cubism, jazz, and country music. The appeal of Audrey Hepburn. The blatant and open corruptness of politicians - this used to make me angry, which was quite pointless and merely gave me indigestion but now just makes me laugh, bitterly. One can gain enjoyment from the sheer ghastliness of others, it's sad but true. Yours, philosophically.
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