I will turn 100 years old in two days (3/21/2012) -- AMAA

Mam, you don't look a day over 75.

Well I appreciate you saying that.

You look fabulous! Congratulations on winning life.

When will I get my money?

How do you feel about comparisons between the economy now and the Great Depression?

People get help from the government now but during the Great Depression in the 30s there was no help. I think it was much worse then. I'm sure a lot of people went hungry.

do you remember your first crush?

Oh yes. Definitely. And I really never got over it.

What are your feelings with regards to kids on your lawn?

I think it's great if you have a lawn if they want to play on it.

First off, congratulations. For questions...:

1. What has been the single most significant change or development that you have observed over your lifetime? Men on the moon? Computers? Medical advancements? etc...

2. If you had to boil down your best advice for those younger than you into three points, what would those points be?

1. Medical advancements, I would say.
2. a. A great sense of humor; b. be an optimist; c. listening to funny jokes!

You're two days older than my great grandma who turns 100 on Friday. I hope you have a wonderful 100th birthday!

... with lots of cake.

Thank you!

In which decade did women look best?

I think they looked the best in the 1930s or the 1940s.

What do you miss that doesn't exist/isn't in use anymore.

The wind up telephone.

Is this a rotary phone, or something even older and cooler that I don't know about?

It looked like a horn. It was on a box. You picked the horn up and winded up like a windless on a well -- they way they used to draw water up. It had a thing you wind with that stuck out of the box and you would wind and an operator would say, "Hello, may I help you?" I used to pay 10 cents at Spot Harper's store to use it.

What is the the best experience you had as a child that you feel/fear children today don't have today?

I was free to roam around the countryside if I wanted to with other children. Now children have to be very careful because there are so many perverts out there. I walked a mile to school.

Uphill both ways!

Haha!

More shocking moment for you. Bombing of Pearl Harbor or 9/11?

I would have to say Pearl Harbor was the most shocking.

How about the Kennedy Assassination? Do you remember where you were?

I had driven to work that day and when I got out of my car a friend of mine got out of her car and told me about it. I had not had the radio on.

How did you feel after knowing that not only did you grow up past the Great War, but that you actually were of age to know and experience the real effects of WWII. Did you actually join any of the women's manufacturing movements? (rosie the riveter, etc, the drive for a female workforce)

Also, I'd really like to hear your take on both the desegregation events and Suffrage movements! Thanks for taking the time to answer our questions, happy B-day (soon!) :D

I was working in textiles during WWII.

I never liked segregation, I think we are all equal. I didn't believe in segregation. A lot of my friends were black and I liked them really well. I had better black friends than white ones.

I think women should always have had the opportunity to vote because they're just as smart as men. I can't understand why women were so long getting to vote.

Can you tell us something about your grandparents or the oldest relative that you can remember?

The oldest relative was a great aunt. She lived through the Civil War and her husband was in the Civil War. My grandma on my momma's side was a farmer and my daddy's side -- his daddy and momma were farmers. They lived good lives being farmers.

Needless to say, you've experienced some very significant and memorable things in your life, but if you could forget all prior knowledge of a certain event what would it be? Whether it's personal involvement or larger crises?

I would forget my little cousin getting stung by a bee and dying.

What do you think is the most important aspect of life?

A happy family.

Whats the biggest regret of your life, if I may ask?

I can't tell you that.

If someone told you as a child you would have lived to 100, what would you have said?

I would have said, "No way!"

Do you still drive a vehicle regularly? What are your thoughts on your peers doing so?

No. Well there comes a time when older people should stop driving. Their reflexes are not as good and most of them can't see as well. There's a time when they should quit driving. I knew there was a time for me to quit when I had some near collisions and it scared me. I drove until I was 90 and I knew I didn't need to drive anymore so I just parked my car.

What was your first car?

A Ford T-Model.

Did you need a license back then to drive?

Not at first. When I started driving at 14 we didn't need one.

Please tell me something cool that's one of your first memories.

My momma told me that if I hit my little friend in the head with a rock she was going to whip me.

That's good advice right there.

What was going on in the world then?

I was about 4 and a half and WWI had started but the USA wasn't involved yet.

Oh come on... How has this not been asked????

What was the best thing you've ever eaten

Your best homemade thing, and restaurant...

Catfish. I made good cakes. I loved to make oyster stews.

mmm I love catfish! Was that your restaurant one? If not what was the best thing you've ever eaten at a restaurant?

Yes. I think that catfish is the best thing I've ever eaten at a restaurant.

Happy birthday, Lula!

Thank you!

What would you say is most important thing you witnessed firsthand during your life?

Also, what has the biggest change in society been over the last 100 years?

I know the most outstanding thing I witnessed was a train going through my hometown with President Franklin Roosevelt's body on it. He died in Georgia and sent him by rail through my town.

The biggest (greatest) change in society has been the Civil Rights movement.

If you could give an 18 year old, like me one piece of advice, what would it be?

My advice would be to get the best education you can and follow your dreams.

Did you have a bomb shelter in the 50s? In case Russia dropped "the big one"

No. I knew one person who had one. I wasn't expecting the Russians.

firstly, congrats on the milestone

looking back what was your favourite era of the last 100 years and why?

My favorite time was in the 60s and 70s because I was free as a bird. I had a wonderful life at that time.

What was Christmas like in the 40's?

Well, it was about like it is now. We put on plays at the church and we had Christmas trees and we had a Santa Clause. It was a lot like it is today. We'd go caroling.

Did you have any health issues during your life? Did you sport? Did you smoke or drink? Why do you think that you look so healthy, because you look great! (For your age ;) )

Osteo-arthritis after age 80. Also at age 82 I fell from a height of 13 steps (10 feet) and as a result I had a serious bout of shingles.

I played softball, baseball, volleyball, and basketball in high school.

No smoking or drinking except a little nip every now and then.

I eat my veggies and fruit and also I get 10 hours sleep a night!

1st... Yay you. congratulations.

My question. I super sincerely hope it is not inappropriate. I have always wanted to ask this question but find it is nearly impossible to bring up. Thank you vm if u choose to answer it.

I am getting older and am starting to think more and more about the end of my road. Honestly, it is terrifying. And I can only imagine it gets worse the more time moves forward.

My question is... does it ever go away? The fear i mean. Do you reach a point where you are comfortable knowing that literally any day could be your last?

This is the main reason I wish I believed in god.

Again very sorry if this is inappropriate.

It does. I have no fear. I trust in God. I was saved a long time ago and I have no fear. I think it will be a wonderful experience.

What's your opinion about current art?

• Movies?
• Music?
• Videogames?

What was it like, when the TV was invented? What was your first movie in the cinema?

Well they're not as good as the older movies. I love to watch older movies made in the 30s, 40s and 50s. All these current movies are mostly about sex.

My neighbor had a TV and we'd go to their house and watch TV. It wasn't very good. We didn't have one for a long time.

A cowboy movie with Gene Autrey.

I work at a restaurant that opens for breakfast at 5am. Accordingly, I encounter a lot of elderly people. Many of them are very impatient, picky, and just downright mean. You seem like a nice lady. What is your biggest complaint about other elderly people you are around?

Most elderly people are impatient and a lot of them you can't please. I see a lot of stuff going on with elderly people and some of them or just down right mean.

What is your opinion on the rapid change of music since you were born? What what your favorite period of music?

I think it's changed for the worst. I love country music -- I think it's the best. I would say maybe the 60s had the best music.

Do you like the Beatles?

Yeah, I like the Beatles. I liked to listen to them. Didn't they break up?

This is a wierd question, but what is the best (true) story that you can tell first hand (or if it was passed down, that's fine too.)

I haven't thought about that. The one where my son went to the doctor to have his finger lanced because he had an infection. The doctor was trying to get his attention off of his finger and onto something else (a picture on the wall) -- my son (5 years old) said, "I guess I know my intelligent mind."

What do you remember about the 20's? I wish I grew up in that era.

I remember the flappers. I remember a lot of music in the '20s.

In your honest opinion, what do you think is the most important technological advancement made in your lifetime?

I think the important advancement is the advances that have been made in medicine. Things that save people's lives.

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I don't think about it because I have a great memory and so if I lose it tomorrow I've had all these years of remembering.

Happy (early) Birthday, Lula! Did you do any traveling/what was your favorite place?

The mountains and beaches.

Happy Birthday!

What is your earliest memory? Have other members of your family lived a long life?

My earliest memory I was sitting out on the porch in a swing with my uncle. I had to be maybe 4 years old. And this little boy was out flying a kite. My mother lived to be 85. I had an aunt live to be 90. Outside of those two I don't remember anybody living too long. Most of my kin folks lived to be in their mid-80s.

Have you been able to travel much in your lifetime? Where are some interesting/great places that you've been? What places do you still wish to see?

I've traveled a good bit in the USA. I've never been abroad, but I have traveled up the coast and to the midwest. The beaches and the mountains.

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Moisturize, moisturize, moisturize.

If you and I swapped places and I was turning 100 years old what would you ask me?

I would ask you how do you feel being 100, because I don't know. I don't feel like I'm 100, but they tell me I am, so I guess I am.

What's your opinion of the Great Gatsby?

I believe I read that and they made a movie about it. I don't remember it.

No questions, but from reading your responses so far you sound like an extremely cool, down-to-earth person. Kudos to you; would chill with.

I am very down to earth and very cool. Thank you!

What was it like being a teenager? What do you think teenagers today could learn from your experiences?

It was great being a teenager. It was a wonderful world. We partied and we had little boyfriends. It was just a different time then. We swam and I was a Girl Scout.

Hi, congratulations for making it through 100 years of life, and for having an apparently great grandson.

My question for you is about war. Having witnessed what it was like before many large wars really got underway, is it at all similar to situations that we've seen in the last decade? Is there a calm before the storm? Does war sneak up on you or is it something that is pretty easy to see coming?

The first World War I was too young to know much about it. But WWII was a surprise. I didn't see it coming. When they bombed Pearl Harbor that got us into the war, and it was tough going. There was a lot of rationing. You couldn't get but about 3 gallons of gas a week. Shoes were rationed and a lot of food was too.

What advice can you give us about love/lost love/heartbreaks?

I've experienced all three so I can tell you that when you fall in love with somebody you will know it. And heartbreak does finally go away. If you lose love they weren't worth keeping anyway.

Thank you for doing this! I'm about to turn 30 myself and experiencing quite a bit of self realization lately.

Can you pick a defining moment in your life which changed your perspective on how the world worked? Or maybe a realization that the way you used to look at things was incorrect or incomplete and some other way was true?

I think 9/11 changed my perspective on how the world was.

What is your favorite book?

Rebecca.

Hey! Thanks for doing the AMA.

Are you a fan of movies? Have you kept up to date with them? What's your favourite movie of all time and what have you seen lately?

Thanks!

Oh, I am. Gone with the Wind. I saw it four times. I have been watching some movies on Ted Turner Channel they're old movies and I love those old movies. The women are all dressed in these great clothes which nobody would wear today. I can't remember the name of the movies I have seen lately but I watch a lot of older movies.

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I have no input. This is a hard question.

Do you regret ever taking time for granted or do you look back at life believing you would do it the same way all over again?

All the time I regret taking time for granted. I should have done and could have done more with my life if I had not taken time for granted.

I look back at life and think I would have done a lot of things different. Hindsight is 20/20.