One of Gian-Carlo's lessons

Be Prepared for Old Age
  My late friend Stan Ulam used to remark that his
life was sharply divided into two halves. In the
first half, he was always the youngest person in
the group; in the second half, he was always the
oldest. There was no transitional period.
   I now realize how right he was. The etiquette
of old age does not seem to have been written
up, and we have to learn it the hard way. It depends
on a basic realization, which takes time
to adjust to. You must realize that after reaching
a certain age you are no longer viewed as a
person. You become an institution, and you are
treated the way institutions are treated. You are
expected to behave like a piece of period furniture,
an architectural landmark, or an incunabulum.
      It matters little whether you keep publishing
or not. If your papers are no good, they will say,
“What did you expect? He is a fixture!”; and if
an occasional paper of yours is found to be interesting,
they will say, “What did you expect?
He has been working at this all his life!” The only
sensible response is to enjoy playing your newly
found role as an institution.