Despite being broke and 107 years old, Larry Haubner has defied the propaganda asserting that the married life is healthier and happier. A Dubuque Iowa native who grew up in Tacoma, Wash., he has lived a carefree, if modest life for over a century. His father worked on the railroad, and he worked in a Tacoma lumber yard prior to joining the Army at the age of 40 during WWII.
After the war, Larry moved to New York to pursue a career in opera while working as a doorman. That never panned out, but his spirit was not broken. When his sister was widowed, he moved to Virginia to stay with her, and was seen bicycling around town, enjoying nature and singing to the Rappahannock River when the fancy struck him.
Today, he takes no medications and works out daily with improvised weights. His dire financial straits are not a source of major concern, as his greatest joy is simply to be alive. However, there are others who are concerned that he might be forced into a nursing home. A website has been set up to encourage support for Larry, despite the fact that he has not been informed of the threat to his current living situation. I hope Larry and his supporters prevail.
Despite his lack of a wife, career and family, Haubner has lived life to its fullest. Maybe nobody ever told him about what was expected of him as a man, but if they did, it appears that he didn’t listen, and was not the worse for it.
Those of us who willingly take up the burdens of family and responsibility should not feel cheated, but rather should look at Larry Haubner and take note of the sacrifices that we have made. Larry has led a charmed, carefree life, and we should be happy for him. He is the living embodiment of the free, good life that can be had as an independent man, and those of us who have taken a different path can feel a sense of vindication in the knowledge that it truly is hard, unforgiving work to take up the burdens of marriage and family. In fact, we should demand some recognition and respect for climbing a steeper hill, and putting more weight in our packs.
As for Larry, may he keep on enjoying himself, and may he continue provide us with a living example of the vitality of a free man.
9 responses so far ↓
1 Puma // Jul 3, 2009 at 10:25 am
Very inspiring. Thank you Welmer for this story.
2 miles // Jul 3, 2009 at 12:34 pm
ditto………
3 Lukobe // Jul 3, 2009 at 2:11 pm
To each his own. Of course, just because he’s 107 and evidently very happy doesn’t mean it’s because he’s a bachelor, nor does it mean if you stay a bachelor you’re likely to live to 107. But good for him anyway. I do bet he’s had some companionship, though. It’s not necessarily marriage but companionship that is asserted to lead to a longer, happier, life.
4 Welmer // Jul 3, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Well, Lukobe, the point is that we are always bombarded with these messages that men would be miserable and helpless without wives, but here’s old Larry, never married, yet still going strong at 107, singing tunes on the porch and hoisting his walker over his head from time to time.
Kind of kills the stereotype of the bitter old loner.
Sometimes I wonder whether it isn’t people who are simply happy with themselves that do the best in our world. But you’re right about companionship. Evidently, he did live with his sister for some time.
5 Lukobe // Jul 3, 2009 at 3:42 pm
I know those messages are out there, but honestly, I don’t feel bombarded by them.
6 Welmer // Jul 3, 2009 at 3:54 pm
OK, not bombarded: leafleted.
Is that better?
Anyway, I’m just trying to add some balance here.
7 Lukobe // Jul 3, 2009 at 5:56 pm
Maybe it’s because I’m getting married in just over two months!
8 as // Jul 3, 2009 at 11:42 pm
Ah, he lived with sister.
You do need companionship.
9 Justin // Jul 5, 2009 at 9:38 am
Welmer, that is a great observation. Life does not have to be burdensome, although many of us make it so.
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