The Contrarienne's Dilemma

is all about...oh, wait, I forget.
Um, rhymes with pain.
Oh, yeah. The brain.

Brains in middle age, which, with increased life spans, now stretches from the 40s to late 60s, also get more easily distracted. Start boiling water for pasta, go answer the doorbell and — whoosh — all thoughts of boiling water disappear. Indeed, aging brains, even in the middle years, fall into what’s called the default mode, during which the mind wanders off and begin daydreaming.

But there's a positive aspect to all this:

The brain, as it traverses middle age, gets better at recognizing the central idea, the big picture. If kept in good shape, the brain can continue to build pathways that help its owner recognize patterns and, as a consequence, see significance and even solutions much faster than a young person can.

So what you need to do is...wait for it...challenge yourself. I think meeting new people, talking to them and, most importantly, listening to them, has been a rejuvenating experience.

Jack Mezirow, a professor emeritus at Columbia Teachers College, has proposed that adults learn best if presented with what he calls a “disorienting dilemma,” or something that “helps you critically reflect on the assumptions you’ve acquired.”

The article is not very detailed, but the writer has a book coming out soon.