Dear Friends of the Pig’s Arms,
Some of our patrons may remember an article written for the Australian Lung Foundation that we re-published – Lungevity in January 2010 – by Gay Lysenko – a long time great friend of Emmjay and FM.
I’m very sorry to bring the sad news that Gay passed away last week after a long struggle with cancer. We send our condolences to John and sons.
Gay was a brilliant and delightful woman who brought sunshine and champagne into the lives of those she met. She was an avid collector and dealer of fine art and she re-awakened in FM and me a keen interest in the arts.
We will remember with great fondness always her generosity and her mischievous sense of humour.
This piece in the Australian (April 16 2007) by Sarah Elks captures a glimpse.
Goodbye old friend with love from Emm and FM.
Boomers put sex on the table
Open intimacy ... Gay and John Lysenko still enjoy a robust sex life. Picture: Amy Brown
BABY boomers are shattering stereotypes by having more sex in their 60s than previous older generations.
One of Australia’s leading sexual health physicians, Lesley Yee, who will lecture at the World Congress of Sexual Health in Sydney this week, said baby boomers were also more open about it.
“This generation grew up with the pill and are used to more open communication about sex,” Dr Yee said.
“Now, they’re challenging earlier conservative attitudes about older people’s sexuality.”
John and Gay Lysenko, in their late 50s, are living proof that physical intimacy does not have to diminish with age.
Over a long lunch with friends yesterday in a leafy northern suburb of Sydney, Gay said sexuality was an integral part of any loving relationship.
“In our home, John and I are very happy to close our bedroom door on a weekend afternoon if we want to have the afternoon in bed,” she said.
“We’re not self-conscious … it’s just a natural part of any relationship.”
Dr Yee said one major stumbling block for baby boomer couples was the reconciliation between physical capabilities and emotional desires.
“There’s an expectation that things will be the same as they were 20 or 30 years ago … and that desire is not always attainable physically,” she said.
John Lysenko said: “A lot of baby boomers don’t feel that they’re old … You just go on thinking the same as you always did and doing the same, until your body catches up with you.”
Gay added that sexuality was a major part of expressing love.
—ooo—
Window Dresser's Arms, Pig & Whistle 
We ‘came of age’ during the swinging 60/70’s. Sex was, and still is, an affirmation of life. Why stop until you have to?
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Emmjay, it feels so sad and somewheres bad the loss by a vicious death of a loved person, someone who has inspired you. I feel grateful to you that a number of subjects are raised on this page to think on.
Who do I now admire that I am 60, why, for how long have I admired them, am I in contact with them, who do I love in that part for their inspiration., why do we feel about one death differently from another and what creates sameness.
By the same token, I remembered enjoying great conversations by telephone with my father in the last couple of years of his life including about human sexuality. I only wish we had been able to share the knowledge when he was younger. I have been fortunate too, when I was a young woman I met some vibrantly delightful couples in their middle years who were in adoration of each other.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts and presenting the article.
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Many thanks for your kind words, ‘Shoe.
Regards,
Emm
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Reading PA and UL this week has been about sex and dying…
Three good people have passed away the last few days, Hunter, Gould and Gay Lysenko.
Is this something to do with autumn winds and falling leaves and winter approaching, or is it true what the old song says: Only the good ones die YOUNG.
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MJ and FM, sorry to hear this news, very sad indeed
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The link works on my computer. Sorry to hear about Gay’s death. These are terrible times.
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The link to Longevity doesn’t work, Emms.
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Gay sounds like she was a lovely person, and that the world is a poorer place for her loss. The reverse is also true, the world, and the people she touched is a richer place for having known her. Sorry to hear that, Emmjay, our condolences to you and FM.
Who would have thought that baby boomers would still enjoy sex??
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We do ? Cripes ! I’ll have to look into that, Big !
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Johnny Rotten thought that sex was over-rated.
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Apart from that condolences.. Cancer is an insidious enemy.
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This one cries out for a reply that propriety prevents me from making, Jules, but I bet you get the drift 🙂
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Yes…it would be.
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I’m thinking about it. I may try it one day.
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I guess you would have the opportunity sometimes Big?
But, could you go the whole two minutes and fifty seconds?
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Well, yes…the whole fifty seconds…and…what else?
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They sound like they had both heart and mind in the right place. Gay sounds like she knew many of the secrets of life, knowing the important role that sexuality plays in the expression of love is certainly one of the most important such secrets. Knowing how and when to shut the door to the world and stay in bed, is yet another.
Fair well to both.
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