Meet Perry Chellis. He’s 174 years young, lives alone, keeps busy, and would appreciate it if everyone stopped acting surprised that he can carry his own groceries. He’s been an adult since Alexander Graham Bell was mucking around with the telephone, so he’s watched an impressive number of world-changing inventions arrive, become indispensable, and eventually require a monthly subscription.

Perry likes gardening, reading, photography, getting outdoors, and generally doing whatever strikes his fancy. He’s not particularly nostalgic about the old days because, frankly, quite a lot of the old days were terrible. Indoor plumbing? Excellent. Antibiotics? Big fan. The internet? Useful, although he maintains it was better before everybody else discovered it.

He’s slowed down a little, sure. He’s a tortoise. He was never exactly in a hurry.