You asked if we thought someone who had not exercised in a long time could get back in shape. well, think about this, if you DON"T exercise some, even a little, what kind of shape will you be in this time next year? You'll be worse. You want to start doing something, and walking is a good beginning, to just stay where you are. You may never get back to what you could do when you were a teenager, but you can certainly improve on what you are today. Give it a good try. It will be well worth it!!

Even if they've never exercised, the middle-aged and older can still benefit by beginning now. Experts say sedentary people will actually fare better in percentage gains relative to active people, since they're starting from zero. "It doesn't matter how old you are," says Colin Milner, founder and CEO of the International Council on Active Aging in Vancouver, British Columbia. "It's never too late to start exercising." Here is a link that might be useful: Exercise Is Healthy, but Does It Make You Live Longer?

"Cattle car waits "   How odd.  A Canadian friend and I were visiting Sydney a while back. My friend became ill on a Friday night. I was able to get on line and book an appointment with her at a local clinic near our hotel for the following morning. No line up at all.  And I don't know Sydney particularly well.And it was a busy family clinic in the center of the city. There are clinics which only "bulk bill" (ie charge Medicare rates) and there are clinics which charge higher fees(except to people who are on government pensions or disability).  Medicare pays the base fee and the individual pays the "gap."   Many people, with or without insurance, are quite happy to pay the gap fee and get quick service. The gap fee runs around $30 - $60 for a GP visit depending on the length of the visit. Bulk billing, walk in clinics in major cities may well have line ups (I daresay there are similar lineups in inner city New York or Philadelphia), but the clinics I've used, in 3 states and 4 cities, operate  by appointment, even the ones that do bulk bill.    This notion of cattle car service is about as accurate as the notion that every American has full insurance coverage and immediate access to top flight health care.  And in fact, in the studies I've cited in the past, while countries like Australia and Canada do have waiting lists for public health care, access in general is still better than in the US. I am about done with Elmer and his"Australian friends". I didn't intend this to become another personal debate coloured by inaccuracy and animus. I raised the subject of the bowel screening program as an example of what I think is an effective public health measure that extends screening for colorectal cancer to a broader range of people.  Nothing more. I don't dispute that colonoscopies are the gold standard, but they are simply not accessible to everyone for a whole lot of reasons. Not here, not in the US. Bowel screening is much more accessible and picks up a significant number of cases, often early enough for treatment.  Never forget that the pursuit of excellence is often the enemy of the good.  That adage applies here.

Since you already have a nice bookshelf you really don't need that kind of storage so what about taking down the posters and applying a peel-and-stick wall mural? You can find them pretty inexpensively on amazon, and a bit more pricey on etsy or wayfair. There are so many designs available that I think you'd have fun choosing the one you'd love in your room.