This traction on the retina, which is painless, sends a sensation of light to the brain that we see as flashers. People typically describe these as non-colored sparkles of light in one corner of the field of vision, usually affecting one eye.
South Carolina Republican Sen. Strom Thurmond celebrated his 100th birthday in the U.S. Senate in December 2002; New Jersey Democrat Frank Lautenberg is the oldest current U.S. senator; he is to turn 89 next month.
Born in 1923, Representative Ralph Hall of Texas is the oldest person to have served in the House. Hall retired in 2015, at the age of 91. Prior to 2012, Representative Charles Manly Stedman of North Carolina, who died in office on September 23, 1930, at the age of 89 years, 7 months, and 25 days held the designation.