HOLIDAYS CAN BE BITTERSWEET FOR SENIORS

What is the best age for Christmas? If you were lucky enough to have a stable home, perhaps it was before you became a teenager. No extra work, no presents to buy–just a time for Christmas trees, cookies, caroling, and waiting for Santa. Then comes middle age, and the hectic holidays. When you’re trying to bring cheer to your home and workplace, while worrying about your parents, co workers and kids. But it’s still a fun, festive time. And then, all of a sudden, you’re eighty, and it is not quite the same. Holidays can be bittersweet for seniors.

Holidays may be bittersweet for seniors. Too much rich food can give you heartburn. — HOLIDAYS CAN BE BITTERSWEET FOR SENIORS. You have suffered losses of family and friends. And long, festive meals may wear you out.

If you’ve made it to this milestone age, you’ve surely endured a lot of losses. Parents and siblings. Death of a spouse or worse yet, a child. Divorce. Friends who’ve either moved away or passed on. And then, the loss of youthful energy and health. Many are suffering from a chronic medical condition such as diabetes, emphysema, or kidney failure. You may be on a cane or in a wheelchair. But still, you look forward to the holidays–the decorations, music, and most of all, visits from loved ones.

Holiday meals may be delicious, but they’re apt to give you indigestion. . It’s tempting to pour gravy over the turkey, butter the roll s, and pile whip cream on the pie. But if you over indulge, you’re apt to pay for it with sleepless nights filled with heartburn. Be careful what you eat. Remember, your tummy isn’t accustomed to all the extra fat, salt, and sugar .

Family gatherings can warm your heart, but also wear you out. Unfortunately, your body isn’t accustomed to long hours of sitting in a chair while visiting with relatives.. Festive holiday meals may drag on for hours. Toasts, turkey carving, numerous courses, wine, conversation. It used to be so enjoyable, but now you’re feeling sleepy before they bring out the fruitcake.

It’s important to realize that holidays can be bittersweet for seniors. A song or photograph may trigger feelings of grief for what’s been lost. Don’t expect to be the life of the party or host a holiday meal. Pace yourself. You needn’t apologize for taking a short nap. Do what you can, but don’t overdo. And feel gratitude that you’re still around for another holiday season. .

November 6, 2021November 7, 2021

CLOTH BAGS WON’T SAVE THE PLANET

Are you impressed when you see someone in the checkout line with reusable cloth bags? I am. It means the person is conscientious and thoughtful. They know that our oceans are clogged up with plastic, and it’s destroying the planet. My problem is forgetting to bring the numerous cloth bags in my trunk into the supermarket. The only time I have the foresight to bring them inside is when I shop at Aldi’s. And that’s because it’s the thing to do there. My brain is primed to remember cloth bags because I don’t want to have to pay for plastic ones at that store. But when I get home and look around my house, I wonder how much difference we’re really making. Plastic is everywhere. I’m afraid cloth bags won’t save the planet.

Those same people who remember to bring cloth bags to Kroger are probably serving on some charitable committee that furnishes needy moms with disposable diapers. Or their club organizes a free Christmas present giveaway, with piles of plastic toys for poor children. Or else they’re volunteering at a food bank, where bottles of milk, juice, condiments and other edibles are packed in plastic. They might volunteer at a soup kitchen which serves food on styrofoam dishes with plastic utensils. And last but not least, trash bags. I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t use plastic trash bags.

Back in the 60’s, we didn’t use much plastic for any of the above. The grocery store provided paper bags, which were then reused to carry out the trash. And the trash cans weren’t made of plastic. We provided our own metal trash cans, picked up by hand each week by the trash collector. In our house, we wrapped our wet garbage in newspapers. It was my brother’s chore to carry out the drippy garbage every night after dinner. If you got a baby doll for Christmas, it was a rubber dolly with no clothes. A more upscale doll would have a porcelain head and cloth body. Other toys were made of tin. . Many were wooden. . My first two children wore cloth diapers. I did a lot of laundry, but that was the only expense involved after the initial purchase. So we didn’t have to feel sorry for women who couldn’t afford disposable diapers lined with plastic, because no one had even heard of them.

Will cloth grocery bags save the planet? I don’t think so. But there’s hope on the horizon. Scientists have recently discovered a way to recycle plastics into diesel fuel.. That’s good news, because I don’t think we’re ever going to stop using plastic bags.

October 29, 2021October 29, 2021

SQUIRRELS ARE TELLING US SOMETHING

Most of us agree this has been a weird year, weather wise. A long, hot summer extending into November, and lots of rain. All of which has produced a bumper crop of acorns and walnuts falling from our neighbors’ trees and cluttering up our walkways. The squirrels have been busy, reaping the benefits. For weeks now, they’ve been scampering across our fences and lawn with cheeks bulging. They’re storing up food all over the place, and from the looks of it, they’ll have enough to last the winter. When you consider what’s going on in this covid-19 pandemic world, it seems the squirrels are telling us something : Stock up on food now, because it’s going to be scarce.

Many supermarket shelves have empty spaces, and what products are available go up in price every week. I’ve recently noticed my shopping cart is much fuller than it used to be. I’m not consciously emulating the squirrels, but I seem to be buying a lot more of everything. Instead of one can of vegetables or beans, I’m coming home with three or four. Probably have enough toilet paper to last until spring. It’s not actually hoarding, because that would mean I’m getting stuff I will never have a chance to use.

For example, during world war II sugar was rationed. My mother’s best friend was childless, and apparently had more disposable income than we did. She and her husband began hoarding sugar in huge tin storage cans up in their attic. Lift the lid on their piano bench and you could see it was packed to the brim with hard candy. They didn’t eat the candy, and the woman seldom baked. As I remember, she never offered to share as much as a cup of her sugar. .

When the war was over, she invited me up to her attic to see all the sugar she had stored for the duration. It was hard and lumpy, and I think it was drawing ants, so she threw it all away. The candy had melted together during the summer months with no air conditioning, and so it, too, went into the trash pit.

Squirrels are telling us something. Time to stock up for the winter. — Squirrels are telling us something. Now is the time to store food for the winter.

In comparison, my overbuying isn’t really what you would call hoarding. I’m just filling my cupboards to the brim. Nothing will go to waste. But I’m bracing myself for a long hard winter of shortages and higher prices on everything we buy. The squirrels are telling us something.

Food shortages are coming.

October 22, 2021October 21, 2021

FLU SHOT PACKS A WALLOP

Most of us didn’t have a flu shot last year, and yet, we didn’t get the flu, either. That was one benefit of the Covid-19 pandemic. No one went out in public, unless they had to. And everyone wore masks. We still are in the midst of a pandemic, but most people we know are vaccinated, and so we’re more relaxed about going places and doing things. All of which has the CDC worried that the plain old flu is going to make a comeback, so they urged us to get a flu shot this year. My husband got his in September, but I put if off until this week. Why? Because the flu shot packs a wallop. It always makes me sick for a day or two.

I had mostly forgotten about the flu shot side effects, and convinced myself it wouldn’t be so bad. Started the day with a swim. Stepped out into the sunlight, and walked along the river. Felt optimistic that my immune system was ready to take on a flu shot. Bravely walked into my favorite CVS store and bared my arm to the dreaded needle. And woke up the next morning with nausea, fatigue, aches and pains that have lasted for two days.

Flu shot packs a wallop. Some get sick for two days afterwards. — FLU SHOT PACK A WALLOP. Some are sick for a couple of days after receiving one.

My husband was proud of me for doing my duty; protecting myself and fellow human beings. He has never experienced a single side effect from a flu shot, and as far as I can remember, , in 33 years of marriage, has never had a case of the flu.

Conversely, I have come down with the flu in spite of getting a flu shot, and gone years without getting the flu, even when I didn’t get a shot. Which brings me to the issue of mandated Covid vaccines. I can totally understand why people don’t want to get vaccinated, if they have strong reactions the way I do. I did have side effects from my second Covid shot, but it was not nearly as bad as how I felt this week.

Why do some people get sick after vaccines and others don’t? I’ve done some research. Women have more reactions than men, because of male and female hormones. Apparently, estrogen promotes a more vigorous immune response than testosterone. , I should appreciate having such a strong reaction. They say it means my body is producing lots of antibodies.

All I know is that– for me– the flu shot packs a wallop. I have to brace myself for a couple of lost sick days after any vaccination.. But it’s my patriotic duty. That’s what I keep telling myself.

October 20, 2021October 20, 2021

WARNING! YOUR WATER MAY BE DIRTY

It all started about a month ago. I noticed a thin black line rimming the water in our toilet bowls. Cleaned them, didn’t think much about it. Maybe caused by a new cleaning product. The dark line returned a few days later, upstairs and down. Cleaned them again. Same thing. Started getting a bit worried that something was wrong. Bought a case of bottled water for drinking. Decided to call the water company. They said I probably wasn’t cleaning the toilets right , but they’d send someone out to take a sample. Warning! Your water may be dirty. And it’s not because you’re a poor housekeeper.

Waring! Your water may be dirty — Warning! your water may be dirty. If you notice black rings in your toilet bowl. call the water company for testing.

Received a call the next morning. Two trucks from the water company were out in front, and said they were flushing our water line. That seemed like a pretty drastic response to my complaint. Do you shut off the water and flush a line just because someone isn’t cleaning their toilets correctly? Turns out there was, in fact, sludge in our water line. What I was seeing was manganese. Scary. Water company service attendant assured me it wasn’t at a dangerous level. He said all water has some manganese.

How did our water line get filled with sludge? Possibly, due to the boondoggle at the military reserve building across the street. They’ve been drilling and jackhammering and digging for the last three months, at least. May have shaken up our water line. We haven’t the slightest idea what they’re doing, but they’re not done yet. Lots of expensive equipment and manpower at the taxpayers’ expense. Hope it’s worth it.

The lesson here is clear: if you notice some strange discoloration in your toilet bowl, call the water company immediately, and don’t let them try to blow you off. I had to insist that they come out and test the water. They grudgingly agreed. Now, I’ve learned that too much manganese in the water can affect your health, so hope I called before we suffer any ill effects. Warning! Your water may be dirty.

October 13, 2021October 14, 2021

NO! I WON’T ANSWER YOUR SURVEY

How many times a day does someone call you to participate in a survey? If it’s an unknown number, you’re smart enough not to pick up the phone. But often, it’s a familiar name—possibly a doctor’s office or some medical group. When you see that on your caller ID, you feel a little nervous. Did they find something wrong with your blood work? But when you pick up, there’s a recorded message that they would like you to spend time answering their survey questions. Bummer! They’ve not only interrupted my dinner hour, they’ve resorted to scare tactics to make me answer the phone. The moment I hear that message, I end the call. No! I won’t answer your survey.

We have gone to the same primary care physician for years. It’s ridiculous for some hospital marketer to call and ask what we think of him, and whether we were satisfied with the last visit. What a waste of our time. Yes, there have been times when we were treated by one of his colleagues, and weren’t exactly thrilled with his/her listening skills. But doctors are human beings, remember. If they’re seeing a patient they don’t know well, they might not ask the right questions or come up with answers we like to hear. We absolutely would not give that doctor a poor rating just because of some isolated incident.

And if we’ve had our first visit with a new health care practitioner, we aren’t going to know right away whether they helped us or not. Sciatica isn’t cured in a day. It’s way too soon to evaluate any therapist after the first or even second session.

Other places now follow up every service they perform with a survey. Are you satisfied with your oil change? Your furnace check? How are you supposed to know if you’re satisfied until you’re sure things are running smoothly.

Have any of these marketing experts heard that it’s rude to violate boundaries? Butting into quiet family time.? Calling someone during the news hour with a recorded message? . Most people hate annoying surveys and aren’t comfortable making negative comments that could backfire on them. . No! I won’t take part in your survey, so please stop calling.

September 29, 2021September 29, 2021

COMMON COLD MAKES A COMEBACK

Every since the Covid-19 pandemic began, I didn’t have a single cold or bout with the flu. Thanks to all the masking, social isolation, and hand sanitizer, my body was shielded from those nasty cold viruses for a year and a half. In fact, the last cold I experienced was in February of 2020—right before we found out we were facing a pandemic. It was a really bad cold that went on for a month (might have even been the virus). But then the world got turned upside down, and I forgot what it was like to be sick. Now, the common cold makes a comeback.

In case you’ve forgotten, a cold creeps up on you gradually. You’re unusually tired for a couple of days. Then you feel a sneeze coming on. Next day, you’re feeling achy and just plain awful. It’s scary. Are you coming down with the virus? No temperature yet, or other symptoms like a cough, fever, diarrhea, etc. However, you make up your mind if it gets any worse, you’ll get tested. Lose a good night’s sleep with worry.. And then, you wake up, sit out in the sun, (yes it’s back to 80 degrees) and start feeling better. And that’s when realize you just had a plain, ordinary cold. On top of allergic rhinitis, maybe., because this is ragweed season. It all feels the same.

They say a change in weather makes you more susceptible to sinus problems. Last week, the weather went from 90 degrees, to an overnight 46. Cold rain thrown in to the mix. Being a fresh air nut, I’d left the windows open. Apparently, abrupt changes in temperature lower the immune system. It didn’t help the next day when I went grocery shopping during a cold, windy downpour. Only half the people at the supermarket were wearing masks. No one was social distancing in the long lines at the checkout.

Our defenses have gone down this past month, even though Covid cases have increased. People have stopped using hand sanitizer and started going to restaurants and shops. Most have quit wearing masks. The weather is often cold and rainy. And even though we’ve been vaccinated, we’re being exposed to germs that cause the common cold and the flu. The scary return of the common cold is a reality. Be careful. Mask up. Use hand sanitizer. Don’t catch a cold if you can help it. .