IS AGE SIXTY-FIVE THE NEW EIGHTY?

After listening to the Democratic presidential debate last night, my mind was in a muddle. I couldn’t really tell what message Biden and Sanders were trying to convey. It sounded like a couple of angry old guys in a shouting contest. But just before we went to bed, I heard on the news that someone said all people over age sixty five should stay home during this coronavirus outbreak. I’ll find out today who said that, but it has me wondering: Is age sixty five the new eighty?

Should healthy people stay isolated just because their over sixty five? — Should healthy seniors be told to stay at home during the crisis? Is age sixty-five the new eighty?

Most sixty-five year olds I know are pretty healthy. Thanks to modern healthcare, the fitness movement, and plant based diets, these newly retired folks are In much better shape than our parents were. It seems like a bit of overkill to me. Retirees are the ones people fall back on to help out in a crisis—whether it’s babysitting,emergency housing , or other calamities that befall working people.

The recommendation is mostly based on the fact that seniors are most apt to die if they get sick with the coronavirus. But there’s a slight flaw in that statistic. It’s mostly the elderly who live in crowded nursing homes who have died. They don’t get out at all. They’re stuck in stuffy, stinky, crowded places where staffers are too busy to wash their hands as often as they should. And the air doesn’t move very fast in those little rooms.

Naturally, anyone who’s at risk should stay at home during the coronavirus outbreak. But not everyone over age sixty-five has heart disease, kidney failure, diabetes, or other serious health problems.

So what’s a healthy senior to do? Should we wear hats to disguise gray hair, and sunglasses to hide our wrinkles. Shall we be arrested for going to the grocery store for a bottle of milk? Is sixty five really the new eighty?

And by the way. What were those two old politicians doing out in public last night? Both Biden and Sanders are over sixty five.

January 17, 2020January 17, 2020

WINTER SCHADENFREUDE AT ITS PEAK

There’s some psychological competition between Northerners and Southerners each winter. If you live in Florida or Arizona, or have spent mega bucks renting a condo, you tend to enjoy hearing about snowstorms up north. Conversely, Northerners who stay at home laugh when their snow bird friends complain about a run of cold weather Down South. Right now, winter schadenfreude is at its peak.

Everyone enjoys a winter vacation in the South, except when the weather turns bad — Winter schadenfreude peaks out in January, when Southerners laugh about snowstorms up North.

While living in Florida year round, I remember the joy of basking in the sunshine while the media blasted horror stories about ice, snow, and power outs up north. That felt good for a few months. But along came early summer, and when it got hotter and more humid, and the greenery turned yellow, I missed cool spring rains, deep green leaves, mysterious gray skies and daffodils in bloom. I grew tired of the torrential rainfalls, and the searing heat of summer in Florida.

The thing I remember most clearly: you seldom saw children playing outside in residential neighborhoods. Kids stayed inside in the air conditioning all summer. Hard to believe, but the sameness of perpetual sunshine gets boring after a while. Then, i yearned for the crisp cool air and brilliant foliage of an Indiana autumn.

Let’s say you’re spending $3,000 a week for a condo on the beach in January. Your enjoyment of each expensive day is inversely proportional to how bad the weather is back home. On the other hand, a week of cloudy, cool, days in your rental seems like a wasted $3,000. Added to that regret is the hassle of packing your car for days ahead of time and staying in motels along the way, which may have bedbugs and lumpy mattresses.

Of course, some very lucky people own homes or condos in resort areas, and can afford to fly back and forth at will. I’m not talking about those fortunate folks. I’m thinking of the millions of people who pack up the car and endure the discomforts of a very long journey for a relatively short winter vacation. Driving hundreds of miles back and forth can be hazardous. Unexpected misery along the highways may include big city traffic hassles; blinding rains; snowstorms in March; Spring tornadoes, hour long traffic stalls due to deadly accidents; and food poisoning in strange restaurants.

There's a psychological competition between northerners and southerners during the winter months. Winter schadenfreude is at its peak. — Northerners feel winter schadenfreude when a cold spell hits the South.

Finally, one day, you decide that after a certain age, going South for the winter isn’t really worth the effort. You get in a load of wood or install an electric fireplace. You invest in warm flannel sheets. And then, one night in January, you find yourself comparing temperatures between here and there. When you see a bad weather forecast in your old resort city, you smile to yourself, thinking of all those folks shivering in cold damp condos and yes, you feel a bit of schadenfreude*.

*schadenfreude: pleasure derived by someone from another person’s misfortune

January 15, 2020January 15, 2020

SENIORS: SAVOR LIFE’S SIMPLE PLEASURES

While you’re young and active , it takes a lot to make you happy. A big wedding. A new house. Buying a late model car. Giving birth to healthy children. When that phase of life passes, you look forward to a busy retirement. Many people ditch their homes and spend their golden years exploring the United States in a big, expensive RV. But what happens when you can’t do those things anymore? When your horizons narrow, it’s time to refocus and enjoy the little things. Seniors: Savor life’s simple pleasures.

Although you own a car, driving at night or an the interstate isn’t an option. But , you can still drive to the river and take a long walk Or have a picnic in the park. How many times does a working person take time for such leisurely activities? Yes, they might run or power walk because that what’s people do now to keep fit. But it’s really not as much fun as watching the ducks swimming across the water while you sit with the sun on your face.

Going out to dinner at a fine restaurant was once a weekly highlight. Now, a steak dinner with French fries is liable to keep you awake all night with heartburn. It’s not much fun to eat out when everything is covered with butter or cream, or loaded with Mexican spices. If you still enjoy cooking, it’s time to enjoy those old fashioned recipes that are easy on the tummy. As an example, there’s nothing so delicious as Swiss Steak. Choose a thick cut of lean round beef and simmer it all afternoon. ( You can leave off the gravy if you get heartburn). Find some low fat, low calorie recipes in an old cookbook or on the internet. You won’t miss those fancy restaurant meals at all. And you will certainly sleep better.

When your horizons narrow, begin to focus on the little things in life — If you can’t go South for the winter, bring Amaryllis bulbs back to life and watch their blooms unfold while the snow falls.

Indoor gardening is a great joy when you can no longer drive South in the winter. Right now, the stores are full of potted tulips and hyacinths. Lately, I’ve been having fun with amaryllis bulbs stored in the basement last fall, and revived to re bloom this winter. . It’s exciting to see those little buds coming up out of nowhere, and watch them inch their way up to a beautiful, vibrant flower.

How often does a working person or busy retiree take the time to read a good book? The average person only reads one book a year! But now, those long winter afternoons provide a chance to go back and read the classics once again. War and Peace. Anna Karenina. Vanity Fair. Moby Dick. Wuthering Heights. You may have had to read these books for a lit class, but this time around you can enjoy going back and lingering over every word.

Now is the time to get creative. Paint pictures. Knit scarves. Write a blog. Compose a poem.

Finally, get back in touch with childhood friends and relatives. Maybe you can’t get together in person, but you can still write letters and talk on the telephone. A surprising number of seniors have e mail, and know how to text.

Now is the time to focus on all the simple things you were too busy to enjoy before. Fix yourself a hot cup of tea and watch the snow fall..

Seniors: Savor Life’s Simple Pleasures

October 7, 2019October 7, 2019

DO YOU TAKE WHIMS OR STICK TO IT?

Most of us know people who take whims. We might even act on a few ourselves. What’s wrong with that? We may decide we don’t like our job, our spouse, or the place where we live–and walk out. We may take up tennis or gardening for awhile , then quit. What kind of person are you? Do you take whims or stick to it?

The practice of tai chi has many benefits for those who stick with it.

For the past 15 years, I’ve attended a class in tai chi at least twice a week. Tai chi has helped me walk again after a bad fall,and several bouts of sciatica and arthritis. Its meditation techniques have gotten me through personal sorrows. With all the obvious benefits tai chi has to offer, I’m saddened by the fact that so many people take it up on a whim, then leave after a few months.

Why would a person give up on a simple practice that has so many psychological and physical benefits?. Tai chi is cheap and easy. But it does require plain old stick-to-itiveness to reap the benefits. Maybe you started for the wrong reasons. To lose weight? Actually, it’s not a vigorous exercise, and it won’t work off those extra calories you consume every day. However, if you stay with it long enough, it may calm you down, and reduce “stress eating.”

There’s an old saying, “Losers quit when they’re tired; winners quit when they’ve won.” The quote is about determination, and the willingness to persevere. If someone drops out of an activity because it’s tiring, and they haven’t gotten the desired results soon enough, they’ve lost the time and effort they invested, and wasted an opportunity to succeed.

Do you ever look back on your childhood, and wish you’d stuck with those music lessons? If you had, you might have become a country music star or a concert pianist. Did you take some bridge lessons once, then quit because you weren’t winning right away? If you had stuck with it, you could have an enjoyable pastime even if you live to be 90.

What should you do when you get tired of something you’ve started? That’s when your determination kicks in. Keep going. Winner’s quit when they’ve won!

August 16, 2019August 16, 2019

UNIRONED CLOTHES & NO PANTYHOSE

Most people close to retirement dream of what they’ll do in their final years. They make plans to travel places they’ve never been. They may decide to move to a warmer climate, or closer to their children in another city. But as I approached retirement, my plans were more mundane. I vowed I would never wear clothes that needed ironing, and I would only wear pantyhose to weddings and funerals. With unironed clothes and no pantyhose , I would be free at last.

From what I’ve read, many millennials don’t even own an iron. But as a department manager at an acute care hospital in the 20th century, I was expected to wear starched, ironed , white lab coats. I could hide a wrinkled blouse under that coat, but not a skirt. And so, I still had to set up the ironing board every Saturday.

50 years ago, most people had ironing days — IN THE 20TH CENTURY, WOMEN IRONED OUTER CLOTHES, UNDERWEAR, SHEETS, AND EVEN RAGS!

Does anyone remember when people had ironing days? If you’re my age, you may recall that Monday was wash day, and Tuesday was ironing day for all the stay-at-home moms. Monday morning, my mother would put a pot of beans on the stove and descend to the basement with baskets full of dirty clothes to be put thru a wash tub, a a rinse tub, and then a wringer. In winter, damp clothes would be hung in the basement or attic; in summer they were pinned to a clothes line outside. I must admit, sheets dried in the fresh air smelled divine.

Many women ironed not only outer clothes, but sheets and underwear. My former mother in law even ironed rags! It’s hard to believe anyone would care to spend their time on such tasks.

By the time I was a working Mom, we had washers and dryers, which greatly simplified the entire laundry ordeal. And yet, most clothes still had to be ironed. Even today, if you want to look spiffy, you must wear ironed clothes if you’re a lawyer or some other professional. But the rest of the workforce has gone casual, even wearing –god forbid—blue jeans and T shirts to work.

PANTYHOSE MAY LOOK NICE, BUT THEY ARE OFTEN HOT AND SWEATY. UGH!

When pantyhose first went on sale, they seemed like a godsend. Garter belts may look sexy in Playboy magazine, but they were miserable to wear. Worse yet, you had to stop several times a day to straighten your seams or refasten sagging hose. Pantyhose simplified everything, except that they felt hot and sweaty most of the time. I’m amazed, even today, that some women still wear pantyhose.

So, here’s how I fulfilled my promise to myself. Bare legs with sandals or flats. Cotton socks with athletic shoes or boots. I own one pair , each, of black and beige pantyhose , to be worn on rare formal occasions.

95% of the clothes my husband and I wear are of modern fabrics. On wash day, I pull clothes from the dryer while still warm. Some go on hangers, others are carefully folded. I don’t care at all if they have a few wrinkles. I have never ironed underwear, sheets or rags, and never will. I’m still a little old school sometimes, and like a crease in slacks. And so, perhaps once a month, I grudgingly set up the ironing board.

Why do I love my retirement years? No more pantyhose or ironed clothes.

May 13, 2019May 23, 2019

CITY BASHES SENIOR TRASH CANS

Managing trash can be difficult for seniors who want to stay in their own homes. Those big, ugly heavy trash containers must be hidden from the street except on trash collection days. When it got too hard to drag the big cans along our driveway, we prevailed upon the city garbage collectors to give us two smaller cans, which made the entire task doable. They grudgingly agreed to bring us two of the smaller containers. That went on for a few years. But then, last week, the city bashed our senior trash cans.

dRAGGING LARGE TRASH CAN MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR SENIORS TO STAY IN THEIR OWN HOMESS IT — DRAGGING HEAVY TRASH CANS IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE FOR ELDERLY

Here how it happened.: When I went to get the morning newspaper, I saw that the cans hadn’t yet been emptied. While I walked upstairs, my husband heard the rumble of the garbage truck. By the time we had our coffee and read the newspaper, we saw that the blue cans had disappeared!

Our city has a contract with a waste management company, and believe me, there are big bucks involved. Once upon a time, they provided the handicapped and elderly with smaller, lightweight containers. Then, they decided it was too much bother picking them up with their automated trucks. They made it clear they weren’t happy when we demanded the smaller cans. Grudgingly, they went along with the deal, but finally, they put an end to it all this week by throwing our cans into their shredder.

When I called to complain, I was informed by both the company and the mayor’s office that they couldn’t locate any more of the little containers. They could only provide us with another, large container. It had to be done their way, or no way.

Many seniors have children living nearby who can help out. Unfortunately, our children are scattered across the country. These are the kinds of problems that force seniors into retirement homes before they really want to give up their independence.

After I voiced my unhappiness with their blatant disregard for the needs of the elderly/ handicapped , the mayor’s office called my husband. They said that if we would leave our trash can out where it was in plain view from the street, a trash collector would perform the difficult??? task of walking a few feet to manually pick up the can and feed the contents into the truck. It remains to be seen how long they are willing to do this. Or, will they pull another vanishing act?

We have paid our taxes in this community for over 50 years. Is it too much to ask for a little consideration for citizens over the age of 80? Maybe so.

Follow Up: Trash can was not picked up when promised and as of today, May 19, it is still full, despite repeated e mails from mayor’s office saying that Republic will pick it up.

May 24: A miracle just happened. This afternoon, Republic brought us two of the smaller cans for handicapped people. They are exactly like the ones they shredded last week. I guess they decided that would be easier than putting up with our constant complaints. As my husband said, ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease.”

March 29, 2019March 29, 2019

WHICH IS BEST? HOUSEWORK OR WORKOUTS?

Once you reach retirement age, well meaning family and friends urge you to make some important life changes: They say you should move to a one story house and hire a cleaning lady. A few years later, you’re advised to prepare for the inevitable realities of aging, and move to a retirement community where you will be relieved of most household chores. You’re assured that a workout room is usually available if you’re concerned about your health and want some exercise. But which is best? Housework or workouts?

How many healthy seniors do you know who have followed the conventional wisdom of forfeiting their privacy and independence? Even though they are in good health , half of my contemporaries have moved on. Those who’ve moved to smaller homes or apartments may hire cleaning women while they go to Planet Fitness. Those who live in retirement communities have few household chores. They can spend the winter months playing bridge, reading books, and other sedentary activities. When spring arrives, and they find their clothes are too snug , they resolve to work out on the treadmill or do some stair steps.

Seniors are often advise to move to retirement communities where they do no housework. But is that healthy? — HOUSEWORK TRUMPS WORKOUTS FOR DOUBLE BENEFITS

Did you know that vacuuming floors burns 170 calories per hour? The good news about housework is the satisfaction you get from not only getting exercise, but the feeling that you’ve done something productive. I know, it’s not very classy to admit you spent the morning cleaning the bathroom. But scrubbing down a bathroom for 35 minutes burns more calories than 35 minutes on a treadmill.

So, you don’t have to tell anyone your dirty little secret to avoid gaining weight You can pretend you spent the morning doing pilates before having lunch at the Panda Garden. No one needs to know you cleaned your bathroom , but you!

One more reason to stay in a two story house : stair climbing burns calories at a faster rate than many other forms of exercise, It builds muscles, strengthens bones and leads to greater cardiovascular health.

For a complete list of calories burned doing various household chores, follow this link: http://calorielab.com/