Leading Age: Relief Packages for Elder Americans
Aging Services Leader Unveils Relief Package for Older Americans Calling on Administration & Congress to Prioritize Services & Resources to Help Older Americans at Highest Risk From Omicron Surge Six Point Proposal includes $5 Hike in Care Professionals’ Hourly Wages, Dedicated Testing System and Therapeutics ...
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Just Stop It! Don’t Discuss Your Health at Restaurants
Hearing about your gall bladder while I’m eating onion soup is more than unpleasant. It is hazardous to my health. Yet, almost daily I am assaulted with medical talk at lunch, at dinner—almost anywhere I go for a bite. Just stop with med talk while ...
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Advice to a Woman Turning 40 from a Woman Turning 70
I was on vacation enjoying a terrific massage when the masseuse, who I know a little bit, asked me a very serious question. “I’m turning 40, and it’s making me depressed. I’m yelling at my husband and crying a lot. Do you have any advice ...
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Should You Get Married? Here’s the Answer
Your life is in good shape. Finances are under control. You enjoy your friends, children and grandchildren…you live in a nice place and things seem settled. Being widowed or divorced was never your long-term plan, but, here it is, and life is not bad. Then ...
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There Is Beauty in Old Age: How Two Guys From the 19th Century Influenced Today’s Images of Aging
I’ve been hearing that only recently have there been juicy parts for actors of a certain age. Entertainment pundits cite the Netflix series Grace and Frankie, movies like Book Club and theatre like The Band’s Visit as proving that aging is finally “in.” Bah Boo to the pundits. It all ...
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Tee-talk: How Your Shirt Can Change the World
Are you feeling less influential in the world? Are you becoming invisible to the folks around you? Are you getting increasingly ignored at the deli counter? If that’s what’s bothering you, Bunky, you’re probably just getting older. Yes, it’s true. The younger world sees us ...
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Are You Better Off If Your Dreams Don’t Come True?
Recently we saw two gruesome celebrity suicides. Not gruesome because of their method of death, but because the two who ended their own lives had so much for which to live. America is shaking its head in disbelief. Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain did not ...
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How to Get Rid of Your Stuff…for Retirement Freedom!
In her best-selling book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, Marie Kondo suggests we downsize by keeping only the things we truly love. That’s sounds wise, except that as we grow older, it may be the very things we do not love, even hate, which we feel ...
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Are You Too Young to Be Happy?
As I approach 70, I fully expect my ‘happiness quotient’ to get higher. My older self will be happier than my younger self. Some very credible studies say so. Researchers call it the U Bend, with happiness dipping in our 30’s, reaching nadirs in our ...
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How to Find Your Bliss After Retiring
If you ask most people how their retirement is going, they answer, “I’m busy.” But, what exactly do they mean by that? There’s a profound difference between a retirement filled with tasks you never got around to doing and one that is AMAZING, EXCITING, and ...
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The Best No-Fail Bread Recipe for the Holidays
I was looking for a dish to bring to our Historical Society’s pot luck fund raiser. Don’t get me wrong. I never intended to actually make the dish, just to buy it and include a card with the recipe for effect. I have zero cooking ...
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Confessions of a Theater Addict
My name is Adriane, and I am a theater addict. Every morning, I crawl to my computer and log into Unfilled Seats, Gold Club, Club Free Time, Goldstar Events and the Theater Development Fund, among others. I root around with the compulsion of a gambler throwing her last pair of dice. My ...
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Listen Up: Fix Your Hearing Now!
“You can’t hear.” “What?” He says. “You can’t hear,” I repeat in a louder voice. “Yes, I can,” he says in a tone that indicates he knows that I know that he knows he can’t hear; but, intends to do nothing about it. Thus goes ...
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What Will You Name Your Robot?
I plan to name my robot Jeanne Calment, after the French super-ager who lived to be 122. Jeanne will like to read British mysteries, go to theater and eat cheesecake while standing in front of a refrigerator (the calories are less that way.) In other ...
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Why Netflix The Last Laugh is Mandatory Viewing
Have you seen the Netflix movie The Last Laugh? If not, you should check it out. Yes, I know, Rotten Tomatoes gave it only 57%, and the audience liked it even less. But I assure you, that’s because they didn’t understand what they were watching. As ...
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Look Younger in Under an Hour for Less Than $100
This blog is dedicated to my favorite hints and tips that will make you look younger to others and perhaps feel more confident in yourself. But first, I feel you deserve an explanation. I brand myself as the pro-aging advocate, ready to stamp out ageism ...
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FINDING THE RIGHT WORDS: Why It Took 10 Years to Buy a Memorial Bench for My Mother…and What I Learned Along the Way
It was a “simple plan.” When my mother passed away, I decided to memorialize her with a bench and plaque donated to the Whittemore preserve in New Jersey. Ten years later, nothing has yet been installed or delivered. Still, I am hopeful of making the ...
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Is It Too Late to Abolish the Senior Discount?
It has been six years since I accepted my first senior discount. The young man in the movie theatre ticket booth automatically took $3 off, no questions asked. He just looked at me and assumed that I “deserved” it. It was a startling realization that ...
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Cannabis: It’s Not Your Grandmother’s Weed Anymore
Unlike President Clinton, I inhaled. I had to if I wanted to breathe while walking through Washington Square Park in the early ’70s. The air was heavy with the scent and the curling smoke of grass. Oh, excuse me…cannabis. My grass history started when I ...
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Writing Your Résumé: Job Hunting at 40 and Beyond
Despite an unemployment rate that hovers at 4%, ageism in the workplace remains a widespread prejudice that must be faced by any older aged job seeker. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report CDC: Older Employees in the Workplace, discrimination in the workplace starts ...
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Are You Financially SECURE? What the New Retirement Legislation Could Mean to You
On May 23, an Act dubbed the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE) passed the House of Representatives. A nearly identical bill, the Retirement Enhancement Securities Act (RESA), is currently in front of the Senate. The eventual legislation will likely have aspects of both ...
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Are You a Tweenager?
I bet you know just what I mean when I ask if you’re a “tweenager.” It’s those times in life when we leave one life stage and begin to move on to another. Remember when you were 12? The marketers called you a tween—no longer ...
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Help Loved Ones Add Joyful Years to Their Lives
Growing older comes with many transitions, some of which can leave individuals feeling lonely. Whether it’s moving to a new community, transitioning to a new area to live closer to family or staying behind while others move, elders can become isolated in small increments without ...
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How to Hula Hoop: Mastering the Impossible
I am embarking on a quest that would put Don Quixote to shame. I plan to whittle three and a half inches off my waist. If that’s not the impossible dream, I don’t know what is. I started by hiring a personal trainer. I found ...
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How to Plan a “Fun-er-al”
Thirty years ago, when someone asked me, “Do you have a plot yet?,” they were inquiring about the progress of my latest book. Today, they mean have I made funeral arrangements. The answer is NO! And I’m not alone. The Funeral Consumers Alliance (FCA), assures us that ...
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7 Reasons for Perpetual Lateness Syndrome…and What to Do About It
In the groundbreaking book The Silent Language, Edward T. Hall documents how our concept of time is an unspoken way that we communicate with each other. Although Hall was addressing cultural differences, we also have a personal time culture. How we approach time may change throughout ...
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Allying with Powerful Feminist Initiatives to Fight Ageism
I recently had the opportunity to ask Gloria Steinem, the iconic feminist activist, about the nexus between ageism and sexism. My exact question was, “Do you think the same protocol that fought misogyny and advanced women’s rights can be used to fight ageism?” The 85-year-old ...
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My Birthday Blog—I’m Crying Because I’m Confused
“I’m confused”—that’s a line from the movie Moonstruck, said by the grandfather who is called “Old Man” by the family’s matriarch. The family is sitting around the table arguing about love, marriage, betrayal and change. The Old Man starts to cry. “What’s the matter Pop?” asks ...
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Why Won’t Mama Listen to Me?
Are you struggling to persuade Mom or Dad—or both—to move to a care community or accept aid at home? Are they resisting, arguing or simply ignoring you? Thousands of boomers are walking in your shoes. Half of all 60-year-olds have a living parent, usually reaching ...
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Coming of Age…Again–Will Co-Housing Help Retirees Retain Community?
Now that I’m past 70, I get weekly invitations to visit local assisted-living residences. I throw them out with a wistful feeling that I may need to visit one day. Recently, one of the invites had two words written in small print—“Resident Run.” That was ...
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Will Scientific Breakthroughs Make Living Past 100 a Given?
Have you heard of life science? Life science is devoted to studying lifespan, including how and why we age. Life science researchers have already made discoveries that may end aging as we understand it today. But their studies are only effective if we follow their ...
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The Downsizing Chronicles: The Agony and the Ecstasy
Downsizing Guru Marie Kondo has got it wrong. She says you should touch everything you own and get rid of anything that doesn’t bring you joy. But for us folks of a certain age, the “joy-ploy” doesn’t always work. I recently hired a professional estate sale company, ...
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The Language of Longevity: Why Age Words Matter
In Marty, Paddy Chayefsky’s 1953 teleplay and later an Academy Award–winning movie, Marty’s mother and aunt complain that they are finished…washed up. What can you expect at 56? they lament. These women lived at a time when it was “justified” to feel “washed up.” What more could they expect ...
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My Ultimate Secret to Beautiful Skin
It’s time to reveal my secret for vibrant skin that stays that way as we age. I must admit that I’ve been reluctant to devote a blog to the subject. I thought it was a bit frivolous. But the weight of public opinion has ruled ...
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Generation Bold Newsletter–March 22, 2021
Dear Bolds, I have been thinking about “Creative Destruction”. As COVID-19 seems to be fading and life reopening, it is hard to ignore what has been destroyed… lives, businesses, families. But some things that have been destroyed left a space for creativity. Many of us learned ...
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Dental Tourism: The Good, the Bad and the Molar
Let’s face it. The sad fact is that your teeth will likely wear out before you do. That can mean a substantial financial outlay not covered by Medicare or private insurance. When my husband, Stu, was faced with the cost of extensive dentistry, we actually ...
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Food for Skippy: Doggie Bags Boomer Style
My friend leaned over the table as if to impart a great secret. “Do you think the waiter will believe that I am taking the pastrami home for a raccoon?” She spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. And indeed, she was revealing a deep dark secret ...
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OK Boomer: Have the Age Wars Begun?
In the 20 years during which I have been studying aging, I have run across many warnings from social and political commentators of the so-called coming “Age Wars.” This usually comes in the form of apocalyptic predictions of a conflict between a growing older population enjoying robust ...
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What’s On Your Second Bucket List?
I am sitting in the Silvio Pettirossi International Airport in Asuncion, Paraguay, having a transformational moment. After having visited 90 countries, all 50 states and almost all of the major US national parks, many of these more than once (London 22 times!), I am tearing ...
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How Coronavirus Might Save Your Life
Over the past two weeks, I have changed my status from “old lady” to a member of a “vulnerable population.” But I don’t mind it at all. The new branding just may save my life. Before I explain, let me turn your attention to a ...
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I’ve Grown Accustomed to Your Mace: How to Get Out of Your Exercise Rut
I’m getting bored by my exercise routine. Considering how often I got detention for cutting gym in Samuel Tilden High, it’s amazing that I have an exercise routine at all, boring or otherwise. Still, after 10 years at the same treadmill…countless squats and lifts…and classes, ...
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Why Are Grandma and Grandpa Wearing Masks?
There is conflicting information about how important it is to wear a protective mask and whether they do any good against coronavirus. It seems masks are most valuable to protect others from you if you have a bug. But, especially if you are an older ...
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The Happy Prisoner: The Ultimate Secret of Enjoying Sequestration
Since I’ve been sequestered because of COVID-19, I have reached a heady level of productivity and, dare I say, happiness. I know that you have been inundated with sound advice and how-tos. Inevitably, wash your hands, take an online course in Swahili and clean out ...
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Curtain Down, Chin Up: How and Why You Must Save Live Theatre Right Now
It is with a heavy heart that I write today. One of America’s greatest playwrights, Terrance McNally, died of complications from the coronavirus on March 24. Ordinarily, there would be a spate of revivals of his many award-winning plays, such as the hilarious The Ritz, adapted ...
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Piggy-Back PR: How Marketers Are Capitalizing on Coronavirus
I recently updated a novella I wrote for a class at University of Southern California at Davis School of Gerontology. I was invited to be a guest lecturer on the topic of marketing to boomers and seniors. Instead of a textbook for the students, I ...
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My Uncle Julie—Every Family Has a Black Sheep. Can They Change with Age?
My mother’s favorite sibling was her eldest brother Julie. I believe even at age 90, Mom still had a younger sister’s crush on him. Julie outlived every one of his five brothers and sisters except my Mom, who was 20 years his junior. You could ...
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I’m So Ashamed. A Day in the Life of a Coronavirus Slob
I know you won’t believe this, but before the coronavirus hit, I didn’t own a vegetable brush. Not only did I not scrub my produce, but on more than one occasion, I ate the label on the apple. I believe that my large intestines sport ...
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Biohacking for Tummies: How Your Vanity Can Increase Your Longevity
Biohacking is the pursuit of changing our biochemistry, cell structure and even the way our genes express themselves (react to stimuli in the environment) so that we can live longer and healthier lives. Many biohackers foresee living at least to the biblical age of 120 ...
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Aging Researchers Talk Candidly About Alzheimer’s Research
The following is an interview I was fortunate enough to have with leading neuroscientists from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH)—Dr. Suzana Petanceska, Director for Strategic Development and Partnerships and Dr. Lorenzo Refolo, Director for Alzheimer’s Disease, Drug Development in ...
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Disrupt Aging–How Science Is Making 60 the New 30
I am sure you have heard the catchphrase, 60 is the new 30. This boomer manifesto asserts that we feel and act younger than our chronologic years. Perhaps as the songs goes, we are the generation that’s “gonna live forever and learn how to fly.” And then ...
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Aging is Something to Sing About
There are hundreds of songs, from Operetta to Country Music, written about growing older. They touch hearts, tell stories and inspire. Your favorite song about aging says a lot about you; how you feel about growing older. Make your listening of these songs a journey ...
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When Family Gets on Your Nerves
Most of us have been sequestered 24/7 for almost eight weeks with our spouses and our children. Some of us are experiencing the essence of the “sandwich generation,” living with our elderly parents as well. No private space…no alone time. It’s no wonder that most ...
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ZZZ Warning—This Article Could Put You to Sleep (That’s a Good Thing!)
I received a Garmin watch for Mother’s Day. It is my first smartwatch. Frankly, I selected it because I get lost a lot on my long-distance walks and figured Garmin had the best GPS. But I refused to buy a watch if it did not ...
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Fasting Is Trending. Is It Right for You?
In my latest blog on biohacking, I admit that I hang out with top geroscientists, partly to observe what they do to live longer in good health. Many of them intervene in their natural biology with extreme exercise, fastidious nutritional habits and mega supplements of ...
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Was It Jerry? Why Animals Help Us Age Better
Every Thanksgiving, the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake City presents its Feast with the Beast festival. In the morning, before folks sit down to their dinner and football rituals, the zookeepers serve pumpkins and other delicacies to the elephants, large cats, bears and other mammals ...
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Longevity and Medicare: Not Perfect Together
This week, two high school seniors from Hunterdon County, New Jersey, received an award from the Family Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) that most of our health-care policymakers could never win. Catherine Owens and Kate Murray of the Polytech Career and Technical High ...
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Stand Up: An Easy Way to Live Longer and Be More Fit in a Sedentary World
I probably don’t have to convince you that prolonged sitting is not healthy, but I do want you to be aware of how bad it truly is and why. People who sit for prolonged periods increase their risk for premature death caused by resultant poor circulation ...
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I Know My Feet Are There—I Just Can’t See Them: My Flat-Belly Quest
I am at my perfect body weight, but I am not happy. You would think that I would be ecstatic. My weight is just where I have wanted it to be for most of my adult life. So why am I so unhappy? Last week, ...
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10 (Mostly Free) Splurges That You Deserve After 50
I can hear my mother’s voice ringing in my ears saying, You deserve it. She was referring to her belief that a little indulgence is essential to happiness and that I—and everyone—should take the time (and expense) to go after our wants and wishes and the things ...
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Don’t Ditch Your Toxic Friends…They Might Change
About a dozen years ago, my friend Kathy (name changed) told me that she had dumped all of her “toxic” friends and felt much better. I was dubious. Was a friend exorcism the way to go when friendship is so hard to come by? There’s ...
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Age Does Not Bring Wisdom…and If It Does, Who Cares?
Personally, I am not a fan of wisdom. I see it as a ploy to give us older folks a job in society without having to pay us. I searched Google and LinkedIn for an hour and found Chief Innovation, Chief Inspiration, Chief Impact and ...
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Careful Travel: Will Accessible Tourism Set the Post COVID-19 Standard?
I traveled by airplane for the first time in months. Here is a photo of me in near-hazmat gear to ensure that I was as safe as possible. Even through my paraphernalia I could observe other passengers from the security line to the moment we ...
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How to Accomplish Anything You Want
I am the “Queen of Productivity.” To paraphrase the Lady Gaga lyric, “I was born that way.” And according to my mother, I will die that way, too. When I was nine years old, my mom and I sat on our plastic-covered dark-green couch with ...
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Five Things that Are Surprisingly Better After 70
Certainly, there are a variety of good things that older age brings, many of them discussed and explained by developmental scientists. For example, we are supposed to become more transcendent of the world around us, less ego-driven and more focused on our legacy. At least ...
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Escape Artist: How to Safely Evacuate Your Home During Fire, Storm or Natural Disaster
Last month, I vacationed in Paso Robles, California’s West Coast wine region. I was with my husband, children and grandchild for a long awaited, idyllic escape from their COVID concerns in Los Angeles. My husband, Stuart, and I took a COVID test…then flew across the ...
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Active Leisure: A Worthwhile Retirement Goal
There was time when retirement meant fast rocking chairs, slow bingo games and lots of time on our hands. When Del Webb built the first retirement village, called Sun City, golf and tennis became part of the American retirement culture. But that was about it ...
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Lifelong Learning and Earning at 50+
My husband and I seem to spend half of our lives in the car…driving to get to someplace or driving home from somewhere. We have been doing that for nearly all the 50 years of our marriage. After the first 30 years, we ran low ...
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