Tango and I are settled into our campsite on Mt. Baker. The others here are mostly older folks who live in nearby Bellingham or British Columbia. I am sure it is worth the drive for the Canadians to spend time in this sweet campground on the glacier-fed, turquoise-colored Nooksack River. We are surrounded by massive,…
Still doing volunteer work for HFH. I mostly paint doors all day, every day. From one house to the next. Have you ever counted the doors in your house? A modern sticks and bricks house? Every regular bedroom has 3 doors minimum – 1 entry door and 2 closet doors. The master bedroom has 3 also…
My mom is in a nursing home for one reason: she is in a wheelchair now and can no longer stand up without help. None of us is strong enough to help. Mom fell too many times and the next fall might be the last. For her and many others, falling means reduced mobility and a…
I discovered last August that the flagship Joann Fabrics store is about 10 miles north of Akron. It sits in all it’s gorgeousness in a grassy corporate complex, with the store on the right and the corporate offices to the left. The first time I saw the store, I swore that glorious strains of classical…
Be around young people Participate in their lives Learn about what they like Listen to their views Give some of your time and talents to others Keep moving Keep learning Follow your heart, trust your instincts For a more thorough prescription, see the Center for Conscious Eldering!
People in the Midwest work hard and display generous doses of common sense, most of the time or at least when I grew up there. My grandpa identified strongly with those traits. He spent his career in one place, lived in the same house from the time he married until he died. Grandpa lived well–he…
A young man that I work with loves to camp and travel. As I did at his age, he set a goal to visit all National Parks. So he asked me the big question, “What is your favorite park?” Favorite one? I told him that I could not narrow it down to one, but I…
My muse emerges when I am in a peaceful and beautiful setting outdoors. Now, outdoor trips are rare thanks to deep winter in the north, when I am mostly indoors for months at a time. I moved a comfy chair next to the doors leading to the deck for some visual inspiration. The house across the…
Like most aging folks, I read up on nutrition and try to eat well. However, I am often perplexed about how to eat daily all the nuts, seeds, oils and fruits in the superfood category. You know the ones I mean: flax-seed meal, cranberries, olive oil, almonds, sesame seed, blueberries, sunflower seed, dark chocolate. I can…
Time to walk Tango! A light rain falls outside, meaning I should probably wait until later. However, I am feeling quite quirky lately. Last night I lounged on the deck in my zero-gravity chair while mindlessly staring at the stars and satellites for hours. So, why not take a walk in the rain? Yes, At…