grow older better

Author: Lynn Dorman, Ph.D.

  • October is MY Month

     

    October has often been a month of somewhat surreal ups and downs for me….

    When I lived back East I loved the trees turning all those gorgeous colors in October. 

    As kids we picked up the brilliant maple leaves from the streets and sidewalks, flattened them in fat dictionaries and then coated them in paraffin.

    [remember paraffin?]

    [remember fat dictionaries?]

    As an adult, I got married in October…and as an adult my son's father and I split up in October. 

    And I seemed to have moved many times during many Octobers.

    Maybe the shrink inside my head should figure out what the meaning of October is for me.  Here goes…

    What October is not:

    It's not my birthday nor my son's and it's not always filled with nostalgia producing holidays.

    What October is:

    It is the "real" beginning of Fall, the last quarter of the year, and the start of the Federal fiscal year and It's just one month out of 12.

    Eh – maybe I shouldn't try to figure it all out and I should just go with each October's flow or tide as it comes.

    Oh well – for whatever the reason – I just know that this October is going to be one of the best yet! A high tide October

    Do you have a  month in your life in which a series "things"  have happened?

    Any clues as to why it is that month for you?

     

    Comments? Thank you.

  • Nature’s Sky Show

    I woke up very early the other day and this was nature's gift for doing so! 

    The sky show was awesome: A spectacular sunrise complete with a plane taking off from PDX. [see video]

    Nature is amazing and so filled with gorgeous colors.

     

    The morning sky in Portland is like no other place I've lived! 

    Love it!

    [Well except when it's cloudy and rainy and yukky – but then I dont get up and take pictures;(]

     

    Comments? Thank you.

  • Watch TV; Shorten Your Life?

     I write about the benefits of exercise and have a blog about being healthy – and here is a study that may just be part of the formula as to why we have an obesity epidemic and don't get enough exercise.

    The amount of TV viewed in Australia in 2008 was associated with reduced life expectancy by 1.8 years for men and 1.5 years for women. The authors suggest that every hour of TV viewed after the age of 25 reduces the viewer's life expectancy.

    The following study concluded that:

    Viewing time may be associated with a loss of life that is comparable to other major chronic disease risk factors such as physical inactivity and obesity.

    Read more about TV and life expectancy.

     

    Comments? Thoughts? Thank you.

  • Got 15 Minutes? Get Started on Your Exercising!

    biking-along-the-Columbia

     

    I know – exercise is the last thing on your to-do list and the first thing that gets brushed aside when you are "too busy" or "too stressed" or "too too…"

    I admit that I get this way as well. But then I get back into exercising and I feel better, am less stressed and SURPRISE – I can get more work done and in less time!!

    We are "supposed to" exercise at least 30 minutes a day and that is difficult for some when they are just getting started thinking about exercising.

    "Find another block of 30 minutes? You gotta be kidding."

    Well no – you don't need that block of time. Sometimes 3 ten-minute segments is just as good – or – even less is good.  A new study in Asia found that:

    …those who exercised just 15 minutes a day — or 90 minutes a week — cut their risk of death by 14 percent and extended their life expectancy by three years compared with those who did no exercise. Both men and women benefited equally from the minimum activity.

    Article about 15 minutes of daily exercise

    Adding more minutes to that 15 was beneficial. But 15 was good in and of itself.

    So  – no more excuses! You can find 15 minutes! And you may find you are enjoying your day more because you are active for that time.

     

    Thoughts? Thank you for your comments.

  • When Kids Move Back Home

    my son and I in Chicago

    For many reasons, largely economic, grown kids are moving back home.

    I’ve not experienced this for myself – but soon I will.

    My son and daughter-in-law have decided to leave Chicago and move to Portland. While this has never been his “home” they will be staying with me for a while.

    I moved to Portland well after my son had left home – and the home he left was not any of the ones he grew up in. So our story is already a bit different than kids returning to their original nests. But – although the nest is different, I am still his mommy and he is still my kid…and it is that relationship that will go through interesting variations.

    He has visited me as an adult, even staying for a few months one summer. But even that was different as that's when he met the woman who is now my daughter-in-law and he spent a lot of time at her place.  And i have been to Chicago and stayed with them.

    But now we will be spending more time together than we have done in 14 years! We will share meals, cooking, household chores and fun times.

    I’ve written about issues that arise at holidays when one goes to a parental house for say thanksgiving and one is again treated as a “child.” But over the years my son and I have racked up hours of phone conversations, or in person conversations, and we have been able to pretty well negotiate that shift from parent-child to two equally stubborn, talkative political minds.

    And now there will be another person in the mix, my son’s wife, adding to the intrigue. She’s stayed with me when she’s come to visit her friends and family but we have never had all of us together for a stretch of time.

    It’s great having a child who knows you write about his life….as he said when referring to You Can Totally Screw Up As A Mom And Still Raise Great Kids “it’s my life but you are part of it too”

    It won’t all happen til Fall and I’ll keep you posted about how we manage.