grow older better

Tag: Aging

Happy New Year; Happy New Puppy
As a start to my new year –

I have a new puppy!

So happy new year to all of you and a hope-it’s-not-a-very-tiring new year to me

It’s been almost 22 years since I had a new puppy.

That’s when my son was 13 and it was a birthday present for him so I not only had him to help me take care of a dog I also had another older dog who acted as a mentor.

This is a new thing for me.
- I am 22 years older
- With a new puppy
- in Portland [it rains a lot]
- In a floating home
I won’t bore you with puppy pictures and puppy tales all the time- but I will occasionally post things about how having a new puppy is both a good idea for someone who is aging and also some of the pitfalls – like it’s hard to do some things and this will be a constant until we mesh schedules [which will happen soon as she is so smart]

Meet Tova!! My 2 month old yellow lab…..
01/01/2013
Letting Your Hair Grow

Growing Hair

Let it fly in the breeze
And get caught in the trees
Give a home to the fleas in my hair
A home for fleas
A hive for bees
A nest for birds
There ain’t no words
For the beauty, the splendor, the wonder
Of my…

Hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair, hair
Flow it, show it
Long as God can grow it
My hair

[from the musical Hair]

When I was in my early 20s – I let my hair grow and grow and grow.

My mother used to tell me “grown-ups don’t have long hair.”

She also used to tell me I looked like an Indian – which was funny because she’s the one who told me that a secret of my father’s side of the family was that we have American Indian heritage.

Ah – memories. That hair growth was when I was in graduate school, it was the 60s and everyone had long hair – down to their backside, waist or wherever it wound up hanging down to.

So there I was, a grown up [of sorts] with long hair – and I let it stay long well into the 70s because I like my hair… and I had lots of earrings that I liked with long hair.

But – long hair can be a hassle. It gets in your face, nose, food, and eyes…. so one very hot summer day when my scalp felt itchy, I went and got it all cut off…..

And shortish it stayed until I was in law school…

But then I cut it off again…and kept it medium length or very short. For years.

Until I decided I wanted to let it grow.

No real reason except that those earrings I like with long hair kept looking at me – and I had kept them.

Alas – I’d forgotten what growing your hair out looks like….it goes through many ugly stages…so at first I kept trimming it to keep it out of my face and eyes…but then, of course, it grew back into my face and eyes..

Finally I bit the proverbial bullet and decided ugly, straggly or whatever – I was going to let it grow until it was long – and then decide what to do

It’s now long, it’s straggly, and it’s still growing……

How have you decided about your hair?

Can grown-ups really have long hair?

Is there any particular thing in your life that has led to long or short hair?

Thanks for the comments.

11/23/2012
Eyes, hairlines, and hearts

Wow!

If you "look old," and have signs of aging such as a receding hairline – it may be linked to your heart's health!

If you look old, your heart may feel old, according to research presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2012.

In a new study, those who had three to four aging signs — receding hairline at the temples, baldness at the head’s crown, earlobe crease, or yellow fatty deposits around the eyelid (xanthelasmata) — had a 57 percent increased risk for heart attack External link and a 39 percent increased risk for heart disease External link.

“The visible signs of aging reflect physiologic or biological age, not chronological age, and are independent of chronological age,” said Anne Tybjaerg-Hansen, M.D., the study’s senior author and professor of clinical biochemistry at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark.

I admit, I went and looked in a mirror after reading the article…phew – no receding or other of the signs….

Not to scare anyone – but take a look in the mirror and discuss any of these signs with your physician!

Comments? Thoughts? [Worries?]

11/06/2012
Confused About Medicare?

Are you confused about all your Medicare choices?

It's "open enrollment season" which means every plan in your state may be contacting you!

It also means that almost every plan in you state will mail you some information and maybe invite you to call them or meet with them..

One Oregon plan offered a "free" re-useable shopping bag if I met with them.

Let's see – drive about a 20 round trip [maybe use a gallon of gas for almost $4.00] – plus spend my time driving and then listening to a sales pitch.

For that I get something I can get at for a few bucks…and I can never recoup the time..

Now if I were interested in that plan I'd go – but then if it were that good they would not have to entice me with a cheap promo item.

For those who do go to these "events" – aka sales pitches – PLEASE – be careful…

If you sign on to that plan – you are locked into it for the upcoming year!

It is a legal contract – one you should not be pressured into signing.

You have until December 7th to make your decision.

There is absolutely no reason to be pressured.

Comments? Thank you….

10/17/2012
The “New” Empty Nest

Many parents know what an empty nest is……

But did you know it can happen more than once or twice?

The first time you child leaves home, be it for college, the military, or just finding their own place – you can experience empty nest.

Your experience overall depends on how many children you have and whether or not some are still home…but one day all the kids are gone – they flew away – and the nest is empty!

This experience, I have found, also comes about when a pet dies and you are suddenly petless…but that empty nest, can, in time can be refilled with another pet, or two, or three.

You can not refill the nest with more babies, toddlers, teenagers or adults…

unless…..

Your grown child or children come home to live with you and bring their family with them.

Suddenly, your nest is very full!

But then….as their life circumstances change – they leave!

And that is the "new" empty nest….when your now adults child who has lived with you for a long stretch, flies off again!

The economy has made this type of empty nest more prevalent – as more adult children are returning to the nest for varying lengths of time..

Your experience overall depends on how many children you have and whether or not some are still home…but one day all the kids are gone – they flew away – and the nest is empty!

This experience, I have found, also comes about when a pet dies and you are suddenly petless…but that empty nest, can, in time can be refilled with another pet, or two, or three.

You can not refill the nest with more babies, toddlers, teenagers or adults…

unless…..

Your grown child or children come home to live with you and bring their family with them.

Suddenly, your nest is very full!

But then….as their life circumstances change – they leave!

And that is the new empty nest….when your now adults child who has lived with you for a long stretch, flies off again!

The economy has made this syndrome more prevalent as more adults children are returning to the nest for varying lengths of time..

But, like most everything in life, each change has its ups and downs….

There is an ambivalence about having an empty nest….you miss the kids like mad…but you have more space, time and energy…because no matter what age your kids are, when they live with you, they take energy..

In future posts, I'll write about what I am doing with my bursts of energy – but in the meanwhile…

Do you have thoughts? Comments?

Thank you…..

10/01/2012