It is Older Driver Safety Awareness Week

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By Terry Orr

We have all seen those older drivers that seem totally lost and should pull over, stop and get out of their cars. They simply have no business driving.  The early baby boomers are beginning to close in on when they need to think about their own driving habit and safety for themselves and others around them.

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I have not been a good passenger for decades – although carpooling has helped me in that regard, I fully understand that at some point – someone else should be driving.  Over the past couple of years, my loving wife (who scares ‘the you know what’ out of me at times) drive more often – a transition if you will – so it will become a safe habit for me and other drivers.

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In my travels – age is only one small piece of the pie of potentially unsafe drivers on the roadways.  Distracted drivers (this includes law enforcement personnel); folks who are recent imports to America and unaccustomed to our way of driving; driving vehicles that are long overdue for recycling; discourteous drivers; road rage; and last by certainly not least stupid drivers. I think Gallagher had it right – we should have those rubber tipped dart guns with flags attached that say “stupid” – that way when a cop notices someone with three or more darts, simple pulls them over and cites them for stupid driving.

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In closing, if you have older family or friends whose driving skills are lacking, please encourage and help them find alternative means of transportation. Help them form good habits - and reduce the need to drive themselves.

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Good luck and safe driving.

National Cotton Candy Day – 2012 Update

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By Diane Forrest

On Halloween this year my church hosted a Fall Festival for the community.  It was held at the property soft ball field, and all around the sides there were different booths and activities for the kids.  As you entered the field, around the fence on the left you started at the popcorn machine, then various carnival games, some large blow up balls that you would get inside and walk, some jumping rooms, but near the exit the crowning glory was the cotton candy machine. As I walked near the machine, I noticed the large swirls of pink fluffy stuff being spun on paper cones.  The workers were also being covered with the sweet sticky stuff too!

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Every since I was a young girl I have always been amazed at cotton candy.  How a cup full of sugar could be spun into fluffy colorful clouds and the warm sweet stuff would just melt in my mouth.

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In 1897, a machine was invented to produce cotton candy by a Dentist named William Morrison - I guess he needed to find a way to drum up more business.  His machine was introduced at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair.  It was called Fairy Floss, and a box cost 25 cents!  In today's prices that would be 6 dollars.

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Today is National Cotton Candy day.  If you don't have a fair or carnival visiting your town, you can find some in your grocery store or candy store.  It is sold as "fluffy stuff" and made by tootsie roll of Canada LTD.  So today celebrate your childhood and grab a bag, just don’t forget to brush afterwards!

National Tie Month – Update 2012

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By Terry Orr

Those two hundred or so kind soles who read last year’s article are fully aware of my disdain for ties in general. Yet I do agree with Cindy, if women must wear pantyhose, then I guess us fella should wear ties. I say that today – as we know being retired has little to no dress code (but certainly not Wal-Mart style).

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One of the nice things about ties over the past decade or two have been the ever widening selection of ties to choose from.  So the last few years that I was working, my collection of unusual, funny, strange, etc. of ties grew – now taking up space in my closet.  In January, the month to get our act organized for the New Year, believe most of my ties will be donated.

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National Stress Free Holiday Month

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By Diane Forrest

With Thanksgiving under our belts....literally, we are now staring right into the Christmas season.  Thanksgiving is a rather calm holiday, gathering at the table eating a huge meal and watching football, how hard is that?  No worries about decorating the house or buying presents...just relaxing with family and friends, and hearing the same old stories over and over.  This Thanksgiving was different though.  The retailers, in their infinite wisdom, decided to begin the shopping season on Thanksgiving Day - not only throwing chaos in a calm day, but ripping employees away from their family time.

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This year I did something that I have never done before.  I went to Wal-Mart during their "Black Friday" sale that started on Thursday night.  There was a good sale on vacuum cleaners, and I needed one, so I said…why not?  Big Mistake!  I didn’t know that my small town had that many people, and I think most of them were there!  The store was so crowded; you could not even walk down the aisle.  All the sale items were disguised, and located all over the store, so it was also more of a treasure hunt too.  There were people yelling and pushing and grabbing and fighting for bargains, activities that would make even the calmest person stressed. Luckily, a vacuum was not one of the coveted items…so I had little difficulty obtaining one and trying to work my way out of the store.

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My next mistake came when my mother encouraged me to go to the midnight opening at the mall.  Now I know why they call them "Door Busters"  there was such a crowd gathered at the door, that when they finally unlocked the door, I feared the doors were gonna break or at least fall off the hinges.  I had imagined that all the folks I had just seen at Wal-Mart had made their way to the mall, so once again, I found myself trapped in a sea of people and unable to move through the store.

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Thus the holiday stress had begun.  I did get a little shopping out of the way, but now I was faced with decorating the house, getting out Christmas Cards and baking delicious treats for family and friends.  Making lists and checking them twice, making sure I had remembered everything and everyone.

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The holidays can be a very stressful time, but it is also Stress Free Holiday Month, and below are some tips that will help you make it through the season with your sanity intact.  They include:

• Make a list
• Get plenty of rest
• Make a budget
• Ask for help, you don’t have to do it all by yourself
• Take a break, go for a walk, visit a friend, and watch a movie

Just remember its ok if you don't get it all done...chances are nobody will even notice if you forget to send that fruitcake! 

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Have a stress free month, and Happy Holidays!

Happy Birthday Walt Disney

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By Diane Forrest

In the spring of 1994 I took my son to the happiest place on earth.  This was my first real vacation too.  I had been working for a year as a nurse, and was working the night shift.  I had spent months planning this wonderful trip.  Since I was working nights, I didn’t feel safe driving, but figured I could handle a 60 mile trip to the train station.  I just laid my head down for a second, and a few hours later I woke up realizing that I would be late for the train departure.  Luckily, I made it in time, with a few minutes to spare, but I forgot all of my personal care items.

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We took the train to New Orleans where we boarded a plane to fly to Orlando, Florida.  I was just as excited to see the entrance as my son was.  We were indeed at the happiest place on earth.  6 years later we accompanied my husband on another trip.  This trip was just as exciting as the first one, especially watching the wonder and excitement in his face.  My son was also older, and didn’t remember much from his first trip.

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These wonderful memories were made possible by Mr. Walt Disney, who had a vision for a place where families could spend time together and forget their troubles for a while.  Disneyland, in Anaheim California, was the first park conceived by Mr. Disney.  His original plans were to be a park built for employees and their children, but the vision grew larger and larger until it reached the place you see today.  At the dedication, which was attended by Ronald Reagan, Walt gave this speech, "To all who come to this happy place; welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here age relives fond memories of the past and here youth may savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America ... with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to the entire world."

Walt Disney's name is synonymous with family entertainment both in the movies and cartoons he developed, and his theme parks.

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Today in 1901, Walt Disney was born.  65 years and 10 days later he passed away leaving the world a better place than how he found it.  If you have ever visited a Disney theme park, or watched a Disney movie, then give a thought today for Mr. Walt Disney for having the visions to create wonderful memories for you too.

National Influenza Vaccination Week December 2 – 9, 2012

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By Nurse Diane

Along with the holiday season...there is another season that is rapidly approaching.  That is the Flu season.  Flu outbreaks occur during the months of December, January and February, and those most at risk include the elderly, pregnant women and children.  The flu is a contagious respiratory illness caused by flu viruses. It can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. The flu is different from a cold. The flu usually comes on suddenly. People who have the flu often feel some or all of these symptoms:

• Fever or feeling feverish/chills
• Cough
• Sore throat
• Runny or stuffy nose
• Muscle or body aches
• Headaches
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults.

Other complications from the flu include pneumonia, bronchitis or ear infections.  It can also worsen medical conditions such as asthma, and Congestive Heart Failure.

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People with flu can spread it to others up to about 6 feet away. Most experts think that flu viruses are spread mainly by droplets made when people with flu cough, sneeze or talk. These droplets can land in the mouths or noses of people who are nearby or possibly be inhaled into the lungs. Less often, a person might also get flu by touching a surface or object that has flu virus on it and then touching their own mouth or nose.

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According to the CDC, most healthy adults may be able to infect others beginning 1 day before symptoms develop and up to 5 to 7 days after becoming sick. Children may pass the virus for longer than 7 days. Symptoms start 1 to 4 days after the virus enters the body. That means that you may be able to pass on the flu to someone else before you know you are sick, as well as while you are sick. Some persons can be infected with the flu virus but have no symptoms. During this time, those persons may still spread the virus to others.

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Ways to protect yourself from getting the flu is to Get the flu shot, proper hand washing, and avoid touching your eyes and mouth unless you have washed your hands.

This week is National Influenza week, a reminder to get your flu shot before an outbreak happens, not only for your own protection, but to protect those around you.

G 51 - BINGO!

Bingo Birthday Month

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By Diane Forrest

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 I was trying to catch up a little on my writing, so I could sneak in a few days for holiday things such as shopping, decorating and wrapping gifts.  So while I was doing a little work on Saturday, I saw my next article said Bing's Birthday month.  Well the boss was out of pocket, so I was thinking Bing, and the first thing that came to mind was Bing Crosby.  Then I thought, he passed away some time ago, and I couldn’t imagine celebrating his birth all month long, so my next thought was Bing Cherries.  I love cherries, and this month is certainly the month for Chocolate covered ones, but then I thought, how does a cherry have a birthday.

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My next thought was BING, the search engine for the web, so I looked up the information on that, and discovered that it was launched in June, so we wouldn't be celebrating that now, so I was at a loss, I decided to check another site that listed holidays, and discovered it is BINGO's birthday month.  So...I guess it doesn’t pay to try to get ahead on some things.

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This month is the "birth" of the game Bingo.  It is a fun game played by Children, and also grownups who take chances of winning prizes.  I remember the first time I ever won anything; I was playing bingo at the Elks Lodge.  They had all types of different games, but the game I won was the black out.  Each number had to be covered.  I won along with another contestant, so we split the prize and each got 15.00!

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To celebrate bingo month, why not go to a local nursing home and assist with calling the numbers, or even play at a local church.  It’s a fun way to spend a few hours, and who knows, you may win 15 bucks too!