Young at Heart

Young at Heart News Photo by Julie Riddle Alpena artist Ellen LaCross smiles at her art desk in her home studio last week

S U P P L E M E N T T O T H E A L P E N A N E W S • T H U R S D A Y, A P R I L 1 4 , 2 0 2 2

Breaking the rules, having fun ALPENA SENIOR FINDS JOY IN THE PROCESS OF HER ART

By JULIE RIDDLE News Staff Writer

ALPENA – Once you learn the rules, you can break them, Alpena artist Ellen LaCross said, surrounded by two decades’ worth of her creations and the materials to make more.

The 73-year-old took art classes as a youth but dove seriously into the hobby in her early 50s, after she retired from work in the social security field.

Now, she teaches younger artists through the Northeast Michigan Artists’ Guild while continuing to learn herself, taking classes through several art organizations and spending long hours creating in a sunny upstairs workspace in her Alpena home.

“You have more failures than successes, definitely,” LaCross said, encouraging those considering dabbling in art to learn to enjoy the process, not just the end result of their work.

Through classes and lots of practice, the artist has learned the basics of what makes art appeal to the viewer. She speaks with confidence of the rule of thirds, tricks for making the eye move around a painting, contrasting values, and focal points.

Such rules give an artist a starting place. From there, they can explore their craft and figure out what pleases them, she said.

Artists often don’t know whether they’re going in the right direction with a project until they reach the end, LaCross said. More than once, she’s been ready to burn a half-finished project in the back yard before deciding she liked it.

She and other members of the guild meet monthly and critique each other’s work. The perspective of a fresh pair of eyes helps those who enjoy art to do better work and gain confidence in their abilities, LaCross said.

Much of the work she’s produced over the past 20 years lies in great stacks in her workspace, which also holds an abundance of art supplies, neatly organized into rows of drawer units. ____________________________________________ 2 - Young at Heart ~ Thursday, April 14, 2022

News Photo by Julie Riddle

Artist Ellen LaCross explains the process for creating a painting that hangs on her living room wall. Behind her, steps she painted lead to a sunny personal art studio.

Anything can be turned into art, LaCross said, holding up used parchment paper, recycled book parts, and corrugated cardboard she saves, knowing she may someday want them for a collage or to add texture to a painting.

Artists are not confined to one style, she said. Her creations incorporate paint and chalk, homemade paper and sheet music rolled into beads, realistic portraits and swirls of color.

Her work, which adorns most walls of her home, also has also hung in several galleries

News Photo by Julie Riddle

In the upstairs studio of her Alpena home, artist Ellen LaCross looks through an art journal of her work.

in the region. LaCross will be the featured artist at the Thunder Bay Arts Council Gallery next spring, and a display at the Besser Museum later this spring will include a piece LaCross is working on now, depicting a farmer’s market.

LaCross speaks casually about her work, enjoying it but not making a fuss about it. A friend recently offered to buy

one of her paintings, “so that’s really cool,” she said.

She’ll continue creating artwork and continue sharing it with others. That includes at an upcoming juried show at the Alcona County library.

“Last year, I got first place,” LaCross said with a smile.

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News Photo by Julie Riddle

Surrounded by paintings she created, Ellen LaCross smiles in a bedroom in her Alpena home.

News Photo by Julie Riddle

A portrait of her son as a child hangs on a bedroom wall in the home of Alpena resident Ellen LaCross

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News Photo by Julie Riddle

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____________________________________________ Thursday, April 14, 2022 ~Young at Heart - 3

Safety upgrades for seniors’ homes

Many seniors want to spend as long as possible residing in the comforts of their own homes. According to AARP’s 2021 “Home and Community Preferences Survey,” more than three-quarters of U.S. adults age 50 and older prefer living at home. But getting older often comes with certain deficits that may not make current living situations the safest for seniors.

Retirement Living reports that an older person is treated in an emergency room for a fall-related injury nearly once every 10 seconds. Falls cause millions of injuries and 32,000 deaths a year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Seniors may be affected by low vision, mobility limitations, cognitive decline, balance issues, and loss of muscle strength. Certain

adaptations may be necessary if se- ers and wheelchairs, to move about niors want to stay in their homes, unencumbered. particularly in older homes that have not recently been renovated.

Clear clutter/move obstructions One inexpensive modification is Change knobs to levers This is an easy modification. Le- to remove extraneous furniture and vers are much easier for individuals accessories. Such a change widens with arthritis or persons who lack walking spaces in a room and accomdexterity in their hands. Everything modates walkers and wheelchairs. In from doorknobs to faucet knobs can addition, furniture can be pushed to be replaced with levers. the room’s perimeter to make moving around easier. It’s also important Create zero-threshold to remove area rugs, as they’re often entryways tripping hazards.

Zero-threshold entryways, also known as flush entries, do not re- Install grab rails and supports Minimizing falls could come quire crossing a lip or any raised barrier. They can appear on door- down to providing support in key ways and showers and make it easy rooms of a home. Adding grab rails for people who have mobility issues, in the bathroom near the toilet and as well as those using scooters, walk- in the shower can help a person use those facilities without assistance. Install a grab rail close to seating in the kitchen to add support.

____________________________________________ 4 - Young at Heart ~ Thursday, April 14, 2022

Consider smart lighting Motion-activated or darkness-activated lighting switches and fixtures can automatically turn on lights, thereby improving visibility. Also, rocker light switches are easier to maneuver than standard toggles.

Invest in a stairlift Single-story homes are preferable for growing older gracefully, but many seniors live in multi-story homes. A stairlift makes a multi-floor home more accessible, according to Elder, an eldercare service provider.

Stairlifts make it easier to traverse staircases and reduce the risk for falls.

These suggestions are just a few of the many home modifications that can help seniors safely age in place.

Diagnosing stroke A stroke is a medical event that occurs when the blood supply to part of the brain is interrupted or reduced. When this occurs, brain tissue is deprived of oxygen and nutrients. Since brain cells can begin to die in minutes, damage from stroke can occur almost immediately.

Some strokes are minor, leaving the individual with minimal lasting effects. However, a complicated stroke can cause lasting brain damage, long-term disability or even death, indicates the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is why it is crucial to recognize stroke risk factors and figure out how to head off an event, if possible.

Certain tests are used to determine the liklihood that a stroke may occur. It is important to note that not all people who will experience a stroke have noticeable symptoms. Imaging tests often are ordered after a stroke occurs to determine which type of stroke an individual suffered. Here’s a deeper look at some diagnostic tests for stroke.

• Carotid ultrasound: This ultrasound is painless and uses sound waves to create pictures of the carotid arteries, which are responsible for supplying oxygenrich blood to the brain. The images will indicate if plaque has narrowed or blocked the carotid arteries, a risk factor for stroke.

• Blood tests: Doctors say that ing through carotid arteries and damage by an ischemic stroke (result of a blockage) and brain hem- blood tests can measure various other blood vessels. orrhages. A doctor may use a dye things, including platelets in the • Carotid angiography: The injected into blood vessels to high- blood. Abnormal platelet levels could be a sign of a bleeding disCenter for Neuro Skills® says a light blood flow. order (not too much or too much carotid angiography employs a • Computed tomography: clotting). dye and special X-rays to show the insides of the carotid arteries, A CT or CAT scan creates crossA stroke is a serious condition again helping to diagnose poten- sectional pictures of the brain, says the Mayo Clinic. A CT scan that can cause lasting brain damtial blockages. can show if a stroke has occurred age. Testing can identify risk fac• Electrocardiogram: An and also identify if the stroke was tors and determine if a stroke alelectrocardiogram, also called ischemic or hemorrhagic (the re- ready occurred. an ECG or EKG, measures the sult of bleeding). heart’s electrical activity. The test determines if the heart is beating regularly and the strength and timing of electrical signals that Providing In-Home Help Since 1977 pass through the heart. An EKG Let our dedicated team can detect atrial fibrillation, which provide the care you need, is a risk factor for stroke.

• Magnetic resonance imaging: An MRI uses radio waves • Doppler ultrasound: This and a magnetic field to create a deis a special test that shows the tailed view of the brain. An MRI speed and direction of blood mov- may be used to detect brain tissue

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How to create structure after retirement Professionals typically look forward to retirement and the freedom that comes with it. The notion that commuting and deadlines will one day be a distant memory is enough to make anyone excited for retirement. But when the day to leave the daily grind behind arrives, many retirees admit to feeling a little anxiety about how they’re going to find structure.

Retirement is a big transition, and Robert Delamontagne, PhD, author of the 2011 book “The Retiring Mind: How to Make the Psychological Transition to Retirement,” notes that some retirees experience anxiety, depression and

even a sense of loss upon calling it a career. Some of those feelings can undoubtedly be traced to the perceived lack of purpose some individuals feel after retiring. Without a job to do each day, people can begin to feel useless.

Overcoming such feelings can be difficult, but finding ways to build daily structure can make the transition to retirement go smoothly.

the void created by retirement, but researchers with the Sloan Center on Aging and Work at Boston College have found that only those individuals who are truly engaged in their post-retirement volunteering enjoy the psychological benefits of such pursuits. So before retirees dive right in to volunteering as a means to creating structure, they should first exercise due diligence and find an opportunity they’ll • Find something to truly en- find genuinely engaging. gage in. Professionals who truly enjoy their work tend to be fully • Embrace the idea of “bridge engaged, so it’s no surprise if such employment.” “Bridge employindividuals have a hard time ad- ment” is the name given to the justing to retirement. Some may trend that has seen retired indisuggest volunteering can help fill viduals take on part-time or temporary employment after they have retired from full-time working. COVID-19 has no doubt skewed post-retirement working statistics since the World Health Organization first declared a pandemic in March 2020, but a 2019 survey from the LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute found that 27 percent of pre-retirees with at least $100,000 in assets planned to work part-time in retirement.

Even part-time work can provide enough daily structure to help retirees feel as though each day is

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• Make a concerted effort to be more social. Volunteering and working are not the only ways to create structure in retirement. A concerted effort to be more social can help retirees fill their days with interactions with like-minded individuals who may be experiencing the same feelings. Join a book club, a local nature group that goes on daily or semi-daily morning hikes or another local community organization. These are great ways to build structure and meet new people. Retirees can create social media accounts to find local community groups that cater to their interests. Even if it seems hard to believe, plenty of retirees are seeking to create structure in retirement life, and social media can make it easier to find such individuals in your community.

Structure and retirement may seem like strange bedfellows. But many retirees seek structure after calling it a career, and there are many fun ways for seniors to create more organization in their lives.

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