May 2020 - Atlanta Senior Life

Senior Life Atlanta

THESE DAYS

personal safety

Just who really is ‘elderly,’ after all?

Watch out for coronavirus scams

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page 9

A journey with environmental Journalist Charles seabrook

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MAY 2020 • Vol. 5 No. 5 | AtlantaSeniorLIFE.com

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Tracking ‘Wild Georgia’

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Contents MAY 2020

COVER STORY

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Journalist Charles Seabrook tracks Georgia’s wild places Check out nature, but do it safely

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PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE A field guide to us old folks

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PERSONAL SAFETY Watch out for coronavirus scams

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PERSONAL HEALTH Another sign of aging: bladder issues

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FINANCE Ask Rusty: When should I claim Social Security?

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THINGS TO DO Local museums offer online tours and events

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8

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Atlanta Senior Life focuses on the interests, accomplishments and lifestyles of the active senior population in metro Atlanta. It aims to inspire readers to embrace a more rewarding life by informing them of opportunities to expand their horizons, express their talents and engage in their community.

ON THE COVER

Senior Life Atlanta

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CONTACT US

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THESE DAYS

personal safety

Just who really is ‘elderly,’ after all?

Watch out for coronavirus scams

page 8

page 9

Tracking ‘Wild Georgia’

Editorial Joe Earle Editor-at-Large JoeEarle@reporternewspapers.net Contributors Judi Kanne, Collin Kelley Steve Rose, John Ruch, Mark Woolsey

Naturalist and journalist Charles Seabrook watches spring bloom in a visit to a DeKalb County nature preserve.

Photo by Joe Earle

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COVER STORY

Environmental journalist Charles Seabrook tracks Georgia’s wild places

By Mark Woolsey As a youngster, Charles Seabrook wore out some serious shoe leather roaming among the salt marshes and stately live oaks of his native Johns Island, South Carolina. Those explorations set a pattern for later life- and occasionally got him into trouble.

“One day I was coming around a tree and I ran smack into a bobcat,” the veteran journalist recalls. “He wasn’t more than about two feet from

me. I was frozen, rigid. And he was looking directly into my eyes.”

After a brief and tense staredown, the big cat turned tail and loped off into the brushand Seabrook started breathing again.

The metro Atlanta naturalist is still ambling decades later as he pens the long-running “Wild Georgia” column for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

His love of the written word, natural curiosity and a keen eye for his surroundings have made

him a fixture in environmental and nature journalism in Georgia. The 75-year-old has written books, won awards for his work, gives talks to civic groups and posts nature photos on Facebook.

Long before all that, Seabrook had decided that exploring a coastal island was not nearly enough to slake his wanderlust.

“My dad had a subscription to National Geographic and I’d read about all these exotic, faraway places and I wished I could travel to them,” he said.

“I didn’t realize just what I had right at home.”

He needn’t have fretted about travel. Journeys taking him around the globe would come his way soon enough.

A four-year Air Force stint led Seabrook to a base in Texas, where he began taking college courses. He expanded on that after returning to his home state by landing a journalism degree.

Soon, he had wangled a job at the Charleston News and Continued on page 4

MAY 2020 | AtlantaSeniorLife.com

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Continued from page 3

Courier. Seabrook thought he’d died and gone to Heaven. A job in his hometown and an outlet for his writing suited him just fine.

He was soon disabused of that notion, realizing that knowing a lot of folks on his nearby and close-knit native island could be a liability as well as an advantage.

As Seabrook relates it, “I was heading to an assignment one day and I ran my car into a ditch. A close friend of my older brother’s came along and pulled me out. Later on he was being investigated for possible bribery.

Here this guy had done me a big favor and I had to write about him.”

He quit and headed back to school, taking science courses at the University of South Carolina.

Seabrook picked up a biology degree and aimed at eventual admission to medical school.

On a 1972 trip to Atlanta

to visit a former journalism colleague who’d landed at the Atlanta Journal, he had a serendipitous conversation with Durwood McAlister, one of the paper’s top editors. McAlister offered Seabrook a science writer’s job a few days later.

Seabrook took the job and never left, eventually retiring from the

W

successor AJC. Seabrook staked out a solid presence on both the science beat early on and after his switch to environmental writing in the late 1980s. He broke new ground and scratched his travel itch through attending science conferences all over the world. As for exotic: the newspaper sent him up

the Amazon River twice as he covered the destruction of the rain forest and the smuggling of wild creatures; and a trip to Alaska to cover 1989’s Exxon Valdez oil spilled led to camping out on a church pew because all the available hotel rooms had been snatched up by reporters and bureaucrats.

Also, “I was the one of the first in the country to report about this mysterious disease that was cropping up among the gay community, which we now know as AIDS,” Seabrook said.

He turned out crisp copy about its impact in Atlanta and elsewhere, the suffering of victims, the early stigma and the science involved, winning awards from the Associated Press, United Press International and others for his work.

On another occasion, attending a routine Georgia Department of Natural Resources conference yielded a series of exposes.

“They handed out a report

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on water quality in Georgia and at the end of a number of case descriptions, there were these initialed notations. I started asking questions about them and the DNR commissioner basically said, ‘You don’t need to worry about those.’ “ But Seabrook connected with a source who painstakingly took him on a tour through the obscure lettering – which, as it turned out, detailed some serious water pollution violations.

Seabrook’s articles led to legislative changes governing water quality in Georgia and contributed to a massive lawsuit forcing the city of Atlanta to upgrade its sewage system.

“I didn’t know a lot about the environmental beat when I started out, “he said, “but I learned a helluva lot.”

His work led to a more active role with the Georgia Botanical Society as he intensified his nature studies. “My heart gladdens when I come across the stunning white blossoms of

bloodroot, or hear the jaunty song of a Carolina Wren, or watch a bumblebee sip nectar from a Virginia bluebell, “he wrote.

And he keeps his nature columns timely; a recent entry extolled the virtues of tromping the woods as a relief valve from COVID-19 concerns.

“I am more about

connectivity.

The birds wouldn’t be there without plants. A lot of plants wouldn’t be there without the birds. And a lot of plants wouldn’t be here without pollinators like the bees.”

One of his books is a treatise on corruption and questionable practices in the Georgia kaolin mining Industry. A second turns an eye on Cumberland Island and its denizens and a third focuses on southeast coastal salt marshes.

And on occasion, scary encounters still come his way.

“A few years ago I was on this trail on a slope and with trees on one side and a fairly steep drop

on the other. I took a misstep and I started tumbling. I could feel my head hitting on each rock going down. When I got to the bottom, I checked it out and I had nothing but bumps and bruises, but I had an expensive camera lens that I ruined.”

Undaunted, he carried on exploring from the highest peaks of the Blue Ridge to the wild tangle of Cumberland but COVID-19 has, understandably, put that on the back burner. He celebrates Georgia’s diversity of ecosystems but worries that factors such as climate change and invasive species are diminishing the panoply of plants and creatures.

As to why his love for the Georgia outdoors, well, bloomed, Seabrook is a bit mystified.

“I gave a talk at a church in early February and the woman who introduced me asked why I did this. I said ‘I don’t know. It’s just my basic curiosity.’ To me a healthy curiosity is God-given.”

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EXERCISING OUTDOORS

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Stir-crazy walkers and runners -- including plenty of seniors – are heading outside for a breath of fresh air and a brief break from sheltering in place as coronavirus pandemic has widened and deepened. They’re on metro Atlanta sidewalks, running tracks at schools and on park and nature trails, sometimes clogging them.

Local naturalists say May is a wonderful time to get up-close and personal with Georgia’s outdoors.

Resultant health benefits will pile up, but experts Jerry Hightower also stress keeping health concerns and safe practices in mind during the COVID-19 crisis.

As they say on construction projects, “safety first.”

And do a little homework before setting out.

National Park Service Ranger and environmental educator Jerry Hightower said people headed out of their homes should check on where they can and can’t go.

Hightower said trails in the Chattahoochee National Recreation Area were closed because walkers weren’t observing social-distancing Avril Loy James guidelines. Some local jurisdictions have blocked park entrances too.

Avril Loy James follows those distancing guidelines closely. She’s a certified health education specialist and a Piedmont Women’s Heart Care coordinator. She advises staying a minimum of six feet from others and recommends wearing a mask when outside. She adds that if you’re out on a trail or street and it looks like someone is heading right for you, step out of the way safely, if you can.

Coronavirus concerns aside, James is a huge proponent of walking regularly. In addition to the cardiovascular benefits, hitting the pavement has been shown to have positive impacts on weight and stress management as well as immune system function.

She said that seniors wanting to begin putting one foot in front of the other should aim for time, not distance. “If you have, say, obesity or joint issues you might want to start out saying, ‘I’ll walk for 10 minutes, the second week 15, and the third week 20,’ “she said.

Hightower has his own yardstick.

“If you’re walking and get to the point where you can’t carry on a conversation, then you’re overdoing it,” he said. “Also take a break now and then because when you are still, that’s when you’re going to catch a glimpse of wildlife. And don’t overestimate. You can say, ‘I‘ve hiked this trail before,’ but it may have been 20 years ago.”

Both have some advice on where to go to catch the springtime display of flora and fauna.

Hightower said among his favorite places to get outside are the Chattahoochee National Forest in North Georgia, reachable in a 45-minute drive up Ga. 400. Closer in, there’s Sawnee Mountain and its several miles of trails in Forsyth County and Cochran Mill Park in South Fulton.

James said her she prefers to stay away from concrete, as trails are easier on the knees. One of her preferred treks is around the base of Kennesaw Mountain, for example. And come springtime, she said, “I like seeing all of the seedlings and saplings, all of the blooms.”

Hightower said springs is a good time to check out Georgia’s outdoors.

“The trilliums (wildflowers) will be going great guns, “he said. “The native azaleas as well and the ferns. “He said that no state has more trillium varieties than Georgia.

Naturalist Charles Seabrook, who writes the Wild Georgia column for

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the AJC, says that Queen Anne’s Lace and wild hydrangea are among the plants he looks for.

For those wanting to spot wildlife, Hightower said a trip to the mountains can yield encounters with grouse, wild turkeys, and salamanders and, yes, bears. He said May is time when bears are emerging and becoming more active. Closer in, a large number of varieties of birds can be seen in Metro Atlanta.

“This is the time of the year when young animals are coming out and they tend to be kind of stupid. So, you could see nearly anything.”

Hightower adds that it’s a particularly good reptile-observing month, in that it’s not yet so hot that such creatures restrict their wanderings to the nighttime.

Experts say said there are some preparations to consider before donning walking shoes.

“Wear sunscreen or a hat, because even if it’s not really hot there’s a lot of sun and its reflecting off the asphalt and you could get a burn,” James said.

She discourages wearing headphones in order to be more attuned to what’s taking place in one’s surroundings.

Hightower- who is in his 70s- has some advice specific to the mature, advising them to always carry a little more water than needed because dehydration is “something seniors need to be aware of and concerned about.” Make sure the trusty cellphone is charged up, he stresses.

“And I always carry a day pack when I’m away from the car. That includes a first-aid kit because it’s always nice to have a Band-Aid to slap on a scrape or a cut.”

James is big on stretching after you finish.

She said that if you want to stretch before you walk, do very gentle stretching. Save the more vigorous stretching for after you’re done. Of you’re only going to do one set of stretches, she said, wait until after your workout.

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7

PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

A field guide to us old folks All the talk surrounding ways to protect ourselves during the spread of the coronavirus has got me thinking. They keep saying the “elderly” should take special precautions. But who are they talking about? Who are the elderly? Am I one?

I guess that when classified strictly by age, I am. Honestly, there’s no question. I’m 67 and will hit 68 all too soon. That’s a big Joe Earle is editor-at-large and has lived in chunk of my Biblically allotted three score metro Atlanta for over and 10. But that number was set a long 30 years. He can be time ago. I hope Higher Powers factor in reached at joeearle@ reporternewspapers.net inflation and add a few years nowadays.

Besides, I may remember the 1950s, but I don’t feel old. Well, not really.

It’s true I don’t have the stamina I had when I was younger, but I make up for that with hard-won guile.

And while I sometimes roll my eyes when younger people start talking about politics or music, I think that’s just because wisdom comes from experience and sometimes you really had to be there to understand why it’s worth making a fuss about whether you grew up a Beatles fan or a Rolling Stones fan. (I rolled with the Stones, of course.)

Still, the more I thought about it, the more I thought just trying to cast a person as “elderly” or “not elderly” Rolling Stones didn’t really go far enough. What counts as old nowadays? AARP lets folks in at 50. The government says you can wait until you’re 72 to start drawing down your IRA, that money you’re saving for when you’re old.

I suspect that one single category isn’t enough to portray the “certain age” that qualifies as no-longer-young. As any number of bumper stickers tell us, there are all kinds of old people out there and there are lots of ways to be elderly without being old. One can be a proud family matriarch or a still-skydiving-at-age-80 kind of guy.

I thought we could use more consideration about just who the elderly really are. So, here are some kinds of “seniors” to consider when trying to decide just who really is “elderly.” Consider it the start of a Field Guide to Retirees and Other Old Folks, just like the guides for birds or wildflowers. Only less reliable.

Here, then, are a few types to watch for in the wild.

Yodas. These are The Elders who inspire anguish in their kids and adulation in their grandkids and can still do what is needed to hold the clan together. They’re family centered.

They plan and stage-manage family events to share the wisdom that comes with their graying crowns. You can see them at the beach, sipping gin-andtonics or bottled Coca-Colas while the grandkids frolic in the surf.

And they still host holiday dinners for all the cousins. Often, you admire them, but they still make you feel inadequate.

The Won’t-Let-It-Goes. They’re convinced the family, the family heritage, or at least the family business will never make

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it without them and the kids will never be ready to take over and don’t want to anyway, so they’ll just keep working, thank you very much. They deny they’re getting older and defy you to say differently.

Seniors Starting Over. These are the “life starts over with Social Security” folks. With work, kids and college days and costs – their own and their kids’ –behind them, they can start thinking about travelling to distant shores or learning to play ukulele or jumping out of airplanes. They’re slowing a bit, but fun to be around.

The Hobbyists. They know what they like and they stick to it. They’ve probably spent their whole working lives just waiting for a chance to lock themselves in their basements and get to woodworking or quilting or writing the Great American Novel or building massive layouts for their model trains or slot cars. These folks are rarely seen in public, except at gatherings of like-minded hobbyists. Otherwise, they’re just too busy to be bothered.

The Forever Young. These folks find their 60s bring rejuvenation. They’ve worked hard all their lives for family and fortune, and now they’re loading up the RV and hitting the highway to see as many National Parks as they can before they die. They can be fun to hang with, too, if you can ever catch up with them.

The Still Got it and Still Working It. Some folks just don’t know when to quit. They’re no different at 80 than they were at 40. For them, snorkeling, rebuilding a carburetor or dancing The Shag at age 75 presents no problem.

The Old-Fashioned. They remember vividly how things used to be done, don’t understand why things had to change and they ask a lot of questions. Weren’t movies better when they told real stories and not just ones from comic books? Wasn’t music better when it was made by people and not machines? Wasn’t it better when cars were bigger, houses were cheaper, and nobody had to eat kale? For them, life’s a puzzle nowadays.

The Stick-In-The-Muds. These folks really do act like they’re old. For them, everything was better in the Old Days, whenever those days happen to have been. The economy, music, movies, the government, the newspapers, the phones, heck even the hometown baseball team -- all were better 10, 20, 30 years ago.

These folks can seem happiest when they have something to complain about.

When I looked over my groups, I realized I didn’t really belong in any of them. Some parts of me fit into some parts of them, but I didn’t feel altogether comfortable in any single one. So, I made up another category.

The Just-Happy-To-Be-Heres. Me, I’m just happy to still be around. I can do pretty much what I want and when I want. I’m eager to keep rolling along. As long as the Stones can still do it, I figure so can I. But for now, all of us should just stay home, wash our hands and stay safe.

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PERSONAL SAFETY

Watch out for coronavirus scams As if I need to point it out, the new coronavirus has spun off a few scams aimed at exploiting the fears of millions of people worldwide.

Yes, like that drunken uncle who continues to show up uninvited at family events, this tag-along is unwanted. But these scams still show up and, when stripped down, still contain clues that you should recognize as flagging them as not quite right, if you take STAY SAFE the time to look.

Steve Rose is a retired I’ve mentioned to be “politely skeptical” Sandy Springs Police Captain, veteran Fulton several times. This is a textbook opportunity County police officer and to us it to gain some insight on what to expect freelance writer. He is the from those who crawl out of their holes author the book “Why Do My Mystic Journeys looking to cash in.

Always Lead to the Waffle 1. Men in Coats- One or more men show House?” and the column up in lab coats and fake CDC credentials.

“View from a Cop.” Some are looking for personal information and others, looking to see what is in your home, casing it for a later break in. If this scenario occurs in your neighborhood, call 911 and let the cops check it out. CDC will confirm any activity that is legitimate.

2. Fake Red Cross members going door-to-door. Do your homework ahead of time and check those websites to see if this is consistent with their policies. Chances are they are not. Red Cross is advertising for donors but not door-to-door as far as I know.

3. Random Solicitation- This is intended to allow the victim to see the new vaccine, for a price that is. You can bet a fake vaccine will be thrown out there soon.

4. Sales scams- There is great demand for surgical masks and sanitizers, all of which can be ordered online. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau was quoted in the AARP report to say that 21 reports have been documented since Feb. 10, many over items like masks that were paid for but never delivered. One victim is said to have paid nearly $20,000 for masks that never arrived.

5. Stock Scams, beware of stock investments in companies that offer products that can prevent, detect or cure coronavirus. These are pressure sales, urging the victims to buy now before the prices soar.

6. Phishing Schemes, be careful when searching online for information on “covid” or “coronavirus.” The cybersecurity firm Check Point, says over half are likely to be malicious.

Here’s your cheat sheet.

A. Be wary of anyone asking for money for coronavirus victims, or disease research, especially if they want prepaid credit cards or gift cards.

B. Ignore phone calls or emails from strangers urging you to invest in the newest hot coronavirus stocks.

C. Don’t click on links or download files from unexpected emails, even if the email address looks like a company or person you recognize. The same goes for unfamiliar websites.

D. Avoid online offers for coronavirus-related vaccines or cures. They simply are not legitimate.

Coronavirus scams, like most scams, depend on the same thing to deprive you of your money: up-front money and personal information.

The “red flares” for you to recognize is the request for personal information and/or the purchase of, in this case, a vaccine or some other medical treatment, using pre-paid gift cards. Anyone coming to your home in lab coats and CDC credentials, offering to test you for a fee or personal information, should be turned away and the police should be called.

As bleak as it seems at times, don’t lose your common sense and fall for a “pie-in-the-sky” scheme touted online. Those nerds you knew in high school and college are working hard to find a legitimate vaccine and they will find one. Just keep your common sense on the front burner.

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PERSONAL HEALTH

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Another sign of aging: bladder issues Our bladders change as we age. But the results of those changes and how they occur are among topics most of us don’t ever really talk about, at least in public.

Still, as bladder issues confront many seniors, we thought that May (which is designated Pelvic Pain Month), would be a good time to address some common bladder troubles.

There is a long list of items that can (and often do) affect our pelvic health. For example, situations like a serious pelvic injury from an auto or bicycle accident, or constant constipation — or even being overweight — can make a difference in how you and your bladder are getting along.

At the same time, be aware that pelvic pain can be caused by something other than aging. Certain pain may be an indication of more serious issues located within the pelvic cavity.

Bladder problems, however, are not usually painful unless there’s a related infection.

Both men and women experience unwanted changes in urination as they grow older, Dr. Murphy Townsend of WellStar Urology says. “There are many effects of aging on the bladder that lead to these untoward bladder symptoms,” Townsend said.

One effect of aging is the loss of bladder elasticity, and, according to the National Institute on Again. “A less stretchy, aging bladder cannot hold as much urine as it used to.”

So, simply because they’re getting older, seniors can find themselves repeatedly awakened during the night with the sense of a full bladder.

Judith L. Kanne, RN, BSN, BA is a registered nurse and freelance writer who lives in Atlanta.

In addition, “The bladder wall and pelvic floor muscles may weaken, making it harder to fully empty the bladder,” according to the National Institute on Aging (NIA). That sometimes causes leakage, or urinary incontinence, the NIA said.

Generally, incontinence is simply a nuisance or inconvenience, but it can be worse. It’s something that happens to an estimated 10% of people 65 or older, according to WebMD. The changes seniors confront can vary, based on gender.

Women commonly experience changes such as an increase in urgency, the feeling of needing to find relief immediately, and increased frequency called an “overactive bladder,” Townsend said. Men, too, may experience symptoms of urinary urgency and frequency, as well as a slowing of urination, with difficulty starting a urinary stream — which can mean more nighttime visits to the restroom.

Bladders are pieces of our urinary tracts that are located in the lower areas of our abdomens.

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Dr. Murphy Townsend

The full urinary system includes two bean-shaped kidneys, two ureters (the tubes leading to the bladder), one bladder and one urethra. The bladder is typically the size of a large grapefruit, according to medical texts, and it’s made of tissue that stretches to accommodate the liquid it holds.

Adults pass about a quart and a half of urine every day, the NIA says, and, as many seniors know, that can lead to a lot of restroom breaks when people are traveling or socializing.

There are a variety of ways to address bladder problems.

“Depending on the symptoms, self-help for everyone comes in the form of hydration, weight optimization, and the daily habit of Kegel exercises,” said Townsend.

Medications and procedure that can improve unwanted symptoms are available to both sexes. Also, one should limit caffeine, alcohol, and spicy foods.

If you are struggling with leakage or uncomfortable feeling, be sure to speak with your primary care provider about making an appointment with a board-certified urologist.

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FINANCE

Ask Rusty: When should I claim Social Security?

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Dear Rusty: I turned 63 on Aug. 12, 2019.

I will be retiring June 30, 2020, from my current job. I will have made approximately $35,000 by then and am receiving severance pay of $19,000 on June 30. Will the pay I receive through June 30 affect what I can draw from Social Security? Also, how much of a difference would it be if I wait until Aug. 12, 2020 to officially start drawing Social Security?

Is there any other information I should be aware of before I start drawing Social Security?

Signed: Anxious to Retire Dear Anxious: First, let me assure you that the money you earned this year before your benefits start aren’t counted as part of Social Security’s “earnings test” which could affect your payment after your benefits start.

When you claim, your Social Security benefit amount will Russell Gloor depend upon is a certified Social Setwo things – curity advisor with the your “primary Association of Mature American Citizens insurance amount” (or “PIA”) which is determined from your highest earning 35 years (adjusted for inflation) over your lifetime, and the age at which you claim your SS benefit.

By claiming at age 64 in August, your benefit will be cut by about 15.6% from what it would be if you wait to claim at your full retirement age (66 plus 4 months). Your earnings for 2020 won’t be applied to your SS record until after you file your 2020 taxes in 2021, so won’t affect your benefits (if appropriate) until after that.

If your 2020 earnings are more than any of those in the 35 years used to initially compute your benefit, your benefit will increase at that time. The day of the month you were born isn’t significant, only the month. So, if you apply to start benefits in August of 2020, your

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benefit cut will be as stated above because you’re claiming exactly two years and four months early. But if you wait longer, you’ll gain another 5/9ths of 1% (.556%) for each additional month you delay up until your full retirement age (FRA).

Although you plan to retire from work, be aware that if you decide to return, you’ll be subject to Social Security’s earnings limit once you are collecting benefits before your FRA, and that will be the case until you reach your full retirement age. If you go back to work after you start your SS and earn more than $1,520 in any remaining month of 2020, you’ll not be entitled to benefits for that month.

Starting in 2021, you’ll be subject to an annual earnings limit of at least $18,240 (that’s the 2020 limit – limits for future years aren’t yet known but will be higher). Exceeding the annual limit will cause SS to withhold half of anything you earn over the limit. The limit is more, and the penalty is less in the year you reach your FRA and goes away once you have reached your full retirement age.

Finally, to be sure you’re aware, you can actually defer claiming SS until age 70 if you wish.

After you reach your full retirement age, you’ll earn delayed retirement credits (DRCs) of 8% per year of delay, which are added to your benefit when you finally claim it. That would give you a benefit which is 29% more at age 70 than it would be at your full retirement age.

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This article is intended for information purposes only and does not represent legal or financial guidance. It presents the opinions and interpretations of the AMAC Foundation’s staff, trained and accredited by the National Social Security Association

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endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any other governmental entity.

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To submit a question, visit our website (amacfoundation.org/programs/socialsecurity-advisory) or email us at ssadvisor@amacfoundation.org.

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THINGS TO DO

Museums and attractions create virtual exhibitions, activities during coronavirus closures

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Enjoy

Metro Atlanta museums and attractions have closed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, but that doesn’t mean you can’t visit and explore what some of them have to offer. Many local and intown attractions have set up online experiences, including webcams, exhibitions, activities and more.

Here are a few places to check out from the comfort of your home computer.

Peace of Mind “All my needs have been thought about, and I’m thankful for the peace it gives me..”

During this national social distancing, Park Springs, Atlanta’s premier Life Plan Community, is here for your independent living needs. Learn more about our secure, managed neighborhood and all of the amenities that make Park Springs known for resort-style living.

Park Springs Members Enjoy:

• Maintenance-free villas, cottages, and homes • Six on-site dining venues including delivery • Gated Community • On-site Doctor & clinic • A continuum of aging care services

Interested in Learning About Park Springs?

We’re currently scheduling safe ways to experience our community from the comfort of your home.

• In-depth calls with our Residency Counselors • Virtual Community Tours • Zoom meetings where you can meet face to face

Contact our Residency Counselors to learn more.

Atlanta History Center Did you know you can explore much of Atlanta History Center’s museum, archival, and oral history collections online? Check out their online collections, where you can access everything from books to newspapers and magazines, manuscripts, and visual collections of digitized photographs, audio and video recordings.

The center also has announced plans for a virtual author talk with Stephanie Danier, author of Stray: A Memoir. The talk, set for 7 p.m.

May 15, is free and presented through Zoom. www.atlantahistorycenter.com Georgia Aquarium livestreams Wondering how the residents at 225 Baker Street are doing? Get some “face time” with penguins, jellyfish, sea otters, beluga whales and more on Georgia Aquarium’s multiple webcams. www.georgiaaquarium.org/ webcam/ocean-voyager Children’s Museum of Atlanta virtual learning To help families keep their little ones engaged, Children’s Museum of Atlanta has debuted a new virtual program called “#CMAatHome.”

Each weekday at 11 a.m., the museum will provide an interactive activity, vocabulary list, song list or book recommendation to help parents and kids stay engaged with education. Additional programming is expected to launch in the coming days, including live singing and story time with the Imaginators, Q&A sessions with Professor Labcoat and more. https:// childrensmuseumatlanta.org/blog National Center for Civil and Human Rights digital programming The center says it will provide digital programming about promoting and protecting rights. You can follow announcements through the museum’s social handles (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn) and on its website. www.civilandhumanrights.org/ptivirtual/

Take The Next Step & Visit ParkSprings.com

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High Museum of Art You can explore images, check out activities and watch informative videos at high.org.

Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) Check out online challenges, meet-ups, workshops and much more for ages 8 to 18. Topics including 3D design, architecture, coding with “Minecraft,” and industrial and interior design. www. museumofdesign.org/ moda-online-home “Rama Leaves for Exile, Bharata Laments” is among the works at the Carlos Museum that are available for online viewing. (Special)

Services directory

Fernbank Museum of Natural History Fernbank may be closed, but now you can “Museum at Home” with educational videos, fun facts, behind-the-

scenes photos, quizzes and more. www.fernbankmuseum.org/visit/museum-at-home

Michael C. Carlos Museum The museum is posting weekly online exhibits, puzzles and activities so you can “Carlos from Home.” https://carlos.emory.edu — Compiled by Collin Kelley, John Ruch and Joe Earle

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