PRIMETIME of your life FREE | VOLUME 4 • ISSUE NO. 10 | OCTOBER 2015 Interesting features for our 50+ audience
Steve Petersen A Man for all Seasons By Lucinda Sue Crosby For PrimeTime of Your Life
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obert Frost once wrote: “Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words.” The Vermont Poet Laureate understood the basic simplicity, depth, honesty and practical nature of the art of words … and he might well have been describing the life of long term Coachella Valley resident and sometime Renaissance Man Steve Petersen.
Born in Lynwood, California to a teenaged mother, Steve remembers music as the first of the artistic disciplines that helped bring his life into focus. Singing and strumming on his collection of guitars, Steve has, at various times of his life, wandered down familiar and unfamiliar roads like a modern day troubadour, delighting audiences with mellow voice tones coupled with music that can only be described as pure Americana.
But we digress! At one point, Steve admits he drifted into truancy. “I never got into alcohol or drugs,” he said, “but I was having a hard time engaging in my own future.” Thankfully, a truant officer who was a friend of Steve’s mother, Barbara, intervened by personally overseeing the boy’s eye-popping visit to the Southgate Juvenile Detention Center. “Best thing that ever happened to me – I realized I wanted to go back to school and do well.” Where, as it happened, a gifted English teacher who recognized Steve’s facility with putting words together in a meaningful way urged him to try his hand at poetry. The boy’s first serious effort, a controversial antiVietnam War piece, was published to acclaim accompanied by calls to the school principal that the work was “un-American.” Having attended Cerritos Community College and Pierce College, Steve graduated from Cal State Northridge on the back of a football scholarship. And though his artistic nature beckoned, the budding man pragmatically pursued a career in construction. It came naturally – his Great Uncle, Samuel Horace Anderson, designed and built LA’s fabled Red Car Transportation System. Happily, Steve’s creative light was not dimmed because, around this same time frame, he auditioned for and won membership in the Poetry Society of America. Shortly thereaf-
Steve Petersen
Continued on page 10
THINKING ABOUT HEALTH: HIGH DRUG COSTS PAGE 5
APPLE WALNUT RUM BROWN BETTY - PAGE 8
HALLOWEEN ‘TREATS’ PAGE 16
TOPIC OF DISCUSSION PrimeTime of Your Life provides local editorial and advertising content for our active adults (50+). We strive to educate and inform through lifestyle features and human interest profiles. PrimeTime is distributed throughout the Coachella Valley.
Deb Geissler - Publisher
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Unwated kiss gets Maryland boy arrested for assault Here’s some of what’s been reported
A 13 year-old Maryland middle school student has been arrested and charged with assault for kissing a fellow 8th grade student against her will, sparking debate over whether the punishment fits the crime. Authorities say the 13-year-old boy grabbed a 14-year-old girl by the shirt near her stomach, pulled her towards him and kissed her, using his tongue, against her will. Administrators at the Middle School notified the school resource officer, and the boy was charged as a juvenile with second-degree assault. He was released to his mother, and was not taken to go to the precinct for processing.
The boy told authorities that he kissed the girl on a dare from a fellow student. Baltimore County schools spokesman said that the boy could face disciplinary actions for violating code of conduct regulations. The story has sparked fierce debate over whether criminal charges were warranted. Some argued that it was typical teenage behavior, and that the school and the police overreacted: “He kissed her. So what? I was kissed by girls in elementary school, and didn’t want to either. I washed my face, and moved on,” said one parent. “I don’t think a kiss qualifies as ‘assault,’ or even sexual harassment, especially when there are teens involved.
Teenagers do stupid things. Just let it go, and move on.” Others disagree that it was a “non-situation,” arguing that the boy indeed committed a criminal act and calling it an example of “rape culture.” “The young man should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” said a parent. “The fact that classmates ‘dare’ you to commit a crime does not justify the crime. This is an obvious sexual assault. Young boys need to be taught that all sexual assault is wrong.” Do you think the assault charge was appropriate? Let us know what you think about the boy who sealed his fate with a kiss.
Feel free to send us your thoughts on this subject by emailing news@desertentertainer.com. We will publish a few reader responses in the next issue of PrimeTime.
OCTOBER 2015
Simple tips for beer pairings Great beer tastes even better when you surround it with the right things – friends, sports, and of course, food. Beer deserves a spot at the dinner table, it can pair with any food and elevate the entire experience. Knowing how to pair beer with food is easy if you follow a few guidelines. The more hop bitterness the beer has, the heartier or livelier the meal needs to be to hold its own. Don’t overwhelm your palate or meal and ruin what the chef was trying to achieve. Another general rule is keep sweet with sweet, and tart with tart. Try to keep your beer sweeter or tarter than the sweet or tart food on the plate. There are exceptions, like pairing drier robust beers with sweet chocolates.
Throw all of the rules out the window and experiment with contrasting and complimentary pairings. Match foods with complimentary flavors, or try contrasting them and create a slew of unique results. For those of you who are bound to the wine pairing school of thought, think of ale as red wine and lager as white wine. Hoppy beers can also be used in place of a pairing that calls for an acidic wine. Though it honestly doesn’t matter, these tips might help you to convert your taste buds over to beer or those of a friend over to beer. Taste is very subjective and what works for one person might not work for another. If it tastes good to you, then go for it. However, also be open to suggestions, as these tend to come with some knowledge and possible palate enlightenment.
Drought Gardening Tips: Plant Care Do not introduce new plants to your landscape during a severe drought. Even California native plants aren’t drought-resistant until they become well established. When water restrictions allow for new plants to be introduced into your landscape, select drought tolerant varieties appropriate for your climate zone. Introduce new plants during the fall, allowing them to become established by winter rain. Water-saving Plant Tips: • Remove plants in crowded beds or low-priority plants competing for soil moisture • Mulch, mulch, mulch! 3 to 4” layer reduces water evaporation
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and weeds. Protects roots from heat. Reduces weeds who compete for water. • Avoid heavy pruning. • Do not overuse fertilizers, which increase growth and water demands. • Infrequent deep watering encourages deeper root growth, and results in plants with greater drought tolerance. • Use a drip irrigation system, grouping plants with similar water needs together on one drip irrigation line
medicines to treat common diseases like diabetes begin to sink in. This summer the California Association of Health Plans estimated that even though hepatitis C drugs are very effective, to treat just 10 percent of the 175,000 patients who have coverage from insurance programs run by the state---such as Medicaid and the state employees plan---would cost California $1 to $2 billion for one year. The cost for treating diabetes is zooming up too. In its latest drug trend report Express Scripts, the pharmacy benefit manager, found that for the fourth year in a row spending on all diabetes drugs was higher per person per year than it was for any other class of traditional drugs. The reason: Some people take three or four different diabetes medications, and more people are taking them.
Consumers are becoming fed up with skyrocketing drug costs By Trudy Lieberman Rural Health News Service Late this summer the Food and Drug Administration approved two new drugs for lowering cholesterol. Repatha and Praluent are aimed at patients with very high cholesterol levels who haven’t been helped by commonly used statins or other therapies. The new drugs’ debut was marked by the usual hype touting the wonders of the latest pharmaceuticals. “I can tell you there is a lot of hope on the part of our patients,” said Dr. Seth Martin, associate director of the lipid clinic at Johns Hopkins. “There is such a high need for these medications.” This new drug launch, though, was different from others I’ve seen. This time there was serious concern from insurers, state Medicaid programs and others about the price tag for both drugs, which are expected to cost between $14,000 and $15,000 per year. Patients take an injection of the drug every two weeks at a price of around $560 for each shot. Multiply that by the millions who will take the drug, and that’s a good chunk of change by any standard. “The approval of Repatha is another example of a breakthrough medication with too high a price tag,” says John Rother who heads the National Coalition on Health Care and its Campaign for Sustainable Rx Pricing.
Rother’s campaign has had some success raising public awareness about the high cost of medicines spurred on no doubt by the rising prices for generic drugs and the increasingly common practice among insurers of shifting the cost of expensive specialty drugs (those for complex, chronic, and costly conditions) to patients themselves by requiring them to pay high deductibles and high coinsurance. Coinsurance for specialty drugs can mean paying between 30 and 50 percent of a drug’s price out of pocket. No wonder consumers are asking, “What’s going on here?” The latest Kaiser Health Tracking Poll offered some surprising findings. Seventy-two percent of Americans think drug costs are unreasonable. About the same percentage said drug companies put profits before people. While about three-quarters of those questioned said paying for their medicines was easy, one quarter did not, especially those with low incomes and those who use a lot of drugs. The poll findings are significant considering that historically Americans have been in love with new drugs and medical devices and have been willing to pay almost any price for them. That love affair may be cooling as the cost implications of Sovaldi, the $84,000 drug to treat hepatitis C, and the ever-increasing price of
What’s the solution? While the answer up until now has been “let the market prevail,” the Kaiser poll discovered that large numbers of Americans both Democrats and Republicans favored greater transparency in how drug makers set their prices. A handful of states are calling for drug makers to disclose the costs of manufacturing and developing their pharmaceuticals for drugs that cost more than $10,000 for a course of treatment. Some states are trying to limit what consumers pay by capping the amount insurers can charge them for coinsurance and copayments, flat dollar amounts. The drug industry opposes these efforts. Perhaps the more important question is whether these state initiatives will make drugs cheaper. Many experts including Rother don’t think so. “The underlying cause is the incredibly steep prices that are unsustainable regardless of how we handle the insurance,” he says. “The problem is not who pays but that drugs cost too much.” The Kaiser poll found that more than 80 percent of Americans want the government to negotiate prices of drugs for Medicare, something the law forbids thanks to lobbying pressure from pharmaceutical companies. Negotiations are precisely what drug makers fear. But if more drugs with $84,000 price tags show up, something has to give. Will the public make high drug prices a campaign issue? What are your experiences with high drug prices? Write to Trudy at trudy. lieberman@gmail.com.
OCTOBER 2015
Animal Samaritans opens new clinic in Indio Animal Samaritans opened the doors to their new East Valley Veterinary Clinic in Indio. The clinic is located at 42150 B Jackson Street, just north of the 10 freeway near The Home Depot in the North Indio Town Center Shopping Plaza. “We are extremely happy to be able to provide affordable veterinary services in a convenient location for our East Valley Pet owners,” said Animal Samaritans’ CEO Fred Saunders. “We look forward to serving pets and meeting their owners.” Animal Samaritans’ full-service, state-of-the-art veterinary clinic at the Animal Campus in Thousand Palms sees an average of 100 pet owners each day during the seasonal months of October through May. Last year their doctors and veterinary staff provided medical exams and care to 50,756 dogs and cats. They performed 8,599 pet exams, 6,985 spay & neuter surgeries, and they administered 36,136 pet vaccinations. While not as large as the clinic in Thousand Palms, Animal Samaritans’ new Veterinary Clinic in Indio will provide affordable pet health exams, pet vaccinations & microchipping, non-anesthetic pet dental, and basic surgeries, including low-cost spay/neuter services. Animal Samaritans is now scheduling appointments for pet exams, non-anestheical pet dental care, and pet spay/neuter services at their Indio facility. Appointments are not required for pet vaccinations, pet microchipping, or pet hygiene services such as anal gland pressing and nail trimming. Animal Samaritans will offer the same affordable prices at their new Indio clinic. These include $52 for a pet health exam with a veterinarian, between $17 and $22 for pet vaccinations, $25 for pet microchipping, $91 to spay or neuter cats, and between $113 and $153 (determined by weight) to spay or neuter dogs, which includes a post-surgery pain medication. In addition, Animal Samaritans’ continues to offer it’s grant-funded free spay and neuter services for pit bulls and pit bull mix dogs whose owners reside in Thousand Palms, Indio, La Quinta, Coachella, Thermal, Mecca, Oasis, and Salton City. Visit www.animalsamaritans.org for more information.
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CROSSWORD SCAM ALERT! Fake versions of real emails
A sophisticated new scam is targeting business and personal email addresses. Scammers create email accounts nearly identical to an existing account and use that new account to initiate wire transfers.
HOW THE SCAM WORKS You are working for a business that deals with contractors or suppliers. One day, you receive an email that comes from your contractor, requesting to be paid by wire transfer. This is unusual, but you have a long standing relationship with this contractor, so you initiate the transfer. Watch out! The email may be a fraud. Scammers are hacking into email accounts and spying on messages sent by the account owners. Then they create a new, second account that looks very similar. It may differ by a single character.
“MAD ADVICE” Across 1 Barbershop item 5 Token taker 9 Open, as an envelope 13 Outdoor party 14 Fuss 15 New moon, e.g. 16 One to grow on? 17 In a while 18 Comic Mandel 19 Start of a quote 22 Tolkien creature 23 Polly, to Tom 24 Uneven? 27 Art collectibles 30 Olympic prizes 34 Autostrada sights 36 Dodge model of the 1980s 38 Village Voice award 39 Quote, part 2 40 Writer Mark who said the quotation 41 Quote, part 3 42 Writer Buchanan 43 “Darn it!” 44 Hoity-toity sorts 45 Stop working 47 Dole’s running mate, 1996
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Deli bread Bill Battery size End of the quotation Copycat Reddish-brown Combine Put up with Ricelike pasta “Exodus” author Tennis’s Sampras Nair competitor Garret
Down 1 Scratch 2 “That hurt!” 3 Filly’s mother 4 Good, in Guadalajara 5 Attitude 6 Marathon 7 Stink 8 Skater Harding 9 Overpower verbally 10 Croquet site 11 “What ___?” 12 Course requirement? 15 Ring 20 Spherical triangle sides 21 Herb in curry powder
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Proposal Part of LED Frighten “Parks and Rec” actor Rob 29 Impact sound 31 Loathe 32 Recline next to 33 Pick up 35 Track event? 37 Big name in sneakers 40 Letter before iota 44 Luxury home features 46 Rolls ___ (pricey auto) 48 Is forbidden to 51 Scandal-plagued energy giant 53 Horrible 54 Feeling 55 Give off, as light 56 Blood’s partner 57 Bring down 58 Money in Spain 59 “Oh, right!” 60 Others 61 Blueprint
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Con artists then use these new accounts to initiate wire transfers. In some case, the funds from the unauthorized transfers are sent to money mules located in the United States.
These mules may be victims of employment scams. They may have no idea that their new “job” involves moving money for scammers.
PROTECT YOURSELF FROM THE SCAM As always, be wary of suspicious emails. Do not open e-mail messages, click links or download attachments from unfamiliar senders. Double check email addresses. Watch out for changes in e-mail addresses that mimic legitimate email addresses. Question changes to payment instructions. Contact the real vendor to check on the change. Have a dual step process in place for wire transfers. This can include verbal communication using a telephone number known by both parties. Know your vendors. Be aware of each company’s typical payment activity and question any variations.
Explore how you can save water in the kitchen tor. Also keep a pitcher of drinking water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap. • Use the garbage disposal sparingly. Instead, compost vegetable food waste and save gallons every time! • Install aerators on the kitchen faucet to reduce flows to less than one gallon per minute. • When washing dishes by hand, don’t let the water run. Fill one basin with wash water and the other with rinse water. • Collect the water you use while rinsing fruit and vegetables. Use it to water house plants. If you accidentally an ice cube on the floor, don’t throw it in the sink. Drop them in a house plant instead. • Don’t use running water to thaw food. Defrost food in the refrigera-
• Run your dishwasher only when full to save water and energy. You can install a water-and energy-efficient dishwasher which saves 3 to 8 gallons a load. If your dishwasher is new, cut back on rinsing. New models clean more thoroughly than older ones.
? KNOW DID YOU
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or several years, Governor William C.C. Claiborne wanted to capture pirate Jean Lafitte, so he put a price of $500 for Lafitte’s head. Once Lafitte found out, he hung posters offering a $5,000 reward for Claiborne capture.
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he Araucana Chicken is also called the “easter egg chicken” because it lays natural blue, green, pink and brown eggs.
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he Canadian ice hockey team were so dominant that they did not participate in the knock-out tournament of the 1930 World Championships. They were simply put straight into the gold medal final game. Canada won 6-1 to claim the gold.
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uring WWI, there was a French bulldog name Mutt that would deliver cigarettes and bring comfort to soldiers in the tenches.
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uring WWI, illusionist and stunt performer Harry Houdini took one year off performing to help sell war bonds and teach American soldiers how to escape from German handcuffs.
n 1945, President Dwight D. Eisenhower (Supreme Allied Commander at the time) predicted that people would try to dispel the holocaust as a falsehood. He ordered innumerable pictures to be take of the Nazi crimes to hinder any such attempts.
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wo of the world’s largest rivers, the Amazon and the Rio Negro, meet but do not mix and are visually distinct but occupy the same body of water. This is due to the rivers’ different speeds and temperatures.
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Ingredients: • 6 large apples, peeled, sliced in 1/4-inch slices, about 2 pounds • 1 tsp ground cinnamon, divided • 1/2 tsp nutmeg • 1 tsp almond extract • 1/2 cup dark brown sugar • 6 oz cranberry juice • 2 Tbsp dried cranberries • 1/4 cup dark rum • 2 slices whole grain bread • 2 Tbsp chopped walnuts • 1/4 cup quick-cooking oats • 2 Tbsp butter Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 350F. 2. Combine apples, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, almond extract, 1/4 cup brown sugar, cranberry juice, cranberries and rum in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until fruit is softened, not mushy, 10 min.
3. Remove from heat and transfer to a gratin dish or 9-inch glass pie plate. 4. Place bread in a food processor and pulse to form coarse crumbs. 5. Combine breadcrumbs, walnuts, oats, butter and remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl, working mixture with your fingers to blend. Sprinkle over apples and bake, uncovered, 20 to 25 minutes, until lightly browned. Serves 6.
come involved in linguistic artistic experiences. “The point is inspiring those young minds to write, sing, act, or otherwise express themselves artistically,” Steve explained. “Over the years, it’s also turned into a safe place for children to confront difficult emotions and experiences. This doesn’t surprise me; I put it down to the power of words.”
Steve Petersen’s Poet Tree at Rancho Mirage Elementary School Continued from page 1 ter, he was tapped for the Poetry in Motion Program, which involved reading his poems for commuters on … the Red Car Transportation System! When asked about this curious circular experience, Steve said, “There are patterns in every life. It’s good to pay attention.” The transition to full time Valley denizen began back in ’92, when he moved into a studio on property belonging to his father, Morgan. With an eye to completing a first novel, Steve found the space inviting. It had originally been designed by the BG’s
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Gibb brothers as a rehearsal hall and Steve found the environment sparking his neurons. The resulting fiction, Healer, is the tale of a stranger who miraculously saves the life of a child mangled in an accident. This well received effort went on to become an Amazon best seller. In 1994, Steve was named Poet Laureate of the Palm Springs Artist Center, a leading cultural influence in its heyday, where he came up with one of his most intriguing educational/ artistic ideas: the Poet Tree, conceived as a method of encouraging people, particularly children, to be-
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By 2001, Steve was shocked into his most challenging opportunity as a wordsmith. Flying back to the United States from Mexico mere days after the attacks on the World Trade Center, he penned a poem since turned to song titled These Colors Don’t Run. “LAX was a ghost town,” Steve said. “Walking down empty hallways, I had the lyrics in my pocket. Surreal.” Colors, (currently available on iTunes and www.stevepetersen.com) became an iconic symbol of Operation Iraqi Freedom and he is still busily performing it at military events across the country. In 2004, Steve was invited to install the first permanent Poet Tree at the Palm Springs Library. Since then, a
growing recognition of the importance of art in all its forms to folks of all ages, has helped his crusade flourish. To promote his many charitable and educational activities, he has developed a 501 (C) 3 entity called Steve Petersen Productions, Inc. Today, this photogenic and talented gentleman enjoys a balanced life of work and play. He attends church regularly and often strolls for hours near the Rancho Mirage home he shares with his adored, vivacious, toe-headed wife / manager / agent Vicki. You might find him dedicating time each week for the Lunch Bunch of Legends or working on upcoming Poet Tree projects. His children and grandchildren are top priorities even as he continues his professional life via poetry readings, singing gigs and a show he wrote, produced and stars in called The Journey of Life. And let’s not forget his most prized “possessions” – his best friends. If you are interested in booking this remarkable performer or learning more about him, you can contact Steve at (760) 328-3888.
Springs. For more information visit www.bighorsecc.com.
‘Out of this World’ Golf Cart Parade
Palm Springs Casual Concours VII Held at the beautiful Desert Princess Country Club in Cathedral City. Car show will benefit the Mizell Senior Center and Angel View. The show will be on Saturday, October 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information visit www.greatautos.org.
Haunted Carriage Rides Enjoy a family friendly haunted carriage ride as the hostess shares the legends, lores and ghost of the hauntings of old historic Palm
A local tradition and one of the deserts most fun and colorful events returns on Sunday, October 25, when scores of decorated carts, floats and marching bands head down El Paseo for the 51st Palm Desert Golf Cart Parade. For more information and to reserve seats, call (760) 346-6111, ext. 303 or visit www.golfcartparade.com.
Borrego Days Desert Festival This free festival brings together the best part of this gorgeous desert town: beautiful art, parade, plane flyovers, classic cars, vendor booths, food, beverage garden, hospitality, sun and family fun on October 23-25. For more information call (760) 767-5555 or visit www.borregodays.com.
October is National Apple Month! And what better way to celebrate it than with some tidbits of information! Apples are a member of the rose family of plants, along with pears, peaches, plums and cherries. It takes about 36 apples to create one gallon of apple cider. 25 percent of an apple’s volume is air; that’s why they float. There is only one apple that is native to North America—the crabapple. Apples are fat-free, sodium-free and cholesterol-free. Archeologists have found evidence that humans have been enjoying apples since 6500 BC.
GLOSSY
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At last count, more than 7,500 apple varieties have been identified worldwide; more than 2,500 varieties are grown in the United States – 100 of which are grown for commercial sale. Apple trees take four to five years to produce their first fruit. Thanks to their high levels of boron, apples can help improve your memory, mental alertness, and electrical activity of the brain. The soluble fiber found in apples is called pectin and can help lower cholesterol levels. The McIntosh apple is the national apple of Canada. Don’t peel your apple. Two-thirds of the fiber and lots of antioxidants are found in the peel.
History This Month in
October 1, 1908 - Henry Ford’s Model T, a “universal car” designed for the masses, went on sale for the first time.
October 1, 1979 - After 70 years of American control, the Panama Canal Zone was handed over to Panama. October 2, 1967 - Thurgood Marshall (1908-1993) was sworn in as the first African American associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. October 2, 1968 - California’s Redwood National Park was established. October 3, 1974 - Frank Robinson was hired by the Cleveland Indians as baseball’s first African American major league manager. October 4, 1957 - The Space Age began as the Russians launched the first satellite into orbit. Sputnik I weighed just 184 lbs. and transmitted a beeping radio signal for 21 days.
in U.S. history the House launched a formal impeachment inquiry of a sitting president. (The other two: Andrew Johnson and Richard Nixon).
October 10, 1973 - Spiro T. Agnew resigned the office of Vice President of the United States amid charges of income tax evasion on illegal payments allegedly received while he was governor of Maryland and after he became Vice President. October 11, 1939 - Albert Einstein warned President Franklin D. Roosevelt that his theories could lead to Nazi Germany’s development of an atomic bomb. Einstein suggested the U.S. develop its own bomb. This resulted in the “Manhattan Project.”
October 4, 1965 - Pope Paul VI became the first Pope to visit the U.S. and the first to address the UN.
October 14, 1947 - U.S. Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager became the first man to break the sound barrier, flying in a rocket-powered research aircraft.
October 6, 1927 - The first “talkie” opened in New York. The Jazz Singer starring Al Jolson was the first full-length feature film using spoken dialogue.
October 14, 1964 - Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
October 8, 1998 - The U.S. House of Representatives voted 258-176 to approve a resolution launching an impeachment inquiry of President Bill Clinton. It was only the third time
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October 15, 1991 - The U.S. Senate confirmed Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court following several days of hearings before the Senate Judiciary Committee concerning sexual harassment charges made by a former aide. Thomas became the second African American to sit on the Court, replacing Justice Thurgood Marshall. October 16, 1995 - The Million Man March took place in Washington, D.C., under the direction of Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan. October 19, 1960 - The U.S. embargo of Cuba began October 24, 1931 - Chicago gangster “Scarface” Al Capone was sentenced to 11 years in jail for Federal income tax evasion.
October 26, 1881 The shoot-out at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, occurred between the feuding Clanton and Earp families. October 28, 1919 - Prohibition began in the U.S. with the passage of the National Prohibition (Volstead) Act by Congress. Sales of drinks containing more than one half of one percent of alcohol became illegal. October 28, 1949 - Helen Anderson became the first woman ambassador, appointed by President Harry Truman to be Ambassador to Denmark. October 29, 1929 - The stock market crashed as over 16 million shares were dumped amid tumbling prices. The Great Depression followed in America, lasting until the outbreak of World War II. October 30, 1938 - The War of the Worlds radio broadcast panicked millions of Americans. Actor Orson Welles and the Mercury Players dramatized the story by H.G. Wells depicting a Martian invasion of New Jersey. Their script utilized simulated radio news bulletins which many listeners thought were real. October 31, 1941 - Mount Rushmore National Memorial was completed after 14 years of work. The memorial contains 60-foot-tall sculptures of the heads of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt - representing America’s founding, political philosophy, preservation, and expansion and conservation. October 31, 1950 - Earl Lloyd became the first African American to play in a National Basketball Association (NBA) game when he took the floor for the Washington Capitols in Rochester, New York.
OCTOBER 2015
Mason Jar Jack-O-Lanterns Supplies: Smooth-sided mason jars Black spray paint Tissue paper – orange, green, white, purple Scissors Paintbrush Mod Podge Black paper Battery-operated tea-light candles
Directions: Spray paint the lids with black. Cut tissue paper. Turn the mason jar on its’ side and lay it on top of an unfolded piece of tissue paper. Cut one whole piece of paper so that it measures the same height of the mason jar using sharp scissors, then cut the tissue paper into 1-2 inch strips. Next, set the mason jar upright on top of an uncut piece of tissue paper and use a pencil to trace the bottom of the jar. Cut out the circle shape following the pencil line. Paste the paper. Brush a thin layer of Mod Podge on the bottom of the jar before applying the circular piece of paper. Smooth the paper working from the center outward until it is sufficiently attached to the glass. Brush a section Mod Podge on the side of the jar that is about the same width as the tissue paper strips. Lay one strip of paper on the glue smoothing out any bubbles or folds as you work. Use light pressure when working with the tissue paper to keep it from tearing. The paper should extend from at least the bottom thread on the top of the jar to the piece of circular paper attached to the bottom. Overlap all other pieces of tissue paper on the jar by covering a small portion of the previously attached paper in Mod Podge. Allow the paper to dry completely. Make the faces. Use scissors to cut shapes out of black paper for a jack-o-lantern, ghost, vampire, or Frankenstein face. Not feeling that creative? I used these as a guideline. Apply a thin layer of Mod Podge to the back of the face pieces and press them on the mason jar. Watch them glow. Pop in your batteryoperated tea-light candle and twist on the lid. Don’t worry if the light doesn’t sit upright in the jar, it will still provide a nice, candle-like glow.
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BRAIN GAMES TO TRAIN YOUR MIND
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he first Jack O’Lanterns were actually made from turnips.
alloween is the second highest grossing commercial holiday after Christmas.
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ccording to Irish legend, Jack O’Lanterns are named after a stingy man named Jack who, because he tricked the devil several times, was forbidden entrance into both heaven and hell. He was condemned to wander the Earth, waving his lantern to lead people away from their paths.
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he owl is a popular Halloween image. In Medieval Europe, owls were thought to be witches, and to hear an owl’s call meant someone was about to die.
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he largest pumpkin ever measured was grown by Norm Craven, who broke the world record in 1993 with a 836 lb. pumpkin.
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6% of Americans decorate their house for Halloween.
oth Salem, Massachusetts, and Anoka, Minnesota, are the selfproclaimed Halloween capitals of the world.
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he average household spends $21.05 on Halloween candy each year, which equals 10% of annual candy sales and nearly $2 billion dollars! Most pick up their personal favorite to share with trick-or-treaters.
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ver 10% of pet owners dress their pets in Halloween costumes.
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rick-or-treating evolved from the ancient Celtic tradition of putting out treats and food to placate spirits who roamed the streets at Samhain, a sacred festival that marked the end of the Celtic calendar year.
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amhainophobia is the fear of Halloween.
hough a common trope in horror movies and Halloween decorations with witches flying across the full moon, the next full moon on Halloween won’t occur until 2020.
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0% of parents admit to sneaking goodies from their kids’ Halloween trick-or-treat bags.
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lack cats were once believed to be witch’s familiars who protected their powers.
T
he ancient Celts thought that spirits and ghosts roamed the countryside on Halloween night. They began wearing masks and costumes to avoid being recognized as human.
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bout 50% of adults dress up for Halloween, while 67% take part in the activities, such as parties, decorating the house, and trick-ortreating with their children.
THE FILLER FILES Lucky bucks
How men and women experience retirement differently (BPT) - What’s retirement like? The answer may depend upon whether you’re a man or a woman.
men, the study finds. Women also are more likely to feel frustrated, sad, lonely and nervous.
women, partly because it’s difficult for many people to envision what life in retirement will actually be like.”
Women report more positive experiences in retirement than men, yet also say they are more likely to experience negative emotions, especially stress, according to a study conducted by MassMutual. The study’s findings have implications for retirement planning, both financially and emotionally.
Before retirement, women are much more likely than men to report being stressed. The study finds that 49 percent of women pre-retirees say they are at least moderately stressed compared to 38 percent of men pre-retirees.
In the years before retirement, women have markedly higher expectations than men for enjoying the social aspects of retirement and somewhat lower expectations for their financial fortunes. During retirement, women report having less free time than men and yet are more likely to have new experiences, find more time for friends, and enjoy more opportunities. Men’s expectations tend to be more in line with their eventual experiences, which are typically less fulfilling than women, according to the study.
“Women often experience high levels of stress before retirement as they juggle both professional and family responsibilities,” says Elaine Sarsynski, executive vice president of MassMutual Retirement Services. “We are learning that the stress women feel often carries over into retirement, but we’re also hearing that women often make more of their retirement opportunities and experiences than men.” The study surveyed 905 retirees within 15 years after retirement and 912 pre-retirees within 15 years before retirement. The responses for both groups were evenly split between men and women and respondents had a minimum of $50,000 in retirement savings. One in five women (20 percent) is at least moderately stressed in retirement compared to 15 percent of
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PRIMETIME
Though whether you are a man or a woman, saving for retirement contributes to positive emotions and experiences in retirement. Those who have a 401(k) or other retirement savings plan were more likely to report experiencing positive emotions as compared to those who did not. Of the retirement plan participants, 74 percent say they are “extremely” or “quite a bit” happy compared to 68 percent who did not participate in a retirement plan and 70 percent of retirement plan participants say they are “extremely” or “quite a bit” relaxed compared to 61 percent who did not have a plan. “Overall, positive emotions for both men and women tend to increase and negative emotions tend to decrease in retirement,” says Mathew Greenwald, president of Greenwald & Associates, whose firm conducted the study on behalf of MassMutual. “People also tend to exaggerate expectations for retirement, especially
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OCTOBER 2015
Sarsynski recommends that pre-retirees take steps to help themselves gain a more concrete understanding of what their lives may be like once they retire. “Spend time with retirees to gain insights and better prepare both financially and emotionally for retirement,” Sarsynski says. “We also suggest that pre-retirees track all of their purchases, especially when on vacation or participating in activities they enjoy. That will help them better understand how costly, and therefore how feasible, the lifestyle they envision will actually be.”
If you’re visiting California anytime soon, you may want to keep your eyes open for $20 bills littering the sidewalks. One of the state’s newest millionaires, Hubert T., says that is how he got rich. Hubert says it’s been ten years since he bought a lottery ticket, but when he landed at San Francisco International Airport recently he spotted a $20 on the street and was compelled to spend it on scratchand-win lottery tickets, reports the Association of Mature American Citizens. One of them paid off to the tune of one million dollars. Hubert says he’s thinking of spreading some of his new found wealth around town, twenty bucks at a time, so that someone else might become a big winner, so be on the lookout for your own lucky bucks that might come your way. “Maybe I’ll start leaving $20 bills on the street in random places,” he quipped.
Treasure hunters could get an explosive pay-day Early reports that a pair of treasure hunters has found the legendary Nazi gold train in a hidden tunnel somewhere in Poland were dismissed at first. But now government officials seem to think the story may be true. The Poles have laid claim to the haul, if and when it is found, acknowledging that the adventurers who say they know where it is would be entitled to a 10% reward. The story goes that as World War II was coming to an end, the Nazis sought to make a getaway with the gold and artifacts they stole over the years from the countries they invaded. It could be a record-breaking finder’s fee if, as some say, the train is loaded down with some 300 tons of gold with a current value of nearly $12.5 billion, says the Association of Mature American Citizens. But, a local official claims the cargo may not be gold, but munitions that, if disturbed, could result in an explosively dramatic end to the story. The Association of Mature American Citizens [www.amac.us] provides the Filler Files as a service on issues of concern to Americans over 50.