SENIOR WISE © Berthoud Weekly Surveyor
June 6, 2013
Saturday, June 15 — Fickel Park
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June 6, 2013 Berthoud Weekly Surveyor
Looking for the silver lining — Silver Sneakers S
ilver Sneakers is not a new shoe produced by one of the athletic shoe companies. SilverSneaker (Healthways Silver Sneakers Fitness Program) is a way for senior citizens to exercise at little or no cost. SilverSneakers is designed Surveyor to help older Columnist adults take greater control of their health by encouraging physical activity and offering social events. This program is a benefit offered to members of Bob many Medicare McDonnell plans across the U.S. If you are part of a Medicare health plan, or if you are a group retiree, you may already have the Silver Sneakers benefit. Check www.silversneakers. com to see if your health plan allows you to be a member. Joining SilverSneakers gives seniors access to fitness centers across the United States. Most offer conditioning classes, exercise equip-
ment and customized Silver Sneakers classes. By participating, older adults can improve their strength, flexibility, balance and endurance. Additionally, most locations have staff that is specifically trained to help seniors, and educational seminars and social events. The Berthoud Athletic Club at 247 Mountain Ave. is one location where seniors can exercise and socialize with their peers. Shereen Madden says the club has 54 members who carry Silver Sneakers cards. Berthoud Athletic Club’s calendar shows weekly Silver Sneaker-oriented sessions for both exercise and yoga. The three-year-old Snap Fitness located at 939 Mountain Ave. in Berthoud reports they have “close to 100” members who are in the SilverSneakers Program. Michelle Hofmeister of Snap Fitness says some senior citizens couples come in to work out together. She added that since members have 24hour access to the facility, at least one member comes in at about 2 a.m. when he can’t sleep. In Loveland, those in the SilverSneakers Program can work out at the Chilson Center, Curves, Gold’s Gym, Fitness 19 and Anytime Fit-
ness. Those living south of Berthoud may want to check out Longmont’s Anytime Fitness, Fitness 19, the Longmont Recreation Center or the YMCA. These facilities are also listed as SilverSneakers locations. One of the side benefits of the
being a SilverSneakers member is that you can belong to more than one health/fitness club. If you are on Medicare, you might want to check to see if you are eligible for a membership in Healthway SilverSneakers Program.
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What goes around and around: Hula hooping I
f you think the hula hoop is a thing of the past, think again. The hula hoop is back and bigger than ever, and not just with kids in the backyard. It turns out that hula hooping has been around for thousands of years. Documentation of hoops Surveyor being used for Columnist exercise and play date back to Ancient Greece. In England during the 1300s hooping took off like hot cakes. Everyone was hula hooping, although it Heidi didn’t have the Kerr-Schlaefer official name yet. According to multiple sources, the English hooped their way to back troubles and even heart attacks. The name “hula” was supposedly coined in the 1800s, when explorers visited what are today the Hawaiian Islands. When they saw the native people performing the hula, they
thought it Hula hooplooked similar ing, however, to hooping, and is back. There’s thus the term even a World hula hooping Hoop Day — was born. Oct. 5, 2013. Fast forward People evto 1958 when erywhere are a California picking up the company called activity, and Wham-O introeven gyms now duced the hula offer hula hoop hoop to the exercise classAmerican pubes, promoting lic. The comthe activity as pany already a great core had one hit on workout. their hands; Jody Evthey’d develans of Niwot oped the Frishas been hula bee in 1957. hooping for two Interestingly, years. Evans the Frisbee was looking for was originally a way to put called the Pluto Photo by Heidi Kerr-Schlaefer a smile on her Platter. face, and hula Jody Evans hula hooping at Rockin’ on It’s estimat- the Rails in Niwot last summer. hooping came ed 25 million to mind. hula hoops were sold in the first four “It really came to me like a vision,” months of production. Everyone was said Evans. hula hooping. The novelty of the hula She went to the hardware store hoop soon wore off, and the craze was and bought the necessary items to short lived. make a hoop, and after that she was hooked. “I went to a few classes and began
Hula hoops are great for your hips.
making hoops like crazy,” said Evans. “I was very shy about it, but brought a stack out to the Boulder Farmers’ Market and a little girl waved at me very shyly, and kaboom. We started hooping together and so did a bunch of other people, and now I bring them wherever I go because it gets the dancing started.” Evans is the founder of the Boulder Silent Disco. Anyone can show up to these prearranged “impromptu” dance parties, where they are provided wireless headphones with two channels of music. These dance sessions might occur on a random street corner or at a farmers’ market. You can be sure that Evans will be there rockin’ her hula hoop and she always has extras. “What I love the most about hula hooping is that I’ve met so many cool people; hoop people who share their tricks with me, people who haven’t hooped since they were young who now realize they can do it. It’s something that makes people laugh and loosen up,” said Evans. Evans has two Facebook pages dedicated to her two loves — hooping and dancing. You can find her on Facebook at Silent Disco of Boulder and Disco Hoops of Boulder or hula hooping on a corner near you.
Photo from hipsterclub.com
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June 6, 2013 Berthoud Weekly Surveyor
Tattoos – It’s not too late for awhile. A Harris Poll in February 2008 showed that eight percent of those 50 to 64 years of age and If you are hovering around the nine percent of us in the 65-plus age age of 65, the word tattoo probably group have “one or more” tattoos. conjures up images of unsavory About three years ago, at the age characters. “Back in the day” the of 64, I became part of this senior only people with tattoos were sailcitizen and tattooed demographic. ors, convicts and Many of my family itinerant carnival and friends were workers. shocked. For the As singer and most part, I have songwriter Bob never even conDylan said, “The sidered doing this, times they are even after spenda-changin’.” If you ing four years haven’t noticed, in the Air Force, tattoos have gone including a year in mainstream. South East Asia. According to The Pew RePew Research search Center Center’s informastudy referenced tion, verified July above also shows 2012, the annual that 43 percent of Photo by Rhonda McDonnell amount spent on all people tattooed tattoos in the U.S. Columnist Bob McDonnell honored his granddaughters with some ink for being think artwork is $1.65 billion. with personal part of his inspiration when he faced The same study meaning is the heart surgery. noted that there most important are 21,000 tattoo factor in commitshops in the U.S. ting to a tattoo. Did you know that 14 percent of This was my situation too. I had the overall American population has survived a heart attack, stents and at least one tattoo? Compare this quadruple bypass surgery. I wanted figure with a 1936 Life magazine to mark this milestone in my life. estimate that shows that about six I jokingly told people I was too old percent of the population had at least one tattoo. A 2006 study conducted by the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology states that 24 percent of Americans between 18 and 50 had at least one tattoo, and those of us past 50 are not left out. Part of the increase in those sporting ink is the age bracket that has been around By Bob McDonnell The Surveyor
(and too married) for an affair, and a motorcycle was too expensive. I decided a trip to the tattoo shop was the way to commemorate my latest life experience. My tattoos were designed by me. That is fairly common according to the artist who did the work on my arms. I chose a heart with stitches and a band aid and the names of my two granddaughters. Although I may be old, I am not the oldest person with tattoos. Isobel Varley of the U.K. has 93 percent of her body tattooed. On April 25, 2009, she set a Lo Show record in Milan, Italy for this accomplishment. Many of my fellow tattooed com-
rades have told me that being tattooed is addictive. One study showed that 32 percent of people with tattoos say it is addictive. Maybe it is time to add a new one.
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Assessing your abilities as an aging driver
Special to the Surveyor
When a person first earns a driver’s license, they’ve earned more than just the right to legally operate an automobile. To many drivers, a driver’s license is symbolic of freedom and self-sufficiency. The significance of a driver’s license never truly dissipates, which makes it difficult for aging men and women to address their abilities as a driver and whether or not they can still safely share the road with other motorists. Though many drivers can safely stay behind the wheel well into their golden years, others begin to recognize their skills are starting to diminish as they approach senior citizen status. For those who want help gauging their abilities as a driver, some selfexamination can help. Assess your eyesight — Healthy eyes are essential to being a safe driver, and drivers can assess their eyesight in a number of ways. In addition to visiting an eye doctor for an eye examination, drivers should look for signs that they’re having difficulty with driving. If signs and street markings aren’t so easy to read anymore, you might need a new prescription for eyeglasses. When the glare of
headlights at night makes it difficult to see, your driver’s seat might need to be adjusted or you might want to consider antiglare eyeglasses that make it easier to see at night. Assess your comfort level — Safe drivers are also comfortable drivers. To assess your comfort level as a driver, ask yourself the following questions before getting back behind the wheel. • Is it troublesome to look over your shoulder and change lanes? • Has steering become difficult? • Has your reaction time when switching from the gas pedal to the brake pedal decreased? If you can answer “yes” to any of the questions above, then it could be that you’re beginning to lose strength, coordination and/or flexibility, which can make it more difficult to operate a motor vehicle. Answering “yes” doesn’t mean you have to give up your driver’s license. In fact, your doctor might be able to prescribe therapies or medicines or suggest a fitness regimen that can make it easier for you to comfortably drive a car. In addition, if you’re having trouble steering or operating a motor vehicle in any way, you might just
Courtesy photo
Aging drivers should weigh a host of factors when determining if it’s still safe for them to be on the road.
want to find a vehicle that’s easier to drive, such as one with an automatic transmission that has power steering and brakes. When assessing your comfort level, also examine your mental state while driving. If other drivers make you uncomfortable or traffic signs are confusing, this can make it difficult to safely operate an automobile. Such feelings when driving could also be a side effect of a particular medication, so discuss the issue with your doctor to see if that’s the case and if there are any alternatives. Honestly address loved ones’ concerns — Aging drivers are often the last to notice if their abilities behind the wheel are starting to diminish. Loved ones are often put in the position of talking to aging drivers about their abilities, and this can
cause friction. If loved ones have expressed concern about your abilities as a driver, honestly address these concerns, even if it’s initially hurtful or embarrassing to do so. Your loved ones are sharing their feelings out of genuine concern for your well-being, so don’t look at it as an assault on your self-sufficiency. Some organizations, including the AARP and AAA, offer driving classes for mature drivers to help them more adequately handle the challenges aging drivers might face. Aging drivers face obstacles they may or may not be prepared for. When such challenges arise, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s time to stop driving entirely. Instead, honestly weigh a host of factors before deciding if it’s still safe for you to be behind the wheel.
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June 6, 2013 Berthoud Weekly Surveyor
See you in the funny papers ... Tarzan E
dgar Rice Burroughs introduced “Tarzan of the Apes” or simply “Tarzan” to the American public in comic strip form on Jan. 7, 1929. This was also the date on which Surveyor “Buck Rogers” Columnist made its debut and ushered in what many believe to be the golden age of the American adventure comic strip. (From the late 1920s through the early to midRudy 1930s such Hemmann notable strips as “Flash Gordon,” “Prince Valiant,” “Alley Oop” and “Captain Easy” joined the cavalcade of adventure strips. At the time these strips were noteworthy not only for their strong story lines but also their truly fantastic artwork. However, this “golden era” would not last. Mounting pressure from newspaper publishers to reduce the size of the Sunday color comics as well as the daily strips would bring the era to a close after little more than a decade.) Following the publishing of his sto-
ry “Tarzan of the Apes” (in magazine form in 1912 and book form in 1914) Burroughs, who soon realized he had a hot property, made it his mission to exploit it in as many ways as possible. Within four years, a relatively short period of time in those days, the Tarzan character was appearing in movies. Initially the story line of the strip closely followed the plot of the Burroughs’ first novel — as a baby Tarzan is orphaned in the jungle, is raised by apes, and grows up to court the beautiful Jane Porter. Burroughs wrote 26 Tarzan books with the story lines of a number of them loosely used in the strips. According to the story, Tarzan is the son of a British lord and lady who were marooned on the Atlantic coast of Africa by mutineers. When Tarzan was still a baby, his mother died of natural causes and his father was killed by Kerchak, leader of the ape tribe by whom Tarzan was adopted. Tarzan’s tribe of apes is known as the Mangani, great apes of a species not known to science. Kala is his ape mother. Tarzan is his ape name, but his real English name is John Clayton, Earl Greystoke. In fact, Burroughs’ narrator in “Tarzan of the Apes” describes both Clayton and Greystoke as fictitious names. According to some sources this implies that, “within the fictional world that Tarzan inhabits, he may have a different real name.” As a young adult, Tarzan meets (or rather finds) Jane Porter, a young American woman, in the jungle. She,
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her father, and others of their party are marooned on exactly the same coastal jungle area where Tarzan’s biological parents were lost 20 years earlier. Tarzan is portrayed as being extremely athletic with amazing strength, tall, handsome and tanned. He is courageous, loyal and usually quite ethical. He is also intelligent and able to learn languages easily. The artist for the initial Tarzan series was Hal Foster, who later became famous as the creator of Prince Valiant. From the very beginning, Foster was praised for all aspects of his artwork. However, once the initial 10-week series was over, he went back to doing advertising art. His
rendition of Tarzan came to be known as the most realistically drawn strip to ever grace the comic strip pages. Following the original 10-week run the Metropolitan Newspaper Service (later United Feature Syndicate) renewed the series, assigning staff artist Rex Maxon to the feature. A Sunday edition began in March 1931. A few months later, Foster returned, taking over the Sunday strip from Maxon in September 1931. With the county deep in a recession Foster was more than happy to rejoin the team of a very popular comic strip. Both the Sunday and daily “Tarzan” comic strips appear in a few newspapers as reprints today.
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Looking back 50 years By Bob McDonnell The Surveyor In less than two months my high school classmates and I will fly or drive to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for our class reunion. Not just any reunion — this one is our 50th. Where did the time go? As I prepare for this event, my old brain remembers how things were leading up to the time when we earned our high school diplomas. In grade school, for example, we recited both the Pledge of Allegiance and the Lord’s Prayer. Later, in junior high (no middle schools then) we played and survived some vicious games of no-holds-barred dodge ball. We all wore the same type of gym-class uniforms, and yes, we showered before we went to our next class. Radio stations were mostly AM, and at times and we carried around
small transistor radios. We heard that someday we would communicate by a wrist radio. The predictions were close on that one. At first, many of my friends and I did not have television in our homes. When we did, it was black and white and got three channels. Television stations turned off their signals at midnight. Rumors suggested that someday we would be paying to watch television. That did not seem feasible. We were the ones to deliver the paper and act as school crossing guards, not adults. We are the generation that remembers when blackboards were actually black. We know the smell of a freshlymimeographed paper when the teacher handed it out. There was a great division between males and females. In high school, boys would take drafting class, shop class and auto mechanics. Girls attended Home Ec class to learn to cook and sew. The organized sports programs in junior high and high school were for the boys. We all took typing, but the guys had no clue when or how we might
use this skill. Boy, were we in for a surprise, with the advent of computers. We had no clue that a letter carrier, firefighter, law enforcement officer or even a school principal could be a female. In this simpler time we didn’t lock our front door when we went to the store. I don’t remember my dad ever locking the car. In this time of innocence, we even trick-or-treated at the homes of total strangers. Prices have escalated since then. Spending $2,000 for a new car was a lot. Hamburgers were $.15 at some fast-food restaurants, and I don’t even want to bring up the price of
gas ($.30/gallon). I do remember my buddies and me emptying the change in our pockets for a tank of gas, though. Cars did not have seat belts or air bags. As a kid, riding on the car’s floor or on the shelf in the back window was acceptable and condoned. Now, at nearly 68 years of age, memories of good times at the drivein movie still lurk in our brains. I don’t remember anyone whose parents were divorced. For the most part, dads worked and moms stayed at home. The word vegetarian was not in our vocabulary. Each and every one of my classmates remembers where we were the day President Kennedy got shot. It happened about five months after we graduated. Some of the 1963 George Washington High, Grand Rapids, Iowa, graduates got an up-close and personal view of Vietnam. When we gather in June to reunite, I am sure these and other memories will be relived over and over. What a ride it has been.
Meals on Wheels June Menu 6) Fish Taco, Confetti Rice, Fiesta Squash, Bread, Milk, Pineapple, Cilantro Lime Coleslaw 7) Roast Turkey, Mango Chutney Confetti Couscous, California Vegetables, Bread, Milk, Sliced Pears 10) Salisbury Steak, Mashed Potatoes, Gravy, Spinach w/Hollandaise Sauce, Bread, Milk, Pineapple and Mandarin Oranges 11) Almond Crusted Chicken, Tenders w/Raspberry Sc, Wild Rice Pilaf, Broccoli, Bread, Milk, Carrot Pineapple Gelatin 12) Sloppy Joe, Oven Browned Potatoes, Mixed Vegetables, Bun, Milk, Peaches 13) Turkey Wrap, Macaroni Salad, Broccoli Walnut Salad, Milk, Tropical Fruit and Grapes 14) Bratwurst, Onions and Peppers, Baked Beans, Parsley Carrots, Bread, Milk, Brownie, Watermelon 17) Chicken and Dumplings, Zucchini Corn and Carrots, Glazed Pineapple, Bread, Milk, Orange Beet Salad 18) Baked Fish w/Roasted Red Pepper Sauce, Quinoa Pilaf, California Veg-
etables, Bread, Milk, Cottage Cheese and Pineapple 19) Turkey Zucchini Bake, Garlic Bread, Milk, Italian Vegetables, Frozen Strawberry Yogurt, Tossed Salad w/Italian Dressing 20) Caribbean Pulled Pork, Coconut Rice, Broccoli, Bun, Milk, Plums 21) Beef Curry over Noodles, Oriental Cabbage, Ginger Peaches, Bread, Milk, Pea Salad 24) Pepper Meatloaf, Baked Potato, Butter, Orange Walnut Carrots, Bread, Milk, Fruit Cocktail 25) Au Gratin Potatoes w/Broccoli and Ham, Spinach, Curried Peaches, Bread, Milk, Carrot Pineapple Orange Salad 26) Chicken Apricot Rice Salad, Gazpacho Salad, Black Bean and Corn Salad, Bread, Milk, Melon Cup 27) BBQ Drumstick, Corn Casserole, Cabbage and Carrots, Bread, Milk, Sliced Pears 28) Roast Pork w/Honey Mustard Sauce, Barley Mushroom Risotto, Brussels Sprouts, Bread, Milk, Banana
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June 6, 2013 Berthoud Weekly Surveyor