tunitie s Oppor
d!
Aug. 2 9,
2017
Vetera n Resum
ypass, Ca
mp Hill
sExpo.
com
é Revie ws
Complimentary
a visit to las vegas page 10
new medicare cards debut next year page 15
ce s
9 a.m. Radisson – 2 p.m. Hotel Ha 1150 Cam rrisburg p Hill B
B e ne f i t s • Re so u r
Emplo yment
FREE t o Atten
Dauphin County Edition | August 2017 • Vol. 19 No. 8
On Life and Love after 50
Tom Blake
Recent Widower Tries Dating, Finds it’s Too Soon
Often, widowers contact me with questions about mature dating. Last month, Steve, a recent widower, emailed. He wrote, “I just ‘stumbled’ onto your Finding Love after 50 website, trying to educate myself to prepare for dating and my next phase in life. I became a widower in January of this year after a terrific 40-year marriage (together 44, married 40). “I am 66, still working, and live just across the Pennsylvania border in New York state. My wife suffered an accidental death. She was an only child and I am now responsible for her parents, aged 94 and 93. “To get myself moving, I have gone on a couple of dates. The dates went OK, but I have no plans to continue calling those women because I see no
Steve at a July 2017 car show.
willingness on their part to continue dating, let alone have a relationship. “My guy friends say I am wrong
A History of Caring ... A Commitment To Excellence Since 1867.
We know you want to live
life on your own terms.
Options for independent and supportive care available.
2
wherever you call home. A continuum of care ... focused on quality of life.
Pursue your favorite hobbies or engage in our many activities.
Our residents are the honored guests of the best resort in town!
We care for you ...
Making a difference ... with dignity and respect. Live every moment. Homeland ... is where the heart is.
717-221-7901
717-221-7890
1901 North Fifth Street Harrisburg, PA 17102
2300 Vartan Way, Suite 270 Harrisburg, PA 17110
www.HomelandCenter.org
www.HomelandatHome.org
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
to give up. I say, let the women ‘get motivated.’ I would like opinions from both genders.” I asked my On Life and Love after 50 e-newsletter readers for their opinions and shared them with Steve. The consensus among the responders: Steve needs to grieve and heal before getting involved with another woman. Nikol, a widow of 10 years, wrote, “I was in a widow and widower support group. My experience with new widowers was they were all in the same big panic to replace their wives. This panic usually lasted two years. He needs healing time.” Stella said, “Steve, whoa, whoa, whoa! At seven months widowed, the full impact hasn’t even hit you yet. Allow yourself time to go through all the stages of grief. Your time will come …” Another widow, Maria, said, “I’d be scared off if I was asked out by a guy whose partner died seven months before.” Tom’s thoughts: Likely, the two women that Steve dated sensed he wasn’t ready for a relationship. After all, he had been with his wife since he was 20 years old. What often happens when a new widower begins dating is that a nice
woman falls in love with him. A little later, he realizes it’s too soon and pulls the rug out from under her, resulting in a broken heart for her. Not good. Socializing with new people is important, and Steve is taking steps to do that. He recently sent an update. He said, “I have a 1964 Pontiac GTO. I travel to Central Pennsylvania for work—and pleasure, since Central Pennsylvania is the car collector capital. We have Hershey in the fall, and of course the famous Carlisle swap meets, which run from spring through fall. “I was worried that the stress from my situation would rapidly age me, but when people tell me I look way younger than 66—well, I am not about to argue! I’ve read that widowers tend to fall into poor health and age rapidly after the loss of their wives, and I am determined not to become part of that statistic. “On Father’s Day, I took my elderly in-laws to visit a new assisted living facility 2 miles from their home in Pennsylvania. I arranged a tour of the facility and we then had dinner there. “Next year the GTO Association of America is having their national convention in Valley Forge. The event is normally the last week in June into the first week in July. Since this event is [near] where I live, I will be there with my car, of course!” Already, I see signs of Steve healing. It is great that he has an interest in his GTO and in helping his in-laws. These interests will help him keep busy and get out with new people. If you’d like to email Steve, email me at tompblake@gmail.com and I will forward your message to him. For dating information, previous articles, or to sign up for Tom’s complimentary, weekly e-newsletter, go to www. FindingLoveAfter50.com.
www.50plusLifePA.com
Deal Me In
Let It Ride By Mark Pilarski
Dear Mark: What is your take on Let It Ride? I love to play it, but how bad are the odds? The threecard bet seems to be the best chance to win money. – Steve C. Let It Ride is a variation of fivecard stud poker where the player wagers on a poker hand consisting of three cards in the player’s hand and two community cards in the dealer’s hand. Play begins with each player making three equal bets in spaces labeled 1, 2, and $. The dealer then
gives each player three cards and deals two community cards face down. After seeing his or her three cards, each player has the option of pulling back the first bet, or, as the game is eponymously named, saying “Let it ride.”
The dealer then exposes one of the two community cards. Each player now has the option to remove the second bet or to “let it ride,” regardless of the first decision. Finally, the second community card is revealed. Losing bets not
meeting the payout criteria are collected; then the winning wagers are paid according to a posted payout schedule. Typically, a royal flush pays 1,000 to 1; a straight flush, 200 to 1; four of a kind, 50 to 1; a full house, 11 to 1; a flush, 8 to 1; a straight, 5 to 1; three of a kind, 3 to 1; two pair, 2 to 1; and a pair of 10s or better, 1 to 1. Like you, I find the game fun to play, slow enough for the newbie gambler, and forgiving, as it does allow you to pull back two of the please see RIDE page 13
At Your Fingertips Helpful numbers, hotlines, and local businesses and organizations eager to serve you—all just a phone call away. Cremation Zimmerman Auer Funeral Home, Inc. 4100 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg (717) 545-4001 Emergency Central PA Poison Center (800) 521-6110
CONTACT Helpline (717) 652-4400
Dauphin County Area Agency on Aging (717) 780-6130 Floor Coverings Gipe Floor & Wall Covering 5435 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg (717) 545-6103 Funeral & Cremation Services Cremation Society of Pennsylvania Serving Dauphin County (800) 720-8221 Funeral Directors Zimmerman Auer Funeral Home, Inc. 4100 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg (717) 545-4001 Health & Medical Services Alzheimer’s Association (717) 651-5020
Social Security Information (800) 772-1213
American Diabetes Association (800) 342-2383 Arthritis Foundation Central Pennsylvania Chapter (717) 763-0900 www.50plusLifePA.com
The National Kidney Foundation (717) 757-0604 (800) 697-7007 PACE (800) 225-7223
Vision Resources of Central Pennsylvania (717) 238-2531 Healthcare Information Pennsylvania Healthcare Cost Containment Council (717) 232-6787 Hearing Services Pennsylvania Office for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (800) 233-3008 V/TTY Hospice Services Homeland Hospice 2300 Vartan Way, Suite 115, Harrisburg (717) 221-7890 Housing/Apartments B’Nai B’rith Apartments 130 S. Third St., Harrisburg (717) 232-7516
Housing Assistance Dauphin County Housing Authority (717) 939-9301
Toll-Free Numbers American Lung Association (800) LUNG-USA
Property Tax/Rent Rebate (888) 728-2937 Insurance Apprise Insurance Counseling (800) 783-7067 Nursing/Rehab Homeland Center 1901 N. Fifth St., Harrisburg (717) 221-7902 Personal Care Homes Greenfield Senior Living at Graysonview 150 Kempton Ave., Harrisburg (717) 558-7771
Bureau of Consumer Protection (800) 441-2555
Homeland Center 1901 N. Fifth St., Harrisburg (717) 221-7902 Pharmacies CVS/pharmacy www.cvs.com Services Dauphin County Area Agency on Aging (717) 780-6130
Meals on Wheels (800) 621-6325 National Council on Aging (800) 424-9046 Social Security Office (800) 772-1213 Veterans Affairs (717) 626-1171 or (800) 827-1000 Transportation CAT Share-A-Ride (717) 232-6100 Veterans Services Lebanon VA Medical Center 1700 S. Lincoln Ave., Lebanon (717) 228-6000 or (800) 409-8771
Not an all-inclusive list of advertisers in your area.
The Salvation Army Edgemont Temple Corps (717) 238-8678 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
3
Cover Story
American Bandstand: Still Hoppin’ after 60 Years
Corporate Office
3912 Abel Drive, Columbia, PA 17512 Phone 717.285.1350 • Fax 717.285.1360 Chester County: 610.675.6240 Cumberland County/Dauphin County: 717.770.0140 Berks County/Lancaster County/ Lebanon County/York County: 717.285.1350 E-mail address: info@onlinepub.com Website address: www.onlinepub.com
PRESIDENT AND PUBLISHER
By Eddie Collins “We’re goin hoppin,’ we’re going hoppin’ today, where things are boppin’ the Philadelphia way, we’re gonna drop in, on all the music they play … I love Bandstand!” – Barry Manilow
Donna K. Anderson
EDITORIAL
Vice President and Managing Editor Christianne Rupp Editor, 50plus Publications Megan Joyce
ART DEPARTMENT Project Coordinator Renee McWilliams Production Artists Lauren McNallen Janys Ruth
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Account Representatives Matthew Chesson Janette McLaurin Tia Stauffer Gina Yocum Events Manager Kimberly Shaffer Marketing Coordinator Mariah Hammacher
ADMINISTRATION Business Manager Elizabeth Duvall
Member of
Awards
50plus LIFE is published by On-Line Publishers, Inc. and is distributed monthly among senior centers, retirement communities, banks, grocers, libraries and other outlets serving the senior community. On-Line Publishers, Inc. will not knowingly accept or publish advertising which may be fraudulent or misleading in nature. Views expressed in opinion stories, contributions, articles and letters are not necessarily the views of the publisher. The appearance of advertisements for products or services does not constitute an endorsement of the particular product or service. The publisher will not be responsible for mistakes in advertisements unless notified within five days of publication. On-Line Publishers, Inc. reserves the right to revise or reject any and all advertising. No part of this publication may be reproduced or reprinted without permission of On-Line Publishers, Inc. We will not knowingly publish any advertisement or information not in compliance with the Federal Fair Housing Act, Pennsylvania State laws or other local laws.
4
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
It was a phenomenon, a trendsetter, a way of culture for teenagers across the country, and it all came to life on a television show named American Bandstand. The concept included playing popular music geared toward teens, having them dance to it, and televising it. In 1952, this was the birth of the show emanating from WFIL-TV in Philadelphia, initially called Bandstand. Hosted by Bob Horn, it caught on immediately. After making an impact and having a few successful years, Horn was dismissed from the show due to numerous ongoing infractions with the law. On July 9, 1956, taking the reigns as show host was 26-yearold Dick Clark, who had been an announcer for WFIL radio. Later dubbed “the guy with the Dentyne smile,” Clark was not fully in tune with rock ’n’ roll music but aligned himself with the most popular disc jockeys and record promotion men, thus gaining a “pulse” on the new sounds. “Dick figured out how to bring rock ’n’ roll into the living rooms of America and made the music acceptable to a mass audience, including the parents,” said Ed Salamon, partner with Dick Clark in a series of radio networks for 15 years. The ratings of the show soared, and by Aug. 5, 1957, now known as American Bandstand, it was being seen by millions of viewers on the ABC-TV network. From coast to coast, teenagers tuned in daily, not only for the music, but also because they identified with the dancers who
Above, top: Chubby Checker’s dance craze “The Twist” premiered on Bandstand. Above, bottom: Dick Clark suggested Danny and the Juniors change their song “Do the Bop” to the more modern “At the Hop.”
became regulars, including Arlene Sullivan and Kenny Rossi, Justine Carrelli and Bob Clayton, Bunny Gibson and Ed Kelly, and Carmen and Yvette Jimenez, plus numerous others. “I was a shy kid, and really surprised, because I wasn’t the best-looking kid, wasn’t a fashion plate—people liked me for some reason, and it took me out of my shell,” Sullivan said. Portrayed as “the kids next door,” show regulars began appearing in teen publications, such as 16 Magazine, Photoplay, and others. This affected the way viewers dressed and, of course, the dance trends they demonstrated. With newfound fame came fan clubs, which generated an incredible amount of mail, explained Dave Frees, president of the American Bandstand Fan Club since 1970.
“In the end of 1960, I had taken over a fan club for the Jimenez sisters, and mail the regulars received was amazing— some got 1,000 letters a week!” he said. Dancing on American Bandstand was the highlight; kids would line around the building of WFILTV at 46th and Market streets in Philadelphia, hoping to get in and see their favorite artists lip synching the top hits of the day. Many of the latest dance crazes would premiere on the show: “The Twist,” “Mashed Potato Time,” “Bristol Stomp,” and others recorded by Philly’s Chubby Checker, Dee Dee Sharp, and the Dovells, respectively. Bandstand also featured a legion of talent who recorded for a number of the most prominent record labels in the Quaker City, including Cameo/Parkway, Jamie/ Guyden, Chancellor, and Swan records. The song “At the Hop”—and the act who recorded it in 1957, Danny and the Juniors—can attribute their success to Dick Clark. Clark suggested that the tune, originally titled “Do the Bop,” have a slight lyric change, as the “bop” was becoming passé. American Bandstand was also a grooming ground for many regional acts in Pennsylvania. The word was: If you got your record on Bandstand, your career was on its way. Of those were the Jordan Brothers, hailing from Frackville, Pennsylvania, who performed three times on the show. Clark enjoyed their talent so much that in 1959 they appeared on his first “Caravan of Stars” nationwide tour. The group’s Frank Jordan recalled Clark’s humorous side. “Dick held up a stool once, in an effort to keep the girls from trying to get at us!” Jordan said. In late 1963, a major change came when the show moved its www.50plusLifePA.com
base from Philly to California. Clark, a fledging entrepreneur, felt there was more on the business horizon for him and took American Bandstand to Hollywood. The move altered the show’s previous hometown charm and camaraderie, and its air schedule changed from daily to a Saturdaymorning run. “I knew once Dick left Philly, it was never going to be the same,” Sullivan said. Nevertheless, the AB logo was prominent, and ratings kept the show in place through the 1970s and ’80s. In 1989, shortly after shifting from ABC to the USA network, Dick Clark left as host, with David Hirsch assuming duties until the final episode aired Oct. 7, 1989. Over the years, many of music’s iconic names would grace American Bandstand, with the exception of only a few, namely Elvis Presley, Ricky Nelson, and the Beatles. Even Dick Clark could not predict the advent of Beatlemania. In the summer of 1963, Bernie Binnick, head of Swan Records, asked Clark to listen to a record he was going to release, entitled “She Loves You,” by a group from England known as the Beatles. In late September 1963, Clark reluctantly featured the song on Bandstand’s “Rate a Record” segment, where it received a No. 73. But within five months, Beatlemania and the music of the British Invasion were prominently featured on American Bandstand. On April 18, 2012, at age 82, the world’s oldest teenager, Dick Clark, entered the gates of rock ’n’ roll heaven. After imprinting American Bandstand as a household word, Clark flourished in numerous capacities, including game show host for Pyramid and other programs.
As producer, he created the United Stations Radio Networks, and his Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve became a yearly tradition starting in 1972; the show continues today with host Ryan Seacrest. Shortly after Clark’s passing, the former Studio B in Philadelphia— where tapings were done during American Bandstand’s heyday—was officially opened to the public, paying homage to the TV show and featuring a wealth of memorabilia for permanent viewing at the building now known as the Enterprise Center. The show has truly lived on, with many reunions, tributes, books, and periodicals heralding its legacy. Of recent particular note is Bandstand Diaries (www. bandstanddiaries.com) by show regular Arlene Sullivan with journalists Sharon Sultan Cutler and Ray Smith. The book is a potpourri of behind-the-scenes looks at the Bandstand days through the eyes of those who were a part of it—and who have kept its memory hoppin’ for six decades.
Do you have an ear to the ground? Would you like to see your name in print? 50plus LIFE is looking for
Local Liaisons We want to include your neighborhood news in 50plus LIFE— but we need your help! We’re looking for volunteers to serve as our designated Local Liaisons in Central Pennsylvania. If you seem to always know what’s happening in your community and would be willing to send us brief stories, event info, and photos, email mjoyce@onlinepub.com for more information.
Cover photos, clockwise from center: Dick Clark publicity photo, 1961. A 1962 entrance ticket to American Bandstand. “Regular dancers” Arlene Sullivan, right, with Tony Porrini on American Bandstand. Photo courtesy of Bandstand Diaries. Dick Clark, left, interviewing Myrna Horowitz, one of Bandstand’s original dancers, on the show’s 17th anniversary in 1970. From left, Dick Clark, dancer Bob Clayton, and dancer Justine Carrelli with jukeboxes they won for the 1957 Jitterbug Contest. Photo courtesy of Bandstand Diaries. Sullivan, right, with Frankie Avalon. Photo courtesy of Bandstand Diaries.
Like 50plus LIFE? Then “Like” 50plus LIFE!
www.facebook.com/50plusLIFEPA “Like” us on Facebook to receive a free 6-month subscription! Plus, you’ll receive event updates, story links, and more!
www.50plusLifePA.com
50plus LIFE H
August 2017
5
Puzzle Page
CROSSWORD
Solutions for all puzzles can be found on page 18
Across SUDOKU
1. Snowdrift 5. Currency 9. Holiday resort 12. Utopian 14. Film’s Preminger 15. Ammo holder 16. Diacritical mark 17. Swamp grass 18. Ancestry 19. Business leader 21. Facets 23. Critter 25. Boats 26. Wood file
29. Guided 30. Energy unit 31. Away 32. Tobacco measure 33. Natural spring 37. Wrath 38. Elec. unit 39. Burbot 40. Mineral 41. Legitimate 43. Rodent 44. Cover 45. Feverish 46. Hockey name
47. Roman date 48. Colliery 50. Numberless 52. Goddess of wisdom 54. Emetic 57. Choppers 58. Solo 60. Muster 62. Retained 63. Croon 64. Mountain nymph 65. Morsel 66. Comfort 67. Lairs
22. Skinned 24. Append 26. Churn 27. Halo 28. Goulash 30. Vain voyage 34. Exchanged for money 35. Great Lakes lake 36. Scarlet and cerise 38. King 39. Baby buggy 42. Best 43. Singer Orbison 47. License, for one (comb. wd.)
48. Blender 49. Clumsy 50. Opera’s Callas 51. Flight (pref.) 52. Mackerel shark 53. Flower holder 55. Toward shelter 56. Tribe 59. Elected officials 61. Length measurements (abbr.)
Down 1. Drill part 2. Redact 3. Depend 4. Impulsive 5. Hominy 6. Consumed 7. Burgle 8. Mortar boxes 9. Slippery 10. Liquid measures 11. Primates 13. Trinity author Uris 15. Priests 20. Money gusher
Your ad could be here on this popular page! Please call (717) 770-0140 for more information.
6
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
www.50plusLifePA.com
CCRC Continuing Care
Retirement Communities Designed with their residents’ changing needs in mind, CCRCs offer a tiered approach to the aging process. Healthy adults entering a CCRC can live independently. When assistance with everyday activities becomes necessary, they can transition to personal care, assisted living, rehabilitation, or nursing care facilities. Some CCRCs have designated dementia areas that address the progressing needs of people who have any form of dementia. In addition, some communities have sought out and earned accreditation from CARF International, signifying they have met CARF’s stringent set of quality standards. CCRCs enable older adults to remain in one care system for the duration of their lives, with much of their future care already figured out—creating both comfort and peace of mind.
The listings with a shaded background have additional information about their center in a display advertisement in this edition. Bethany Village
325 Wesley Drive Mechanicsburg, PA 17055 Stephanie Lightfoot Director of Sales & Marketing (717) 766-0279 www.bethanyvillage.org
Cornwall Manor
1 Boyd Street, P.O. Box 125 Cornwall, PA 17016 Jennifer Margut Director of Marketing (717) 274-8092 info@cornwallmanor.org www.cornwallmanor.org
Homestead Village
Enhanced Senior Living 1800 Marietta Avenue P.O. Box 3227 Lancaster, PA 17604-3227 Christina Gallagher Director of Marketing (717) 397-4831, ext. 158 www.homesteadvillage.org
Woodcrest Villa Mennonite Home Communities
2001 Harrisburg Pike Lancaster, PA 17601 Connie Buckwalter Director of Marketing (717) 390-4126 www.woodcrestvilla.org
Calvary Fellowship Homes
Chapel Pointe at Carlisle
Cross Keys Village The Brethren Home Community
Homeland Center
Landis Homes
Pleasant View Retirement Community
502 Elizabeth Drive Lancaster, PA 17601 Marlene Morris Marketing Director (717) 393-0711 www.calvaryhomes.org
2990 Carlisle Pike New Oxford, PA 17350 Amy Beste Senior Retirement Counselor (717) 624-5350 a.beste@crosskeysvillage.org www.crosskeysvillage.org
1001 East Oregon Road Lititz, PA 17543 Sarah Short Director of Residency Planning (717) 381-3549 sshort@landishomes.org www.landishomes.org
770 South Hanover Street Carlisle, PA 17013 Linda Amsley Director of Marketing/Admissions (717) 249-1363 info@ChapelPointe.org www.ChapelPointe.org
1901 North Fifth Street Harrisburg, PA 17102-1598 Barry S. Ramper II, N.H.A. President/CEO (717) 221-7902 www.homelandcenter.org
544 North Penryn Road Manheim, PA 17545 Amanda Hall Sales & Marketing Manager (717) 664-6207 ahall@pleasantviewrc.org www.pleasantviewrc.org
If you would like your CCRC to be featured on this page, please contact your account representative or call (717) 770-0140.
The CCRCs listed are sponsoring this message. This is not an all-inclusive list.
www.50plusLifePA.com
50plus LIFE H
August 2017
7
Check out our NEW Online Resource Directory!
Convenient print edition plus extensive online access.
Discover support and services available to meet challenges you may encounter as a senior, as someone who is caring for an older loved one, or a person with a disability.
www.ResourceDirectoryPA.com On-Line Publishers, Inc. • 3912 Abel Drive, Columbia, PA 17512 • 717.285.1350 • www.onlinepub.com
advertisement
AFFORDABLE CREMATION SERVICES If you want a funeral with an expensive casket and embalming, go to a funeral home! If you are interested in affordable cremation services, we are the name to remember! We specialize in cremation only, statewide, no removal fees.
No Embalming
No Caskets
Cremation Society of Pennsylvania, Inc. serving all of Dauphin county since 1981 Largest in the state of PA
For FREE brochures and pricing, call:
1-800-720-8221 (toll-free) or mail us ... Please send me FREE brochures and pricing! www.cremationsocietyofpa.com Name______________________________________________________ Address____________________________________________________ _______________________________ Phone (
)_________________
4100 Jonestown Rd., Hbg., PA 17109 Shawn E. Carper, Supervisor
8
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
Code DSN
It Was 50 Years Ago Today
‘Ode to Billie Joe’ Randal Hill
In the summer of 1967, folks were obvious talent and stunning good asking, “What really happened to Billie looks. Joe McAllister? What exactly did he Capitol people chose to promote the throw off the Tallahatchie Bridge? And bluesy “Mississippi Delta” as her first what about that girl up on Choctaw single; they were lukewarm about the Ridge?” “B” side, a haunting, Gothic Southern It was all part of the fun of trying to ballad she called “Ode to Billie Joe.” analyze Bobbie Gentry’s chart-topper Gentry had cut “Ode” in less than “Ode to Billie Joe.” an hour, accompanying herself on a Years later, Gentry explained in The finger-picked acoustic guitar. Violins, Billboard Book of Number One Hits that a cello, and a bass were added later. many listeners missed the point of her “Ode” was eventually edited from seven song. minutes and 11 verses to a more radio“Everybody seems friendly (read: shorter and more concerned with simpler) tune. what was thrown off Capitol promoted the bridge than they are “Mississippi Delta,” but DJs with the thoughtlessness soon preferred spinning of people expressed in “Ode to Billie Joe.” Once the song,” she groused. it hit Billboard’s singles “The real ‘message’ of the charts, “Ode” took just song, if there must be a three weeks to reach No. message, revolves around 1 and pave the way for the nonchalant way the three Grammy Awards that family talks about the followed the next year. suicide.” But nothing that Capitol Gentry was born released after that came “Ode to Billie Joe” Roberta Lee Streeter close to Bobbie Gentry’s Bobbie Gentry in Chickasaw County, debut smash. August 1967 Mississippi, in 1942. She moved to Las Vegas When her parents early in the 1970s and divorced, Bobbie moved in with her headlined the Strip with a revue that grandparents. She taught herself to play she created, produced, and starred in. the piano and write some catchy little Still, she could never escape the tunes. shadow of her lone megahit, which In the mid-1950s, her mother eventually was relegated to the playlists relocated to Palm Springs, California, of “oldies” stations. Eventually she and Gentry followed. During high packed up and left Sin City behind. school, she also mastered the guitar, In 1999, “Ode to Billie Joe” was bass, banjo, and vibes. inducted into the Grammy Hall of After graduation in 1960, she moved Fame. Oddly, when the Grammy to Los Angeles and took philosophy people tried to send Gentry her award, classes at UCLA before switching to the nobody could find a phone number or prestigious Los Angeles Conservatory of an address for her. The award was set Music to study guitar and composition. on a shelf where, one assumes, it still Now calling herself Bobbie rests today. Gentry—from the 1952 movie Forget Billie Joe McAllister. Now Ruby Gentry—she made a demo people should ask, “What really (demonstration) record of an original happened to Bobbie Gentry?” song: “Mississippi Delta.” Randal C. Hill is a rock ’n’ roll historian When she shopped it around, who lives at the Oregon coast. He may be Capitol Records executives were reached at wryterhill@msn.com. instantly taken with both Gentry’s www.50plusLifePA.com
The Beauty in Nature
Two Toads
Get WISE about maintaining your independence VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR A RESEARCH STUDY
Clyde McMillan-Gamber
Mostly I hear them calling from filled with liquid that tastes bad to pond shallows in spring and early predators. summer. If I look closely, I can see And males of both kinds sit upright males sitting in inch-deep water with in inch-deep water to call for mates bulging throats while trilling or pairs for spawning in those shallows. But floating while spawning in the pond. their vocalizations differ, enabling us Sometimes I see a few on rural to identify them. roads at night with my car headlights. Male American toads enter shallow There, they snap up earthworms and water in many ponds in southeastern insects. And occasionally I spot one Pennsylvania during April. There, hopping across leafthey puff their dark covered, woodland throats and emit floors. pleasant, musical American toads trills that last up to and Woodhouse’s 30 seconds each. toads, also known Able to hear well, as Fowler’s toads, one male starts commonly live trilling and others in southeastern join in, creating a Pennsylvania and chorus that attracts American toad. across much of the female American United States. toads to them Like their for mating and relatives, the frogs, spawning. adult toads are Male Fowler’s tailless amphibians, toads spawn much starting life in still, the same way, except shallow water as their nasal trills— tadpoles with gills “wwaaaahh”—last and swimming tails, for two seconds like fish, but living and bring the Woodhouse’s toad. the rest of their lives genders together for on land with legs spawning. Fowler’s and lungs that breathe air. toads spawn from late May into early Frogs, with their smooth, moist July, which is another way to identify skins, stay close to water to survive, them. but toads, with bumpy, dry skins that Frog and toad eggs are fertilized retain bodily fluids, roam from water externally while each pair is coupled to meadows, fields, and woodland in shallow water. Gelatinous strings of floors. But there they need some toad eggs by the thousands attach to moisture to live, a reason they hide in aquatic vegetation and immersed tree damp places during daytime. twigs. These related toads are similar Swarms of black tadpoles hatch in appearance. Both are mostly from those eggs within a few days. nocturnal, about 4 inches long at Those tads eat algae and decayed plant maturity, and basically brown, which and animal material in the shallows, blends them into their habitats of soil, grow legs and lungs as their tails sand, and dead-leaf carpets on forest become absorbed, and hop onto land, floors. all within a few months. Both have rough skins and lovely Toads are interesting critters that do eyes with horizontal pupils. Both us no harm. And they are attractive in species have a bulging paratoid gland their camouflaged way. Try to tolerate behind each eardrum. Each gland is their presence when you spot them. www.50plusLifePA.com
WISE is a research study for adults 65 or older that have fallen and broken a bone. The study will compare the effects of two free programs to prevent falls and fractures. IRB research 3576 (10/19/15) • Pull • RES-8694This has been approved by by the 8/31/2017 Institutional Review Board, under federal regulations 17-68864 0317 at Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, Penn State College of Medicine. IRB 3576 (7/11/17)
WHAT WILL PARTICIPANTS DO? • Have the opportunity to test the strength of their bones and muscles • Receive practical tips to help prevent falls • Work with a coach to personalize an exercise program. • Receive up to $150 STUDY DIRECTOR: Dr. Christopher Sciamanna Department of Medicine
844-598-9598
E
October 7, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Lebanon Expo Center 80 Rocherty Road Lebanon
omen’s Expo Lancaster County
October 14, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
omen’s Expo Cumberland County
November 11, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Carlisle Expo Center
Spooky Nook Sports
2913 Spooky Nook Road Manheim
Holiday Shopping Health & Beauty
Fun!
100 K Street Carlisle
Look for
the
Pop-up!
717.285.1350
CHANNEL your local connection
LCTV
FREE advance guest registration online! ($5 at the door) Talk to us about sponsor and exhibitor opportunities.
aGreatWayToSpendMyDay.com 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
9
Traveltizers
A Visit to Las Vegas that is Très Magnifique By Andrea Gross
Aha! There it is, the Eiffel Tower. Around the corner, the Arc de Triomphe. And right nearby, a row of quaint shops on a cobblestoned street. Voilà, this is Paris, n’est-ce pas? Actually, it’s Paris Las Vegas, a French-themed hotel and casino that’s done a remarkable job of bringing the famous landmarks of the governmental capital of France to the entertainment capital of the United States. Although at first it’s a bit The 460-foot Las Vegas Eiffel Tower, disconcerting to see Parisian an almost-exact half-scale replica of the landmarks sitting amidst the original, was built using Gustav Eiffel’s high-rise hotels and brightly lit plans for the original. casinos, it’s also très magnifique. that the famous landmarks were The architects and designers reproduced as accurately as possible. responsible for creating the Paris Las Their greatest coup was securing Vegas Hotel, which opened in 1999, the original plans that Gustav Eiffel went to great lengths to make sure
than 40 stories) into the desert sky. The major difference, aside from size, has to do with safety. Rather than joining beams with rivets as in the original, modern builders felt that welding would produce a stronger structure. Then, to ensure an authentic look, they overlaid the welding with cosmetic rivets. The concern for accuracy even extended to the lighting The Arc de Triomphe, replicated in 2/3 scale, system. In 1989, 100 years honors soldiers who fought with Napoleon. after the original tower was built, lights were added to brighten the Paris sky. Ten used to build his monument for the years later the same experts Paris Exposition in 1889. The Las were hired to install the lights in the Vegas tower is an almost-exact halfLas Vegas reproduction. scale replica, soaring 460 feet (more The Eiffel Tower is the first sign
Score BIG With DISH Deals! 190 Channels
49
Now only ...
$
for 24 months
99 .
ADD HIGH-SPEED INTERNET
14
$
.95 /mo.
Subject to availability. Restrictions apply.
/mo.
HBO Included At No Cost!
Now, for a limited time get America’s most popular premium network, a $180 value, included for 12 months when you purchase a qualifying Dish Network TV package!
DAY FREE SAME INSTALLATION in up to 6 rooms
CALL TODAY INSTALLED TODAY!
where available
Switch to Get a FRE
Control your TV ha Hopper + Amazon
Call Today - Promo Code: FreeEchoDot
LIMITED TIME! Men
1-877-489-3338
Offer for new and qualifying former customers only. Important Terms and Conditions: EchoDot: Requires credit qualification and new DISH activation with Hopper® with Sling® or Hopper3®. Free Echo Dot provided by DISH. Amazon is not a sponsor of this promotion. Alexa, Echo, Echo Dot, Amazon Tap, and all related logos are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Qualification: Advertised price requires credit qualification and eAutoPay. Upfront activation and/or receiver upgrade fees may apply based on credit qualification. Offer ends 10/18/17. 2-Year Commitment: Early termination fee of $20/mo. remaining applies if you cancel early. Included in 2-year price guarantee at $49.99 advertised price: America's Top 120 programming package, Local channels HD service fees, and equipment for 1 TV. Included in 2-year price guarantee for additional cost: Programming package upgrades ($59.99 for AT120+, $69.99 for AT200, $79.99 for AT250), monthly fees for additional receivers ($5-$7 per additional TV, receivers with additional functionality may be $10-$15) and monthly DVR fees ($10-$15). NOT included in 2-year price guarantee or advertised price (and subject to change): Taxes & surcharges, add-on programming (including premium channels), DISH Protect, and transactional fees. Premium Channels: HBO: After 12 mos., you will be billed $15/mo. unless you call to cancel. 3 Mos. Free: After 3 mos., you will be billed $40/mo. for Cinemax, Showtime, Starz and DISH Movie Pack unless you call to cancel. tŝƚŚ WƌŝŵĞdŝŵĞ ŶLJƟŵĞ ƌĞĐŽƌĚ ͕ ^͕ &Ky ĂŶĚ E ƉůƵƐ ƚǁŽ ĐŚĂŶŶĞůƐ͘ tŝƚŚ ĂĚĚŝƟŽŶ ŽĨ ^ƵƉĞƌ :ŽĞLJ ƌĞĐŽƌĚ ƚǁŽ ĂĚĚŝƟŽŶĂů ĐŚĂŶŶĞůƐ͘ ŽŵŵĞƌĐŝĂů ƐŬŝƉ ĨĞĂƚƵƌĞ ŝƐ ĂǀĂŝůĂďůĞ Ăƚ ǀĂƌLJŝŶŐ ƟŵĞƐ͕ ƐƚĂƌƟŶŐ ƚŚĞ ĚĂLJ ĂŌĞƌ ĂŝƌŝŶŐ͕ ĨŽƌ ƐĞůĞĐƚ ƉƌŝŵĞƟŵĞ ƐŚŽǁƐ ŽŶ ͕ ^͕ &Ky ĂŶĚ E ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ǁŝƚŚ WƌŝŵĞdŝŵĞ ŶLJƟŵĞ͘ ZĞĐŽƌĚŝŶŐ ŚŽƵƌƐ ǀĂƌLJ͖ ϮϬϬϬ ŚŽƵƌƐ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ^ ƉƌŽŐƌĂŵŵŝŶŐ͘ ƋƵŝƉŵĞŶƚ ĐŽŵƉĂƌŝƐŽŶ ďĂƐĞĚ ŽŶ ĞƋƵŝƉŵĞŶƚ ĂǀĂŝůĂďůĞ ĨƌŽŵ ŵĂũŽƌ ds ƉƌŽǀŝĚĞƌƐ ĂƐ ŽĨ ϰͬϭͬϭϳ͘ tĂƚĐŚŝŶŐ ůŝǀĞ ĂŶĚ ƌĞĐŽƌĚĞĚ ds ĂŶLJǁŚĞƌĞ ƌĞƋƵŝƌĞƐ ĂŶ /ŶƚĞƌŶĞƚͲĐŽŶŶĞĐƚĞĚ͕ ^ůŝŶŐͲĞŶĂďůĞĚ sZ ĂŶĚ ĐŽŵƉĂƟďůĞ ŵŽďŝůĞ ĚĞǀŝĐĞ ͘ Other: All packages, programming, features, and functionality and all prices and fees not included in price lock are subject to change without notice. After 6 mos., you will be billed $8.99/mo. for DISH Protect unless you call to cancel. After 2 years, then-current everyday prices for all services apply. For business customers, additional monthly fees may apply. HBO®, Cinemax® and related channels and service marks are the property of Home Box Office, Inc. SHOWTIME is a registered trademark of Showtime Networks Inc., a CBS Company. STARZ and related channels and service marks are property of Starz Entertainment, LLC. With PrimeTime Anytime record ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC plus two channels. With addition of Super Joey record two additional channels. Commercial skip feature is available at varying times, starting the day after airing, for select primetime shows on ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC recorded with PrimeTime Anytime. Recording hours vary; 2000 hours based on SD programming. Equipment comparison based on equipment available from major TV providers as of 4/1/17. Watching live and recorded TV anywhere requires an Internet-connected, Sling-enabled DVR and compatible mobile device. All offers require credit qualification, 2-Year commitment with early termination fee and eAutoPay.
10
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
www.50plusLifePA.com
of Paris that visitors to Las Vegas see boutique wine offerings. when they drive up the famous Strip, But it’s the Eiffel Tower restaurant, but it’s far from the only one. People on the 11th floor of the tower, that is who are arriving at the Paris Las Vegas the epitome of Parisian elegance. The prices are nearly as stratospheric Hotel drive around a 2/3-scale replica of the Arc de Triomphe, a Parisian as the view, but no one seems to landmark honoring the soldiers who care. After all, this is a restaurant fought with Napoleon. that’s often dubbed one of the most Some parts of the hotel have facades romantic in the country, and what that echo renowned buildings in Paris. is more French than romance? (Tip: One wall looks like the Paris Opera Those who are more pragmatic than House, and the outside of the 34-story romantic can opt to go for brunch or, hotel itself was better yet, go designed to for a tasting.) look like Paris’s The Village Buffet takes 800-year-old diners to the Hôtel de Ville, which now provinces serves as Paris’ outside of Paris city hall. to experience The Parisian the sights and theme carries tastes of the countryside. to the inside, where touches The restaurant of France has six sections, The Village Buffet restaurant lets each of which adorn the diners experience the food and casino, lobby, replicates the atmosphere of the provinces. architecture and, most and design of all, the shopping of a specific province. promenade. Likewise, The retail there are a area, which is completely variety of cooking indoors, has stations that “cobblestoned” feature the streets, wrought-iron foods and cooking styles streetlamps, of each region. and shops The Strip is often called Las Vegas’s Guests, who fashioned to Champs-Élysées. look distinctly are welcome to gorge European, with themselves with food from all of flowerboxes and balustrades. the provinces, can have crêpes à la As with the architecture, the hotel’s restaurants pride themselves Brittany, seafood from Normandy, meats from Burgundy, croissants from on authenticity. Many are devoted to Alsace, and beverages from Bretagne. French food of one sort or another — from crusty baguettes and delicate (Tip: The buffet isn’t cheap, so go crepes to foie gras and le filet de bœuf. when you’re hungry.) Finally, almost hidden in a corner Mon Ami Gabi is an upscale café on the hotel’s north side, Le Cabaret where people can eat outside and offers an ooh-là-là experience during watch folks stroll up and down the Strip, except that the bow-tied waiters which folks make merry as they sip cocktails and listen to live music. don’t call it “the Strip.” They call it Now what could be more French “the Champs-Élysées.” than that? Here, diners can start with wild escargots or onion soup au gratin, For an expanded version of this story, move on to chicken grand-mère, and see www.traveltizers.com. Photos © Irv finish up with a vanilla bean crème Green unless otherwise noted; story by brûlée — if, that is, they don’t get Andrea Gross (www.andreagross.com). sidetracked by some of the 80-plus www.50plusLifePA.com
Greenfield Senior Living at Graysonview Personal Care | Adult Day Care Short-Term Stays | Hospice Support Offering the award-winning care that seniors deserve. Encouraging choice, respect and purposeful living. With our 24/7 on-site care staff, in-house therapies, and engaging activities, residents can maintain the perfect balance of independence and customized care.
Call today to schedule your personal tour and discover exceptional care you can trust.
717-558-7771 VA Approved Community Greenfield Senior Living at Graysonview 150 Kempton Ave. | Harrisburg, PA 17111 Phone: 717-558-7771
Learn more about us at
www.greenfieldseniorliving.com 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
11
Is This Thing On?
Put it All in Order – Create a Filing System Abby Stokes
Aug. 29, 2017
Nov. 2, 2017
Radisson Hotel Harrisburg
Spooky Nook Sports
9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
1150 Camp Hill Bypass Camp Hill
9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
FREE PARKING!
2913 Spooky Nook Rd. Manheim
Please, join us! This combined event is FREE for veterans of all ages, active military, and their families.
At the Expo
Veterans Benefits Community Services Products and Services Available Support/Assistance Programs Education/Training Services
At the Job Fair
Employers Job Counseling Workshops/Seminars Resume Writing Assistance Principal Sponsor:
LIFE
Sponsored by: Blue Ridge Communications • Disabled American Veterans ESPN 92.5 / 92.7 • Fulton Financial Corporation • The Guide • LCTV Pennsylvania American Legion • Pennsylvania National Guard Outreach Office Pennsylvania State Headquarters VFW • USAA WFYL • WHP580/BOB 94.9 • WHTM abc27
Sponsor & Exhibitor Opportunities Available
www.veteransexpo.com (717) 285-1350 www.olpevents.com
12
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
Brought to you by:
You don’t need to be a neatnik for called “travel” and in it a document the sake of your buddy, the computer. titled “packing list” and another called It couldn’t care less whether you can “Italy itinerary.” Those two items are find the documents you “penned.” files contained in the folder “travel.”) Nor does it have any investment To assist in identifying the contents, in whether your photographs are you will assign the folder a name. organized in a folder or if they live Again, specificity counts. The icon for higgledy-piggledy all over your a folder helps clarify things because machine. it looks like a manila folder and it You are the sole beneficiary of an functions like one. organized computer. Knowing where You can even have a folder system things within are stored a folder, makes your similar to a computing family tree, experience as in the manageable illustration and more I included. pleasant. On my Don’t you computer, deserve the main Abby’s folder tree. that? folder is A file named can be a word-processing document, a “Abby.” Within that folder are folders digital or scanned photograph, a video titled “Correspondence,” “Travel,” and clip, an audio or music recording, a “Recipes,” to name a few. PowerPoint slideshow, or a movie. Inside the correspondence folder are It could be a multipage document folders designated by year that store containing text, graphics, and photos. the correspondence of each year. In every case, a file must have Within the travel folder are various a name. Ideally, that name clearly itineraries and conversion charts. describes the contents of the file, The recipe folder contains separate thereby eliminating the need to folders for appetizers, main courses, open the file to reveal the gist of its side dishes, and desserts—each folder contents. It’s a good idea to include with recipes in it. who, what, and when in the filename Starting to get the picture? Here’s (e.g., Betty Xmas 2014). the rule of thumb to keep things A filename can contain spaces and organized: If you have three or more may be uppercase and lowercase, but files that can be grouped, make a punctuation can sometimes be tricky. folder to store them. You can’t use slashes or question marks. If you must have a means to Create a Folder divide text, to be safe use the hyphen key (e.g., Accountant Final Letter 4-14If you have a PC: 2015). A folder is not a file. I know it’s • Move your mouse to a blank spot on confusing, but to the computer a file the Desktop. is a file and a folder is a folder. There’s • Click with the right button of the no such thing as a “file folder” on the mouse. computer. • Left-click on New (all other clicks A folder is a means to store and will be with the left button after this organize one or more files. (For point). example, you might have a folder www.50plusLifePA.com
• Move the mouse into the menu that opened next to New. • Click on Folder at the top of the list. A folder will now appear on the Desktop. • Do not click the mouse at this stage. Instead type the desired name of the folder. For this exercise, simply type your first name.
Instead type the desired name of the folder. For this exercise, simply type your first name. • Hit the Return or Enter key to save the new name.
Creating a new folder on a PC.
• Doubleclick on your folder to open it.
Well done! Repeat these steps any time you want a new folder to appear on your • Hit the Desktop. Enter key to These are the save the new Creating a new folder on a Mac. same steps name. you would • Double-click on the folder to open follow to create a folder within a it. folder anywhere on your computer. If you have a Mac: • Click on the Desktop. • Click on File at the top of the window. • Click on New Folder. • Do not click the mouse at this stage.
Abby Stokes, author of “Is This Thing On?” A Friendly Guide to Everything Digital for Newbies, Technophobes, and the Kicking & Screaming and its companion website, AskAbbyStokes.com, is the Johnny Appleseed of Technology, singlehandedly helping more than 300,000 people cross the digital divide.
RIDE from page 3 three bets. My problem, Steve, is that even when played with perfect strategy, the casino advantage on Let It Ride is 3.51 percent, well above my axiom: “Never make a wager that has higher than a 2 percent house edge.” That is almost six times higher than blackjack when using perfect basic strategy. Incidentally, amongst dealers, Let It Ride is nicknamed “Let It Die,” since the tipping rate is terrible. Regarding the “Three-Card Bonus Bet,” it is a side bet that pays, based on the poker value of the player’s three cards, similar to the pair-plus wager in Three-Card Poker. With Let It Ride, the wager has a separate win for a “mini royal,” defined as ace/ king/queen of one suit. www.50plusLifePA.com
With any Let It Ride side bets, where you are offered an additional payoff with certain paying hands, all of these wagers carry a whopping double-digit casino edge, and I would recommend that you avoid all of them. Gambling Wisdom of the Month: “Look at that guy—can’t run six balls and he’s president of the United States.” – Johnny Irish, pool hustler on Richard Nixon, McGoorty (1972) Mark Pilarski is a recognized authority on casino gambling, having survived 18 years in the casino trenches. Pilarski is the creator of the bestselling, award-winning audio book series on casino gambling, Hooked on Winning. www.markpilarski. com
Would you like to serve those who have served?
www.veteransexpo.com
Aug. 29, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Radisson Hotel Harrisburg 1150 Camp Hill Bypass, Camp Hill
The Veterans’ Expo & Job Fair welcomes volunteers! If you can help with registration or stuffing attendee bags for all or just part of the day, we’d love to have you. Contact Kimberly Shaffer at (717) 285-8123 or kshaffer@onlinepub.com for more information.
Stories of ordinary men and women called to perform extraordinary military service. From 1999–2016, writer and World War II veteran Col. Robert D. Wilcox preserved the firsthand wartime experiences of more than 200 veterans through Salute to a Veteran, his monthly column featured in 50plus LIFE. Now, for the first time, 50 of those stories— selected by Wilcox himself—are available to own in this soft-cover book.
Simply complete and mail this form with your payment to the address below to order Salute to Our Veterans. On-Line Publishers • 3912 Abel Drive, Columbia, PA 17512 Name_ _______________________________________________________ Address_ ______________________________________________________ City_______________________________ State_ ____ Zip_ ______________ Phone_ _____________________ Email______________________________ Number of copies_ ______ (Please include $20.80 for each copy) Credit card #______________________________________ Exp. date________ Signature of cardholder_________________________________CVV #________
Or send a check made payable to On-Line Publishers, Inc. You can also order online at www.50plusLIFEpa.com! 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
13
Booming Voice
Traditional Reading Bill Levine
This past Chanukah I gave my 21year-old son, Matt, a gift of a book. Compared to Matt’s other gifts of cool clothes and a Budweiser can candle, I feared that the book would be rated a distant third. After all, Matt could only come up with one book on his “mayberead list”: Murder in Belmont, about a hometown crime. As his book-loving dad, I was disappointed by Matt’s list. I would have preferred: “Get me 12 William Faulkners and Bill O’Reilly’s latest, Killing, Killing, and Still Killing Rasputin.” But Matt and his older brother, Craig, had read for pleasure about two books total after middle school. My millennials did read for pleasure in their elementary school days. Indeed, my family reading
tradition reached its apex at about 11:30 p.m. in July 2004 when my tween boys, my wife, and I were part of a several-blocks-long queue. Everyone was waiting in line to pick up a new Harry Potter book. It was Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Alcatraz or something like that. We made it into Waldenbooks about 12:20 a.m. or so, and Craig and Matt were handed their books by wizardcostumed store clerks. We were a bibliophile family, at least on that night.
Please join us! FREE events!
FR E PARKEING
!
21st Annual
Sept. 21, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Spooky Nook Sports
LANCASTER COUNTY
2913 Spooky Nook Road Manheim
15th Annual
Sept. 28, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
York Expo Center
YORK COUNTY
Memorial Hall East 334 Carlisle Avenue, York
18th Annual
Oct. 19, 2017 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Carlisle Expo Center 100 K Street Carlisle
CUMBERLAND COUNTY
Exhibitors • Health Screenings • Seminars • Demonstrations • Entertainment • Door Prizes Limited Sponsorship Opportunities Available (717) 285-1350 (717) 770-0140 (610) 675-6240
14
www.50plusExpoPA.com
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
In my own childhood I would have loved events like the Harry Potter hot-off-the-press soiree. These book promotions never happened in my childhood. In fact, as a tween, I went into a bookstore with no mandate from the publishing industry to buy a specific book. But my mom would give me time to browse Lauriat Books for reference books. In those days, I read because I was a curious introvert, and I needed to prep for my role as the class know-it-all. It all led up to a shining moment in fifth grade, circa 1962, when I correctly named all of the Kennedy cabinet members, gleaned from my 1961 Encyclopaedia Britannica supplement. As I went through attenuated adolescence in college, my pleasure reading broadened out to include everything except sci-fi and Jacqueline Susann. But my focus in pleasure reading was often the sexual and romantic plots within the book at hand, as I was a callow youth. As I have matured over the years, reading has continued to feed invaluable self-reflection and enjoyment. Some of my best reads in the past couple of decades have been family-oriented novels. I have dug into these volumes to see if indeed our family is just normally crazy or really crazy. I would have liked to say that my millennials have benefitted from reading as I have over my lifetime. It would have been an important tradition to pass down. At least, though, I tried to set an example of a committed pleasure reader. On our cruise-ship vacations they have watched me read on just about every deck on a ship, forgoing
the more enticing opportunities, like the belly-flop competition and towelfolding clinics. But pleasure reading for my millennials has mostly been done in by all the available leisure-timeabsorbing digital delights, such as unlimited texting plans and limited factual news. They did, however, somehow pick up on my love of basketball. Their skillful dedication to the hoop followed in my own clumsy footsteps; it was my one alternative pastime as an adolescent. I don’t really know how my kids caught the b-ball bug. It could be through osmosis, or maybe it was just through DNA that was dominant for basketball and recessive for Quidditch. True, my wife is 6 feet and my son’s heights are 6 feet 5 inches and 6 feet 2 inches—but I swear I married for love, not basketball. My last gasp, then, to entice these millennials to read is to utilize their love of basketball. I am going to lend them my two favorite basketball books, To the Hoop by Ira Berkow and My Losing Season by Pat Conroy. These are great books because they are about personal odysseys as much as trips up and down the court. It would be wonderful if these books whet the boys’ reading appetites. Then maybe when I have narrowed my life down to reading and TV in my declining years, we will still have a meaningful father-and-son activity, just like my father and I did. Even when my dad was in his 90s, he always was ready to lend me books that he had read. In return, I could always get him a gift of a book. If this ploy does not work, I will settle for harping on Matt to finish Murder in Belmont. Bill Levine is a retired IT professional and active freelance writer. Bill aspires to be a humorist because it is easier to be pithy than funny.
www.50plusLifePA.com
Savvy Senior
New Medicare Cards Debut Next Year Jim Miller
Dear Savvy Senior, I just received my Medicare card in the mail and was surprised to see that the ID number is the same as my Social Security number. I know it’s a bad idea to carry around anything that displays my Social Security number because it makes me vulnerable to identity theft. Wasn’t the government supposed to stop putting Social Security numbers on Medicare cards? – New Beneficiary Dear New, Many people new to Medicare are surprised to learn that the ID number on their Medicare card is still identical to their Social Security number. After all, we’re constantly warned not to carry our SSN around with us, because if it gets lost or stolen, the result could be identity theft. But the card itself tells beneficiaries to carry it with you when you are away from home so you can show it at the doctor’s office or hospital when you need medical care. Here’s what you should do to protect yourself. New Medicare Cards For starters, you’ll be happy to know that the government is in the process of removing SSNs from Medicare cards, but with 58 million beneficiaries, it’s a huge undertaking that will be implemented gradually. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will start sending the new cards in April 2018, but it will take until December 2019 before SSNs are removed from all cards. Under the new system, a randomly generated 11-character Medicare beneficiary identifier will replace the SSN-based health claim number on your new Medicare card, but your Medicare benefits will not change. You will receive information in 2018 letting you know about the new Medicare card, with an explanation of www.50plusLifePA.com
how to use the new card and what to do with your old one. You can start using your new Medicare card with the new number as soon as you receive it, and there should be a transition period in 2018 and 2019 when you can use either the old card or the new card. Protect Your Identity Until your new Medicare card is issued, here’s what you can do to protect your SSN on your current card. The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, a national consumer resource on identity theft, recommends that you carry your Medicare card only when you visit a healthcare provider for the first time, so the provider can make a copy for their files. Otherwise, make a photocopy of your card and cut it down to wallet size. Then take a black marker and black out the last four digits of your SSN, and carry that instead in case of an emergency. If your Medicare card does happen to get lost or stolen, you can replace it by calling Social Security at (800) 772-1213 or contacting your local Social Security office. You can also request a card online at www.ssa.gov/ myaccount. Your card will arrive in the mail in about 30 days. If your Medicare card that contains your SSN gets lost or stolen, you’ll need to watch out for Medicare fraud. You can do this by checking your quarterly Medicare summary notices for services or supplies you did not receive. You can also check your Medicare claims early online at MyMedicare. gov (you’ll need to create an account first) or by calling Medicare at (800) 633-4227. If you spot anything suspicious or wrong, call the Inspector General’s fraud hotline at (800) 4478477. Also, watch for other signs of identity theft. For example, if someone uses your Social Security
number to obtain credit, loans, telephone accounts, or other goods and services, report it immediately to the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft.gov or (877) 4384338.
This site will also give you specific steps you’ll need to take to handle this problem. Jim Miller is a regular contributor to the NBC Today show and author of The Savvy Senior Book. www.savvysenior.org
We want to hear from you! What is your preferred term to describe an aging adult?
?
Place your vote at 50plusLIFEpa.com through August 31, 2017! Results will be published in a future issue of 50plus LIFE. Five voters will be chosen at random to receive a $25 gift card to Isaac’s Restaurants, PLUS a free one-year subscription to 50plus LIFE! 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
15
Calendar of Events
Dauphin County
Support Groups Free and open to the public Mondays, 6:30-8 p.m. Grief Support Group Mohler Senior Center 25 Hope Drive, Hershey (717) 732-1000 Aug. 2 and 16, 7-8:30 p.m. ANAD Eating Disorders Support Group PinnacleHealth Polyclinic Landis Building, Sixth Floor, Classroom 1 2501 N. Third St., Harrisburg (717) 712-9535 Aug. 3, 7-8 p.m. Fibromyalgia Support Group LeVan Chiropractic 1000 Briarsdale Road, Suite C, Harrisburg (717) 558-3500 Aug. 8, 6-7 p.m. Alzheimer’s Caregivers Support Group Greenfield Senior Living at Graysonview 150 Kempton Ave., Harrisburg (717) 561-8010 Aug. 9, 6-7 p.m. Alzheimer’s Support Group Brookdale Harrisburg 3560 N. Progress Ave., Harrisburg (717) 671-4700
Senior Center Activities
Aug. 17, 6 p.m. Alzheimer’s Support Group Country Meadows of Hershey Second Floor Training Room 451 Sand Hill Road, Hershey (717) 533-6996 astoner@countrymeadows.com
Bistline Senior Center – (717) 564-5633
Aug. 17, 6-8 p.m. Harrisburg Area Parkinson’s Disease Caregiver Support Group Giant Food Stores – Second Floor 2300 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg (717) 580-7772
Rutherford House – (717) 564-5682, www.rutherfordcenter.org Mondays, 10 a.m. – Line Dancing Tuesdays, noon – Circuit Exercise with Personal Training Fridays, 11 a.m. – Chair Yoga
Aug. 21, 6:30 p.m. Support Group for Families of Those with MemoryRelated Illnesses Frey Village 1020 N. Union St., Middletown (717) 930-1218 Aug. 30, 7-8 p.m. Connections Support Group: Families of Memory Impaired Ecumenical Retirement Community Building 3, Second Floor 3525 Canby St., Harrisburg (717) 561-2590
PARKS & RECREATION
Aug. 16, 2-4 p.m. Parkinson’s Support Group The Residence of the Jewish Home – Second Floor Library 4004 Linglestown Road, Harrisburg (717) 697-2513
Aug. 6, 10-11:30 a.m. – Beginner’s Yoga and Walk,
Wildwood Park
Aug. 13, 10:30 to noon a.m. – Flower Walk: Heat-
Tolerant Plants, Wildwood Park Aug. 20, 6-8 p.m. – Sunday Evening Bird Walk, Wildwood Park
Community Programs Free and open to the public Aug. 2, 7 p.m. World Culture Club of Central PA Meeting Penn State Hershey Medical Center Fifth Floor, Lecture Room B 500 University Drive, Hershey www.worldcultureclubpa.org
Aug. 23, 7 p.m. Piecemakers Quilt Guild of Middletown St. Peter’s Lutheran Church Spring and Union streets, Middletown (717) 915-5555 gsk1308@gmail.com
Aug. 3, 7 p.m. Central Pennsylvania World War II Roundtable Meeting Grace United Methodist Church 433 E. Main St., Hummelstown (717) 503-2862 charlie.centralpaww2rt@gmail.com www.centralpaww2roundtable.org
Aug. 29, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Veterans’ Expo & Job Fair Radisson Hotel Harrisburg 1150 Camp Hill Bypass, Camp Hill (717) 285-1350 www.veteransexpo.com
Aug. 10, 7:30 p.m. Central Pennsylvania Vietnam Roundtable Meeting Vietnam Veterans of America, Michael Novosel MOH Chapter 542 8000 Derry St., Harrisburg (717) 545-2336 centralpavietnamrt@verizon.net www.centralpavietnamroundtable.org
16
August 2017
50plus LIFE H
Aug. 29, 6 p.m. Susquehanna Rovers Volksmarch Walking Club Bass Pro Shop – Hunt Room Harrisburg Mall 3501 Paxton St., Harrisburg (717) 805-9540 If you have an event you would like to include, please email information to mjoyce@onlinepub.com for consideration.
Edgemont Senior Center – (717) 236-2221 Friendship Senior Center – (717) 657-1547 Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 8–9 a.m. – Light Aerobics Wednesdays, 12:30 p.m. – Mah Jong
Library Programs East Shore Area Library, 4501 Ethel St., Harrisburg, (717) 652-9380 Aug. 22, 6:30 p.m. – F act Checking in a Fast-Paced, Social Media-Driven Society Aug. 30, 1 p.m. – C omputer Classes from Start to Finish: Getting to Know Your Computer II Elizabethville Area Library, 80 N. Market St., Elizabethville, (717) 362-9825 Aug. 17, 6 p.m. – Thursday Theater and More Aug. 29, 11 a.m. – C omputer Classes from Start to Finish: Basic Email I Johnson Memorial Library, 799 E. Center St., Millersburg, (717) 692-2658 Aug. 9, 5 p.m. – Pen Pal Club Aug. 12, 11 a.m. – That’s (P)interesting: A DIY Club Kline Library, 530 S. 29th St., Harrisburg, (717) 234-3934 Aug. 12, 11 a.m. – Pen Pal Club Aug. 15, 11 a.m. – Th e Warm Hands Warm Hearts Project Madeline L. Olewine Memorial Library, 2410 N. Third St., Harrisburg, (717) 232-7286 Aug. 9, 5 p.m. – Pen Pal Club Aug. 14, 6 p.m. – Food for Thought Book Discussion McCormick Riverfront Library, 101 Walnut St., Harrisburg, (717) 234-4976 Wednesdays in August, 11:30 a.m. – Midday Getaway Northern Dauphin Library, 683 Main St., Lykens, (717) 453-9315 Aug. 18, 10:30 a.m. – C oncert with Mark DeRose Music and Art Aug. 31, 6 p.m. – Knit 1, Crochet Too! William H. & Marion C. Alexander Family Library, 200 W. Second St., Hummelstown, (717) 566-0949 Aug. 17, 6 p.m. – C oncert with Mark DeRose Music and Art Aug. 23, 6 p.m. – Crazy for Coloring
www.50plusLifePA.com
www.50plusLifePA.com
50plus LIFE H
August 2017
17
Volunteers Needed at Fort Indiantown Gap September 16, 2017 City Island, Harrisburg
Registration at 9 a.m. • Walk at 10 a.m.
September 23, 2017
Clipper Magazine Stadium, Lancaster Registration at 9 a.m. • Walk at 10 a.m.
October 7, 2017
John C. Rudy Park, York Registration at 9 a.m. • Walk at 10 a.m. Easy online registration at http://www.alz.org/walk • Volunteer opportunities available. • Teams and individuals welcome.
Chapter Presenting Sponsors Registration brochures, team packets, and sponsorship packets available. For more information, please contact: Harrisburg Walk Asheleigh Forsburg, Senior Events Manager (717) 651-5020; aforsburg@alz.org
Lancaster/York Walk Fran Gibbons, Constituent Events Manager (717) 568-2595; fgibbons@alz.org
Puzzle Solutions
Alzheimer’s Association 2595 Interstate Drive, Suite 100 • Harrisburg, PA 17110
August 2017
of age for Lebanon, Lancaster, York, Adams, or Franklin County residents (RSVP regulations). Volunteers should also be able to stand and walk for extended periods of time, bend and reach, and lift up to 20 pounds. Volunteers can serve in two- to fourhour time slots during days, nights, and/or weekends, depending on their availability. Orientation and job training are provided. RSVP insures all volunteers for excess liability, accident, and auto. Any RSVP volunteer age 55 and over needing transportation supports to volunteer is eligible for up to $35 per month. For further information, contact RSVP of the Capital Region at (443) 619-3842 or yorkadamsfranklin@ rsvpcapreg.org.
Consumers Prefer the Human Touch Electronic selfservice may be the wave of the future for many organizations, but lots of consumers are bucking the trend. The CRM Buyer website reports that researchers surveyed more than 24,000 consumers in 12 countries about customer interactions, and here’s what they found: • Eighty percent prefer customer service from a human instead of an
automated system. • Eighty-three percent say that interacting with a customer service rep is important on the phone or in a store. • Sixty-eight percent believe they’re more likely to get a better deal when negotiating in person instead of online. • Eighteen percent said they would renew products or services because of good personal customer service, even if they were more expensive.
Visit Our Website At:
Puzzles shown on page 6
18
RSVP of the Capital Region and the United Service Organization at Fort Indiantown Gap need 50 volunteers to fill 50 USO center positions. Volunteer jobs available include: greeting, signing in and assisting guests; phone assistance to callers, providing directions and information; preparing and arranging food and beverages; and keeping the USO clean and tidy. Volunteers must be reliable, have professional communication skills, be detail oriented, and use problemsolving and decision-making skills. Volunteers must also adhere to all health and safety regulations. A criminal background check will be required at the USO’s expense. Individuals must be at least 18 years of age if living in Dauphin, Perry, or Cumberland counties or 55 years
50plusLIFEPA.com Central Pennsylvania’s Award-Winning 50+ Publication
50plus LIFE H
www.50plusLifePA.com
Such is Life
Saralee Perel
Just Another Routine Day
If I ignore the simple things, I’ll be ignoring most of my life. My husband, Bob, never ignores the simple things. Instead, he thrives on monotony. It intensifies his lunacy. Now, before you think, “Saralee always makes her husband look nuts,” please know that he is. And before you think, “Poor Bob. He’s such a good sport,” please know that when I talk about him in a column, he soaks it right up. If I don’t include him, he mopes around the house for days. Last week at the supermarket, Bob shouted from the other end of the fruit and veggie aisle, “Saralee, smell this!” He was holding up a tomato. Shoppers were staring. Begrudgingly I ambled over, smelled the tomato, and remarked, “There’s no smell.” “Are you kidding me?” So he picked up one fruit after another—a banana, a cantaloupe, a strawberry—and held them in my face, saying way too loudly, “Feel the smell. Relish the smell. Be the smell!” Shoppers flew out of our aisle to get as far away from him as they could. I took an obligatory sniff and then kept shopping. He grabbed my arm. “You walk right by so many things without even noticing them.” “Bob, we’ll never get through shopping if you keep smelling every single thing.” He said, “Just look around us. We’re so lucky to be here, where foods from all over the world are available. You never appreciate it. www.50plusLifePA.com
How many people in the world would be ecstatic to walk down these aisles and pick out anything they wanted?” He was right. He walked up to a store manager and solemnly said, “I appreciate your potatoes.” The manager stared blankly. When I was a practicing psychotherapist, a patient taught me, “We spend over 50 percent of our lives doing chores. We might as well enjoy them.” While driving home, Bob said, “Tonight, I’ll be giving thanks for such a special day, when you and I were together buying food.” I thought to myself, “While Bob’s immersed in gratitude, I’ll be thinking about how we did nothing important. Just a few chores. Bob, though, will be thinking that even if a day was routine, every day counts.” I looked at my husband, suddenly realizing that it wasn’t how we spent the day that mattered. It was, instead, all about our attitudes—our different ways of thinking about the very same activity. Bob’s mindfulness versus my nonchalance. I don’t want to skip over days, no matter what we do. It was only then I fully understood what he meant when he said, “Today was a day dreams are made of.” Nationally syndicated, award-winning columnist Saralee Perel can be reached at sperel@saraleeperel.com or via her website: www.saraleeperel.com.
Trust. Honor. Integrity. Service. Traditional Funeral Service t Cremation Options Pre-Planning for Peace of Mind t Veteran’s Benefits Dale A. Auer, Supervisor
t
Amanda J. Seiders, Funeral Director
Convenient Colonial Park Location Just Off I-83
(717) 545-4001
4100 Jonestown Rd., Harrisburg 17109 zimmermanauer@gmail.com www.zimmerman-auer.com
Are you 62+ or Older? Welcome to your new home!
heat included!
Look at all we have to offer ... Newly Renovated Units, Fitness Center, Service Coordinator, and More ... Give us a call and check out our fabulous facilities. We offer congregate meals to all residents, Mon.–Fri., at 11:30 a.m.
b’nai B’rith Apartments
130 South Third Street • Harrisburg
(717) 232-7516
The ultimate resource for boomer and senior living and care options
22nd annual edition
Your inclusion in 50plus Living will help professionals, boomers, and seniors as they move through life’s stages.
Online & In Print. onlinepub.com * reserve bybyAug. * Must reserve Aug.26, 25, 2016 2017 Call about Must to receive early-bird savings. to receive early-bird savings. Early-Bird Closing date: Nov. Closing date: Nov.4,3,2016. 2017 Savings! Street date: Jan.2017 2018 Street date: Jan. *
To be included in the 2018 edition of 50plus LIVING, call your representative or (717) 285-1350 or email info@onlinepub.com 50plus LIFE H
August 2017
19
DENTAL Insurance Physicians Mutual Insurance Company
A less expensive way to help get the dental care you deserve If you’re over 50, you can get coverage for about $1 a day* Keep your own dentist! NO networks to worry about No wait for preventive care and no deductibles – you could get a checkup tomorrow
Coverage for over 350 procedures – including cleanings, exams,
fillings, crowns…even dentures
NO annual or lifetime cap on the cash benefits you can receive
FREE Information Kit
1-855-995-0759 www.dental50plus.com/73
*Individual plan. Product not available in MN, MT, NH, RI, VT, WA. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO, NY;call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer. Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN)
6096F
MB16-NM001Fc