LAW & MONEY

Money Law &

ALL THIS WILL BE YOURS SOMEDAY Some tips for how to talk to your grown children about their inheritance: No need for details, but leave a paper trail, and share insurance information

SIDE HUSTLES Evaluate your skills to find ways to make some money on the side and to discover passions to pursue in your retirement

Simple driving tips that save gas, money

By David Muhlbaum

When fuel prices spike, lots of tips and tricks to save on gas get trotted out. They’re not all worthy.

Here are several that don’t violate the laws of physics, compromise safety or insult your intelligence:

Get the junk out of the trunk

Car engineers spend a lot of time engineering pounds, ounces and grams out of today’s cars. Don’t undo their efforts by leaving anything unnecessary in the luggage compartment.

Golf clubs are a common violator, but so are those bags slated to go to the secondhand store or a case of water bottles.

Every time you accelerate, you’re using gas. How much more? This depends on your car, but the EPA estimates a 1% reduction per 100 pounds. On a per-gallon cost basis, that’s about $0.03, using the EPA baseline figures. rections, all non-electric cars use more fuel when the engine is cold. So, the fewer times you to bring the engine up to temperature, the better. Cold starts aren’t good for your car (or the environment, for that matter).

Shut the engine off

Once you’re stopped, your car is wasting fuel after about 7 to 10 seconds of idling. That’s why newer gas cars (and virtually all hybrids) have a feature that shuts the engine off during stops when the brake is applied. The car’s still on, but the engine isn’t. Push the accelerator pedal, and the engine snaps back on — off you go.

Some people find this maddening (and in truth the smoothness of the systems varies among vehicles), but the gas savings is real. If you want to maximize mileage, don’t disable the auto on-off feature.

And everyone can stop leaving their car on while running back into the house or whatever short errand you’re doing.

Combine your trips

Planning ahead can save gas because grouping trips means fewer miles driven.

But even if you have to go in multiple di

Drive slowly but wisely

Lower speeds require less fuel, since aerodynamic resistance increases with the square of speed. But driving to save fuel doesn’t have to be a dull crawl in the slow lane. Try thinking of it this way: Brakes turn your money into heat, so can you avoid using them?

This isn’t meant to encourage dangerous behavior, like not stopping for stop signs. Rather, anticipate. Look down the road farther, and coast down when you know the traffic signal’s going to change to red.

As for accelerating, if you know you’re going to be holding a higher speed for a while, like when you’re merging onto a highway, go ahead and shove the gas as hard as you need. Not only is slow acceleration in this situation potentially dangerous, it doesn’t actually save fuel.

Don’t rely on the tire light

All cars built since 2007 have what’s called Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS), which monitor the air pressure of your tires.

The hitch is this: That light may not come on until a tire is more than 25% lower than the recommended pressure. If you wait for that, you’re endangering yourself (an underinflated tire can compromise your car’s handling or even lead to a tire blowout) and wasting money (underinflated tires reduce your gas mileage by roughly 0.2% per pound that they’re low).

Doesn’t sound like much, but try this math: If your recommended inflation pressure is 40 psi, and you’re 25% low on air, that’s a 2% hit to your gas mileage. Plus, underinflated tires wear more quickly and unevenly, reducing your tire life.

There’s just no substitute for buying a decent-quality tire gauge (between $5 and $15) and using it at least once a month.

Get the apps and join the club

Phone apps like Gas Buddy, Gas Guru and Fuelzee make it easy to find the best gas deals. Since you can screen for brands, you can also make sure you’re getting good quality fuel, which, in the long run, matters to the health of your car.

Joining a membership club like Costco or Sam’s Club could also pay off. Figuring how quickly you’ll recoup your membership cost with the per-gallon savings on their discounted fuel is pretty easy math.

© The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Frank, Frank&Scherr, LLC ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Elder Law, Estate & Special Needs Planning

Medical Assistance Planning and Eligibility

Advance Medical Directives / Living Wills

Trusts / Estate Planning and Administration / Wills

Powers of Attorney / Guardianship

Disability Planning / Special Needs Trusts

By Lisa Brown

One of the most important conversations you can have with your grown children involves plans for your estate — where assets will end up when one or both parents pass away.

If you feel the time has come to broach this topic, find an hour or two to pull everyone together for a conversation. Here are some tips for speaking with your adult children:

Don’t feel you need to provide specific numbers.

While this may seem counterproductive, there are good reasons to avoid disclosing the details. One is that you and your spouse or partner don’t know how long you will live. The longer you do live, the more money will be needed to pay for lifestyle needs, long-term care and other expenses.

If your children believe they stand to inherit a specific amount — especially if it’s a large sum — it could impede their own plans. They may decide to save less money or lose the drive to achieve their goals — neither of which matches the set of values you probably desire to pass on.

In addition, the children could begin to influence your spending decisions. For example, would you choose a mid-range nursing home instead of a better one, knowing this expense will impact their inheritance?

And, finally, if your adult children share information about their potential windfall with their spouses, a spouse could use this information to their advantage in the event of a divorce.

Which of your children will make your healthcare and financial decisions?

Consider letting the children know which one of them has been designated to make key financial and medical decisions in the event you and your spouse or partner become incapacitated.

The person charged with the financial responsibility needs to have access to key data — legal documents, financial statements and computer passwords. Place this information in a sealed envelope for your child(ren), and instruct them to open it only when needed, if you desire to keep your financial affairs private until then.

For your healthcare agent, make sure you discuss your wishes for food, water and life support with them, and provide them with the signed healthcare power of attorney document. If something happens to you, this healthcare document needs to be quickly accessed.

How will they receive an inheritance? Let your children know how they will receive any inheritance. Will it be outright or in a trust?

A common reason to establish a trust is to help protect any assets from an unfavorable event, such as a divorce or lawsuit. A trust can also help ensure your money is passed along to any grandchildren if the adult child dies prematurely.

Share insurance information. Your adult children are likely the people who will care for you later in life or coordinate your caregiving needs. They need to know information about your medical and long-term care insurance and what to do if there are gaps in coverage.

For example, will long-term care insurance cover all your nursing home expenses, or will you need to use personal funds to supplement the cost?

Also, provide children with all life insurance information, including the companies that issue the policies and contact information for your insurance agents.

Gather information about professional advisers.

Make a list of all people your children will need to know and contact in the event of your death or inability to act on your own behalf. These include attorneys, financial planners and accountants, as well as the insurance agents mentioned above. Take their questions. While it may be difficult for a parent to share this information, it’s even more difficult for most children to discuss their parents’ eventual demise.

But it’s much better to provide them with information and answer any tough questions while you are alive and mentally healthy. A lack of information now may cause confusion and possible conflict among family members down the road.

So, consider finding a sliver of time to help them understand your financial and estate plans and how you’ve prepared to make life easier for them for years to come.

Lisa Brown, CFP®, is partner and Wealth Advisor at Brightworth. This article presents her views, not those of the Kiplinger editorial staff. Check adviser records with the SEC or FINRA.

© 2019 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. How to talk inheritance with your kids CENSUS JOBS Are you looking for a side hustle? Join the 2020 Census team, which allows for flexible hours and pays for training. Apply online at 2020census.gov/jobs or call 1-855-JOB-2020 for more information. STOP IDENTITY THEFT Understand common identity theft tactics and learn how to protect yourself at a free workshop sponsored by Jewish Community Services. It will be held on Thurs., March 19 from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at the Edward A. Myerberg Center, 3101 Fallstaff Rd., Baltimore. To register, call (410) 843-7457. BEACON BITS Ongoing Mar. 19

HAND LETTERING Learn the basics of hand lettering, or drawing decorative letters. BEACON BITS Feb. 25

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Feb. 27

HISTORICAL BOOK READING

Dr. Rick Bell will read from his recently published book, Stolen,

about five boys who were kidnapped in the North and sent to slavery in the South. The cost is $10 for members; $15 for nonmembers. The event takes place on Thurs., Feb. 27 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Maryland Historical Society, 201 W. Monument St., Baltimore. To purchase a ticket, go to mdhs.org.

GREEN CARD INFORMATION Are you or a family member looking to become a permanent resident of the U.S.? Learn more about the process of getting a green card and how to petition for family members. The free class will be held on Wed., Mar. 11

By Neale Godfrey

As we recovered from the recession, many people who wanted to work took any extra jobs they could. In my day, we called these gigs part-time work, second jobs or moonlighting. But today they have been dubbed “side hustles.”

A side hustle is usually taken in addition to your other work, or you can string a bunch together. You are freelancing to supplement your income.

Let’s face it: To avoid having to offer benefits, many companies don’t want to have full-time employees. Also, there’s a market for those interested in side hustles. In addition, side hustles can be a way to pursue some of your passions, which, if done full time, may not cover all of the bills.

A growing phenomenon

“Temporary employment has been growing steadily for the last several years…Nearly 480,000 jobs were added from 2012 to 2019 with companies seeking more flexibility in how they staff, and workers seeking greater control over when and where they work,” according to the New Job Forecast from TrueBlue and Emsi.

The big news was that almost 20% of these workers were 55 or older. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that about 40% of people 55 and older are actively looking for work. (The vast majority of these job seekers are women who are looking for the best job for the next phase of life.)

Also, the New Job Forecast found that these side jobs are projected to increase into almost 3.2 million total jobs for all age groups by 2025, growing by 8.5%. Compare that to only 6% growth for all U.S jobs from now to 2025.

Before you seek out a side hustle, however, evaluate your skills and passions. Here are some lucrative side hustles to consider:

Bookkeeper: $30/hour — You could work with clients via phone or online to set up and track monthly budgets, pay bills, hunt down mistakes on credit card statements, track investments, complain to Medicare about them rejecting doctor bills, etc. You don’t need to be a CPA, but you should be organized; be a whiz at QuickBooks and Excel; and coordinate with your client’s accountant to create quarterly or year-end tax filings and payments.

Career Coach: $20/hour — You could work with clients of any age to help them create resumes, roleplay for interviews, or identify jobs to suit their qualifications. If you have worked in a large or small company before, you will be perfect for this. Copy Editor: $25/hour — If you have an eye for detail and grammar, you could be a freelance copy editor. Many people need someone to review their blog posts before they go live. If you love this work, consider ghostwriting for others. Specialized Consultant: $100+/hour — If you previously worked in a specialized industry, offer your expertise to others. For instance, I have a friend who owned car dealerships. He created a side hustle helping venture capitalists and individual buyers of car dealerships properly value prospective targets. Sharing your talents: Fee varies — If you are a great cook, baker, athlete or musician, you could give lessons; if you can paint, you could do portraits of people or of their homes.

Side hustles aren’t a passing fad. They give the employee flexibility, which is important for the next generation as well as for today’s reitrees.

Sara Sutton, CEO of FlexJobs, told me, “Over the last 10 years, we’ve seen people 55 and older increasingly seek out freelance, part-time and project-based work. We expect this trend will continue, thanks largely to the rise of remote work.

“Usually we see this semi-retirement work arrangement because people want to stay active and contribute professionally, while also supplementing their income.”

A side hustle is also a great way for you to put a toe in the water not only to see if you like your passion as work, but also to see if you can earn money at it before jumping in with both feet.

Neale Godfrey is president and CEO of Children’s Financial Network, Inc. This article was written by and presents his views, not those of the Kiplinger editorial staff.

© 2020 The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

HELP YOUR IMMIGRANT NEIGHBOR Are you interested in helping immigrants in Maryland? Attend a workshop that explains migration trends, debunks myths, and highlights local resources and organizations. The free session takes place on Thurs., March 19 from 4 to 7 p.m. at the University of Maryland Carey School of Law, 500 West Baltimore St., Baltimore. To register, visit http://bit.ly/ImmigrantHelp. BEACON BITS Mar. 19

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Those who wish to educate themselves about retirement planning have a lot of books to choose from.

Most people, however, have the bandwidth to read maybe one or two books on the subject. The challenge becomes how to pick the best comprehensive guide.

A good choice is Your Complete Guide to a Successful and Secure Retirement (Harriman House), by retirement planning experts Lawrence Swedroe and Kevin Grogan. It covers every major aspect of retirement, and the authors helpfully draw upon specialists in each subject area and provide references for readers interested in learning more about a specific topic.

Some of the most informative topics are investment planning strategy, portfolio maintenance, preparing your heirs, retirement planning issues specifically for women, and the dangers of financial abuse, especially as people age.

The book identifies significant errors to avoid. One that many retirees don’t appreciate is “sequence risk” — the failure “to consider that the order of returns matters.” Returns on a portfolio are not constant, and systematic withdrawals during bear markets can cause the value of the portfolio to fall to unsafe levels. A later chapter details strategies that will give you the greatest chance of ensuring that assets will last a lifetime.

Other potential planning errors are underestimating your income requirements during retirement; being too conservative; failing to provide for a spouse; underestimating the importance and need for diversification; and underestimating inflation risks. Asset allocation is key One of the most important issues in retirement is asset allocation. This is the primary determination of the expected return and risk of a portfolio. The chapter devoted to asset allocation, both before and during retirement, covers reasons to increase equity exposure as well as reasons to reduce it.

For example, some of the reasons to increase equity exposure are long life expectancy, high level of job stability, high risk tolerance, the need for higher returns to reach financial goals, and access to multiple streams of stable income.

Reasons to reduce equity exposure are the opposite: High net-worth investors and THE SAVINGS GAME By Elliot Raphaelson

retirees in the later stages of retirement have less of a need for a high equity exposure.

This chapter also discusses factors such as U.S. equities vs. international equities, emerging markets, and small-cap vs. largecap stocks related to historical risk patterns. The book also comprehensively covers Medicare; the proper roles of annuities and insurance, including long-term care options; health savings accounts, which have many tax advantages; and when to consider reverse mortgages.

Reverse mortgages can be a relatively expensive means of borrowing, yet it may be appropriate for individuals who place a greater value on remaining in their home and maintaining their independence.

In the right situation, these mortgages can be a valuable tool, allowing you to maintain a higher standard of living than a person would otherwise be able to do, while remaining in the home.

Guidance for women

A chapter on women’s retirement issues notes several challenges many women face: lower earnings; longer expected life; fewer years of earned income; lower confidence about investing skills; lower likelihood to marry after a gray divorce (divorce after age 50); greater susceptibility to elder abuse; and the statistical likelihood of dying single, divorced or widowed.

This chapter emphasizes that women can mitigate the impact of these factors with the right knowledge and actions. Included is a financial empowerment checklist that will help prepare for retirement.

An essential chapter is devoted to estate planning. The authors cover core estate planning documents, including the durable power of attorney for healthcare and living will, durable power of attorney for finances, a pour-over will, and a discussion of the advantages of revocable trusts and the use of irrevocable trusts.

The authors emphasize the importance of selecting a competent estate planning attorney. In a related chapter, “Preparing Your Heirs,” they list questions that can help determine if your heirs are prepared. The book is not all about financial matters. The authors discuss topics not generally covered in retirement planning books, such as aligning your activities consistent with your life’s purpose, volunteering, maintaining healthy relationships and growing through mental activities. All of these activities have played a significant role in my retirement over the last 20 years.

Elliot Raphaelson welcomes your questions and comments at raphelliot@gmail.com.

© 2019 Elliot Raphaelson. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

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Travel Leisure &

A new book offers a colorful peek inside New York City’s quirky Hotel Chelsea. See story on p. 24.

WWII history via biking in the Netherlands

By Don Mankin

Bucolic. Picturesque. Charming. Clichés, perhaps, but in my 50 years of world travel, I’ve visited few places where those words are more appropriate. The Netherlands is one.

Last summer, I pedaled for several days through the beautiful countryside in southeastern Netherlands, near the border with Germany. It’s hard to believe that such a peaceful place was the site of some of the fiercest fighting of World War II.

This region was the first line of defense against the invasion by the Germans in 1940. After several years of brutal occupation by Nazi forces, the Allies liberated the region in 1945 as they fought their way from the beaches of Normandy to Germany.

Tripsite, the company that hosted me on this trip, aptly calls it “Holland: World War II Reflections.” There were four of us on the tour, including our guide, Martin, a local who grew up hearing stories about the war from his mother, who lived through it all. All of us were in our 70s.

What I experienced as I glided through the pastoral countryside was probably the most effective blood pressure “medicine” I have ever taken — enough exercise to raise my heart rate and burn off some calories, plus scenery that would chill the most hyper Type A personality.

Our daily excursions of 30 miles, more or less, took us on mostly flat, shady bike paths on leafy lanes and country roads, along the tops of dikes overlooking canals and rivers, and through villages of redbrick gingerbread houses.

The scenery was serene, pristine and tidy — fields of flowers; grand homes and castles; ponds, lakes and rivers; and some of the healthiest farm animals I’ve ever seen. Battlefields and barns

The natural beauty of the area belies a dark history. The first four days of the trip focused on the invasion in 1940, which took place in the area around the village of Amerongen.

The village is near the Grebbeline, first constructed in 1745 as a line of defense against invading armies. It’s a vast low-lying area that could be flooded, backed up by classic trench fortifications.

Unfortunately, the Grebbeline was not able to withstand the Germans’ modern artillery and bombs. The Dutch put up a valiant resistance, however, holding them off for five days, rather than the one day the Germans had expected. More than 5,000 Dutch soldiers and civilians lost their lives, and many houses, barns and villages were destroyed.

The occupation added to the toll, as Nazi sympathizers turned in their neighbors and had them shipped off to labor camps.

Despite that bloody history, our stay in Amerongen was quite pleasant. Our accommodations were in a former tobacco barn, the Napoleon Schuur, which is now a boutique hotel featuring the latest in high tech and modern, fashionably-functional interior design.

The historic Amerongen Castle, church and a national park are only a few minutes’ walk (or bicycle ride) away. We ate breakfast and dinner every day on the attractive, airy patio of the Restaurant Hotel Buitenlust, a café on a cobblestone street near the hotel. Museums and cemeteries

Highlights of my first four days in the region included the Het Depot (“the Depot”), an art museum in Ede-Wageningen that features modern and avant-garde sculpture from young Dutch artists, and an old Jewish cemetery tucked away behind a row of houses just down the street from the museum.

After four days in Amerongen, we moved on to Otterlo, a quiet town about a 40- minute taxi drive away. Otterlo’s history essentially completes the story of WWII in the region, namely, the liberation by the Allies in 1945.

This is the region where the Allies launched Operation Market Garden to take the bridges that were critical to their advance toward Germany.

This is also the site of the book and movie A Bridge Too Far, which tells the story of the ill-fated attempt to capture the final bridge at Arnhem. The Battle of Otterlo was the last big battle to take place in the Netherlands.

Our group visited the Airborne Museum in the Hotel Hartenstein in Oosterbeek and the Arnhem Oosterbeek War Cemetery, also known as the Airborne Cemetery.

The museum is dedicated to the Battle of Arnhem, and the hotel served as the headquarters for the British 1st Airborne Division. In the basement of the museum is a realistic, loud and adrenaline-inducing depiction of the Battle of Arnhem.

The cemetery visit was just the opposite: tranquil and beautiful, but sad. Both sites elicited deep but different emotions. E-bike helped

The cycling took us through forests, villages and the city of Arnhem. We climbed more hills than in the first four days, so for this section of the trip, Martin advised me to opt for an e-bike, which provides battery-powered assistance on demand, helping me ascend the long, steep hills.

I had trained hard for this trip, going for 30+ mile rides several days a week on the beach bike path in Los Angeles. But if I hadn’t switched to the e-bike, I would have struggled Hills do exist in the Netherlands. A good bike tour company will have e-bikes on hand to help a tour run smoothly. PHOTO BY HANS SLEGERS/SHUTTERSTOCK The small Dutch village of Amerongen, is situated near many World War II-related sites in the Netherlands. Famous battles such as Operation Market Garden, depicted in the 1977 film “A Bridge Too Far,” took place in the Netherlands, which has many museums and cemeteries dedicated to this history. © HILDA WEGES | DREAMSTIME.COM See NETHERLANDS, page 25

By Rick Steves

Europe is a surprisingly creative place when it comes to travel scams. Many of the most successful gambits require a naively trusting tourist, but seasoned travelers can be taken in, too.

We should all be wary of the numerous subtle scams — a cabbie pads your fare, a hotel business center computer records your password, or a waiter offers a special with a “special” increased price.

But if you’re cautious and not overly trusting, you should have no problem. Here are some of the latest travel scams I’ve discovered on my travels, and how to skirt them: Skirting Airbnb protections

You’re searching the web for a shortterm rental in Paris and contact the owner Pierre through Airbnb. Suddenly you get a private email from Pierre saying he can give you a better deal on the side — avoiding the website commission. The price is right, and the location is fantastic, but Pierre wants you to wire the money directly to his bank account.

“I’ve got others interested too, so you’d better do it quick,” he writes. But once you wire the money, Pierre disappears along with the listing, and there’s no way to get your money back. DEFENSE: When booking accommodations, never wire money directly to a foreign bank account. Stick with a reputable, secure reservation website, and use a credit card, so you can dispute any fraudulent transactions. ATM PIN theft

In the heart of Barcelona, you are about to use an ATM when another tourist stands on the sidewalk with a selfie stick and starts taking pictures. You don’t think much about it as you withdraw your money and head into the Metro.

Five minutes later, after being jostled in a crowded subway car, you find that your wallet is missing. When you frantically call your bank, you find out that someone with your PIN has already withdrawn hundreds of euros from a different ATM.

It turns out the “tourist” with the selfie stick was actually taking a video as you entered your PIN on the ATM keypad. His accomplice then targeted you in the subway. DEFENSE: Check your surroundings before withdrawing cash from an ATM. If there is someone suspicious nearby, find a different ATM. And always cover the keypad when you enter your PIN. Invalid ticket sale

Fresh off a long flight into Schiphol Airport and eager to get to your hotel in central Amsterdam, you approach the train-ticket machine with your credit card in hand.

But a friendly-looking passerby offers to sell you at a discount a legit-looking ticket, saying he accidentally purchased two. Later when you feed the ticket into a turnstile, it doesn’t work — the ticket was either a fake or already had its bar code scanned. DEFENSE: Never hand over cash (or a card) to someone who’s not behind a counter. Currency exchange rip-off

On your last day in London, you find a Union Jack coaster set you know your sister will love. You push your credit card into the reader, and it defaults to running the transaction in “USD” unless you select “GBP.”

The shopkeeper explains that the U.S. dollar option is a service that lets you “lock in” your conversion rate.

Later when you’re in Edinburgh, an ATM offers two options: “You can be charged in dollars: Press YES for dollars, NO for British pounds.” You think “dollars” is the logical choice and press YES.

But when you check your bank statements, you see a “fee” for converting both transactions to dollars and a poor exchange rate. You’ve been a victim of what banks call “dynamic currency conversion,” which may be legal, but is a rip-off. DEFENSE: When a merchant or a bank asks if you want to be charged in dollars, always choose the local currency. Cancel the transaction if they say you must pay in dollars. Tourist police scam

In Prague two uniformed men stop you on the street, flash “Tourist Police” badges and ask to check your wallet for counterfeit bills. After looking through your wallet, they say everything is fine and leave. You don’t even notice some bills are missing until later. DEFENSE: Never hand over your wallet to anyone. If the “police” insist, tell them you’ll do it at a police station.

There probably aren’t more thieves in Europe than in the U.S. We travelers just notice them more because they target us. But remember, nearly all crimes suffered by tourists are nonviolent — and avoidable. If you exercise adequate discretion, stay aware of your belongings and avoid putting yourself into risky situations, your travels should be about as dangerous as hometown grocery shopping.

Don’t travel fearfully — travel smartly. Rick Steves (ricksteves.com) writes European travel guidebooks and hosts travel shows on public television and public radio. Email him at rick@ricksteves.com.

© 2019 Rick Steves. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Defending yourself against travel scams CERAMICS & SCULPTURES - DECAL MOSAICS With Sarah McCann Create your own mosaic with Community Artist and Curator, Sarah McCann. Mosaics are made by assembling small pieces of glass, tile, and other materials together to make larger image! • Learn what materials to use to make a mosaic! • Learn how to create a decal tile for the mosaic! • 1EOIE[IPPGVEJXIHƤRMWLIH[SVOSJEVX • Have fun! CAREER FAIR Do you need a job? Attend a career fair for a chance to meet dozens of potential employers. The free Baltimore Career Fair will be held on Wed., March 4 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Inn at the Colonnade, 4 West University Pkwy., Baltimore. To register, visit http://bit.ly/CareersMar4. RESUME REVIEW Get noticed during the job application process. Receive one-onone help with your resume. Jewish Community Services is offering free strategizing help with experts on Tues., March 10 from 4 to 6 p.m. at 1201 the Baltimore County Public Library, 1301 Reisterstown Rd., Baltimore. For more information, visit jcsbaltimore.org. BEACON BITS Mar. 4 Mar. 10

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By Katherine Roth

When Colin Miller and Ray Mock set out to document the remaining inhabitants of Hotel Chelsea, the bohemian haven where Jackson Pollock, Andy Warhol, Patti Smith, William S. Burroughs and others once lived and worked, they imagined it as a sort of requiem.

After all, much of the 12-story Gilded Age building, once New York City’s tallest, has been gutted and is being converted into hotel rooms and apartments.

Instead, they found daring, dramatic style alive and well in many of the hotel’s remaining homes. Their new book, Hotel Chelsea: Living in the Last Bohemian Haven (The Monacelli Press), is a big, colorful celebration of more than two dozen residents, their living spaces and their stories.

“I went into this thinking I was making some kind of eulogy, recording something that was being lost. But I discovered that while there are huge portions of the hotel that were gutted, it’s still a living place, with vibrant amazing lives being lived there,” photographer Miller said.

Colorful walls and residents

After much legal wrangling and a few changes of building ownership, between 50 and 60 people still live in the Chelsea, a National Historic Landmark in Manhattan’s

Chelsea neighborhood. Nineteen of them are featured in the hefty coffee-table book. Miller calls it “a story of resilience, an exploration of how people adapt in New York City.”

“I’m not sure I could see myself living in some of these situations, but they’re really beautiful,” Miller added. “It seems like every door that opens enters into a whole different world.”

Mock, who wrote the text, concurs. “You never know what to expect when walking into these apartments,” he said. “I had a real ‘Oh, wow!’ moment when I walked into Tony Notarberardino’s apartment, for example. Earthy rich colors on the walls and ceiling. It immediately opened a window into the past.”

The apartment consists of two rooms joined by a colorfully painted curved hallway and is one of the most visually arresting apartments featured in the book.

The rooms are crowded with “wondrous objects, photographs, furniture and garments, yet each has its own visual identity owing to the elaborate murals left behind by a previous tenant, the enigmatic artist Vali Myers, in what is now Notarberardino’s bedroom,” reads a description in the book. It goes on to describe Notarberardino’s own first impressions of the building he has long called home. “It was late at night. I walked in and immediately loved it. I felt like I had walked into a movie set,” he’s quoted as saying. Liberating décor

Describing the book project, Mock said, “Maybe part of what attracted me to Hotel Chelsea is some of these apartments reminded me of my college apartment.

“There are living spaces where no wall is unpainted. People just get an idea in their head and they go for it. It’s very liberating.” The residents of Hotel Chelsea can teach us all something about the rooms we live in, he and Miller said.

“In terms of my own apartment, it emboldened me a little bit,” Mock admitted. “It reinforced my belief that it’s okay to be a little See HOTEL CHELSEA, page 25 New York City photographer Tony Notarberardino lives in this colorful apartment in the legendary Hotel Chelsea. Many writers and musicians have lived in the landmark hotel, including Mark Twain, O. Henry, Thomas Wolfe, Jim Morrison, Leonard Cohen and Madonna. PHOTO BY COLIN MILLER

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to get up the few hills we did encounter in one of the flattest countries on earth.

I took the last couple of days off and joined my wife, Katherine, in exploring the area around Otterlo on foot. It was a good decision. Otterlo is located a short walk from the National Park De Hoge Veluwe, and we found many hiking trails in and around the park and town.

The excellent Kröller-Müller Museum and Sculpture Garden are in the heart of the park. The art museum is spacious, Netherlands From page 22 filled with natural light and beautifully laid out. It also has a great collection, including many Van Goghs, second only to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.

The sculpture garden was the best I’ve ever seen, with miles of trails and almost 200 impressive pieces scattered along the paths and in the forest.

Our accommodations in Otterlo were at the Hotel De Sterrenberg, a sleek, modern four-star hotel that deserves every one of those stars.

We splurged one night in the excellent restaurant in the hotel and ordered the fourcourse “Chef’s Surprise.” I couldn’t begin to Say you saw it in the Beacon | Leisure & Travel

describe all of the food in those four courses, though I do remember trout, bass and duck, plus a whole bunch of ingredients that I couldn’t recognize or even pronounce.

The most important element in the success of the Netherlands trip was our guide, Martin. His knowledge of the area ensured that we took the most scenic, historic and safe routes each day, and his stories bought the history to life, adding an important personal perspective to what we saw and experienced.

And I’m especially grateful to Hosea Libbey, inventor of the e-bike. If it wasn’t for him, I might have spent way too much time puffing and grinding my way up gentle hills rather than enjoying scenery as bucolic, picturesque and charming as it gets.

If you go

Tripsite’s week-long bike tours through the Netherlands range from $1,200 to $2,700. Check tripsite.com or call 1-800- 951-4384.

Flights from BWI to Amsterdam in March start at $760 on United Airlines.

More information on WWII history in the Netherlands is available at holland.com/ global/tourism/holland-stories/liberation-route.

wild and different, and a little clutter is okay.” Miller, a self-described minimalist, said immersing himself in the world of Hotel Chelsea made him push his aesthetic limits. “One of the things I love so much is how bold the living spaces are. All the walls are black, or all the walls are red. They show how to be really brave when you’re making design decisions,” Miller said.

“I generally have a pretty minimalist aesthetic, but now I’m thinking about doing a room of my home in wallpaper. I saw an apartment all done completely in antique wallpapers at Hotel Chelsea,” he said. “I never would have considered that before.” Hotel Chelsea From page 24 He was referring to the home of Suzanne Lipschutz, an antiques dealer and wallpapers expert who moved into Hotel Chelsea in the 1990s and immediately set to work transforming her one-bedroom apartment. The book describes her wallpaper as “exquisite period papers and borders selected to amplify the mood in every corner of the apartment.

“The small private hallway of her unit, which she shared for years with her nextdoor neighbor, the actor Ethan Hawke, was covered in American arts and crafts wallpaper showing a lush forest scene. She later donated rolls of the same wallpaper to the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum.”

Lipschutz said of her home, “It became this gem, this jewel box of an apartment.”

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Sense of community and family

The book’s other big takeaway is Hotel Chelsea’s sense of community, particularly unusual in a big city like New York.

“Some of that is lost, but there are so many stories of dinner parties attended by all the residents on an entire floor, of people who always left their doors open, and neighbors who were also good friends,” Mock said.

“After hearing all these stories, I asked myself what I can do in my life to foster a sense of community, with maybe shared gatherings on the rooftop, or other ways to reach out to neighbors,” he said.

While it remains to be seen when and whether Hotel Chelsea will open to a mix of new tenants and hotel guests, as was planned at one time, Miller and Mock said everyone featured in the book will be able to remain there.

“And some are raising kids, so there’s another generation growing up in Hotel Chelsea,” Miller said. “Its story is continuing.” –AP

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Arts & Style

In The Ninth Hour, Alice McDermott weaves a story spanning multiple generations. Our cover story continues on page 29.

Play’s characters grapple with life’s end

By Dan Collins

As we age, we all face mortality — our own, that of a parent, a friend, a lover…someone close to us. Some face the reality head on. Others avoid it, ignore it, make bargains with it.

In actor Michael Cristofer’s play The Shadow Box, each character provides a unique perspective on death in ways that are neither judgmental nor maudlin, but ring true as distinctly human.

The play is a Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winner that was turned into a 1980 television movie directed by Paul Newman.

The Shadow Box is running through March 1 at Spotlighters Theatre in downtown Baltimore. It examines three hospice patients, Joe, Brian and Felicity, as they cope with the last days of their lives.

Taking place during a 24-hour period, the play is set on the campus of a large U.S. hospital, specifically in three rooms occupied by each patient and their families.

The actors are on display, as though behind glass, while an unnamed psychiatrist (never seen: we only hear the voice of Rodney Bonds), questions them.

Hence the play’s title: a shadow box is defined as “an enclosed glass-front display case containing an object or objects presented in a thematic grouping with artistic or personal significance.”

Three intriguing characters

The audience is first introduced to Joe

(Jim Hart), aptly named as he portrays what could be called an average Joe, or Everyman. Joe appears to deal with the anxiety and apprehension of his predicament by demonstrating an almost boyish demeanor — not complex or intellectual, just smiling and upbeat. As the play progresses, though, we learn he is actually quite serious in his understanding and acceptance of his fate.

Maribeth Vogel plays Joe’s wife, Maggie, who, as the old saying goes, seems happy to drift down the river of denial, avoiding her husband’s predicament. She refuses to enter their cabin-like room, as if to cross the threshold would constitute acceptance of Joe’s pending mortality.

Between them is Steve (Lincoln Goode), their teenage son, whose chief role in the play is to demonstrate what any parent would dread — having to tell their child they will soon be leaving them forever.

Tom Wyatt portrays Brian, a loquacious, vivacious patient who is torn between expressing his own joy of life while always remaining cognizant of the doom that looms around the corner.

To emphasize Brian’s strengths, Cristofer supplies two foils, his ex-wife Beverly (Holly Pasciullo) and his gay boyfriend, Mark (Caleb Brooks).

While Beverly is a cross between the Unsinkable Molly Brown and Sweet Gypsy Rose, Mark is cerebral, quiet, eyes always cast downward. Mark seems depressed in the classic, clinical sense — that is, depression as anger turned against one’s self. Powerful exchanges

The second act features one of the most engaging, fiery exchanges of the production, as Beverly (Vogel’s Maggie is truly a force to be reckoned with) and Mark butt heads over how best to deal with Brian in his final days. It’s a powerful scene in a play full of powerful scenes.

Director Sharon Weaver assembled an impeccable cast who demonstrate a full range of emotions and expressions. They never fall back on clichés, and the actors occupy their characters rather than simply “playing” them. Completing this triumvirate are Deborah Bennett as Felicity and Sarah George as her daughter. Bennett offers another example of the ways we die, this time from the point of view of an elderly dementia patient and her caregiver, George’s Agnes.

Unlike Joe and Brian, whose illness oftentimes appears distant, only appearing through a sudden fit before dissipating, Felicity’s pain is clearly constant.

She wails, she curses, she all but spits venom at times as someone who is suffering not just physically, but mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

Agnes, like a desperate woman in a sinkSee THE SHADOW BOX, page 27 Deborah Bennett plays Felicity, a dementia patient, and Sarah George is her devoted daughter and caregiver, Agnes, in Spotlighters Theatre’s touching production of the Pulitzer Prize-winning play, The Shadow Box. PHOTO BY SPOTLIGHTERS THEATRE / SHEALYN JAE PHOTOGRAPHY

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Amateur artists 50 and over are invited to enter their best works in a variety of media in the Beacon’s 2020 Celebration of the Arts, an online art competition.

The Beacon held its first Celebration of the Arts competition in 2018, when it attracted more than 900 entries in four categories. This year’s competition has expanded to seven categories.

Winners in each category will receive awards, cash prizes (up to $100), as well as the opportunity to exhibit in one or more area galleries. Judging will be by professional artists, none of whom participated in the last competition, so all new eyes will be on this year’s entries.

In addition, photos of all winning artists and their works will be published in a special Celebration of the Arts section to be printed in the Beacon in the spring. Seven categories

Amateurs may enter digital photos of their original works created after the age of 50 in these categories (up to three items per category): — Painting (watercolor, oil, acrylic) — Drawing (pen and ink, graphite, pastels, calligraphy)

— Sculpture/Carving — Ceramics — Jewelry/Stained Glass — Mixed Media/Textile Art — Digital Photography “Last year’s entries were beautiful and inspiring. And meeting our winners — some of whom were totally new to art — was truly a thrill,” said Stuart Rosenthal, publisher of the Beacon. “We’re very excited to be holding this event again, with support from AARP, and look forward to seeing work from many new artists as well as from those who entered before.”

The online competition is open now, and will close on March 20. Winners will be announced in April, and there will be an artists’ exhibition in May.

Winners will also be honored at boomer/ senior expos in Baltimore County and Montgomery County, Maryland, and in Fairfax County, Virginia. Perks for participants

While there is a modest fee of $10 for each entry, all entrants will be entitled to a oneyear membership in the Maryland Federation of Art (new members only; value: $70). Among other things, the membership will enable artists to have their own web page on the MFA site, where they can share images of up to 20 artworks with friends and family. The Celebration of the Arts was inspired by moving stories from Beacon readers who have returned to an earlier love of art after years away from it, or who developed a passion for it later in life.

Community partners, including dozens of area nonprofits and governmental entities, are helping spread the word about the Celebration throughout the region.

Note that there is no poetry category in the 2020 competition. The Beacon intends to hold a separate writing competition in the near future.

Current sponsors of the event include AARP, the Maryland Federation of Art, Brooke Grove Retirement Village, Pepco and Sommerset.

Other communities and businesses wishing to become sponsors or community partners may call the Beacon at (410) 248-9101 or email alan@thebeaconnewspapers.com for more information.

For complete rules of the competition, visit theBeaconNewspapers.com/COTA2020. Questions? Call (410) 248-9101. Amateur art competition closes March 20

ing boat, tries her best to stem one leak after another. She placates, soothes and speaks whatever language her dying mother needs to find rest. The relationship between mother and daughter is not pretty, special or noble. It is hard — and real.

Felicity has made “a bargain,” as the Interviewer observes, somehow staving off death by sheer force of will, as she waits… waits for someone so dear to her heart she cannot bear leaving even a life of pain without seeing that person again.

There’s a truth here that only Agnes knows, and when it is revealed, we see the great steps some families take for the sake of granting a loved one some semblance of peace. The Shadow Box From page 26

Peaceful resolution The Shadow Box is the sort of play where one may expect Prozac to be distributed to the audience afterward, but antidepressants aren’t necessary.

By play’s end, as Maggie puts aside her denial, Mark faces his role in caring for Brian, and Agnes accepts her mother’s fate, there is the comfort of resolution and the peace that it brings.

Now in its 58th year, Spotlighters continues to amaze with top-rate performances delivered in its intimate “theater in the square.” The Shadow Box is at Spotlighters Theatre, 817 St. Paul, through March 1. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets are $24 ($21 if 60 or over or with military ID). Visit spotlighters.org or call (410) 752- 1225 for more information.

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Bellow — the wonderful writers who young writers can still learn from — but also non-mainstream writers.

“In the long run,” she added, “I think this is a good thing, trending in the right direction.”

How did Ireland inspire so many great writers, from Irish-Americans like Flannery O’Connor, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Eugene O’Neill, to those born on the Emerald Isle — Jonathan Swift, James Joyce, George Bernard Shaw, William Butler Yeats, Seamus Heaney and Samuel Beckett?

“When oppressed people struggle to keep their culture, they do it through language, written and spoken,” McDermott said. “There is power in telling a story, controlling the telling, mastering the means of expression.

“The Irish did it. So did the Jews,” she said. “Both have a respect for the power of humor, which is a way for the ‘underdog’ to undercut the powers-that-be, bring them down a peg.” McDermott From page 1

A tough, smart nun

The Irish evening at the Smith Theater on the Howard Community College campus will feature live music and dance, as well as a reading by McDermott.

She plans to read from her most recent book, The Ninth Hour, published in 2017. The book, which has received mostly rave reviews, goes into the heads, hearts and souls of nuns who work as nurses, tending to needy families in an Irish Catholic neighborhood of Brooklyn in the early 20th century.

McDermott said she never expected to write a book about nuns. “I just wanted to create one nun who embodied someone tough and smart.” But, inspired after learning about two religious orders from France and Ireland who moved to Brooklyn, she ended up inventing her own Brooklyn-based order for the novel.

She hopes the novel will help dispel a still-prevalent notion that the sole occupation of nuns is to whack Catholic school students with rulers.

Like all human beings, McDermott said, nuns are complex characters.

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“They are wonderful; they are selfish. Some have a real vocation to help the suffering of others. Some are power-hungry when running schools and hospitals. Some even have a complicated sexuality.”

Faith during hard times

McDermott said her Catholic upbringing has played an essential role in her development as a writer. Prayers and hymns “were, in many ways, my first poetry,” she noted.

She remains a practicing member of the church, attending mass at St. Bartholomew Church in Bethesda. She regularly prays. But she is also critical of the church in general.

“I’m discouraged and dismayed and often disgusted by the failings of the institution and the hierarchy,” she said. “I don’t know a Catholic who isn’t.”

Last year, she published an op-ed in the New York Times in which she urged the Catholic Church to accept female priests. She considers barring women from the positions “a moral error.” She has also been involved with a group called 5theses.com, which she described as “a reform movement that started in my dining room.” She continues to be outspoken about the church’s failings. “I’m not terribly optimistic, but stubborn, I suppose.”

Still, McDermott retains her faith because it “offers something really essential to us human beings.

“How do we deal with our mortality? How do we make sense of and reconcile the briefness of life with how deeply we care for one another?

“That’s what I often think about and want to write about.” she said.

Does McDermott believe in an afterlife? “I don’t know. It could be a glorious delusion. But I live in hope.”

In addition to McDermott, the Feb. 21 HoCoPoLitSo event will feature music by O’Malley’s March and step dancing by the Teelin Dance Company, and be followed by a book signing. For tickets ($40 plus service fee), visit hocopolitso.org.

Tell them you saw it in the Beacon!

FROM PAGE 30

ANSWERS TO SCRABBLE ANSWERS TO CROSSWORD

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Crossword Puzzle Daily crosswords can be found on our website: www.TheBeaconNewspapers.com Click on Puzzles Plus Neutral Stephen Sherr

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Scrabble answers on p. 29.

Down 1. “That’s a laugh!” 2. The biggest sch. in the smallest state 3. Option at Starbucks or Chevron 4. Labor Dept. component since 1971 5. Sort of soggy 6. Quick, like some public transit 7. Egyptian snake 8. Jessica Timberlake, ___ Biel 9. In a loud and tasteless manner 10. Its head is narrower than a ‘gator’s 11. Most of Hamilton’s soundtrack 12. Feigned innocence 13. Like last-year’s dresses 18. Suffix with arthr- or paras22. Fed. agency that employs more than 300 dogs 23. Like chico, but not chica 24. Warren Buffett’s hometown 25. Be a trailblazer 27. Bosses’ demand letters 30. Boxer Daniel (and an acronym for EAGLE) 31. Struggled through, successfully 32. Bat’s daytime spot 34. Gives a damn 36. ___-Roman wrestling 38. The most memorable part of an excursion 39. Purses 40. Maintain one’s sense of dread 45. Fred Flintstone or Homer Simpson 46. Card catalog abbr. 47. Dumbfound 48. Subject first written about in Aristotle’s Prior Analytics 50. Chalkboard material 53. Exxon predecessor 55. Cause of a February school delay 58. The (financial) winner of The Game of Thrones 59. Took the bait 60. Unnumbered pool ball 61. Homophone of air and heir 62. Insecticide, banned in the US since 1972 Across 1. The Great Lake with the most islands 6. Summoned the desk clerk 10. Injure one’s lips 14. “Enemies ___ stimulating” (Katharine Hepburn) 15. “Law floats in ___ of ethics” (Earl Warren) 16. Costa ___ 17. Waitress’ desire 19. Chooses to be pessimistic (or not) 20. When the wait for Godot starts 21. Desires calamine lotion 23. Messy head of hair 26. Purge 27. Stubborn one 28. A poem meant to be sung 29. Wave ___ wand 31. Key to a Little Red Corvette 33. Blocks a slapshot 34. Source of 17% of US energy production in 2017 35. “Oh my god”, in text-speak 37. Bar bargains 41. N.L. East city 42. They bring ceasefires to an end 43. Left-side balance sheet item 44. Surrounded with shrubbery 46. Tempt 47. Bitter beer 49. Checkup sounds 50. First half of the S&P 51. Single whale female 52. Some vehicles in the bike lane 54. Classes with Bunsen burners 56. “I’m Jumping Jack Flash; it’s ___” 57. Chemically neutral, and like all of this puzzle’s theme answers 63. Comic strip which first popped in 1997 64. Piece about one at peace 65. Cornucopia component 66. Say that again 67. Refuse the porter’s services 68. Like Splenda