September 2011 Howard County Beacon Edition

The Howard County

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Rebuilding Together’s stated mission is “to preserve and revitalize houses and communities, assuring that low-income homeowners, particularly those who are elderly and disabled and families with children, live in warmth, safety and independence.� “That’s a lot to live up to, especially with the cold winters we’ve had the last couple years,� said Anne Heavner, executive director of Rebuilding Together Howard County.

Hannelore Vallotton, 85, is just the type

SEPTEMBER 2011

I N S I D E ‌ VOLUME 1, NO. 6 • SEPTEMBER 2011

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More than 25,000 readers throughout Howard County

Extreme makeovers you can do

By Anne Ball When she was growing up in Cleveland, Kimberly Moore’s family enjoyed a tradition of volunteering. The Red Cross and Toys for Tots were early favorites.

Years later, as a young mother in Santa Ana, Calif., with her small son Christopher in tow, she continued to spread her volunteer interests even further, adding Christmas in April to the growing list. Little did she know that one day she would be the beneficiary of its efforts.

Since suffering a series of back injuries a few years ago, Moore, 47, has been confined to a wheelchair. She rediscovered Christmas in April, a national organization whose name changed several years ago to Rebuilding Together, when she called the county to inquire about improving her home’s accessibility.

She wanted to install a ramp that would give her easier access to the road and the paratransit buses she used. The Office on Aging arranged for the ramp and suggested that Moore contact Rebuilding Together for her home improvement needs.

And so this spring, Moore watched from her wheelchair as Christopher, now 21, worked with more than 30 other volunteers from Rebuilding Together Howard County to transform her Elkridge home. They put in new flooring, repainted walls, repaired a leaky ceiling, and installed an all-in-one washer/dryer combination in the kitchen. “I’ve regained a little bit more of my independence, especially with the washer/dryer upstairs instead of in the basement,� Moore said. As the work was proceeding, she easily maneuvered her wheelchair through hallways and rooms that just a day before were almost impassable because old, rippled carpeting impeded the wheels.

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A Message from Sue Vaeth Howard County Office on Aging Administrator

Many “Senior Connection� readers already know what it’s like to retire and move on to a new phase of life. As colleagues around me have retired, I’ve had to fight that twinge of jealousy as they move on to create their new lives. While I’m not ready to retire, I’ve decided that I wanted to do more than just say “I want to do that.�

So I have resigned from my position as Administrator of the Office on Aging in order to discover my own third career. It has been wonderful working with so many creative and dedicated people at the Office on Aging and getting to know many of the people we serve — particularly those who attend senior centers.

And speaking of senior centers, September is National Senior Center Month. Did you know that research has shown that social and intellectual engagement and physical activity are important in delaying cognitive decline? That’s one of the reasons why senior centers are so important.

Regular readers of the “Senior Connection� will know that there is a variety of fun stuff happening at the seven senior center locations in the county. Check out our calendars at www.howardcountyaging.org, give us a call, or just drop by. Howard County senior centers are “More Than You Can Imagine.�

September is also National Preparedness Month.

Howard County government has done a lot to prepare for manmade and natural disasters, but despite these preparations, you may need to survive on your own after an emergency. Check out the information from www.ready.gov on this page for more information about how you and your family can be prepared.

The Senior Connection is published monthly by the Howard County Office on Aging, Department of Citizen Services.

We welcome your comments and suggestions.

To contact us, or to join our email subscriber list, email seniorconnection@howardcountymd.gov with ‘subscribe’ in the subject box.

The Senior Connection from Howard County Office on Aging 6751 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia, MD 21046 410-313-6410 | www.howardcountyaging.org Dale Jackson, Acting Administrator Advertising contained in the Beacon is not endorsed by the Howard County Office on Aging or by the publisher.

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Make an Emergency Plan September is National Preparedness Month – are you ready? The reality of a disaster situation is that you may not have access to everyday conveniences.

That is why it is so important to formulate an emergency plan in advance.

To get started, think through the details of your everyday life. If there are people who assist you on a daily basis, list who they are, and how you will contact them in an emergency. Create your own personal support network by identifying others who will help you in an emergency. Think about what modes of transportation you use and what alternative modes could serve as back-ups. (If you require handicap accessible transportation, be sure your alternatives are also accessible.) For every aspect of your daily routine, plan an alternative procedure.

Assemble an emergency kit, and keep enough emergency supplies on hand for you and those in your care to last for about three days, including water, non-perishable food, first aid, prescriptions, flashlights, batterypowered radio, and extra batteries. For a checklist of supplies, visit www.ready.gov.

Keep a copy of your plan in your emergency supply kits and a list of important information (including any prescription medications you take, as well as pharmacy and physicians’ contact information) and personal contacts in your wallet. Be sure to share your plan with your family, friends, care providers and others in your personal support network. For more information, visit www.ready.gov or call 1-800-BE-READY.

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Thursday, September 15, 2011 â&#x20AC;˘ 10 AM - 2:30 PM Gary J. Arthur Community Center at Glenwood 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, MD 21723 LUNCH IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE

www.howardcountyaging.org â&#x20AC;˘ 410.313.5440

Office on Aging Newsletter Inside every month!

See page 16.

LEISURE & TRAVEL Rebuilding Together Howard County performed a one-day makeover of the less extreme sort in the home of Kimberly Moore (in wheelchair) and son Christopher. Volunteer Robin Linthicum helped coordinate upgrades to Mooreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home, including an accessible washing machine and hardwood flooring that makes it easier for Moore to maneuver her wheelchair. Rebuilding Together accepts applications and volunteers year-round and renovates houses in April.

of homeowner Rebuilding Together likes to help. She bought her Columbia townhouse just after it was built 40 years ago, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aged with her. Recently, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s found it difficult to make needed repairs.

When the homeownersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; association sent Vallotton a letter telling her that her fence and steps needed to be repaired, she was stymied. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what would have happened if I hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t found Rebuilding Together. I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have the money to do this myself,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The job they did is just fantastic.â&#x20AC;?

From painting to plastering to gardening, more than 800 Rebuilding Together Howard County volunteers rehab about 30

houses for older adults and people with disabilities each year, usually on the last day of April. Since 1992, the organization has repaired and rehabilitated 583 homes and nonprofit facilities in Howard County. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What is so amazing is how everything is pulled together in just one day,â&#x20AC;? said Ed Hamel, 77, founder and president of Elkridge-based Hamel Builders. â&#x20AC;&#x153;And there are jobs for everyone,â&#x20AC;? he added. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t all hammering and measuring and cutting and fitting. There is paint to be scraped, yards to be raked â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all kinds of chores for young and old,â&#x20AC;? Hamel said.

See REBUILDING, page 25

Lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more than a beach on North Carolinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Outer Banks; plus, SEALs, sun and squadrons in Virginia Beach, and some fall travel planning strategies page 26

FITNESS & HEALTH 4 k Put cancer risks in perspective k B vitamins boost your brain LAW & MONEY 18 k Stocks the pros are buying k How to pay for long-term care VOLUNTEERS & CAREERS k Want to work â&#x20AC;&#x2122;til youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re 100?

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Moving the folks (Part I) My parents, whom long-time readers responsible for the shopping, cooking, have “met” before in this column, have serving and clean-up duties. once again graciously providPrimarily because of Mom’s ed me with an occasion for needs, and my father’s growsome musings. You see, ing concern over how long he they’ve recently moved into can continue to handle her an assisted living facility. care (and clean the chickens), While I have edited artithey recently decided to move cles about such moves many into an assisted living facility times over the years, this is near their home in Texas. my first opportunity to expeMy brother and I, who rience one myself, and thereboth live in this neck of the FROM THE in lie a few tales. woods and typically visit our First, what led my parents PUBLISHER folks a few times a year, reto make such a change after By Stuart P. Rosenthal cently took turns assisting in 60 years of marriage? Though the move. It was an education my 91-year-old father has some of the in several ways. usual chronic conditions (high blood presWhile I had expected to face some chalsure and cholesterol) and some less usual lenges in paring down their spacious twoones (celiac disease), he is generally in bedroom-plus-den condo to a modest onesound health, drives safely and walks inde- bedroom assisted living apartment, I had pendently (if carefully). remembered my parents’ home as containMy 82-year-old mother, suffering from ing the accumulated furniture, bric-a-brac osteoporosis and arthritis, needs a walker and debris of one family. and considerable assistance with daily But over the years, without my realizing tasks, but she, too, is otherwise in decent it, they had accumulated many of the valuhealth. ables (and much of the detritus) of their For decades, my mother took care of own parents, who had passed on in the inthe household needs, but the tables have tervening decades. So my brother and I turned in recent years, leaving Dad mostly were really facing not one, but three

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The Beacon is a monthly newspaper dedicated to inform, serve, and entertain the citizens of Howard County, and is privately owned.

Subscriptions are available via third-class mail ($12), prepaid with order. Maryland residents add 6 percent for sales tax. Send subscription order to the office listed below.

Publication of advertising contained herein does not necessarily constitute endorsement.

Signed columns represent the opinions of the writers, and not necessarily the opinion of the publisher.

• Publisher/Editor ....................Stuart P. Rosenthal • Associate Publisher..............Judith K. Rosenthal • Vice President, Operations........Gordon Hasenei • Director of Sales ................................Alan Spiegel • Assistant Operations Manager ..........Roger King

2010 Outstanding Publication Award

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households of goods — and cherished memories — to help sort through.

Adding to the difficulty was the pressure applied on my brother and myself to absorb many of these “heirlooms” in order to keep them in the family and avoid the pain of truly disposing of them.

I won’t deny that there were some family items my brother and I were thrilled to bring home (though my wife was somewhat less than ecstatic about the artsy plaster menorah).

But there were many, many more that we had to politely but firmly refuse, including old 78 rpm records, VHS tapes, books, baby pictures, wall hangings, rococo serving platters and formal china.

Psychologically, I think it was most difficult for my parents to grasp what it means to move to a place where they would be fed three meals a day (plus snacks!).

While that was one of the main impetuses for the move (for my father, at least), it was painful to have to keep reminding them they didn’t need to retain every item from their kitchen and dining room.

A dining room table and chairs for eight? A breakfront full of (multiple sets of) china and crystal stemware for 16?

Pots, pans, mixing bowls, cutlery, serving and storage paraphernalia? You name it,

there was little they were happy to leave behind.

I guess the idea that they would be making so many new friends and wouldn’t be able to entertain them in style was hard to swallow.

Clothing was a similar Rubicon, for my mother, that is. She painstakingly went through her walk-in closet (plus the smaller walk-in closet in the second bedroom) to collect about 15 linear feet worth of items. The problem was, their new closet had about 5 feet of space for the two of them.

Perhaps she did realize they’d be eating in a public dining room after all. How could she wear the same thing more than once a month and not “dress up” for dinner?

Well, I’m almost out of space this month and there’s so much more to talk about: estate sale hell, the absolutely essential help of friends and neighbors, selling the home.

Stay tuned. I’ll share more in my next column.

In the meantime, we’d love to hear about your own experiences. Please write or email us.

Letters to the editor Readers are encouraged to share their opinion on any matter addressed in the Beacon as well as on political and social issues of the day. Mail your Letter to the Editor to The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915, or email to barbara@thebeaconnewspapers.com. Please include your name, address and telephone number for verification.

Dear Publisher: This letter is written in response to your cheerful August column, “On being misunderstood.”

In this column you say, “I have to admit that the most valuable letters I get are those that take me to task for an opinion I’ve expressed.”

I don’t think that you have thought through your column. Every example you give shows no value you received from a person’s complaint but instead blames other people for the problem of misunderstanding you.

With regard to the reader who said that the crossword clues were too small — you leave the situation hanging without resolution. Did you learn from that letter to remember that your newspaper is directed to readers over 50 who are likely to not see as well as they used to? I am left with the impression that you did not take her seriously.

For the reader who “misunderstood” your position on Social Security, you blame his misunderstanding on his not having read the June column and therefore not seeing your entire point. You probably should have recapped your June column in the July column.

Then you excuse yourself for what is basically poor writing by talking about time and space being inadequate to present a complete argument. When this is the case, it is your responsibility to learn the grace of communicating what needs to be communicated with brevity.

Readers will misunderstand you, and for many of the reasons you give; that is inevitable. However, the reasons for such misunderstanding should have taken up one small paragraph in your column, the bulk of it devoted to your responsibility — or lack of it — in the matter.

It sounds to me as though you have a lot to learn about writing for the public.

Carol Buell Columbia The publisher responds (briefly): Well, I have certainly learned a lot from your valuable letter and appreciate your expressing yourself so well and so fully.

By the way, yes, we enlarged our crossword puzzle clues starting with the very next issue, and have continued to learn from readers and respond to their suggestions over the past 22 years.

We are new to Howard County, however, and apparently still have a lot to learn from its residents.

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

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Wednesday, October 5, 2011 9 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Thursday, October 6, 2011 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Cow Palace, Timonium Fairgrounds

Harvesting Opportunities to Enrich Your Life

Discover resources, entertainment and new passions!

All ages will enjoy the various features of the event: • Visit 200+ exhibitors with information and shop speciality products • Experience new life pursuits in our Enrichment Fair with interactive displays of cultural and creative arts, life-long learning, sports, volunteerism and career development • Gain guidance from our Medicare Part D Assistance Area (410-887-2059 for appt.)

• Celebrate veterans with period military displays and veteran benefit information (Free Admission for Veterans on Thursday, Oct. 6th) • Enhance your life with the World of Possibilities DisAbilities Fair by Caring Communities, Inc. • Tap your toes to continuous entertainment on the Main Stage • Find a local treasure at a book signing with Maryland authors • Make a difference with the Red Cross Blood Drive (10 a.m. - 3 p.m., daily) • Promote wellness with a flu shot or having valuable health screenings • Compete in a Bocce tournament or have your golf swing analyzed • Reap the rewards by being the highest bidder at the Silent Auction • Sculpt your employment goals with a personalized career coach Admission: $2 or two cans (of non-perishable food for the MD Food Bank)

FREE Gift TOTE BAG Sponsored by

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www.seniorexpoonline.com • www.babyboomerexpoonline.com • 410-887-2594

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Health Fitness &

B VITAMINS EARN AN “A” B vitamins help maintain memory, boost mood and lower stroke risk A PAINFUL TRUTH The healthcare system often isn’t prepared to help chronic pain patients MAKING FOOD SAFER Irradiating food can eliminate health dangers, but shoppers still object VET THE INTERNET Where can you go for reliable health information online?

Cancer risks abound. Should you worry?

By Marilynn Marchione You’re sitting in a freshly drywalled house, drinking coffee from a plastic foam cup and talking on a cell phone. Which of these is most likely to be a cancer risk?

It might be the sitting, especially if you do that a lot.

Despite all the recent news about possible cancer risks from cell phones, coffee, styrene, and formaldehyde in building materials, most of us probably face little if any danger from these things with ordinary use, health experts say. Inactivity and obesity may pose a greater cancer risk than chemicals for some people.

“We are being bombarded” with messages about the dangers posed by common things in our lives, yet most exposures “are not at a level that are going to cause cancer,” said Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society’s deputy chief medical officer.

Linda Birnbaum agrees. She is a toxicologist who heads the government agency that just declared styrene, an ingredient in

fiberglass boats and Styrofoam, a likely cancer risk.

“Let me put your mind at ease right away about Styrofoam,” she said. Levels of styrene that leach from food containers “are hundreds if not thousands of times lower than have occurred in the occupational setting,” where the chemical in vapor form poses a possible risk to workers.

“In finished products, certainly styrene is not an issue,” and exposure to it from riding in a boat “is infinitesimal,” she said.

Possible vs. actual risk Carcinogens are things that can cause cancer, but that label doesn’t mean that they will or that they pose a risk to anyone exposed to them in any amount at any time.

They have been in the news because two groups that periodically convene scientists to decide whether something is a carcinogen issued new reports.

Recently, the International Agency for

Research on Cancer, part of the World Health Organization, said there is a possibility cell phones raise the risk of brain tumors.

“The operative word is ‘possibility,’” said Lichtenfeld, who among others has pointed out the thin evidence for this and the fact that cancer rates have not risen since cell phones came out.

Soon after, the National Toxicology Program, part of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences — both of which Birnbaum heads — issued its report.

It adds formaldehyde to the list of known carcinogens. The substance is found in building materials and some hairstraightening products, though Birnbaum said on-the-job exposure is the main concern. The list also adds a plant substance in some “natural” arthritis remedies — aristolochic acid.

Six other things were dubbed “reasonably anticipated” to be carcinogens, including styrene and another herbal medicine

ingredient, riddelliine (rih-DELL-een).

Since 1971, the international cancer agency has evaluated more than 900 substances. Just over 100 have been deemed carcinogens, 59 are called probable carcinogens, and 266 others are possible ones.

Everyday products In this last category of possibles — besides the electromagnetic energy from cell phones — are coffee, engine exhaust and talc-based body powder.

Talc in its natural form may contain asbestos, though products sold for home use since the 1970s have been asbestos-free.

Again, most risk is thought to involve occupational or unusual exposure to natural talc.

The evidence on coffee has gone back and forth for years, with no clear sign of danger and some suggestions of benefit.

However, known carcinogens include alcoholic beverages, estrogen treatments for See CANCER RISKS, page 5

Benefits of custom-made blood vessels

By Marilynn Marchione Three dialysis patients have received the world’s first blood vessels grown in a lab from donated skin cells. It’s a key step toward creating a supply of ready-to-use arteries and veins that could be used to treat diabetics, soldiers with damaged limbs, people having heart bypass surgery and others.

The goal is to one day have a refrigerated inventory of blood vessels in various sizes and shapes that surgeons could order up as needed, like bandages and other medical supplies.

The work so far is still early-stage.

Three patients in Poland have received the new vessels, which are working well two to eight months later.

But doctors are excited because this builds on earlier success in about a dozen patients given blood vessels grown in the lab from their own skin — a process too long and expensive to be practical.

“This version, built from a master donor, is available off the shelf and at a dramatically reduced cost,” estimated at $6,000 to $10,000, said Todd McAllister, chief of Cytograft Tissue Engineering Inc., the San

Francisco-area company leading the work.

The American Heart Association considers it so promising that the group featured it in the first of a new series of webcasts about cutting-edge science.

“This is tremendously exciting,” said Duke University’s Dr. Robert Harrington, a heart expert who had no role in the work, because the failure of blood vessels used in dialysis is “a huge public health problem.”

Could solve common problem Kidney failure, which is common in diabetics, requires dialysis to filter wastes from the blood through a connection between an artery and a vein called a shunt.

The shunt gets punctured several times a week to hook patients up to the dialysis machine, and complications include blood clots, clogging and infection. What’s more, patients often run out of suitable sites for these shunts as problems develop.

Each year, nearly 400,000 Americans undergo dialysis and half of them use plastic shunts. Plastic versions have high rates of failure and complications. Doctors have

long wished for a natural substitute.

In 2005, Cytograft reported success with its first attempt at dialysis shunts using patients’ own skin. Some of the early work was sponsored by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

The new work, using donor cells, makes this advance more practical for wide use, said Dr. Timothy Gardner, a heart surgeon at Christiana Care Health Services in Newark, Del., and former American Heart Association president.

“It provides the option or the opportunity for off-the-shelf graft availability as opposed to something that has to be built from the individual’s own cells,” he said.

Cytograft plans a study in Europe and South America comparing 40 patients getting the lab-grown vessels to 20 getting plastic shunts. Studies also are planned on a mesh version for people with poor leg circulation.

How they’re made The lab-grown vessels are free of artificial materials. They don’t involve stem cells, so they’re not controversial.

Researchers start with a snip of skin from the back of a hand, remove cells and grow them into sheets of tissue that are rolled up like straws to form blood vessels.

So far, these lab-grown vessels have been tolerated by the recipients’ immune systems; no anti-rejection medicine or tissue matching is needed. That’s not surprising because lab-grown skin is already used to treat many burn victims.

“There are literally hundreds of thousands of patients that could use this technology,” McAllister said.

More than 160,000 people lose limbs because of poor circulation that might be improved with lab-grown vessels.

About 300,000 people have heart bypass operations using blood vessels taken from other parts of the body to create detours around clogged heart arteries. Some heart patients say the leg wound from removing the long vein to create heart bypasses hurts more than the chest wound for the open-heart surgery.

For more about Cytograft and a video about how the vessels are made, see www.cytograft.com.

— AP

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menopause symptoms, birth control pills, certain viruses and parasites, and even some drugs used to treat cancer, such as cyclophosphamide and tamoxifen.

“Most people would probably be shocked to see the number of things they interact with every day” on these lists, Lichtenfeld said.

Here’s the problem: The agencies that pass judgment on a carcinogen don’t regulate it or determine what levels or routes of exposure are a concern and for whom.

“People immediately assume it’s going to cause cancer at any exposure level, and that’s simply not true,” said A. Wallace Hayes, editor of the scientific journal Food and Chemical Toxicology, and an industry consultant.

The rule is “RITE” — Risk Is equal to Toxicity times Exposure — and “they’ve left out half of the equation” by not saying how much exposure is a concern, Hayes said.

“The organizations that list these substances as possibly carcinogenic have to be conservative,” said David Ropeik, a consultant and author of How Risky Is It Really? Why Our Fears Don’t Always Match the Facts.

“That means if there’s any reasonable evidence, way before it’s a sure thing, they have to say, ‘Let’s be cautious.’ That’s their job — to raise the flag,” he said.

It’s human nature to fear risks we didn’t choose, such as hazardous chemicals, more than those we did, such as lack of exercise, poor diets or smoking, he added.

“A risk that is imposed on us scares us more than a risk we take voluntarily,” especially if it comes from companies we don’t trust, Ropeik said.

Styrene is an example: The government says it is a component of tobacco smoke and that is the biggest way most people are exposed to it. Smoking, of course, is the most easily preventable cancer risk.

To minimize risk, people can take reasonable measures to avoid exposure to possibly harmful things, experts say.

“If you walk into a room and you can smell formaldehyde, you probably want to vent the room before you spend a lot of time in it. That’s just common sense,” Birnbaum said.

If you’re concerned about pesticides, you can peel fruit and vegetables or choose organics, though there is some evidence that organic products may be less safe in terms of germs like E. coli and salmonella.

People worried about cell phones can hold them farther from the head, text-message instead of talk, or use a headset or earpiece as Lichtenfeld does. He was returning from a major cancer conference in Chicago recently when a fellow traveler pointed at Lichtenfeld’s Bluetooth earpiece and said, “Do you know that thing can cause cancer?”

“I said, ‘Yes, ma’am, I’m very familiar with the data and I choose to use Bluetooth,’” said Lichtenfeld, who didn’t tell her he was one of the biggest cancer experts she’d ever meet.

“You can’t live life in fear,” he said. “You have to live life.”

For more information online, see the American Cancer Institute’s page on carcinogens at http://bit.ly/aJI6ht as well as IARC’s monograph at http://monographs. iarc.fr/index.php and NIH’s report on carcinogens at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/go/ roc12.

— AP

F R E E

From page 4

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Health Shorts New drug for hospital infections The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved a new antibiotic to treat an intestinal infection that afflicts more than 700,000 patients each year in the United States and sometimes can prove fatal.

Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc.’s Dificid tablets were approved to treat Clostridium difficile, an infection that usually affects older patients and can cause symptoms ranging from diarrhea to potentially lifethreatening inflammation of the colon.

The condition is most common in hospitals and nursing homes, where the bacteria spores can be found in bed linens, bathrooms and medical equipment. In fact, Clostridium difficile recently surpassed a type of staphylococcus bug as the most common hospital-acquired infection, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center.

Optimer’s twice-a-day tablet is the first new drug approved for the infection in nearly 25 years, according to the company.

In recent decades, some varieties of germs have grown immune to popular an-

tibiotics like penicillin, creating anxiety about the dwindling number of new antibiotics available. Vancomycin is currently used to treat the infection.

The new drug, known generically as fidaxomicin, is only the third antibiotic cleared by the FDA since 2006, according to Optimer.

In company trials, Dificid worked as well as vancomycin in treating the infection, and proved superior at preventing reinfection three weeks after treatment.

—AP

Artery screening not recommended The carotid arteries in the neck are the main supply route for blood to get to the brain. But atherosclerotic plaque can gum them up, just as it does the coronary arteries. If that plaque ruptures, blood clots can form that block the carotids or other, smaller arteries, resulting in an ischemic stroke.

Narrowed carotid arteries can be identified with an ultrasound before a stroke occurs. The examinations are noninvasive and inexpensive. Some hospitals are charging the public as little as $45 for an ultrasound of their carotid arteries.

Yet for several good reasons, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force discourages

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routine screening of the carotid arteries.

First, only about 1 percent of the general population has significant narrowing, or stenosis, of the carotids, although the percentage does increase with age.

Second, less than 10 percent of first-time ischemic strokes are associated with carotid stenosis, so stroke prevention efforts based on ultrasound screening can only go so far.

Third, roughly eight in every 100 ultrasounds produce a false positive — a result that indicates the presence of significant stenosis that isn’t really there. False positives result in unnecessary tests and possibly unnecessary treatment.

The plaque in a carotid artery can be surgically removed, and carotid endarterectomy, as the procedure is called, does lower stroke risk in some groups.

But the procedure itself causes some strokes and heart attacks, so some harm done has to be factored in as well.

Based on various assumptions, the task force calculated that if 100,000 people were screened for carotid artery stenosis with ultrasound, 23 strokes would be prevented over a five-year period, but 10 nonfatal heart attacks would be caused.

— Harvard Health Letter

Sunscreen standards finally updated After spending more than 30 years in bureaucratic limbo, new guidelines for

sunscreens have been published by the FDA to enhance the effectiveness of sunscreens and make them easier to use.

Currently, standards of protection (and the associated sun protection factor or SPF ratings) apply only to one part of the sun’s spectrum, ultraviolet B rays, which cause sunburn. Under the new rules, they will also have to protect against ultraviolet A rays, which can penetrate glass and are associated with skin cancer and premature aging.

Products with at least an SPF rating of 15 that protect against both types of rays may be labeled “broad spectrum” starting next summer.

Sunscreens with less than an SPF of 15 or that aren’t “broad spectrum” will have to carry a warning label: “This product has been shown only to help prevent sunburn, not skin cancer or early skin aging.”

The SPF figure indicates the amount of sun exposure needed to cause sunburn on sunscreen-protected skin compared with unprotected skin. For example, an SPF rating of 30 means it would take the person 30 times longer to burn wearing sunscreen than with exposed skin.

Also under the new rules, the FDA will prohibit sunscreen marketing claims like “waterproof” and “sweat proof,” which the agency said “are exaggerations of performance.”

Most dermatologists recommend a broad spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher every two hours while outside.

— AP

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Aging makes us more vulnerable to heat

By Lindsey Tanner This summer’s relentless heat may be uncomfortable, but you’re healthy, active and feel just fine. So what if you’re over 65?

Think again. Feeling good doesn’t mean you’re safe.

Changes occur as we age that raise the risk for heat stroke and other problems.

An older body contains far less water than a younger one. Our brains can’t sense temperature changes as well, and they don’t recognize thirst as easily.

Blistering summer heat is an underappreciated killer, claiming by some estimates as many as 1,000 U.S. lives each year — more than any other type of weather.

One federal study found 40 percent of heat-related deaths were in people 65 and older. Those numbers could be lower if more heeded heat warnings aimed at seniors. Yet research has shown many people over 65 don’t think the warnings apply to them, regardless of their age.

Many ignore warnings Scott Sheridan, who studies the effects of heat and climate on health at Kent State University, researched how people over 65 view heat warnings. In his 2006 study of more than 900 people, he found about 70 percent knew about advice to drink plenty of water on very hot days, avoid outdoor activities and stay inside with air conditioning. But only about half said they followed the advice.

“People well into their 70s would say old people should watch out, but not them,” he said. “People just didn’t want to be thought of in that same category.”

As Dr. William Dale, geriatrics chief at the University of Chicago Medical Center explains why heat can become more dangerous with age: “Any older adult has less reserve and is more likely to become dehydrated than others, just because their overall body water goes down with age no matter how healthy you are.”

The amount of water in the body de-

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clines with aging, from about 80 percent in young adulthood to about 55 to 60 percent for people in their 80s, Dale said.

Temperature sensors in the brain become less sensitive as people age, so the body doesn’t get the same signals to drink water in hot weather, and older adults often don’t feel thirsty even when they need to replenish, Dale said. They also may not feel the typical symptoms of dehydration, such as headache or dizziness.

Dehydration can be fatal Dehydration can lead to heat exhaustion and potentially deadly heat stroke. During a heat wave, that can happen in a matter of hours in older adults if they over-exert themselves, don’t drink enough water, or are frail and don’t get out of uncooled homes.

Heat exhaustion can cause muscle cramps, low blood pressure, rapid pulse and nausea. It can be treated at home, by drinking water, getting into an air-conditioned room or sitting in front of a fan and misting the body with cool water.

But affected people should be monitored for mental changes and to make sure their temperature does not rise above 102, because the condition can quickly lead to heat stroke.

A medical emergency, heat stroke involves temperatures of 104 or higher and can cause

seizures, loss of consciousness and death.

Medicines increase risk Medicines can also make people more vulnerable to the heat. These include diuretics for high blood pressure, which increase urination and make it more important to drink plenty of water, Dale said.

Some types of drugs can interfere with sweating and raise body temperature, including some medicines for insomnia, nausea, prostate conditions, Parkinson’s disease and even Benadryl. Many list “dry mouth” as a side effect — a tip-off to drink more water.

There aren’t specific guidelines on how much water older people should drink in a heat wave. Dale said he generally tells his older patients to drink a quart of water throughout the day, and to drink even if they don’t feel thirsty.

Doctors also advise older patients to avoid alcohol and coffee during extreme heat because they can cause the body to lose fluid and contribute to dehydration.

For more on staying healthy during hot weather, see the websites of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at http://emergency.cdc.gov/disasters/extr emeheat/elderlyheat.asp and the American Geriatrics Society at www. healthinaging.org/public_education/hot_weather_ti ps.php.

— AP

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

9

B vitamins boost the brain, improve mood

By Hara Estroff Marano New studies link B vitamins to preserving memory, mood and cognitive mastery at all ages.

There are nine B vitamins, and while all of them play a role in metabolism, some also protect the nervous system. Vitamins B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (cobalamin), and folic acid (B9) are especially known to influence neural functioning.

The nine chemical entities that comprise the B complex often are found in the same food sources. Calf’s liver and yeast are especially rich in many of the B’s. Asparagus, spinach, bananas, and potatoes all contain B vitamins. But B12 is found only in meats and fish.

Although B12 appears to protect the brain against age-related problems, deficiency of the vitamin most often occurs among older adults, as the body’s ability to absorb it from food declines with age.

There are non-nutritional factors, such as smoking, that also reduce levels of B vitamins at all ages.

“This is a very dramatic and striking result,” the researchers said. The vitamins also lower levels of homocysteine, a risk factor for stroke.

What role do the low levels of vitamin B12 that are common among the elderly actually play in memory loss? Finnish researchers tracked 271 people ages 65 to 79 for seven years, measuring blood levels of homocysteine and the active form of vitamin B12.

None of the 271 had dementia at the start of the study, but 17 developed Alzheimer’s over its course. Small increases of homocysteine were linked to large increases in the risk of Alzheimer’s, while small increases in B12 levels reduced the risk.

Folic acid supplements may prevent the neurologic deterioration that occurs in the movement disorder Parkinson’s disease.

Brazilian scientists find that homocysteine levels are 30 percent higher in Parkinson’s patients than in those without the disease, and folic acid deficiency is the major determinant of that increase.

Both folate deficiency and homocysteine separately exert neurotoxic effects, highlighting the value of keeping up folic acid levels with foods such as liver, lentils, pinto beans, asparagus and spinach.

Mood boost Low blood levels of B6, B12 and folate are linked not only to cognitive decline in older adults, but also to depression in people of all ages. In a large study in Spain, the prevalence of depression was linked with low folate intake among men who smoke and men with low anxiety levels.

Among women, whose folate levels were generally higher than men’s, depres-

sion manifested in those with low B12 intake. The vitamins are thought to be involved in the production of serotonin and other neurotransmitters.

Even among healthy males in the prime of life, a high-dose B-complex vitamin and mineral supplement has cognitive and mood benefits.

In a randomized, double-blind trial, men who got the supplement for 33 days rated themselves less subject to stress and did better on a range of tests assessing mood, mental well-being, and cognitive performance during intense mental processing.

The vitamins may protect against mental fatigue in tasks requiring high levels of attention and executive control.

— Psychology Today © 2011 Sussex Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.

Help maintain memory Large doses of B6, B12, and folate given for two years slow progression of mild cognitive impairment in the elderly.

Normally, brain atrophy accompanies such impairment and progresses to dementia in 50 percent of cases. Brain scans showed that 85 people getting doses of B vitamins had a 0.76 percent per year rate of atrophy, versus 1.08 percent among 83 people on placebos.

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Sept. 20

FOCUS ON WOMEN’S HEALTH

This Howard County General Hospital-sponsored event includes free activities and screenings such as body fat analysis, osteoporosis screening, breast selfexamination techniques, blood pressure testing, and height and weight measurements. Additional tests are available for a fee. The clinic will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 20, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Howard County General Hospital Wellness Center, 10710 Charter Dr. Suite 100, Columbia. The free activities are available on a walk-in basis, and no registration is necessary. Blood tests for Vitamin D and other medical issues require registration by calling (410) 740-7601. Visit www.hcgh.org for more information.

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N â&#x20AC;&#x201D; S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

11

Health system fails at pain management

By Lauran Neergaard Nearly a third of Americans experience long-lasting pain â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the kind that lingers for weeks to months â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and too often feel stigma rather than relief from a healthcare system poorly prepared to treat them, according to the Institute of Medicine.

The staggering tab: Chronic pain is costing the nation at least $558 billion a year in medical bills, sick days and lost productivity, the report found. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more than the cost of heart disease, the No. 1 killer.

All kinds of ailments can trigger lingering pain, from arthritis to cancer, spine problems to digestive disorders, injuries to surgery. Sometimes, chronic pain can be a disease all its own, the report stressed.

Whatever the cause, effective pain management is â&#x20AC;&#x153;a moral imperative,â&#x20AC;? the report concludes, urging the government, medical groups and insurers to take a series of steps to transform the field. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re viewing this as a critical issue for the United States,â&#x20AC;? said Dr. Philip Pizzo, Stanford Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dean of medicine, who chaired the months-long probe.

For too long, doctors and society alike have viewed pain â&#x20AC;&#x153;with some prejudice, a lot of judgment and unfortunately not a lot of informed fact,â&#x20AC;? he said.

The toll isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t surprising, said Dr. Doris K. Cope, pain chief at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, who paused between patients Wednesday to read the report. The populationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s getting older and less fit, and more survivors of diseases like cancer live for many years with side effects from treatments that saved them.

Multiple solutions exist Too many patients think a pillâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the answer, she said, when there are multiple different ways to address pain, including phys-

ical therapy, stress reduction, weight loss and teaching coping skills. Patients who take control of their pain fare better, but too many have unrealistic expectations. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Pain is not simple,â&#x20AC;? Cope said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We as physicians need to be healers and educators as well as technicians. We certainly donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want to be pill mills.â&#x20AC;?

Doctors do worry about overprescribing narcotic painkillers, and law enforcement steps to fight the serious problem of prescription drug abuse can be one barrier to pain care.

But the institute countered that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s far more likely for a pain patient to get inadequate care than for a drug-seeker to walk out with an inappropriate prescription. While newer, better medicines are needed, those narcotic painkillers are a safe and effective option for the right patient, the report said.

But barriers to good care extend far beyond that issue, said the panel, which analyzed research and the reports of more than 2,000 patients and caregivers about painâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s toll.

Yet too few doctors are trained in its management, the report said, citing a study that found stand-alone pain courses arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t required in most medical schools.

Also, insurance may not cover time-consuming counseling in pain-management techniques, consultations with specialists or even non-drug care.

Pizzo called the finances sometimes perverse: Some insurance pays for an operation for low back pain but not for physical therapy, which can be much cheaper and often more effective.

And prompt care for acute pain, like that from surgery or a broken bone, is important as well. Serious pain that isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t properly treated sometimes can hijack the nervous system and essentially rewire it for pain â&#x20AC;&#x201D; leaving misery after the condition that caused the initial pain is resolved.

The report concluded that at least 116 million adults suffer long-lasting pain. It couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t say how many cases are severe or disabling.

The economic costs, however, are sure to attract attention in Congress, which mandated the report as part of the new heathcare law. The report found heathcare for pain costs $261 billion to $300 billion a year, while lost productivity adds another $297 billion to $336 billion. The federal Medicare program accounts for a quarter of those health bills.

The reportâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s recommendations â&#x20AC;˘ Health providers should perform and document formal pain assessments of patients, a step toward proper treatment. â&#x20AC;˘ Medicare, Medicaid, workersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; compensation programs and private health plans should cover individualized pain care. â&#x20AC;˘ Pain specialty groups should create collaborations with primary care doctors to improve patient care and counseling. â&#x20AC;˘ The government and health organizations should better educate patients and the See PAIN MANAGEMENT, page 12

serving

A subjective sensation Because pain canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be seen like bleeding, or felt like a lump, or X-rayed like a broken bone, or heard like a skipped heartbeat, health workers who wrongly believe the intensity of pain should correlate to a specific medical finding may diminish or even dismiss a patientâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s complaint, the report found.

In fact, pain is highly subjective. Two people with the same injury may feel different degrees of pain depending on genetic factors that affect pain tolerance, what other illnesses they have, stress or depression, and even whether they feel support or criticism from health workers or their families.

Care must be tailored to each patient.

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Irradiated food is safer, but unpopular

By Lauran Neergaard Microwaving salad fixings with just a bit of radiation can kill dangerous E. coli and other bacteria — and U.S. food safety experts say Europe’s massive outbreak shows that wary consumers should give the long-approved step a chance.

The U.S. government has OK’d irradiation for a variety of foods — meat, spices, certain imported fruits, the seeds used to grow sprouts. Even iceberg lettuce and spinach can be irradiated without the leaves going limp. And no, it does not make the food radioactive.

But sterilized leafy greens are not on the market, and overall sales of irradiated foods remain low. A disappointed U.S. Grocery Manufacturers Association says one reason is that sellers worry about consumer mistrust.

“We need to do whatever we can to give us

a wider margin of safety,” said Dr. Michael Osterholm, a University of Minnesota infectious disease specialist who frequently advises the government. “Food irradiation for a number of produce items would give us not just a marginal increase, but give us probably the Grand Canyon increase of safety.”

While the E. coli outbreak in Europe has waned after officials discovered the culprit was sprouts, the U.S. has faced its own spate of tainted produce in recent years. E. coli, salmonella, listeria and other bugs have been linked to lettuce, spinach, hot peppers, sprouts, cantaloupes and more.

How irradiation works The outbreaks have renewed interest in higher-tech fixes like irradiation, used in certain foods in the U.S. and parts of Europe. Irradiation zaps food with electron beams, like the kind long used to run TVs, or with

gamma rays or X-rays. It’s the same way numerous medical products are sterilized.

The Food and Drug Administration approved irradiation for raw spinach and lettuce three years ago, saying it safely killed germs and lengthened shelf life without harming texture, taste or nutrients.

But it didn’t catch on, and the grocery producers group, which wants more salad ingredients approved for irradiation, blames both consumer wariness and a technical issue. Some of the bags the greens are sold in need approval to be zapped, too.

Irradiated meat has been around for years, particularly ground beef that is a favorite hiding spot for E. coli. Thorough cooking kills E. coli and other germs, but people don’t always cook their meat until it’s done enough.

About 15 million to 18 million pounds of U.S. ground beef are irradiated every year,

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said Ron Eustice of the Minnesota Beef Council. That is a tiny fraction of the hamburger meat sold in the U.S., and it must be labeled so consumers who don’t want irradiated food can choose to avoid it. On the other hand, some retailers advertise irradiated hamburger as a safety selling point.

Spices and imported produce zapped Actually, Americans get more irradiated foods than they realize. About a third of commercial spices — the kind added to processed foods — are irradiated, said Eustice, who’s also a consultant to the Food Irradiation Processing Alliance.

About 30 million pounds of imported produce, mostly fruits such as guavas and mangos, get a low-dose zap — not enough to kill germs but to kill any foreign insects along for the ride.

As for those seeds used to grow recallprone raw sprouts, Eustice says irradiation has not caught on for them either, despite government research backing it. Some growers instead try washing seeds in a mild bleach solution.

The newest irradiated product is pet treats, about 40 million pounds and counting, Eustice said. It’s to combat the problem of salmonella-tainted dog chews.

Irradiation is not an excuse for dirty produce, Osterholm said. It is far better to prevent contamination on the farm or in the processing plant than to try to get rid of it later. But it’s impossible to prevent all animal-borne bacteria in open fields.

There is no reason to fear irradiation but there’s no easy solution, cautioned food-safety expert Caroline Smith DeWaal of the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Irradiation does not kill viruses that also sometimes taint food, and it adds to the food’s price. She said consumers’ biggest desire is to make cleaner food in the first place.

Nor is irradiation the only high-tech option. Scientists also are trying high-pressure treatment to literally squeeze away germs. It’s been used for fresh guacamole and raw oysters. Earlier this year, beef giant Cargill Inc. announced it was using the technology for a longer-lasting hamburger patty.

— AP

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public about pain, to help eliminate stigma.

• The National Institutes of Health should increase pain research, including designating one of its centers as the lead institute for pain.

• Training programs for doctors, nurses, dentists and other health professionals should include pain education.

• By the end of next year, the Health and Human Services Department should create a strategy for dealing with pain as a public health problem and reducing barriers to care.

— AP

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com | Fitness & Health

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

13

How to find reliable health info online Q: When I want to check news about portion size of the cake itself, the amount berries, cherries, apples or other fruit to through Friday. This free service allows you diet and health, I go online and type of frosting piled on top, and the richness of add moisture and sweetness; smaller pans to ask questions about diet, nutrition and the topic in the search box. ingredients in each. That puts to limit portion size; and toppings of a cancer. A registered dietitian will return The top few websites that cupcakes in the same neigh- sprinkle of powdered sugar or a small dol- your call, usually within three business days.

Courtesy of the American Institute for come up should give the borhood as a piece of cake or lop of whipped cream. Even then, limiting Cancer Research. Questions for this column most trustworthy informapie, where the same factors the number you eat is important. tion, right?

The American Institute for Cancer Re- may be sent to “Nutrition Wise,” 1759 R St., influence calorie content.

A: No. Internet search enThe bottom line is that all search offers a Nutrition Hotline, 1-800- NW, Washington, DC 20009. Collins cannot gines are set up with intricate these are indulgences that 843-8114, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday respond to questions personally. formulas that raise a website you might consider splitting BEACON BITS higher on the list based on a with a companion, or at least variety of factors, including trying not to feel compelled to PREVENT DIABETES popularity as well as technical finish on your own.

Understand pre-diabetes and learn how to prevent or delay actual details about how the website NUTRITION Enjoy any of these as an ocis set up and run. This is no WISE casional treat, not a staple. diabetes at this class on Wednesday, Sept. 14 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Howard sign of the accuracy of a web- By Karen Collins, When purchasing, order one County General Hospital Wellness Center, 10710 Charter Dr., Suite 100, MS, RD, CDM site’s information. cupcake per person (or per two Columbia. The fee is $15. To register, call (410) 740-7601 or register online at If you want to check on a people), not by the dozen! study that you’ve heard reportAlternatively, you can find www.hcgh.org. ed on the news, you can go directly to the recipes for cupcakes that are under 300 website of the journal in which it’s published calories that use different kinds of puréed or to the U.S. National Library of Medicine (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/) and search for it by topic.

However, remember that it’s never wise to make food or lifestyle decisions based on just one study. Make decisions based on the big picture of overall research.

Since it’s hard to keep up with all the studies, you’ll save time and get trustworthy information by keeping a list of a few sites you trust where information posted is written and reviewed for accuracy by qualified experts.

Check sites related to overall wellness, particular organizations devoted to specific diseases or health problems (like www.aicr.org or www.diabetes.org), and – Peter Drucker – Economist organizations of trained health professionals (like www.eatright.org, the web home of registered dietitians) that provide commentaries and evidence-based reviews of important health issues.

These days it can be hard to tell the difference between a true nutrition news story and a press release put out by companies with something to sell, so it really does pay to check what the experts you trust say.

A recent survey shows that many seeking health information on the Internet don’t check where their information comes from. Don’t let a search engine decide for you whom to trust.

Q: A friend laughed at me recently when I said that I was trying to save calories by ordering a cupcake for dessert instead of cake or pie. Are there more calories there than it seems?

A: Yes, indeed, the popularity of cupcakes does not reflect any help for weight Application Online control.

View Unit Availability The bakeries in major cities that specialize in cupcakes generally choose not to Schedule an Appointment Join us for one of our informative provide calorie and nutrient analysis. Figures from bakeries and chefs that do share luncheons, financial seminars or the information range from 360 to over 800 a private appointment. calories per cupcake.

That comes from both heavy loads of fat — equal to five or more pats of butter — Welcome Center Open • 9531 Frederick Road • Ellicott City, MD 21042 and five or six teaspoons of sugar apiece. * Per Residency Agreement. Lutheran Village at MILLER’S GRANT is a proposed continuing care retirement community subject to The wide range is due to differences in approval by the Maryland Department of Aging and participates with Howard County in the Moderate Income Housing Unit Program.

Sept. 14

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14

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

This herb speeds healing, fades bruises Dear Pharmacist: It seems my grandkids spend the summer getting bumped and bruised.

I develop bruises sometimes myself, too. Can you recommend a natural remedy to help them go away? â&#x20AC;&#x201D; P.E. Dear P.E.: Yes, I have just the thing. Not too long ago, a friend of mine took a nasty spill while riding her bicycle. She shared the details of what happened with me, and

today, I will share her story with you.

My friendâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s next-door neighbor asked politely how she was doing after the minor accident, and she confessed to her neighbor that everything hurt. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have just the thing,â&#x20AC;? the neighbor responded and ducked inside her house, emerging a moment later with a jar of calendula cream. Calendula (Calendula officinalis) is an herb that has been used safely all over the world for centuries, specifically for wound healing.

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My friend decided to give her neigh- or tinctures. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll see various brands and borâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s cream a try, since she trusted the companies selling it, a few of which insource. She trusted her beclude Boiron, Weleda, Calicause the lady had raised five fornia Baby and Hylandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. teenagers who played every If you are creating a firstsport, from soccer to volleyaid cabinet, I recommend you ball. If this stuff came with the include calendula. Put it next soccer momâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seal of approval, to your hydrocortisone and it had to be effective. tea tree oil. Calendula is so As my friend relayed her safe you can literally eat the story to me, I became excited beautiful yellow flowers from to write about it, too, since which the cream is made, so there are no prescription long as youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not allergic to DEAR drugs or salves that do all that flowers in the daisy or PHARMACIST calendula apparently can. marigold family.

By Suzy Cohen My friend dabbed the cream Calendula extract imparts a on her bruises and scrapes, beautiful yellow color, so itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s took a nap and woke up significantly bet- used as a natural coloring agent in cuisines ter. Within days, she was as good as new. around the world. Lately, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been buying This inspired me to research calendula. the fresh, edible version of flowers from my I wish I had known about it when my chil- natural grocer to garnish salads and soups. dren were young. A few European studies It makes for a delicious conversation piece have concluded calendula can help soothe at my dinner table. wounds and improve healing. It has antifungal, antiviral, and even anti-tumor prop- Did you know?

Quercetin is a natural antihistamine. erties.

I think calendula would be fantastic for You can buy it in health food stores nationcradle cap and diaper rashes, or any rash wide if you have seasonal allergies.

This information is opinion only. It is not for that matter. You can use it on minor burns, sunburn, bedsores, eczema and intended to treat, cure or diagnose your condition. Consult with your doctor before using poison ivy.

A small study showed it can ease the any new drug or supplement.

Suzy Cohen is a registered pharmacist pain of radiation-induced dermatitis. Caland the author of The 24-Hour Pharmacist endula may improve acne, too.

Health food stores and online retailers and Real Solutions from Head to Toe. To sell calendula in cream, lotions, ointments contact her, visit www.dearpharmacist.com.

BEACON BITS

Sept. 20

Learn about living with vertigo and dizziness, as well as the causes and possible cures in a two-hour program on Tuesday, Sept. 20 starting at 10 a.m. at the Elkridge Senior Center, 6540 Washington Blvd., Elkridge. For more information, call the center at (410) 313-5159.

Do you provide a product or service of interest to people over 50? (And today, what business doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t?)

Sept 22

Sept. 17+

The Howard County

VOL.1, NO.6

I N

F O C U S

F O R

P E O P L E

More than 25,000 readers

FREE

OV E R

throughout Howard

5 0

PHOTO BY LEWIS L ORTON

County Extreme makeovers you can do

By Anne Ball When she was growing up in Cleveland, Kimberly Mooreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family enjoyed a tradition of volunteering. The Red Cross and Toys for Tots were early favorites.

Years later, as a young mother in Santa Ana, Calif., with her small son Christopher in tow, she continued to spread her volunteer interests even further, adding Christmas in April to the growing list.

Little did she know that one day she would be the beneficiary of its efforts.

CHORAL FUNDRAISING SALES

The Columbia Pro Cantare Chorus will kick off its 35th season with two fundraisers. The first is a flea market on Saturday, Sept.

17 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church, 6800 Oakland Mills Rd., Columbia. On Saturday, Sept. 24, the chorus will hold a plant and book sale from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Dorsey Hall Giant on Dorsey Hall Dr. in Ellicott City. For more information, email chorus@procantare.org.

The

(410) 248-9101.

SMOKE-FREE LUNGS

Free education and support for smokers wanting to quit, or those who have quit already, is available on Thursday, Sept. 22, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Howard County General Hospital Wellness Center, 10710 Charter Dr., Suite 100, Columbia. For more information, call (410) 740-7601.

Reach hundreds of thousands of customers throughout the Baltimore and Greater Washington areas by advertising in

For demographic information and advertising rates, call Alan at

VERTIGO AND DIZZINESS PREVENTION

SEPTEMBER 2011

I N S I D E â&#x20AC;Ś VOLUME 1 NO 6 â&#x20AC;˘ SEPTEMBER 2011

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'HSDUWPHQW RI &LWL]HQ 6HUYLFHV 'HSDUWPHQW RI &LWL]HQ 6HUYLFHV

A Message from Sue Vaeth

Howard County Office on Aging Administrator

Since suffering a series of back injuries a few years ago, Moore, 47, has been confined to a wheelchair. She rediscovered Christmas in April, a national organization whose name changed several years ago to Rebuilding Together, when she called the county to inquire about improving her homeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s accessibility.

She wanted to install a ramp that would give her easier access to the road and the paratransit buses she used.

The Office on Aging arranged for the ramp and suggested that Moore contact Rebuilding Together for her home improvement needs.

And so this spring, Moore watched from her wheelchair as Christopher, now 21, worked with more than 30 other volunteers from Rebuilding Together Howard County to transform her Elkridge home. They put in new flooring, repainted walls, repaired a leaky ceiling, and installed an all-in-one washer/dryer combination in the kitchen. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve regained a little bit more of my in- Rebuilding Together Howard County dependence, especially performed a one-day with the wash- treme sort makeover of the less in the home of er/dryer upstairs instead of in the base- unteer Robin Linthicum Kimberly Moore (in wheelchair) and son Christopher. exhelped Volment,â&#x20AC;? Moore said. As the work was pro- accessible washing machine coordinate upgrades to Mooreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home, including and hardwood flooring an ceeding, she easily that makes it easier maneuvered her maneuver her wheelchair. Rebuilding for Moore to Together accepts applications wheelchair through hallways year-round and renovates and volunteers houses in April. and rooms that just a day before were almost impassa- of homeowner Rebuilding Together likes ble because old, rippled carpeting imped- to help. houses for older adults She bought her Columbia and people with ed the wheels. town- disabilities each house just after it was year, usually on the last built 40 years ago, day of April. Since 1992, the organization and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s aged with her.

Done in a day Recently, sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s has repaired and rehabilitated 583 homes found it difficult to make Rebuilding Togetherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stated needed repairs. and nonprofit facilities in mission is When the homeownersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Howard â&#x20AC;&#x153;to preserve and revitalize County. association sent houses and com- Vallotton â&#x20AC;&#x153;What is so amazing is a letter telling her that her how everything munities, assuring that fence is pulled together low-income home- and in just one day,â&#x20AC;? said Ed steps needed to be repaired, owners, particularly those she was Hamel, 77, who are elderly stymied. founder and president and disabled and families of with children, Elkridge-based Hamel Builders. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what would in warmth, safety and independence.â&#x20AC;? live have happened â&#x20AC;&#x153;And there are jobs for if I hadnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t found Rebuilding everyone,â&#x20AC;? he â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a lot to live up to, Together. I did- added. especially with nâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have â&#x20AC;&#x153;It isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t all hammering and the money to do this myself,â&#x20AC;? the cold winters weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had measurshe ing and cutting and the last couple said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The fitting. There is paint to job they did is just fantastic.â&#x20AC;? years,â&#x20AC;? said Anne Heavner, executive direcbe scraped, yards to be From painting to plastering raked â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all kinds tor of Rebuilding Together to garden- of chores for Howard County. ing, more young and old,â&#x20AC;? Hamel said. than 800 Rebuilding Together Hannelore Vallotton, 85, is just the type Howard County volunteers rehab about 30 See REBUILDING, page

25

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C nn n bl h d hl b h H dC Off A D fC S W l d T l b b l l @h d d hâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC; b b â&#x20AC;&#x2122; h b b The Senior Connection from Howard County Office on Aging

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Thursday September 15 2011 â&#x20AC;˘ 10 AM 2:30 PM Gary J Arthur Community Center at Glenwood 2400 Route 97 Cooksville MD 21723

www howardcountyaging

org

410 313 5440

Office on Aging Newsletter Inside every month!

See page 16.

LEISURE & TR AVEL

Lifeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s more than a beach on North Carolinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Outer Banks; plus, SEALs, sun and squadrons in Virginia Beach, and some fall travel planning strategies page 26 FITNESS & HEALTH 4 k Put cancer risks in perspective k B vitamins boost your brain LAW & MONEY 18 k Stocks the pros are buying k How to pay for long-term care VOLUNTEERS & CAREERS k Want to work â&#x20AC;&#x2122;til youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re 100?

24

PLUS CROSSWORD, BEACON BITS, CLASSIFIEDS & MORE

Sept. 8+

BRING OUT YOUR INNER ARTIST

Learn the basics of drawing and explore a new form of artistic expression in a 14-week program for seniors at any experience level. You must be 55 or older to enroll. Fee of $100 for 14 weeks. The class begins Thursday, Sept. 8 and will be held from 1:15 to 3:15 p.m. at the Gary Arthur Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville. A drawing and painting class runs on Mondays at the same time and place. For further information on these and other programs, call (410) 313-4840.

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com | Fitness & Health

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

15

Dating challenges the second time around Dear Solutions: comfortable when she’s around.

I’m a widow, and I met this very nice She’s known him a lot longer than I man, also a widower. I think have, and when we’re tohe’s interested in me. gether, I feel like the outWe’ve gone out a couple of sider. Do you think I should times, but in between dates try to be friends with her, he calls to make a date to and what should I tell him if call me about possibly makI don’t want to? ing a date. Then he calls at — Maddie the last minute for that date.

Dear Maddie: Why does he do this, “Love me, love my friends” and how can I change it? may be his motto, but you — Mary don’t have to become part of SOLUTIONS Dear Mary: this menage-a-trois. Before you When that last-minute call By Helen Oxenberg, turn it down, though, examine comes, give him a busy signal. MSW, ACSW your motives. Are you feeling He may get hung up when you insecure about his relationhang up, and start to rethink his strategy. ship with her? Are you jealous of her?

Why does he do it at the last minute? It If so, reframe your thinking. Focus on may be very stressful for him to think his relationship with you, not on his relaabout actually dating again. He also may tionship with her. If he tells you she’s just a be afraid of closing himself in with a com- friend, accept that. It’s how he treats you mitment. that reveals the truth.

Give him the benefit of the doubt. Talk You don’t have to tell him anything. Go to him about his feelings about being a re- along once in a while, and as long as it’s cent widower out in the dating world. not a constant threesome, try to just be a Dear Solutions: casual friend of hers also.

I’ve been going out with a man I met Dear Solutions: recently. I like him, but he has a feI feel as though I often let business male friend and he wants me to be people or workers take advantage of friends with her also. I don’t know me. If something goes wrong and I what to say to him, but I don’t feel start to call them about it, I get

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tongue-tied and end up accepting whatever excuse they give.

My husband calls me a wimp, and I guess I am because I let them intimidate me. How can I change?

— Belle Dear Belle: Repeat after me: “I don’t need their approval. I don‘t have to please them. I’m entitled to get what I paid for.” Write it on a pad.

Underneath that, write exactly what is wrong and exactly what you expect them to do.

Keep the pad by the phone and review it before making the call. No matter what they say, just read “your rights” back to them: you’re entitled to get what you paid for, and you expect them to do X. They may think you’re a robot, but they sure won’t think you’re a wimp! © Helen Oxenberg, 2011. Questions to be considered for this column may be sent to: The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915. To inquire about reprint rights, call (609) 655-3684.

Please tell our advertisers, “I saw you in the Beacon!”

Af fordable Apartments You· ll Be Proud To Call Home Y

Designed and managed for today· s D seniors at these locations: ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY

EASTERN SHORE

‡ Furnace Branch 410-761-4150

‡ Easton 410-770-3070

‡ Severna Park 410-544-3411

HARFORD COUNTY

BALTIMORE CITY

‡ Box Hill 410-515-6115

‡ Ashland Terrace 410-276-6440

‡ Bel Air 410-893-0064

‡ Coldspring 410-542-4400

HOWARD COUNTY

BALTIMORE COUNTY

‡ Colonial Landing 410-796-4399

‡ Catonsville 410-719-9464

‡ Columbia 410-381-1118

‡ Dundalk 410-288-5483

‡ Snowden River 410-290-0384

‡ Fullerton 410-663-0665

‡ Ellicott City 410-203-9501

‡ Miramar Landing 410-391-8375

‡ Ellicott City II 410-203-2096

‡ Randallstown 410-655-5673

‡ Emerson 301-483-3322

‡ Rosedale 410-866-1886

PRINCE GEORGE· S COUNTY

NOW! ‡ Timothy House (Towson) 410-828-7185 * Bladensburg 301-699-9785 *5 5 or Better ‡ Laurel 301-490-1526 ‡ Taylor 410-663-0363

‡ Woodlawn 410-281-1120

‡ Laurel II 301-490-9730

www.ParkViewSeniorLiving.com Call the community nearest you to inquire about eligibility requirements and to arrange a personal tour or email seniorliving@sheltergrp.com.

Professionally managed by The Shelter Group. www.thesheltergroup.com

16

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 â&#x20AC;&#x201D; H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

VOLUME 1, NO. 6 â&#x20AC;˘ SEPTEMBER 2011

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A Message from Sue Vaeth Howard County Office on Aging Administrator

Many â&#x20AC;&#x153;Senior Connectionâ&#x20AC;? readers already know what itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s like to retire and move on to a new phase of life. As colleagues around me have retired, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had to fight that twinge of jealousy as they move on to create their new lives. While Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m not ready to retire, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve decided that I wanted to do more than just say â&#x20AC;&#x153;I want to do that.â&#x20AC;?

So I have resigned from my position as Administrator of the Office on Aging in order to discover my own third career. It has been wonderful working with so many creative and dedicated people at the Office on Aging and getting to know many of the people we serve â&#x20AC;&#x201D; particularly those who attend senior centers.

And speaking of senior centers, September is National Senior Center Month. Did you know that research has shown that social and intellectual engagement and physical activity are important in delaying cognitive decline? Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s one of the reasons why senior centers are so important.

Regular readers of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Senior Connectionâ&#x20AC;? will know that there is a variety of fun stuff happening at the seven senior center locations in the county. Check out our calendars at www.howardcountyaging.org, give us a call, or just drop by. Howard County senior centers are â&#x20AC;&#x153;More Than You Can Imagine.â&#x20AC;?

September is also National Preparedness Month.

Howard County government has done a lot to prepare for manmade and natural disasters, but despite these preparations, you may need to survive on your own after an emergency. Check out the information from www.ready.gov on this page for more information about how you and your family can be prepared.

The Senior Connection is published monthly by the Howard County Office on Aging, Department of Citizen Services.

We welcome your comments and suggestions.

To contact us, or to join our email subscriber list, email seniorconnection@howardcountymd.gov with â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;subscribeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; in the subject box.

The Senior Connection from Howard County Office on Aging 6751 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia, MD 21046 410-313-6410 | www.howardcountyaging.org Dale Jackson, Acting Administrator Advertising contained in the Beacon is not endorsed by the Howard County Office on Aging or by the publisher.

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Make an Emergency Plan September is National Preparedness Month â&#x20AC;&#x201C; are you ready? The reality of a disaster situation is that you may not have access to everyday conveniences.

That is why it is so important to formulate an emergency plan in advance.

To get started, think through the details of your everyday life. If there are people who assist you on a daily basis, list who they are, and how you will contact them in an emergency. Create your own personal support network by identifying others who will help you in an emergency. Think about what modes of transportation you use and what alternative modes could serve as back-ups. (If you require handicap accessible transportation, be sure your alternatives are also accessible.) For every aspect of your daily routine, plan an alternative procedure.

Assemble an emergency kit, and keep enough emergency supplies on hand for you and those in your care to last for about three days, including water, non-perishable food, first aid, prescriptions, flashlights, batterypowered radio, and extra batteries. For a checklist of supplies, visit www.ready.gov.

Keep a copy of your plan in your emergency supply kits and a list of important information (including any prescription medications you take, as well as pharmacy and physiciansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; contact information) and personal contacts in your wallet. Be sure to share your plan with your family, friends, care providers and others in your personal support network. For more information, visit www.ready.gov or call 1-800-BE-READY.

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Thursday, September 15, 2011 â&#x20AC;˘ 10 AM - 2:30 PM Gary J. Arthur Community Center at Glenwood 2400 Route 97, Cooksville, MD 21723 LUNCH IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE

www.howardcountyaging.org â&#x20AC;˘ 410.313.5440

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

Coming Events The Senior Connection

Tuesdays, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. — Massage Therapy with Myra Dorsey, North Laurel 50+ Center Relieve the stress in your life with a massage. Cost: $30 for 25 minutes/$50 for 50 minutes. Call 410-313-0380 for an appointment.

Wednesday, Sept. 7, 9 to 10 a.m. — Celiac’s and Gluten Free information Group, East Columbia 50+ Center Come try some gluten free items as we share the latest news about this nutritional challenge. Free; call 410-313-7680 for more information.

Wed., Sept. 7, 10 to 11 a.m. — Around the World Cook-Out, The Bain Center Chef Jeff Keeney of Brighton Gardens of Columbia will share great menu ideas and offer food tastings. Free, but seating is limited; call 410-313-7213 to reserve your seat.

Weds., Sept. 7 to 21, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. — Laughing Yoga, Longwood Senior Center Strengthen your arms and enjoy an hour of seated exercise with Smita Jhaveri. Free, but donations are welcome. Call 410-313-7217 to register.

Weds., Sept. 7 to Oct. 26, 10 a.m. to noon — A Matter of Balance, Elkridge Senior Center Whether you have a fear of falling or just want to learn how to maintain strength and balance, this is the class for you. Cost: $23 for eight weeks.

Thurs., Sept. 8, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. — End of Summer Rummage Sale, Longwood Senior Center Find great deals on books, household items, jewelry, toys, clothes, and lots more! All proceeds support Longwood Senior Center. For more information or to donate, call 410-313-7217.

Tuesday, Sept. 13, 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. — Autumn Ballet for Health and Healing, The Bain Center Experience how movement, music, and meditation can improve your health and spirits during an inspiring and creative program by Howard County’s Ballet Mobile. Free; call 410-313-7213 to reserve your seat.

Wed., Sept. 14, 11:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. — Fitness Demo Day, North Laurel 50+ Center Free exercise demos of some of our most popular classes by certified instructors, plus a presentation

by Jennifer Lee at 12:30 p.m. on “How to Choose the Best Fit for You.” Call 410-313-0380 for more information.

Wednesday, Sept. 14, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.

— Watercolor Workshop, East Columbia 50+ Center All materials are included in this one day watercolor workshop with Marilyn Evans.

Cost: $33. To register, call 410-313-7680.

Thursday, Sept. 15. 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. – WomenFest, Glenwood 50+ Center Designed to help and inspire women to live more balanced, healthy and fulfilled lives, WomenFest features engaging seminars on health, wellness, beauty and fashion, dynamic exhibitors, and free health screenings. Lunch is available for purchase. For more information, visit www.howardcountyaging.org or call 410-313-5440.

Thursday, Sept. 15, 11:15 a.m. — “Olde Golde Music”, Ellicott City Senior Center Featuring Jim Blackwell on keyboard and Larry Stauffer’s vocals, Olde Golde’s program includes sentimental favorites from the 1940s. Free.

“Living Well...Take Charge of Your Health”

Tues., Sept. 20 — Korean American Senior Association (KASA) Fundraiser, The Bain Center Don’t miss KASA’s annual sale of gently used clothes, jewelry, furniture, toys, food and more.

For more information or to donate, call Sunny Moon, 410-313-7388. Proceeds benefit the Vivian Reid Fund which provides emergency assistance to older adults in need.

Thursday, Sept. 22, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. — Senior Safety Awareness Day, Ellicott City Senior Center Get safety tips from Howard County Police, Fire & Rescue Services and the Office of Consumer Affairs on: Top 10 Fire & Safety Tips; When You Call 911; Personal & Home Safety; and Telemarketing Scams – Arm Yourself with Knowledge. This free event is open to the entire family; don’t miss the outdoor display of vintage and modern Howard County emergency vehicles and the Mobile Command Center, plus local vendors and giveaways, and more. A catered boxed lunch is available for $4; call 410-313-1400 to reserve.

Thursday, Sept. 22, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Guest Chef Event, Elkridge Senior Center Watch as our guest chef prepares a fresh, nutritious meal, while our nutritionist, Rona Martiyan discusses the components of a healthy meal. Suggested donation: $3.

Wednesdays starting Oct. 12, 1 to 2:30 p.m. — Power Over Pain, North Laurel 50+ Center An eight-week support group for those living with chronic pain; develop a positive attitude, get information, talk to others living with CP, and find ways of coping. Free; call Karen Hull, 410-313-7466 for more information.

BeaFRIENDofthe50+EXPO!

Glenwood 50+ Center

Here’s an opportunity to be a FRIEND of the 50+EXPO and demonstrate your support for this premier event for older adults.

2400 Route 97 Cooksville, MD 21737

Wednesdays, Sept. 7, 14, 21, 28, Oct. 5, 12 from 9:30 a.m. to Noon

Medical Pavilion at Howard County

10710 Charter Drive, Suite 100 • Columbia, MD

Fridays, Sept. 9, 16, 23, 30, Oct. 7, 14 from 1:30 to 4 p.m.

Learn techniques to cope with the frustration, fatigue, pain and isolation often associated with chronic conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Also, learn exercises to maintain and improve strength, flexibility and endurance, and how to communicate more effectively with family, friends and health professionals.

The class and accompanying materials cost $28.

If you are interested, contact Maryland Access Point (MAP) at 410-313-5980.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21

2011 9:00 am - 4:00 pm Wilde Lake High School 5460 Trumpeter Road, Columbia, MD

In gratitude for your support, all “FRIENDS” will be acknowledged at the 50+EXPO and will receive one preferred, reserved seat to see “The Capitol Steps” perform in the Jim Rouse Theatre at either the 10 AM or 1 PM show.

Download the “FRIENDS” flyer at www.howardcountyaging.org and simply complete and return to the address shown on the form.

Thank you for your support and commitment! www.howardcountyaging.org

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Money Law &

BORROW FROM YOURSELF Why it makes economic sense to borrow from your retirement accounts PAYING FOR LONG-TERM CARE You don’t necessarily need long-term care insurance to cover those costs THE UPSIDE TO FOOD PRICES Soaring food prices and farm machinery orders = big agriculture stock returns BARGAIN BETTER Save money by negotiating cable bills, credit card charges and more

What investment pros are buying today

By Dave Carpenter A slumping stock market and economic difficulties make this a challenging time for investors looking for the best place to put their money.

No consensus emerged among the nearly 1,700 financial planners and fund managers attending the annual Morningstar Investment Conference. But many floated ideas for good buys and strategies in this difficult environment.

Several professionals offered up their single best investment ideas: Dividend stocks. Hold Procter & Gamble (PG) and Abbott Laboratories (ABT) as dividend stocks for the long term. Both have yields of more than 3 percent. “Their stocks haven’t moved in years, but both their dividends and revenues are moving.” Both are businesses that are going to be around and still strong 15 years from now.

P&G’s rise in product sales is coming from emerging market countries with good growth prospects. Abbott’s top-selling drug, Humira, which is used to treat inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, is “not going to fall off the cliff,” and the company keeps finding new uses for it.

— Josh Peters, equity income strategist for Morningstar Mutual funds. Think about large-cap funds in general, and Jensen J (JENSX) in particular. It’s a large-cap growth fund, rated five stars by Morningstar.

And for cash, use an online bank for the best CD rates. We’re moving a lot of customers into Ally Bank, where they can get 2.3 percent for a five-year CD. — Ross Levin, founding principal of the financial planning firm Accredited Investors Inc. in Edina, Minn.

TIPS. Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) should be the bedrock of any investor’s portfolio to help provide a hedge against inflation. (TIPS are a type of Treasury bond whose payout is adjusted every six months for inflation.)

They are “badly overpriced” at the moment but still a good buy if you believe that inflation is going to be 4 to 5 percent over the next year.

— Robert Johnson, director of economic analysis for Morningstar.

MLPs. Master limited partnerships (MLPs) are a publicly traded version of limited partnerships, which enables them to avoid paying corporate income taxes.

Most are oil and gas pipeline companies.

A master limited partnership called Energy Transfer Equity (ETE) has a 5 percent yield, and new pipelines coming on line enable it to achieve double-digit

growth in the next couple of years.

— Paul Larson, equities strategist for Morningstar.

Large-cap U.S. stocks. High-quality, large-cap stocks are the only U.S. stocks worth buying right now. “We’re underweight [on] stocks in general, but only moderately, because [the returns on] cash and bonds stink, too.”

— Ben Inker, head of asset allocation at investment management firm GMO. Growth stocks. Companies that are on track to double or triple their revenues in the next five or 10 years are good opportunities. “If you can wait for an opportunity today and buy them at a reasonable price, you can buy them and hold them and make a lot of money.”

— Morty Schaja, CEO and managing partner at Riverpark Funds, New York.

— AP

Become a tax savvy mutual fund investor

By Dave Carpenter Too many people pay the government too much in taxes because they don’t think enough about how their mutual funds are taxed. They focus on a fund’s return — but taxes can be the biggest drag on performance.

Many investors lose 1 or 2 percentage points of their fund returns every year because they don’t try to lower their taxes, said Tom Roseen, an analyst with fund tracker Lipper Inc. The first step is to start educating yourself about the tax issues that can affect mutual funds. That’s not as hard as it might seem.

Here are some key tax terms and strategies that fund investors should know: Tax-managed fund: These funds, sometimes called tax-advantaged funds, use a variety of techniques aimed at keeping taxes low. Their strategies include holding stocks for longer periods to defer taxable gains as long as possible.

They also invest in lower-dividend-paying stocks to minimize annual capital gains. And they offset those gains by selling other stocks at a loss.

Investors tend to be more interested in funds like this after the market drops and

they’re feeling the pain of being hit by taxable distributions even during losing years.

But tax-managed funds are worth a look at any point — especially because federal taxes are expected to go up after next year.

These funds by no means automatically sacrifice returns in exchange for their tax efficiency.

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) also are generally tax-efficient, because they track indexes, and thus their expenses and turnover tend to be lower.

Tax-loss carry-forward: A carry-forward, also known as a capital-loss carryover, is an accounting technique used to reduce the tax burden from a profitable fund. Think of it as stockpiling losses.

Mutual funds are required by the IRS to pass virtually all their capital gains along to investors. This means that regardless of how bad a year it was in the market, investors will owe tax on distributions from the long-term holdings their funds sold at a gain.

Funds are not allowed to pass along losses. But they can keep them on their books for up to eight years to offset future gains. This can be a boon to an investor who buys one of those funds, Roseen said.

In other words, funds that stockpiled losses from bad times may be able to offset their taxable gains for years to come.

That will lower investors’ future taxes. If you buy one of these funds, you are using the fund’s past losses to your benefit.

To find out about a fund’s carry-forwards, check the annual report of any fund or fund family.

Tax-adjusted return: Looking beyond a mutual fund’s pretax return is wise. Its after-tax figure may be where you want to focus.

“People always look at performance — that’s what they want to see,” said Katie Rushkewicz, senior mutual fund analyst at Morningstar. “But sometimes taxes can be an issue.”

The Mor ningstar website, www. morningstar.com, offers a tax tab on each fund’s page that compares the fund’s pretax return with its tax-adjusted return. The tax-adjusted return accounts for capital gains, dividends and interest during the period.

Turnover ratio: A fund’s portfolio turnover ratio is the percentage of its assets that were sold during the most recent quarter or year. The more aggressive the fund, the higher the ratio.

For example, a turnover of 200 percent means a fund sold shares worth twice the total value of its portfolio during the year.

That raises the likelihood of capital gains taxes.

Unless the fund’s investing style justifies frequent trading, it’s a good idea to limit your tax consequences by avoiding funds that trade most of their holdings in a given year. That means being wary of turnover ratios above 50 percent.

Check fund reports or financial websites to find funds’ turnover ratios.

Potential capital gains exposure: If you are wary of a big tax bill from a fund you own or are considering buying, its “potential capital gains exposure” can be a valuable tool.

Potential exposure measures how much a fund’s holdings have grown in value. It tallies capital gains that haven’t been distributed to shareholders and divides that number by total net assets.

Morningstar developed the concept, and its tax tab crunches each fund’s number. A higher number than most other funds may suggest a tax hit coming, while a negative number probably signifies tax efficiency.

— AP

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

19

Some housing stocks rise despite market

By Mark Jewell Real estate investing doesn’t have to be a losing proposition, whether home prices continue to slip or not.

Ross Meredith has a lot of money riding on that notion, and it’s worked out lately.

The retired bank examiner owns stock in companies called real estate investment trusts (REITs), which own commercial properties. Those six REIT stocks have returned an average of about 20 percent a year since the 2008 financial crisis.

He plans to hold on to the REITs. And he’s sticking with his suburban Salt Lake City home, even though it’s shedding value. He figures the resale price of the five-bedroom colonial he shares with his wife has dropped about 6 percent a year since the housing bubble burst, to about $250,000 now.

Meredith isn’t alone: Recent home price declines in many cities have left several markets in a “double-dip,” or second period of decline since the subprime mortgage crisis triggered the Great Recession.

Although Meredith’s mortgage is now paid off, he still has the ongoing expenses of property taxes and maintenance. But real estate still holds some appeal. “REITs pay me a return,” the 65-year-old said.

Commercial real estate holds up The potential stock returns are bolstered by their often-attractive dividends payouts. REITs generate income from properties they own and often operate.

They’re required to distribute at least 90 percent of their taxable income to shareholders in order to escape corporate taxes.

Meredith has been able to count on stable quarterly payouts from REIT stocks to supplement retirement savings and pay for niceties like travel and golf.

The recent resilience of REIT dividends

is proof, Meredith said, that the decline for commercial real estate wasn’t nearly as bad as the residential market crash.

One reason commercial properties have held up well is that the market wasn’t overbuilt. The rapid pace of homebuilding before the bubble burst left a glut of housing when the economy skidded.

“Property developers weren’t building office complexes or hotels or apartments for clients who didn’t exist,” said Jon Cheigh, co-manager of Cohen & Steers Realty Shares (CSRSX), a REIT mutual fund with $3.7 billion in assets. “So the recent slump in the commercial market hasn’t been the 100-year flood that it has been for the residential market.”

In fact, many real estate categories that REITs invest in have held up well. For example, apartment complex REITs have benefited as many potential homebuyers are either unwilling or unable to get a mortgage. The average return for apartment REIT stocks last year, including dividends, was a sizzling 47 percent.

Long-term care stocks also up Meredith’s favorite REIT, National Health Investors, gets steady income from the nursing homes, assisted living centers and medical office buildings that it owns.

The stock has returned an average 21 percent per year over the last 3-year period.

That’s way ahead of the 3 percent return for the Standard & Poor’s 500 index.

This year, REITs have been one of the stock market’s bright spots. Mutual funds that specialize in REITs have returned an average 9.4 percent. That’s nearly double the S&P 500’s 5 percent return.

After such strong gains, Meredith isn’t looking to add to his REIT holdings. He figures the stocks are no longer bargains.

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Dividends fall, but still popular One downside is that the higher prices have pushed dividend yields down, meaning investors get less income relative to the price of the stock. The average yield for REIT stocks recently slipped below 4 percent. That’s less than half of what they paid when stocks bottomed out in March 2009.

The stocks have gained in part because they’ve appealed to investors unhappy with the recent near-record low returns for many less-risky investments. Ten-year Treasurys, for example, yield around 3 percent. That’s led many investors to search elsewhere for income, lifting demand, and prices, for REITs and other dividend-paying stocks.

That popularity means REITs have found plenty of additional investors. REITs have raised a total $31 billion through May, from issuing additional stock shares and debt. That’s on pace to beat the fullyear record of $49 billion set in 2006.

Four REITs have completed initial public offerings this year, a further sign of market confidence in REITs. The cash influx leaves REITs with more money to buy property.

However, the opportunity for REITs to inexpensively raise money may be short-

lived. If the economic recovery picks up speed, interest rates are likely to increase, raising REITs’ borrowing costs. That would make it more expensive to acquire new properties, which could crimp REITs’ stock prices. Higher rates would also lift bond yields, making them more competitive with REIT dividends.

The threats of higher rates and inflation recently led Cohen & Steers Realty Shares to buy more shares of apartment REITs. Apartment owners are in better position to raise rents annually in response to an improving economy than owners of office properties with multi-year leases, Cheigh reasoned.

He expects REIT dividend payments will rise around 10 percent a year over the next five years, which could bring yields back up. A key reason is his expectation that demand for commercial properties will exceed supply for years to come.

That could prove to be wrong if the economic recovery stalls.

“That would be bad for REITs,” he said.

“But it would also be bad for lots of other investments, too. I don’t see a lot of risks out there that are specific only to REITs.” — AP

BEACON BITS

Sept. 23

CAR CLINIC Take your car to the Bain Center parking lot for a free 15-minute,

26-point car inspection by certified technicians from the University of Maryland.

You’ll receive a detailed report on how “clean” your car is and learn the top 10 ways to save at the pump. The clinic is Friday, Sept. 23, 9 a.m. to noon, at the Bain Center, 5470 Ruth Keeton Way, Columbia. For more information, call (410) 3137213. Preregistration is required. Sign up in advance at the Bain Center desk.

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Financial Representative. e Guardian Life Insurance Company of American (Guardian), New York, New York. PAS is an indirect, whollyowned subsidiary of Guardian. First Financial Group is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. PAS is a member of FIRNA SIPC.

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20

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Retirement account loans get a bum rap

By Elliot Raphaelson According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, the percentage of individuals borrowing from their 401(k) accounts has increased dramatically the last few years.

Some members of Congress feel that this is a dangerous trend, and they are proposing legislation to make it more difficult for individuals to take out these loans.

They apparently feel that people who take them are jeopardizing their retirement.

Congress should not pass any legislation that restricts this type of loan. Individuals contribute to 401(k) accounts for two primary reasons: To save for retirement and to take advantage of a matching contri-

bution from their employer.

If they decide to borrow from their 401(k), it is because they have a better short-term alternative for these funds. For example, when I worked full time, such loans were very useful to pay for my children’s education.

Most, but not all, employees enrolled in a 401(k) plan are allowed to borrow from it. Just as companies match employee contributions at different levels, or not at all, companies also impose varying interest rates on loans from their plans. Some companies don’t allow loans.

Meanwhile, federal law requires loans to be paid back within five years, or 15 years if the loan is used to purchase a pri-

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Does loan rate matter?

One of my pet peeves regarding 401(k) loans is not with the loans themselves, but rather with the emphasis most pundits and columnists place on the loan rate that is imposed on these loans.

Whether you think the rate is favorable or poor is irrelevant because the individual who is taking out this loan is paying it back to himself rather than to a financial institution.

What is important is comparing what these funds could have returned in the retirement account to the return that the borrower receives on the funds withdrawn.

For example, assume a borrower has been receiving an average total return of 4 percent on the funds in his retirement account. If he uses the proceeds to pay off a credit card with a rate of 18 percent, he has saved 14 percent.

It is true that a higher rate on the loan means a larger annual repayment amount (to his own retirement account). However, he is paying it back to himself. A high loan rate does not hurt him. What is relevant is how he uses the proceeds.

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One potential disadvantage of the 401(k) loan is that if you leave your job for any reason and you are younger than 59 1/2, you have only 60 days to repay the loan.

If you fail to do so, you have to pay the IRS a 10 percent penalty on the unpaid loan amount (in addition to ordinary in-

come tax). If you have other funds that you can use to pay off the loan, there is no penalty.

In some circumstances, taking the loan is still beneficial (even if you do leave your job and have to pay a penalty because you are unable to repay the loan).

For example, assume you contribute $3,000 a year to the retirement plan because you want the $1,500 employer match (again, this contribution varies from plan to plan).

You also borrow $3,000 from the plan each year. At the end of three years, your employer has contributed $4,500. You leave the company at the end of three years, with an outstanding loan of approximately $9,000. If you can’t repay it, you owe the IRS a $900 penalty.

However, your retirement account contains $4,500 more than you would have had without the $3,000 annual contribution. (The example assumes you are vested in the plan, and that you can keep all of the employer contributions.)

No tax is due when you borrow from your 401(k). If Congress makes it more difficult to borrow, some people will be forced to make withdrawals, which results in both income tax liability and a 10 percent penalty.

I recommend that you write your congressional representative, and tell him or her to leave the existing 401(k) laws in place. Congress has not shown us that it knows more than we do in handling resources.

Elliot Raphaelson welcomes your questions and comments at elliotraph@gmail.com. © 2011 Elliot Raphaelson. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.

BEACON BITS

Ongoing+

SHARE LIBRARY MEMORIES The Howard County Library System is compiling a history of its li-

braries in preparation for the opening of the new Charles E. Miller Branch & Historical Center. If you have photos, old library cards, photos of bookmobiles or other artifacts that can be scanned or borrowed for display, the librarians would like to know about them. Or perhaps you might like to be interviewed for an oral history.

TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE AT:

Our Website: www.holycrosshealth.org/car " Foundation Office: 11801 Tech Rd., Silver Spring " Holy Cross Hospital Cashier: 1500 Forest Glen Rd., Silver Spring " By E-mail: foundation@holycrosshealth.org " By Phone: 301-754-7130 " By Fax: 301-754-7137 "

For more information about the project, email history@hclibrary.org or call (410) 313-7750.

Sept. 20

Make checks payable to Holy Cross Hospital Foundation and mail to: 11801 Tech Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904.

ANNUAL BAIN CENTER BENEFIT THRIFT SALE Stop in at the Bain Center’s annual sale to browse through gently used clothing, jewelry, small household items and handicrafts. All pro-

ceeds go to the Vivian Reid Fund, which provides emergency assistance to older __________________________________________________________________________________ Name: (only one name permitted per form —please print)

adults in need. Tuesday, Sept. 20, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Bain Center, 5470 Ruth Keeton Way, Columbia. For more information, call the center at (410) 313-7213.

__________________________________________________________________________________ Address City State Zip __________________________________________________________________________________ HC9/11 Telephone E-mail ____________________________________________ Charge my: Credit Card #

Visa

Master

AMEX

Visa

Sept. 7

COOKOUT FEATURING CHEF JEFF KEENEY Chef Jeff Keeney of Brighton Gardens of Columbia will share some hot weather menu ideas and offer some samples of his creations as

well. The event takes place Wednesday, Sept. 7 at the Bain Center, 5470 Ruth Kee__________________________________________________________________________________ Signature Exp. Date Numbered tickets will be mailed upon receipt ___________________________________ of payment. Thank you for your support and good luck!

Please complete and return with payment by 9/24/11. # of Tickets $ Total

ton Way, Columbia. Seating is limited, so reserve by calling (410) 313-7213.

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

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21

New ways to help pay for long-term care

By Kimberly Lankford If you don’t want to buy — or can’t qualify for — stand-alone long-term care insurance, there are other ways to protect your retirement savings from the potentially devastating cost of long-term care. And if you don’t use the benefits for long-term care, the insurance goes toward a death benefit or an annuity.

Life insurance combo policies Several companies have introduced new policies that combine life insurance and long-term care protection. You invest a lump sum or pay premiums for a limited time, and you’re guaranteed to get either long-term care payouts or a death benefit.

For example, if a 55-year-old man invested $10,000 per year for 10 years in Lincoln

Financial’s MoneyGuard Reserve Plus policy, he’d have a pool of $320,000 in benefits to pay for long-term care, available as a monthly payout of $6,669 for up to four years.

If he died without using the long-term care component, his heirs would get about half of that — $160,057 — as a death benefit.

Or, if he used some of the money for care, the death benefit would be reduced by the amount that was used to pay for his care.

These policies may be appropriate for people in their 50s and 60s who still need life insurance but who also want protection against long-term care costs. Paying the premium all at once shields you from price hikes; some policies that you pay over 10 years also guarantee that the premiums won’t rise.

Annuity/long-term-care policies

Longevity insurance

A few companies, such as Mutual of Omaha, offer a combination deferred annuity and long-term care policy that allows you to leverage your investment. For example, a $100,000 annuity could pay up to $300,000 in long-term care benefits.

These policies are attractive to people who already own a deferred annuity and want to exchange it tax-free for a combo policy. And it may be easier to qualify for one of these policies than for traditional long-term care coverage.

If you use the money for long-term care costs, the distributions are tax-free. Withdraw it for other reasons, however, and you’ll pay ordinary income tax on the earnings.

Unused portions of the annuity (minus any long-term care payouts) may be left to heirs.

This is a viable way to ensure that you won’t outlive your savings and to protect against long-term care costs that often occur at advanced ages.

Say you invest $100,000 in New York Life’s Guaranteed Future Income Annuity at age 65. Starting at age 85, you’ll receive payouts of $67,000 per year for the rest of your life. You can use the money for any purpose, including long-term care.

Kimberly Lankford is a contributing editor to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine and the author of Ask Kim for Money Smart Solutions (Kaplan, $18.95). Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. © Kiplinger’s Personal Finance

Rising food prices mean big stock returns

By Jennifer Schonberger Soaring grain and meat prices, robust orders for machinery, and heartier diets among the once-malnourished citizens of developing nations are feeding a global boom in agriculture.

The AgIndex of 21 blue-chip stocks, hatched by farm economists at the University of Illinois, has soared since the stock market bottomed in March 2009.

Food prices will continue to rise as long as populations and incomes grow briskly and the agriculture sector faces high production and distribution costs. Using corn for ethanol production is pushing up prices, too, as is grain traders’ relentless buying of futures contracts.

At the same time, high grain and energy costs are biting into the profit margins of food processors and packagers, such as

General Mills and Corn Products International, making their stocks unappetizing.

Stocks positioned for profits Some ag-related stocks are reasonably priced, among them Deere (symbol DE; recent price, $79), the world’s largest producer of farm machinery.

Deere could double its annual sales, to $50 billion, by 2018 and keep piling up record profits now that the company’s fortunes are tied to economic growth worldwide. It is an active player in the fastestgrowing emerging markets, including China and India.

Its stock trades at 12 times estimated earnings of $6.36 per share for the fiscal year that ends this October, compared with an average price-earnings ratio of 17 for the farm-and-construction-machinery

Are you online? So are we!

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sector.

The Chinese eat half the world’s pork and serve it twice as often as all other meats combined. As food retailing in China transitions from local butchers to Western-style supermarkets, Zhongpin (HOGS; $11) is well positioned to profit.

Zhongpin supplies fresh and processed pork under its brand name to supermarkets.

Analyst Stephen Share, of Morgan Joseph TriArtisan, a New York City investment firm, said Zhongpin can boost sales and earnings by more than 20 percent annually over the next three to five years.

Zhongpin issues financial results in dollars but operates exclusively in China, so it won’t be hurt directly if China’s currency continues to rise against the dollar and

squeezes China’s exporters. Zhongpin trades at six times estimated 2011 earnings of $1.85 per share.

Stocks of fertilizer companies have been on a roll for most of the past five years, but they have more room to grow.

Record demand for potash, a key ingredient in fertilizer, will continue to boost potash prices and lift sales and profits of the big players.

Our favorite is the largest producer, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (POT; $51).

Analysts expect Potash’s profits to soar 67 percent this year, to $3.41 per share.

Jennifer Schonberger is a staff writer at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine. Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. For more on this and similar money topics, visit www.Kiplinger.com. © Kiplinger’s Personal Finance

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

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23

To save money, learn to bargain better Consumers can negotiate better prices What surprised me is that he even refor just about anything, but many don’t like ceives rewards when he is complimentary. to do it because conflict is unNever hesitate to make a lecomfortable. Once you sucgitimate complaint, or to comceed, however, it will be habitpliment good service. forming, profitable and much • Develop good relamore comfortable. tions with salespeople.

Negotiating became second My wife has made strong nature to me because for relationships with salespeomany years I was a merchant, ple at her favorite department buying, selling and negotiatstores. This habit results in ing at the Englishtown, N.J. many benefits. For example, flea market, one of the largest she often finds an item she THE SAVINGS in the Northeast. likes that is overpriced.

GAME I have found that there are She then asks the salesperBy Elliot Raphaelson virtually no limits to the varison to contact her when the ety of products and services item goes on sale. In most you can successfully negotiate for, leading major department stores, salespeople to considerable savings. work on commission. It is to their advanHere are some ways you can save money: tage to develop warm relationships with • Negotiate lower fees for Internet customers. It is common for a salesperson and phone and cable service.

An acquaintance mentioned she was paying $19 less than we were for monthly Internet service — with the same provider.

I called the provider to complain, and they immediately dropped the monthly cost.

Later, I called to cancel the service, and they told me I could continue the service at no cost. It was apparently more important to them to be able to claim a large base of customers than to collect income from some of them.

• Ask to collect on obsolete offers.

Last year my wife, Carolyn, and I were given a generous gift card for a local restaurant. We used the card, had an excellent meal, and filled out a card for future promotions. We subsequently received a $50 gift card with an expiration date at the end of November.

We’d forgotten about the card until some friends suggested we dine there on New Year’s Eve. We agreed, and remembered the gift card.

When we noticed the expiration date, we were about to throw it out, but we decided that we had nothing to lose by asking the restaurant whether we could use the card even though it had expired.

We were pleasantly surprised when they said yes. We had an excellent New Year’s dinner at a top restaurant for under $50.

• Complain about bad service, and report good service.

My son is a frequent restaurant customer. He never hesitates to write the company documenting any problems. Nor does he hesitate to pass along compliments. As a result, he almost always receives some sort of compensation.

See puzzles on p. 30.

More at our website.

to call us announcing a sale on a specific item.

Sometimes, Carolyn will make a purchase a few weeks before an item goes on sale. Even then, she will receive a call telling her she will be receiving a credit because of the sale. It pays to develop relationships with salespeople when you show loyalty.

• Negotiate with credit card companies.

The credit card business is very profitable for financial institutions. As long as you have been a profitable customer, these institutions do not want to lose your business. Therefore, they are willing to negotiate interest rates and fees.

Unfortunately, a significant percent of credit card users do not pay their balance in full each month and end up paying interest on their balance. Try to pay your bal-

ance in full each month, but even if you can’t, you can still negotiate a better interest rate.

If your credit rating is good and you are receiving offers from many other institutions, your existing creditor may very well match other offers.

You can also negotiate the elimination or reduction of other fees. If you sent in a late payment, for example, most issuers will waive the fee if you have a good payment record. Don’t be afraid to negotiate.

You have nothing to lose.

Please send me innovative examples of how you saved money on products and services to share. I will share your good fortune with other readers.

Elliot Raphaelson welcomes your questions and comments at elliotraph@gmail.com. © 2011 Elliot Raphaelson. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.

24

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

Does your organization use senior volunteers or do you employ a number of seniors?

Careers Volunteers &

If so and you’d like to be considered for a story in our Volunteers & Careers section, please send an email to info@thebeaconnewspapers.com.

Want to keep working happily until 100?

By Philip Moeller When Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, turned 80 last year, the headlines blared his intent to work until he turns 100. That’s a nice sentiment, you may have thought. Unlikely, but nice.

Not so fast. Hundreds of other wellknown business leaders are well into their 80s. Oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens, 83, now heads investment firms BP Capital and TBP Investments Management. Kirk Kerkorian, Las Vegas gaming and entertainment legend, is 93.

Longevity has taken up residence in the corner office. Many business leaders routinely work beyond age 65. That’s not new.

But increasingly, they’re keeping the lights on for decades after reaching what used to be the traditional retirement age.

And while we see this trend in business, longevity experts tell us that it can be found throughout society.

It helps to be rich Truth be told, academic research has consistently found two variables that are powerfully associated not only with old age but also with being highly productive in old age.

“Higher education and higher incomes are consistently associated” with successful aging and high-achieving older persons, said Laura Carstensen, a noted re-

BEACON BITS

Sept 7+

VOLUNTEER WITH YOUR PET

Do you have a friendly, sociable dog or cat and some time to visit older adults? Pets on Wheels volunteers visit nursing and assisted living homes, senior centers and adult day care facilities to share the joys of animal companionship. New pet evaluations are held the first Wednesday of each month. For more info or an application form, contact Ingrid Gleysteen at the Bain Center, (410) 313-7461, or email igleysteen@howardcountymd.gov.

Ongoing

FIND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Numerous volunteer opportunities are available through the Howard County Office on Aging. For details, contact Celene Steckel, volunteer coordinator, at (410) 313-5951 or email csteckel@howardcountymd.gov.

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searcher on aging and the director of the Stanford Center on Longevity.

People with knowledge and money tend to occupy homes in better neighborhoods, have jobs that aren’t physically taxing or hazardous, and live in cleaner environments, she pointed out.

“So, that’s part of it,” Carstensen said.

“But a huge piece of this is that people in this category can navigate their lives themselves. They can control their lives.”

As an example, she cited research that well-educated people dealt more effectively with health problems than other groups.

When they sit down with their doctors, they pepper them with informed questions and take ownership of their medical conditions.

“This group of people has very little in the way of functional disabilities,” Carstensen said of Buffett and other older business leaders. “What we know about them is that they’re doing incredibly well, physically and emotionally.”

There is a truly heartening and profound implication of seeing a group of such high-functioning older persons, she said. “It proves that aging itself is not what is limiting human activities as we get old.”

Of course, Carstensen noted, the ranks of the wealthy and highly educated are not enormous. What about the rest of us?

Focus on what’s important Older people of all backgrounds have some good tools they’ve developed to help them age successfully, she said.

“As people age, they tend to narrow their worlds,” Carstensen said. “They are pruning their worlds and their social networks. In the process, they are keeping the best things, and letting go of things

they don’t care about.”

This helps them be more selective, make better judgments, use their time well, and be more in control of their environments and their lives.

“People with more resources can do this even better,” she said. “This is just a hunch, but I bet people aren’t very successful at pushing Warren Buffett to do things he doesn’t want to do.”

Actually, it has been reported that Buffett’s wife, Astrid, has had modest success in convincing him to trade in cheeseburgers and Cokes for healthier fare. He also exercises but makes no claims to a meaningfully healthy lifestyle.

Steve Jordan, business editor at the Omaha World-Herald, has covered Buffett for years. Here’s an insight into Buffett’s longevity from one of his stories: Nutritional dentist (yes, there are such) Gregg Schneider of Linden, N.J., is nothing if not true to his profession. When he realized that Buffett seemingly existed on peanut brittle, soda, hamburgers, steak, ice cream and hash browns, he knew what he had to do.

“These are not the doctor’s prescriptions for a long and healthy life,” he wrote to Buffett, encouraging him to choose healthy food and take nutritional supplements.

Buffett wrote back: “My diet, though far from standard, is somewhat better than usually portrayed. I have a wonderful doctor who nudges me in your direction every time I see him.”

“All in all, I’ve enjoyed remarkably good health — largely because of genes, of course — but also, I think, because I enjoy life so much every day.” © 2011 U.S. News and World Report

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Rebuilding From page 1 With apartments, commercial buildings and senior assisted and independent living projects in his portfolio, Hamel has been a valued board member of Rebuilding Together and recipient of its Golden Hammer award.

He has assisted the organization both as a financial sponsor — underwriting some of the expenses of redoing local homes — and as a proactive cheerleader, recruiting volunteers from his own roster of 158 workers and from some of his suppliers as well.

Applying for assistance While much of the actual remodeling takes place in a day, Rebuilding Together is busy year round, reviewing applications and recruiting volunteers and funding.

Technically, any Howard County homeowner can apply for a Rebuilding Together “makeover.” But in accordance with its mission, special consideration is given to those who are seniors or disabled, and to those living on a limited income with additional needs such as home healthcare, hospital costs and medication expenses.

A committee of individuals whose backgrounds include architecture, homebuilding, housing needs and accessibility is chosen by the Rebuilding Together board of directors to review applications and select potential recipients.

Someone from the committee visits each potential house for a visual inspection of the work needed and to interview the homeowner before final selections are made and the recipients notified.

Lewis Lorton is one of the volunteers who visit applicants’ homes to see if they qualify for services and if the work needed is in the scope of what volunteers can accomplish. He both photographs the rebuilding projects and interviews potential residents who need help with their homes.

A retired healthcare executive and dentist, Lorton spent a while searching for a meaningful volunteer opportunity. “It’s hard to go out and do something and actually have an impact,” he said. “Rebuilding Together provides a way for volunteers to have a clear impact.”

Honoring a loved one When Moore made her original request to Rebuilding Together, they matched her needs to an offer from Robin Linthicum, who had recently lost her husband Dale to cancer at the age of 58. Dale was a builder and contractor, co-owner of the remodeling firm Custom Concepts, Inc. in Ellicott City.

“I wanted to do something special in lieu of flowers, something more meaningful for his memory,” Linthicum said. “Dale was never a flower [lover], but he loved his work and lived to work, so I thought something with building or construction would be a great way to honor him.”

One of his last projects was the remodeling of a neighbor’s house. Under Dale’s supervision, the Ralph and Lisa Galloway home was transformed over several years from a small square cottage to an expansive house with a deck, great room and new kitchen and bath.

Linthicum shared with the Galloways her intentions to help Moore. Ralph, 53, had become very involved in the Rebuilding Together organization, and he pulled together a team of volunteers from their workplaces, volunteer groups and religious organizations.

More than 30 volunteers assembled at the Moore house early on the morning of April 30, National Rebuilding Day, and worked all day, tearing out old carpeting and installing new flooring made available at cost from Vertical Connections in Columbia.

“My boys brought their girlfriends,” Linthicum said. “Some of the volunteers were people Dale had worked for, others were subcontractors who had worked for him. It was such a good way to honor him. I’ll definitely be part of another team next year.”

Like Linthicum, volunteers tend to come back year after year — and bring reinforcements, said Heavner, the group’s executive director. In fact, Heavner herself started as a Rebuilding Together volunteer when she was a senior vice president at Wachovia Bank.

“A number of religious communities and other nonprofit organizations as well as commercial enterprises are expressing interest in the combination team-building

and community service aspects of the program. And each year more volunteers bring their children so that it’s become very much a family effort,” she said.

Public officials who come with messages of support for Rebuilding Day often stay to roll up their shirt sleeves, grab a paintbrush or broom and get to work, she added, citing recent support from Senator Benjamin Cardin, County Executive Ken Ulman, the Howard County delegation and county council members.

“We live in a clearly upper middle class community, and you don’t really know how upper middle class it is until you meet people who don’t live like that,” Lorton said.

“Sometimes you walk out of [a home] and say ‘I wish I could take those kids and give them great clothes and great school-

JOURNAL YOUR LIFE PERSPECTIVES

Sept. 8+

Through this class, your creative writing and visual expression will enable you to share your special perspective on the world with others. The fee is $51 for six weeks. The class begins on Thursday, Sept. 8 from 9:30 a.m. to noon at the Bain Center, 5470 Ruth Keeton Way, Columbia. For more information, call (410) 313-7213.

LET’S DISH AND TAKE POT LUCK

Sept. 21

Prepare your favorite dish and bring it in to share with others and enjoy their favorites as well. Free. Wednesday, Sept. 21, 10:30 a.m. till noon, Elkridge Senior Center, 6540 Washington Blvd., Elkridge. For more information, call the center at (410) 313-5159.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2011 9:00 am - 4:00 pm Wilde Lake High School 5460 Trumpeter Road, Columbia (",3.)24 "%&%" '(!)'!*'

Sept. 9+

PAINTING WITH WATERCOLORS

Beginners, continuing students and “dabblers” will all benefit from this easy-going class. There is a fee of $51 for six weeks. The class begins Friday, Sept. 9 and is held from 1 to 3:30 p.m. at the East Columbia Library Senior Center, 6600 Cradlerock Way, Columbia. The center also has a drawing and painting class starting Friday, Sept., 16 from 9:15 to 11:45 a.m. It runs nine weeks for $75. For more information on these and other programs, call (410) 313-7680.

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“LOCAL COLOR 2011” JURIED ART SHOW

Local artists from Howard and surrounding counties are displayed at the Artists’ Gallery through Friday, Aug. 26. Hours are Mondays through Fridays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed Sundays.

The member-owned gallery is located at 10227 Wincopin Circle, Columbia. For more information, call (410) 740-8249 or visit the website www.artistsgallerycolumbia.com.

ing.’ You can’t, but it makes you appreciate what you do have, absolutely.”

To apply for Rebuilding Together’s assistance or to volunteer, call (410) 3814412, write Rebuilding Together, 8775 Centre Park Dr., #519, Columbia, MD 21045, or visit the organization’s website at www.rebuildingtogetherHC.org.

There are other ways to help as well.

The organization is raffling a hot tub valued at $4,900, donated by Van Dom Pools.

Tickets are $10 each or three for $20, and are available by calling (410) 381-3338.

The drawing will be held October 24.

Also, on Tuesday, September 20, the Green Turtle Sports Bar & Grille at 8872 McGaw Rd. in Columbia will donate 10 percent of that day’s proceeds to Rebuilding Together.

BEACON BITS

BEACON BITS

August

25

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OPQPP -* -/@ OQPP R* 4)( *)(% ./')(*-B)/ call 410-313-6410 or visit NNNS!)N-(@A)"/+G-7./7S)(7

26

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

Travel Leisure &

Virginia Beach offers more than the usual boardwalks and water fun. Read about it on page 28.

More than beaches on N.C.’s Outer Banks often overlooked story of World War II sea action doesn’t turn you on, there’s an entire island transformed into a living history museum.

History lessons abound

PHOTO BY VICTOR BLOCK

Visitors today follow a long line of people who have been attracted to the region.

Croatan Indians found the excellent hunting and fishing to their liking as long as 10,000 years ago.

Italian, French and Spanish explorers set foot on the land during the 16th century. They were followed by an English attempt to settle on Roanoke Island in 1587, 22 years before colonizing Jamestown, Va. The history of the Outer Banks constantly comingles with life there today. Tiny family cemeteries stretching back generations are hidden behind some homes.

A number of houses contain timbers, sheathing and other materials that were salvaged from the hundreds of ships that fell prey over centuries to the shoals and treacherous waters off the coast.

Visitors may also occasionally have trouble understanding native “Bankers” who retain vestiges of a unique generations-old accent.

The Outer Banks began attracting vacationers in the 1830s, when families of wealthy Nor th Carolina planters found refuge there from the summer heat. They were followed by sportsmen drawn by the outstanding fishing and hunting that Native Americans had discovered many centuries earlier.

The same attributes continue to attract many visitors. Of course, beaches along the 130mile-long Outer Banks remain the major draw for most folks.

Cape Hatteras National Seashore, a 30,000-acre preserve, covers much of the Banks. Stretching over 70 miles, this national seashore — the first in the country, established in 1953 — encompasses some of the largest areas of undeveloped beaches in the United States. Even at the height of the summer tourist season, A blacksmith demonstrates his craft at the Roanoke some sections are occupied by Adventure Museum, which explores 400 years of history in the Outer Banks. more sea birds than people.

PHOTO BY VICTOR BLOCK

By Victor Block I stood frozen with fear, unable to run.

The terrifying pirate drew closer, his curved sword swinging wildly.

Just as he was about to separate my head and body, I snapped back to reality, left my all-too-real daydream about Blackbeard behind and moved on to the next exhibit in the museum.

The story of Blackbeard the Pirate is one display that makes the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras, N.C., fascinating, and possibly horrifying. That eclectic collection is among numerous attractions that transform the Outer Banks — the chain of narrow barrier islands that parallels the state’s Atlantic coastline — into much more than just another sun-andsand vacation destination.

Stretches of broad beaches and sand dunes, interspersed by marshes and pockets of woodland, comprise the barrier islands that shield the mainland from the ocean’s surging waves and ferocious storms. They also are home to an inviting variety of intriguing attractions that can fill many a day of activity and sightseeing.

If lighthouses and the story of a lost colony aren’t of interest, what about the first flights of the Wright Brothers? If an

Costumed interpreters on the Elizabeth II tell tales of the British sailing vessels that visited the Outer Banks in the 16th century.

Beachside towns Drivers heading south on state highway 12, or a stretch of US 158 that runs parallel to it for a while, have opportunities to check out villages along the way. In addition to similarities to oceanfront vacation towns, some have unique characteristics.

Many visitors rate Corolla (pronounced COH-roll-uh), the northernmost enclave, and Duck, several miles further south, as the two prettiest villages on the islands.

Both have a small town atmosphere, good restaurants and a number of rambling houses that would feel at home in an upscale neighborhood anywhere.

Duck is perfect for strolling. A new wooden boardwalk along the west side of town follows the edge of Currituck Sound, in some places passing woods where you’ll hear only bird calls, in other spots leading to locally owned boutiques and galleries.

According to Nancy Meyers, a Washingtonian who is a frequent visitor, “Duck is an established, and establishment, community. You don’t rough it in Duck.”

Kitty Hawk, Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head form the commercial hub of the Outer Banks. Along with a strip-mall atmosphere, there are two major attractions.

It was at Kitty Hawk where, on December 17, 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first controlled-power flight. The

prevailing winds, combined with gentle slops and soft landing spots provided by sand dunes, drew them to the area.

After hundreds of test glides, they made four successful powered flights that lasted from 12 to 59 seconds and covered from 122 to 852 feet. If those times and distances seem miniscule, consider the impact they’ve had on the world.

A museum and exhibit pavilions house a full-scale replica of the Wright Flyer, photographs of the event taken by Orville, and a wealth of other treasures.

Granite boulders mark the start and ending point of each flight. A plane flew overhead as I stepped off the distance, prompting me to wonder what the brothers would think about today’s jet travel.

Nearby Jockey’s Ridge State Park contains the tallest sand dunes on the east coast. In this mini-desert setting, winds reshape the sand, causing the dune for which the park is named to vary in height from 80 to 100 feet.

South of the commercial section of the Outer Banks, both traffic and the width of the islands thin. The road passes through several miniscule towns and, just past Hatteras village, ends at a ferry dock. Along the way are more opportunities to check See OUTER BANKS, page 27

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Outer Banks From page 26 out enticing attractions, some on many people’s “must see” list.

A lost colony I would rate Roanoke Island, on the sound side of the Banks, worth a visit even if it were a stand-alone destination. Several chapters of history spring to life at this site of the first English colony in the New World.

A good place to start is Festival Park, where the life of Native Americans who originally inhabited the area is recreated. Longhouses, a dance circle, and planting and harvesting areas set the mood. Interactive exhibits scattered about the area are sure to interest generations of family visitors.

To relive the next chapter of history, clamber aboard the Elizabeth II, a sailing ship representative of the seven British vessels that visited the area during the 16th century. Costumed interpreters spin tales of perilous voyages in a brogue that echoes the speech of that time.

A visit to the Settlement Site provides an immersion in life at an early military outpost.

As soldiers stand watch against intrusions by hostile Indians, costumed blacksmiths, carpenters and other workmen ply their trades.

The history lesson continues at the Roanoke Adventure Museum, where 400 years of the Outer Banks’ past are explored. From early pirates to the Civil War,

from boat-building to shipwrecks, virtually every facet of life as it used to be, and in some ways still is, gets its due.

The Elizabethan Gardens is reminiscent of early English plantings. Statues both old and new gaze out over the setting, including a monumental bronze sculpture of Queen Elizabeth I. By far, the most famous attraction on Roanoke Island is the Lost Colony — a lavish, something-for-everyone drama with special effects, daring action, comedy, music and dance. It relates the true story of the disappearance — no one knows where or why — of 116 men, women and children who settled in the New World in 1587.

Even this list does not exhaust the possibilities. The Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum in Hatteras village tells the story of more than 2,000 known shipwrecks that lie in waters off the Outer Banks. Many went down in the 18th and 19th centuries, victims of dangerous currents, shoals and storms.

Others were cargo vessels heading to England that were sunk by German submarines lurking off our country’s east coast during World War II. Parts of several shipwrecks are visible today on beaches or in shallow water at low tide.

Other well-done exhibits at the museum deal with pirates, including the notorious Blackbeard, who was killed in the area, and the Civil War ironclad U.S.S. Monitor.

Lighthouse buffs will think they’ve gone to heaven. Three towers mark the Outer

BEACON BITS

Sept. 2

U.S. TENNIS OPEN IN NYC See top-notch tennis stars competing in the U.S. Open at the Billie

Jean King Tennis Center in New York. The bus leaves 7 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 2 and returns around midnight. The cost is $173 per person. Children must be 8 years of age or older. To register or for additional information, call (410) 313-7279.

Banks, two of which are open from spring to fall for those — not I — who wish to climb to the top. Also available are remnants of what once were more than 20 lifesaving stations that were built along the Banks in the late 19th century.

Crews risked their lives to rescue people from wrecked ships. Story-telling and realistic beach drill reenactments during summer bring this bit of history to life in a dramatic way.

If climbing the 257 steps of the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse isn’t your idea of enjoyable exercise, there’s always hiking and hang gliding, kayaking and kite boarding, fishing and crabbing, sailing and surf boarding.

Oh yes, and one of my favorite beach pastimes: relaxing on some of the finest sand anywhere, with a good book.

If you go It takes about six hours to drive from Howard County to Duck and Corolla at the northern end of the Outer Banks.

I recommend buying and listening to three audio guided tours ($10 each) that I used, which provide historical and interesting tidbits about the area. For information, call (252) 441-3201 or log onto www.ourtourguide.net.

There’s a wide choice of motels along the Banks in every price range. Typical is Shutters on the Banks in Kill Devil Hills, with heated indoor and outdoor swimming

27

pools and a location near the Wright Brothers Museum and Roanoke Island.

Summer rates begin at $150. For more information, call 1-800-848-3728 or log onto www.shuttersonthebanks.com.

By contrast, my wife Fyllis and I spent only about $100 a night for much larger accommodations. By sharing our stay with friends, we enjoyed a three-story beachfront house including use of a kitchen, which saved money on meals. With an estimated 12,000 rental houses available, there’s plenty of choice for every budget.

Dining also offers a wide selection.

Seafood is fresh and excellent, including the catch-of-the-day sandwich at the diner-like Kill Devil Grill ($9). The eclectic menu ranges from grilled white pizza ($7.25) to half roast chicken ($13). Locals drop by for the pecan pie and apple crisp deserts ($6). It’s at milepost 10 on Route 12. For more information, log onto www.thekilldevilgrill.com or call (252) 449-8181.

Many restaurants offer views of the sea or sound, so you might as well have dinner at one of them. Dinky’s, overlooking a small harbor in Hatteras, serves excellent tuna tartare ($9) and crab ravioli ($11), followed by a long list of seafood entrees. It’s on the second floor of the Village Marina. For more information, call (252) 986-2020 or log onto www.villagemarinahatteras.com.

For more information about visiting the Outer Banks, call 1-877-629-4386 or log onto www.outerbanks.org.

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

SEALs, sun and squadrons in Va. Beach

By Glenda C. Booth Trying to spot a SEAL is all the rage in Virginia Beach, the Old Dominion’s largest resort town. It is home to the nowfamous counterterrorism super-secret Navy team that raided Osama bin Laden’s Pakistani compound on May 1 and carried his corpse out to sea. Locals brag about their SEAL-spotting skills.

Virginia Beach, a 14-mile stretch of sand with a heavy military backdrop, is Virginia’s version of “Atlantic City” — Atlantic Ocean beach lined with hotels, bars, restaurants, nightclubs, arcades, souvenir shops and partiers of all ages.

It’s a popular destination for surfers, sunbathers, military buffs, families and outdoor types, as well as the bikini-challenged and sun shy. You can walk much of the resort area or rent rollerblades, bikes or two-passenger pedal “surreys.”

From your oceanside balcony, watch dolphins cavort, study pelicans flapping by, and track the cargo ships creeping across the horizon.

Ambling up and down the three-mile, beachside boardwalk is a favorite de-stressor for all ages, especially in the evening.

Autumn’s appeal For a more leisurely vacation, wait a month or two for a visit.

a es ift! k a g M at e gr

“In the fall, we get our beach back,” said Ron Kuhlman, head of the tourism office.

Summer’s frenzy dies down, prices drop, the kids are in school, collegians are back on campus, air temperatures are in the 70s, and the water averages 67 degrees. Virginia Beach decompresses, but still has plenty going on.

The area’s Neptune Festival (www. neptunefestival.com) has events all summer long. It culminates with many activities throughout the month of September, including a seniors’ Big Band Gala on September 16.

Enjoy 20 blocks of art, sand sculpture, outdoor concerts and fireworks. A 10-day sand sculpting competition, one of the world’s largest, inspires 300 amateurs and pros to mold sand into works of art. Virginia vintners offer samples. The Naval Air Station puts on air shows, including a parachute jump onto the beach.

September 10-11 will feature Blues at the Beach, a weekend of free outdoor concerts, a model train show and sale, and the Virginia Symphony Orchestra by the boardwalk.

October’s events include a craft beer festival and the national women’s rugby championship. Billed as the “best beach party of the year,” the annual pig and oyster fest sponsored by the Old Coast Guard Station in October has live music, hush puppies,

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A large statue of Neptune, Roman god of the sea, overlooks Virginia Beach’s threemile-long boardwalk.

fried fish, oyster stew and Mini Malbon’s internationally-acclaimed barbecue sauce.

Winter holidays are celebrated with jumping dolphins and porpoises in colored lights and a Christmas tree on the beach. Many hotels offer special fall and winter packages.

Navy and Coast Guard tributes Whether it’s Strike Fighter jets zooming and booming across the skies, Blue Angels cracking the sound barrier, or aircraft carriers out at sea, Virginia Beach prides itself on the area’s military history and its prominent role in today’s national defense.

The Naval Aviation Monument Park at 25th Street and Atlantic Avenue honors the area’s rich naval heritage with sculptures of a family welcoming dad home and military personnel in action. (Also at 25th Street is the Norwegian Lady statue, a gift from the people of Moss, Norway, commemorating an 1891 Norwegian shipwreck.)

The Old Coast Guard Station at 24th and Atlantic, built in 1903 as a U.S. Life Saving Station and now on the National Register of Historic Places, explores Coast Guard history, rescue methods and shipwreck stories.

King Neptune reigns at 31st Street and the boardwalk, a 16-foot tall statue with bronze, wave-inspired curls. It’s a favorite photo op stop.

For a water adventure, try ocean kayaking. Bottlenose dolphins come to your kayak, promoters claim, on excursions from April to October. Chesapean Outdoors (http://chesapean.com) runs dolphin-spotting trips and eco-tours using sit-on-top kayaks that are stable and easy to paddle.

Chances are you’ll also see brown pelicans, ospreys and maybe sea turtles. Departures are from several locations; reservations recommended.

Well worth a visit and a step back in time is the free Atlantic Wildfowl Heritage Museum in the Victorian Dewitt Cottage, the oldest seaside cottage in Virginia Beach and one that has survived hurricanes because of its 14-inch-thick brick walls. Decoy carvers explain their craft as they whittle.

Museum officials say the native plants in the yard attract fall songbirds. The wooden

rocking chairs and long porch offer the perfect perch for lazy ocean-gazing.

Beyond the beach For relief from sand and the beach hubbub, there are several spots worth visiting within an hour’s drive of downtown — more military, more history and the great outdoors.

Rare aircraft, beautifully restored and all in flying condition, recall the early days of aviation, World War II and the Korean conflict at the Military Aviation Museum.

You’ll see the Flying Tigers, a B-25 bomber, British Spitfire, the Russian Polikarpor and the Nazis’ Junkers (Ju52).

There are 1920s biplanes with fuselages made of wood and canvas. Check out the V-1 bomb, a “buzz bomb” and a German encryption machine.

The Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center probes the life of the sea and shows off a live Egyptian cobra and Australian hedgehogs. The museum’s trail through a wetland offers a salt marsh experience.

The Cape Henry lighthouses are at the site where colonists made landfall in 1607 before going more inland to Jamestown.

You can climb the old lighthouse, a 90-foot tower with 191 stairs. The 1881 cast-iron lighthouse at 163 feet offers a “newer” lesson in lighthouse technology.

First Landing State Park nearby also commemorates the 1607 landing and is the state’s most visited park. It is the northernmost location on the East Coast where subtropical and temperate plants thrive together. You’re likely to see snakes dangling in the Spanish moss or slithering over the cypress trees “knees.”

The Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge is 9,000 acres of coastal barrier island habitat, windswept dunes, wetlands and waterfowl. False Cape State Park, once considered a ship graveyard, is a good example of scrub maritime forests. Vehicles are barred from False Cape, but a tram called the Blue Goose Express offers trips to See VA. BEACH, page 31

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H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

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Your best strategy for planning fall travel By now, if you haven’t arranged a major Hotel rates in Europe, on the other summer trip, you probably won’t go, and hand, are usually up from their summer instead plan to travel in the lows by August. fall. Overall, that’s often a good idea — traveling when Timing is everything workaday folks are otherwise You can decide where you tied up has some advantages. want to go anytime. But the Here are my suggestions best time to buy varies defor planning that fall trip, and pending on what you’re buywhen to make your decisions ing: and arrangements.

Airfares. Keep up with In the fall — Labor Day whatever sources you use to through mid-December — notify you of air deals, and prices at most U.S. and Cana- TRAVEL TIPS wait to buy until you see a dian summer-season visitor By Ed Perkins good promotion that includes centers and attractions drop the period when you want to to their lowest levels of the year and travel. I don’t see any major risks in waitcrowding is less of a problem, while weath- ing for an airfare sale: Fares are already er is likely to be fairly good well into Octo- about as high as the market will allow, and you can almost count on doing better with ber in most of the country.

Fall is also the slowest season of the a good promotion.

Hotels. Some good deals are already availyear in the offshore beach destinations in the Bahamas, Caribbean and Mexico, so able, but major hotel chains seem to be folhotel and resort prices there are at their lowing the airlines’ lead in mounting shortlowest. And fall-season cruises, too, are fuse promotions. Currently, for example, usually a good deal — if you don’t mind a Hyatt’s promotion with AAA/AARP expires slightly increased risk of encountering a in early September, and Accor’s current promotion also focuses on summer travel. hurricane.

As with airfares, I suggest you wait for a While U.S. domestic airfares generally don’t show much seasonality in pricing, good promotion. As usual, however, you’ll airfares to Europe usually drop precipi- find your very best hotel prices through tously in fall. Typically, they’re at off-sea- the flash sale websites (for really upscale son rates by the end of August, although spots) and through Hotwire and Priceline.

On the other hand, it’s never too early to they may drop a bit more through Septembook a vacation rental. Although prices ber and October.

ANSWERS TO SCRABBLE

ANSWERS TO CROSSWORD A R E N A L I L A C A B O V E B R O S C A B B Y W A L I E V I N Y H O N T O P O Y E S N O D N A S T U D E N C O R S O L I E U H O V E R B R E R S T

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From page 30.

Columbia Pro Cantare

35TH ANNIVERSARY SEASON 2011-2012 FRANCES MOTYCA DAWSON, CONDUCTOR

TOM BENJAMIN: Old Brick Oratorio – World Premiere 200th Celebration of Christ Episcopal Church October 15, 8 PM HANDEL: Messiah, Sunday, December 4, 7:30 PM, Jim Rouse Theatre, Columbia

A CHRISTMAS NOËL with The CPC Chamber Singers, Sunday, December 11, 3 PM, Christ Episcopal Church, Columbia

HAYDN: Little Organ Mass, DEBUSSY, DELIUS & MASSENET Sunday, March 18, 3 PM, First Evangelical Lutheran Church, Ellicott City JAZZ with the Eric Mintel Quartet - BRUBECK & More Saturday, May 5, 8 PM, Jim Rouse Theatre, Columbia

www.procantare.com

can be highly seasonal, rates for the year are set and published far in advance and vacation rentals seldom run any shortterm promotions. The earlier you buy, the wider choice you have.

Cruises. The fourth quarter of the year is generally the slowest in the cruise business. Even list prices are low, and the big online cruise agencies are already showing some really good rates for September through December in the Caribbean and Mexico. You can even catch a late Alaska sailing through early September.

Fall’s very best cruise deals are traditionally transatlantic “positioning” cruises, usually in October: Rates already posted are as low as $40 per person per night.

Rail travel. Amtrak seldom runs significant promotions, so you might as well buy

early to lock in the space you want.

VIA Rail Canada, on the other hand, does run promotions. The best are some fantastic “Express” deals, typically covering trips up to a month in advance, so “wait for a deal” strategy seems best here.

Similarly, Rail Europe and similar agencies often run promotions on rail passes, again with a fairly short purchase window.

Insurance. If you plan to buy travel insurance, be sure to buy within a few days after you make an initial payment. That way, you can avoid hassles over “preexisting medical conditions” and also be able to buy “cancel for any reason” coverage should you want it.

Send email to Ed Perkins at eperkins@mind.net. © 2011 Tribune Media Services, Inc.

BEACON BITS

Sept. 11

REMEMBERING FLIGHT 93 ON THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY Join other seniors from the county in traveling to the Flight 93

National Memorial near Shanksville, Pa., honoring the passengers and crew of Flight 93 on the 10th anniversary of 9/11. The trip leaves at 7 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11 and returns at 6 p.m. The cost is $69 per person. To register or for additional information, call (410) 313-7279.

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Crossword Puzzle Daily crosswords can be found on our website: www.TheBeaconNewspapers.com Click on Puzzles Plus Looking Down On

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10. Like Obama’s office 14. Light purple shade 15. Operatic solo 16. Debit card issuer 17. Absolutely legitimate 19. Julia’s Oscar-winning title role 20. List of 9 Down players 21. Impolite 22. Suffering from chicken pox 26. Unbeatable foes 28. Rare utterance from George Washington 29. Part of WPM 32. Pollster’s grouping 33. Like a Harvard wall 34. “We have met the enemy, and ___ us” (Walt Kelly) 36. Chose 40. Elated 43. Simple question 44. “___ little faith” 45. “... ___ man about a horse” 46. Evidence on CSI: Miami 48. It’s not quite as easy as ABC 49. Choosing word 50. Test taker 54. “Every science begins as philosophy and ___ art” (Will Durant) 56. Approximately 57. Pure 60. Stead 61. What the start of each of this puzzle’s theme answers means 66. Hop, skip or jump 67. ___ Day (vitamin brand) 68. Moved cattle 69. While lead-in 70. Comicc Foxx 71. Bisected a lady (temporarily)

1. Chicken king divider 2. Eve, originally 3. Prodigious acronymous 1970’s rock band 4. Part of USNA, in Annapolis 5. Not at all sweet 6. Artsy New Mexico town 7. Little monster 8. Seductress 9. National League team 10. Appearing in too many movies 11. Computer calamity 12. Comment to the audience 13. Bowling alley units 18. ... ___ Cried Wolf 22. Beatles’ culinary song “___ Truffle” 23. Conclusion to re-, in-, and de24. Grammatical gaffes 25. Surely 27. Persian word 30. Challenge authority 31. Positioned 35. Pump or clog 37. Oxygen producers 38. Supreme Court Justice Kagan 39. Attack times 41. Corn bread 42. Lacking vitality 47. Give berth 50. Fill in the last square 51. One who gives it a go 52. Addicts 53. Thou, possessively 55. Brainiacs 58. Mellowed, as wine 59. Seafood selection 62. La-la lead-in 63. Outcast from the Five W’s 64. Madison ___ 65. Homer’s next door neighbor

Answers on page 29.

Jumble Answers Jumbles: YOKEL ADULT DECADE PUZZLE Answer: When they attended the cruise ship dance they were - ALL "DECKED" OUT

H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N — S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1

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Va. Beach From page 28 both (www.bbrf.org). In the fall, bird migration is in full swing.

Most first-time visitors want to check out the 17.6-mile Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel spanning the mouth of the Bay. It is the largest bridge-tunnel complex in the world.

On the way, there are four manmade islands, a fishing pier and a restaurant. On your stops, you can look for birds or battleships.

Depending on your religious point of view, you may want to take a side trip to the Christian Broadcasting Network Studio or the headquarters of the Association for Research and Enlightenment (ARE).

The Christian Broadcasting Network Studio (www.cbn.com) has daily tours and you can be in the audience of a live daily show, The 700 Club, “a program of music, prayer and ministry,” usually hosted by Pat Robertson. CBN was the first Christian television broadcasting station in the nation, on the air since 1966.

The ARE Center (www.edgarcayce.org)

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Maybe they give psychic tips on spotting SEALs.

If you go Visit www.vbfun.com for trip planning, lodging information and calendars.

Virginia Beach has a full range of lodging choices — cabins at First Landing State Park, a Wyndam resort, chain hotels, motels and B&Bs. The Cavalier Hotel on the north end offers a slower-paced stay than the mid-town hostelries. There are actually two: the original Grand Cavalier, opened in 1927, and the more contemporary Cavalier Oceanfront.

Rooms start at $149 in the summer. For

FRUSTRATED WITH YOUR INVESTMENTS? Let’s have coffee and chat at your convenience. 30 years experience.

Hourly consulting as well as investment management at reasonable rates. Fee-only, registered advisor. 443-896-4123. blog: http://rwinvesting.blogspot.com.

ESTATE BUY-OUTS / CLEAN-OUTS RECORD COLLECTIONS, HIFI STEREO, LARGE OLD SPEAKERS, OLD ELECTRONICS, CAMERAS. BEST PRICE. CASH BUYER. PLEASE CALL ALAN 240-478-1100 or 410-740-5222.

TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED

Deadlines and Payments: Ad text and payment is due by the 5th of each month.

Note: Only ads received and prepaid by the deadline will be included in the next month’s issue. Please type or print your ad carefully. Include a number where you can be reached in the event of a question. Payment is due with ad.

We do not accept ads by phone or fax, nor do we accept credit cards.

Private Party Text Ads: For individuals seeking to buy or sell particular items, offer a personal service, or place a personal ad. Each ad is $10 for 25 words, 25 cents for each additional word.

Commercial Party Text Ads: For parties engaged in an ongoing commercial business enterprise. Each ad is $25 for 25 words, 50 cents for each additional word.

Note: Each real estate listing counts as one commercial ad.

The Beacon, Classified Dept.

P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915-2227

Send your classified ad with check or money order, payable to the Beacon, to:

BEACON BITS

Sept. 1

ON THE BOARDWALK

Take a Department of Recreation & Parks-sponsored bus trip to Atlantic City casinos on Thursday, Sept. 1, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. $59 per person. To register or for additional information, call (410) 313-7279.

Sept. 28

PEARL S. BUCK HOUSE

Join fellow seniors in a visit to Hilltown Township, Pa. for a tour of the 1835 Georgian-style farm home of Pearl Buck housing the desk where she wrote The Good Earth. A Chinese buffet lunch is included. The bus leaves at 7 a.m. and returns at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 28 with a fee of $89 for a round-trip ticket. To register or for additional information, call (410) 313-7279.

Sept. 16

CRAB FEAST AT KENT NARROWS

Howard County Department of Parks invites crab lovers ages 55 and over to the annual all-you-can-eat crab feast at Fisherman’s Village Crab Deck at Kent Narrows, with a bonus stop at a fresh produce stand on the way home. The trip takes place on Friday, Sept. 16, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. To register or for additional information, call (410) 313-7279.

more information, see www.cavalierhotel. com or call (757) 425-8555.

Also on the somewhat quieter south end, the boutique Art Deco 19 Atlantic Hotel is a good mix of character and convenience. It is half a block from the beach and near the Amtrak bus drop-off point.

The rooftop deck offers lounge-chair views of the ocean and soothing breezes in the evening shade.

Rates start at $119 in August, but drop to as low as $55 in October. For more information, see www.19atlantic.com or call (757) 428-4440.

Virginia Beach has 300 independentlyowned restaurants. See www.vbfun.com/ dining.

“There’s nothing better than a Lynnhaven oyster,” brags Mayor William Sessoms.

“They are salty and delicious.” The oysters

are harvested from Virginia Beach’s Lynnhaven River.

Tautogs on 23rd Street features seafood with zingy accents in a traditional, shingled beach cottage.

Virginia Beach is about a five-hour drive, but usually longer because of I-95 congestion. Amtrak is the least stressful way to get there. The last hour of the trip is via an Amtrak-contracted bus from Newport News, which stops at 19th Street, one block from the main drag, Atlantic Avenue.

City buses travel regularly up and down Atlantic Avenue. If you want wheels to get beyond the resort area, try Enterprise Rental Car at Charles Barker Toyota, 1-800736-8227. The closest airport is in Norfolk.

Glenda C. Booth is a freelance writer in Alexandria, Va.

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S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 1 — H O WA R D C O U N T Y B E A C O N

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

Living Well Series Resumes with Fall Seminars Brooke Grove Retirement Village (BGRV) will resume its Living Well Community Seminar Series in September, according to Director of Marketing Toni Davis.

Designed to help participants navigate a variety of financial, healthcare and personal challenges, each of these free, monthly presentations will be held from 7 to 8 p.m. in the terrace level conference room of Brooke Grove Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.

Each seminar will be preceded by a complimentary lite supper beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Returning by popular demand, Holistic Pharmacist Brian Sanderoff, director and principal owner of the Well Being Healing Center and Holistic Pharmacy in Hunt Valley, Maryland, will present “The Holistic Approach to AntiAging” on Thursday, September 29.

Listeners will gain a new understanding of how genes play a role in the development of disease or dysfunction and an appreciation of how to influence positive change.

Diet, exercise, herbs, vitamins and relaxation techniques can all be used to help our bodies work better and longer and allow for a more productive lifetime.

Join Chef Bonita Woods of the Bonita Woods Wellness Institute on Thursday, October 20, for “Dining for Vibrant Health” and learn how to turn meals into a fun and healthactivating adventure! “You are what you eat” is a phrase to live by, especially for seniors. Every meal has the ability to add to our health and well-being. Participants will learn how food impacts the body and become empowered to use it as

a delicious tool for health.

Leta Blank, program director of the Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program, will take the podium on Wednesday, November 9, to discuss “Medicare 2012: What You Need to Know to Get the Best Benefits.” Discover the answers to questions such as “What do Medicare A and B cover? Do I need Part C? How does Medicare Part D (the prescription drug program) work? Medicare doesn’t pay for everything, so what else do I need?”

Brooke Grove Rehabilitation and Nursing Center is located at 18131 Slade School Road on BGRV’s Sandy Spring, Maryland, campus. For information and reservations, contact Ms. Davis at 301-358-0721 or tdavis@bgf.org by the Monday prior to each seminar.

✃ ❒ ❒

I would like to know more about Brooke Grove Retirement Village.

I would like to know more about Brooke Grove’s Memory Support Program.

❒

Please reserve my seat for the September 29 seminar on "The Holistic Approach to Anti-Aging."

Please reserve my seat for the October 20 seminar on "Dining for Vibrant Health."

Please reserve my seat for the November 9 seminar on "Medicare 2012."

❒ ❒

Name: Address: City, State, Zip: Daytime Phone:

HB9/11

Please mail this coupon to: Brooke Grove Retirement Village, Attn: Community Relations, 18100 Slade School Road, Sandy Spring, MD 20860.

Phone: 301-358-0721.

Fax: 301-924-1200. Web: www.bgf.org