LIFE, HEALTH & HAPPINESS FOR NORTH WHIDBEY’S 50-PLUS CROWD VOLUME 1 • ISSUE 9 • FEBRUARY 2014
Beauty The Natural Way This past year I let my hair go “natural.” I stopped dying it; let the whole thing find its way back to nature. For the past several years, I had been dying all of my hair with the exception of one single white streak, a process I referred to as editing. Truth be told, I was scared to death to do it. . . . a friend had told me that if people see white hair, they automatically think old. Well, that set
me back for a few years, but finally I gave in. Now, I have to tell you, I am happy with it. I truly am. No longer do I have to deal with a head full of chemicals each month and the nagging thoughts of: are my roots showing? I knew the family holiday pictures would be interesting this year with my silver streaks creating quite the contrast to my mother-in-law’s saucy red-headed locks. She is a woman who has always proclaimed she would make certain to have “#47 bombshell red” covering all her lovely grays when she goes to meet her maker.
We live in a youth-fixated culture where people are afraid to age, and feel vulnerable about growing older. Without a doubt, I was afraid of falling into the abyss of becoming invisible as I age. Somehow I believed losing the saturation of color atop of my head would make me fade into the background. It’s curious how we begin to disappear as we age; we become invisible in plain sight. Curious yes, but it’s not hard to identify some of the reasons. Issues of aging in the media are handled awkwardly, to say the least. The phenomenon of vanishing as we age is hardly surprising when present-day culture is obsessed with
sex, youth and money. Think about how much media we are exposed to on a daily basis. TV, radio, Internet, newspaper, billboards, advertising, etc. The media delivers us powerful messages. How much of it is positive towards aging? In a survey of older audiences, many people over the age of 60 perceive negative stereotyping of aging in the media, such as being dependent, frail, vulnerable, poor, worthless, asexual, isolated, grumpy, behind the times, miserable, pathetic, senile, and a drain on society. But consider that the issue may not be just about being positive or negaBeauty continued on page 7
49th Annual Sweetheart of Gems Show The Whidbey Island Gem Club is looking forward to presenting the best ever Rock and Gem Show right here in Oak Harbor on February 8th and 9th, at the Senior Center (51 WE Jerome Street). Our members and a number of vendors will be selling, demonstrating and displaying all manner of rocks, gems, jewelry, knapped knives and rock hound related equipment. The hours are 9:00 am to
5:00 pm on Saturday and 9:00 am to 4:00 pm on Sunday. Admission and parking are free. Food and beverages will be available at nominal cost. The Whidbey Island Gem Club has been chartered since 1936 and has been at this location for the last 29 years. Currently we have over 100 members with a multitude of rock-related interests. This show is their way of sharing those interests with others. We also have a “Junior Rock Hound” group for kids 9 and older. Static display cases of members work will be on display. WIGC membership fees are nominal and meetings are the first Wednesday of each month at 7:00 pm at the Senior Center. An important part of our club is the Puget Sound Knappers and every year they set up an amazing demonstration area where you (or your kids) can observe them making arrow heads and knife blades out of obsidian just like those made by the earliest Americans as well as making Indian jewelry.
Valentines Day When Valentines Day comes around, I still get all “a twitter”. Why? What is it about this day that makes us feel excitement and exquisite pain? What is this day after all? Is it about a chubby little diapered baby who flies capriciously around aiming arrows at everyone and in this whimsical act of violence, he causes people to fall in love? St. Valentine, for whom the day was named, was a man who was jailed and executed for bringing lovers together and for writing love letters to his jailer’s daughter before he was executed. If this legend is true, St. Valentine started a long lasting spirit of love and desire that resides strongly in the young and the old today. But, really, what is the “to-do” about Valentines Day? Is there a deeper meaning to it than candy, flowers, and cards? Could it represent the one day of the year that is designated to be a “day of
We will have guest demonstrators from our own club as well as from other clubs in the area. You can get a mini-lesson on wire wrapping your own cabochon. You can buy a slab of rock to cut and polish yourself. You can join the silent auction if you have that competitive spirit. Hang on to your free admission ticket as this automatically enters you in all the hourly door prize drawings for the day.
love”? Maybe it is the day to show appreciation and gratitude to everyone who has touched our lives. A phone call, a gift, a hug is such an easy and simple thing to do. Getting flowers for a best friend, placing a call to a grandchild, bringing a plate of cookies to our favorite club group. Really…what a wonderful way to feel so very good!
Gem sHow continued on page 5
INSIDE THIS EDITION Laughter
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Health
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Games
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So, now that we know what Valentines Day is all about, will you be my Valentine?
Travel
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Volunteering Keeps Us Healthy
Calendar Pg. 5
Not only is volunteering a way to “play it forward” and to do our part to build a better world, but rumor has it that volunteering keeps us healthy.
Groups
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Menu
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Classes
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I think that is what it is. It is a day to give, and share, and spread love. It is meant to express how we feel about the people that give quality to our lives.
As interesting as that concept is, there is quite a bit of logic to it. BRIEFS continued on page 2