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Beyond Books September 14, 2015 by Pepper Evans - My friend's mom was a voracious reader. Well into her 90s, Bernice, having only recently retired, would read several books each week. When I took her to the library, she would check out a huge stack at every visit, give…
The Joy of Joining September 13, 2015 by Flora Davis - A rumor is making the rounds at my retirement community: we’re going to organize a flash mob. I can hardly wait. In case you don’t know what a flash mob is, according to Wikipedia it’s a crowd that suddenly gathers,…
Betrayed by an Author August 28, 2015 by Pepper Evans - Why wouldn’t I read a memoir by Joyce Carol Oates? She is a widow, as am I, she lives nearby, and books from her prolific writing career have graced my nightstand frequently over the years. So I bought a copy…
Beating the Age Barrier in Online Dating August 20, 2015 by Ashton Applewhite - A 2013 wedding announcement in the New York Times recorded the happy pairing of a couple who met through America’s Test Kitchen. He had founded the TV show and hired her 10 years earlier. He was 62; she was 37.
Spanning the Generations August 10, 2015 by Pepper Evans - I wore bell-bottoms and collected troll dolls; my mother had saddle shoes and jitterbugged. For most of my young life, I couldn’t see many areas where we overlapped. Then in my 20s I worked at a restaurant with live music…
Do Older People Deserve Senior Discounts? August 5, 2015 by Flora Davis - When I flew to Montreal for a college reunion, senior discounts helped me pay for my airfare and hotel room. While I was happy to take advantage of these perks of my years, was I more deserving of such modest…- The 411 on 911 July 13, 2015 by Pepper Evans - Do you ever worry about what could happen if you ended up in a hospital and no one knew who you were? What would happen to you if you were in an accident and unable to tell first responders whom…
Is a Generation of Powerful Women Turning Age into an Advantage? Not Exactly July 7, 2015 by Ashton Applewhite - "Could the current cohort of eminent women in their 60s herald an era when aging, for women, ceases to be an enemy, and even becomes a friend?” asks Liza Mundy in the recent issue of the Atlantic.
Grandma Took the iPad June 22, 2015 by Pepper Evans - I am a reader who reads all the time, for work and pleasure. I even read about what to read next so I am never caught without something to read! My idea of hell would be to lose that ability. …
Caitlyn Jenner: The Messages in the Image June 22, 2015 by Margaret Morganroth Gullette - What the commentators fail to say about Caitlyn Jenner is that when she came out as a woman publicly in Vanity Fair recently, she did not come out as an older woman. It’s hard to say whether Caitlyn Jenner or photographer Annie…
From Babyproofing to Grannyproofing, Don’t Ignore This Health Checkup! June 12, 2015 by Pepper Evans - My mother’s safety became a concern to me as she aged. My mom lived alone and hated to ask for help. We both wanted to keep her safe and independent. Thinking about the problem, I remembered what a very wise…
My Greatest Fear June 4, 2015 by Flora Davis - From my living room window, I look out on a pretty little park—and the nursing home across the way. I know someone who lives there but I haven’t visited her, I’m ashamed to say. The place scares me because it…
Giving Back June 4, 2015 by Flora Davis - In my husband’s last months, he fought stubbornly for his independence even when the things he insisted on doing for himself were extremely difficult for him—or were against doctors’ orders. I had to be available to care for him all…
Going Nuclear in a Family Way May 18, 2015 by Flora Davis - I grew up in a nuclear family—parents, kids and that was it—but I had the impression that practically everyone else in America lived in three-generation extended families. When grandparents grew old, I believed, their grown children automatically took them in,…
Why Would You Even Ask? May 11, 2015 by Ashton Applewhite - “How Old is Too Old To Have Sex?” was the title of a HuffPost Live panel discussion that I took part in last year. As I pointed out during the exchange, the question itself is profoundly ageist.
Something’s Fishy May 1, 2015 by Pepper Evans - Pick up any women’s magazine or any healthy-living publication and you are sure to be admonished to eat more fish. It’s good for your brain, your weight, your longevity. I know! But in my house of picky eaters, I can…
Live to 100: Do You Have What It Takes? April 17, 2015 by Pepper Evans - There's an old joke that goes something like this: The Japanese drink very little wine and experience fewer heart attacks than US or British citizens, while the French and Italians drink wine at every meal and experience fewer heart attacks…
Baring All for a Good Cause April 10, 2015 by Flora Davis - The other day, a friend told me she planned to leave her body to a medical school when she died so that students could dissect it to learn anatomy. She wanted to know whether I’d consider doing the same thing.…
New Cream on the Block March 23, 2015 by Pepper Evans - Here at the Silver Century Foundation, we are all about the positive aspects of aging. That said, I confess that hope springs eternal when I read about the age-defying beauty products on the market. I’m in my mid-50s and the…
Chastizing the Old Dolls March 16, 2015 by Margaret Morganroth Gullette - Poor Roz Chast unburdened herself of her dislike of her mother and her pity for her father by describing their slow decline and dying, and doing it in the most public possible way, in a graphic narrative called Can’t We Talk about Something More Pleasant?: A Memoir (2014).
Dementia: A Diagnosis Too Often Delayed - Last year, a bank officer phoned Kelli Brown’s brother with a concern: a lot of money was going out of their 87-year-old father’s bank account. Their father, a retired accountant, lived alone in Cincinnati. He seemed to be functioning well…
The Pooled Income Trust - By the time my parents were in their mid-80s, they had gone through their savings and were living off Social Security. My mom received around $1,700 per month and my dad, who often worked as an independent contractor, received around…