BLUE APRON – ALTERNATIVE MEALS FOR SENIORS, and anyone else!
Posted: May 19, 2017 Filed under: geezerEats, Uncategorized | Tags: Blue Apron, eating, meal service Leave a comment »Eating can be a problem for seniors. You have to shop. You have to prepare. You have to have the right spices and you end up with too much of unusual spices. The result is the same old same old. You are also afraid to try anything new. And, if you qualify for meals-on-wheels, it is usually bland and if you have ever looked in an old person’s freezer you find it crammed with old meals-on-wheels.
We have been trying Blue Apron. We can order it on a weekly basis and get three meals for two people. The box of ingredients arrives by FedEx on Thursday with freezer packs that have always been frozen solid. The box contain everything that you need and in the exact amounts that you need. If it is spicy, you are cautioned to add less of the spice. You also get pictures and instructions on how to prepare the meal in about 30 minutes. The net result is dinner for two, or even three, as the portions are large. It is quick and easy, but does require some concentration; which is not all bad.
Blue Apron Crispy Cod & Zuzu-Shoyu Soba Meal ready for the geezer to cook.
The ingredients above, which cost $20 and was delivered on a Thursday, became the following meal on a Friday.
Blue Apron Crispy Cod & Zuzu-Shoyu Soba Meal ready for the geezer to eat. Recipe photo behind wine.
The cost is $60 for three meals for two person each; or ten bucks a meal per person. This includes shipping. The food has always arrived a day early, Thursday instead of Friday, and has always been frozen solid, or cool, depending on the food. Each box has two freezer packs which can be reused, recycled, or given to a friend.
We have tried about 40 meals. Each week you get a selection of three meals which you can choose from six selections; although you are somewhat limited in that you can’t just pick the expensive stuff. Looking ahead a few weeks, the three meals are: Seared Steak and Fingerling Potatoes; Cajun-spiced Chicken; and, Spicy pork and Rice Bowls.
The wine was not included, but Blue Apron has a wine service.
You can also order two meals a week for four people each and have neighbors in.
There are several other services, but we have not tried them.
Best of all, Blue Apron relies on sustainable farming, no food waste and fresh ingredients without additives. They will even help you recycle the boxes and the freezer packs, but I have found that friends who go camping love them.
THINK OLD!
ROAD TO NOWHERE – an example of poor planning and poorer politics!
Posted: May 18, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a comment »Who would have thought that a politically inspired road that ultimately dead-ended and that resulted in descendants of a cemetery being taken by boat to visit the graves of their relatives would become a minor tourist attraction?
In North Carolina there is an expensive road that goes nowhere. The Road to Nowhere goes through a tunnel about a quarter of a mile long and abruptly ends. It leads to an old hiking trail. The road that leads to the tunnel is well maintained, better than a lot of surrounding roads, but there are no houses along the road.
The road was started around 1941 and was meant to connect Bryson City, NC with ancestral homes and cemeteries in the Great Smokey National Forest. Finally in 2010 the federal government paid Swain County, NC about 52 million dollars in lieu of completing the road. The National Park Service provides boat access to a cemetery for the descendants of people buried in the cemetery which the road was supposed to go to.
The tunnel is long and has graffiti. The area is remote, has numerous hiking trails, and is a beautiful part of The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Not a destination, but an interesting side trip if you are in the area and like to hike.
THINK OLD!
TEN WAYS YOU CAN HELP DEFEAT TRUMP AND CONSERVATIVE POLITICIANS
Posted: May 17, 2017 Filed under: geezerQuests, My Backyard, Uncategorized | Tags: conservative, politics, Tea Party, Trump, voting Leave a comment »Old people don’t realize the power that they have. They have time, some money, contacts, and an interest in preserving what they have. They probably can’t go back to work; however, there are a number of simple things that they can do that will not only benefit them, but will benefit their way of life and that of their grandchildren.
What problems do you think Trump has created? I know that there are no hard facts yet, but you can get a pretty good idea from his own words, contained in his Executive Orders and in his Twitters. Look at them and decide how you feel about them. What do you agree/disagree with? What is the effect of his words and policies on you? Then, take action.
There are ten simple things that old people can do to change things.
- Call political representatives. House and Senate.
- Join the Gray Panthers.
- Actively participate in local elections. Run for office – vote – volunteer.
- Attend local precinct meetings/school board meetings.
- List and understand problems that are peculiar to old people, and what is proposed for them; then “trump” them.
- Prepare, sign and circulate petitions.
- Offer to take people to polls and help fellow seniors with absentee ballots.
- Attend town hall, picnics, rallies and other political meetings.
- Blog – with facts. Anyone can do WordPress. Get computer help at your local senior center.
- Join an Indivisible group.
It may take a couple of years, but politicians will get the idea; especially at the grass-roots level. That is how the Tea Party did it and that is how Obama did it.
Think of all the things that may be at risk at your age.
We have the numbers, the talent, the money, and the ideas to confront and defeat our enemies; especially our internal enemies.
Besides, it is fun, you will meet new people, and you will at last have a worthwhile purpose in life.
THINK OLD!
Are abandoned prisons, hospitals, schools, and foreclosed homes in my future at age 76?!
Posted: May 11, 2017 Filed under: Aging-in-place, Older Americans Act, Panama, Uncategorized | Tags: creativity, prison, retirement, squatters Leave a comment »My blog on Christiania got me to thinking. Could old people, who need a place to live, social contacts and help, follow the example of the squatters in Copenhagen and take over (or, buy cheaply) abandoned prisons, hospitals, schools and homes to use in their declining years.
Could they take an abandoned prison used only for tours and convert it into living space for seniors using grants obtained under the Older Americans’ Act?
Now that I think about it, maybe the answer is closer than I thought. New Mexico has “Old Main” which has been abandoned and is being used for tours.
Solitary cell at “Old Main,” Santa Fe, New Mexco.
Or perhaps, old people could become ex-pats and get an abandoned United States facility in the Panama Canal Zone, even though title is now in Panama:
Abandoned US Building in the Panama Canal Zone turned over to Panama in March 2017.
I think that most people my age (76) remember the 60’s and whether or not they participated, were influenced by the 60’s. Now that we are old, maybe it is time we applied a few hippie tricks; such as living in abandoned properties. Old people are heading toward homelessness in a big way; but, some of us still have a few tricks up our sleeves.
In Buffalo, New York and Detroit, Michigan, there are whole blocks of abandoned houses, owned by FHA, et al. Across the country you can find prisons, schools, military facilities, and government buildings, sitting empty because they have outlived their usefulness. To me they are an opportunity. If Detroit or Buffalo doesn’t appeal, try abandoned prisons, hospitals, schools and government buildings in any state. Take a look at: Abandoned Schools for Sale.
I am not advocating squatting, although it may come to that. I am advocating approaching the government and offering to take over these facilities for the benefit of old people. A block of empty homes in Detroit might be taken over for a $1 a house; redone with grants pursuant to the Older Americans’ Act, helped along by AmeriCorps – Vista, and funded by seniors’ Social Security Payments.
A block of abandoned houses could have a police satellite station on one corner, a Senior Clinic, meals-on- wheels, and a senior center on the other corners. In addition, there could be a central courtyard; safe, and social. Since old people are naturally snoopy they would watch the street all the time.
Be sure that some of the old people are young enough and competent enough to organize this.
Maybe we need the Gray Panthers!
THINK OLD!
MEETUP – social networking for seniors; and, everyone else-
Posted: May 3, 2017 Filed under: geezerLearns, geezerTrips, New Mexico, Uncategorized | Tags: blogs, learning, meetup, Travel Leave a comment »Meetup is a social networking group based on common interests. You locate a site near you, or near where you will be, by going to meetup.com and inserting your zip code or city. You can then find groups that have the same interest as you. You can sign up, go to the meetings and enjoy what they have to offer.
The Meetup in Albuquerque includes one on blogging using WordPress which I joined. It meets weekly and while it has over 800 members there are usually only 5 – 10 there. The meetings are either “work-a-longs where you can get expert help with your blog for free; or sessions with speakers on various blogging topics; including photography.
The work-a-longs are very good if you are trying to learn something new and need help. I can get quick, knowledgeable help on my blog problems from people who are expert in the field. The meetings last up to two hours and are always useful.
Meetups are not limited to blogging; they are for any thing people are interested in; including, dancing, languages, travel, art, cooking, or you can even start your own. They cost nothing for the participant, and about $10 a month for the sponsor. You could even start one on how to live as an old person.
When traveling, look for Meetups where you will be. Just plug-in the new zip code or name of town and see what you get.
SEARCH IDEAS:
Google: meetup.com +city, state
For example: Since I am going to Huntington, NY:
Google: meetup.com +Huntington, NY
and the result is: a list of Meetups around Huntington, NY, including, hiking, food, photography, sailing, widows and widowers, etc. There is no shortage of Meetups, including 25 on writing; none on blogging and one on WordPress, which costs $6.
You should Google: meetup.com +name of town
They are worth considering.
THINK OLD!
SENIOR CENTER BULLETIN BOARDS – a source for travelers!
Posted: May 1, 2017 Filed under: geezerTrips, My Backyard, New Mexico, Uncategorized | Tags: bulletin boards, senior centers, trips Leave a comment »Whenever I go to a new senior center, I peruse the bulletin board; a source of classes, events and TRIPS! In the first six months of 2017, the Albuquerque Senior Centers offer 106 trips; both day trips and overnight trips. A sampling of the trips includes: Albuquerque Police Museum, Albuquerque Balloon Museum, Indian Pueblo cultural Center, Santuario de Chimayo (A pilgrimage site known for its healing powers), Hollywick Farms: Working Alpaca Farm, Christ In The Desert (2 days/nights at a monastery), Sky City Cultural Center & Haak’u Museum, Albuquerque Publishing Company, Santa Fe Opera, and numerous Theater trips. Most are free, plus a small transportation cost. The most expensive is Christ In the Desert, which is $176 double occupancy which includes transportation and meals.
Vacations can be boring; especially if you are old and the swim suit doesn’t really fit, the sun is too hot, and you miss your routine. Trips to see grandchildren are even worse, as the kids are working and the grandkids are in school and you can’t figure out how to work the TV. The solution is probably near; the senior center.
Every town has a senior center of some sort; and, every senior center has a bulletin board, a news letter, a web page, or some source of information for seniors. Many also have free book exchanges, classes, and most importantly trips.
The trips can take you to interesting places that you might not otherwise be able to get to. The trips are free or reasonable. The only downside is that you may not be willing to admit that you want to spend your time hanging out with a bunch of old people.
Plan in advance. Look at the on-line Activities Catalog and call or e-mail the senior center that you are interested in to make sure that you can take the trips as a non-member. You can probably use the center as a guest, but the trips may be another matter; if nothing else, you can probably join using your kid’s address and paying $13 for an annual membership.
In addition to the events, classes, and trips that you find on the bulletin board, you might also be interested in computer classes and working out. All are available plus a card room, pool room with four pool tables and a large dining hall where you can get breakfast for $1.50 plus 30 cents for coffee. Admittedly this is the senior center close to my home in Albuquerque, but most that I have been have similar facilities.
Albuquerque does not have reciprocity, but if you are from out-of-state, you can use the facilities as a short-term guest.
Check the Activities Catalog and see what trips are available and attempt to sign up for those in advance, so that when you arrive everything is taken care of. I suppose if they insist on a card, you could use your local address, pay $13 for an annual membership and take the trip. At your age you should go for it.
SEARCH IDEAS:
Google: name of town +senior center
For example: Albuquerque +Senior Centers
leads to: Senior and Multigenerational Centers
I am going to Huntington, NY in June, so I googled: Huntington NY +Senior Center and got:
Huntington Senior Centers trips
The Huntington web site indicates that it may be limited to Huntington residents, but check on reciprocity, ask to go as a guest, or join using a local address. Bring your local senior center membership card.
THINK OLD!
MURPHY’S MULE BARN – An Albuquerque reminder of the Midwest 60 years ago.
Posted: April 28, 2017 Filed under: geezerEats, geezerTrips | Tags: chicken fried steak, Mid-west Leave a comment »
Chicken Fried Steak – a reminder of the Midwest in the 60’s.
If you were raised in the Midwest, like me, you recall the simple meal of chicken fried steak, vegetables, salad and potatoes. Ok, so I opted for french fries instead of the mashed potatoes.
This has been an Albuquerque treat since the early 60’s, and is still going strong today. Where else can you get chicken-fried steak for $10.85 or liver and onions for $9.50. In fact in this day of rampant cardiologists, where can you find these Midwestern favorites at all.
Located in Albuquerque at 2nd street and Alameda (9200 2nd NW), it is open from 6;00 AM to 8:00 PM, no liquor, large helpings and a friendly staff that reminds you of home if you come from the Midwest.
When I travel, I like to visit places that remind me of my youth, which I imagine to be a simpler, friendlier time. Perhaps it is not true, but still…. It is what makes genealogy interesting and Murphy’s beats fast food places.
The wall in Murphy’s Mule Barn.
The exterior hasn’t changed in 60 years.
Murphy’s doesn’t have a web site, but you can check out its menu at Zomato.
Wherever you go, look for your roots. Relive the past, if only for a chicken fried steak in a funky cafe.
Now that I am reminiscing, I need to look for something even better with its roots in the Midwest – a breaded pork tenderloin sandwich which will take me back to late nights in college in Iowa. Stay tuned.
You might want to search out favorite foods of your youth.
SEARCH IDEAS:
GOOGLE: Town you are going to +name of food
For example: breaded pork tenderloin +Albuquerque
The menu at Murphy’s doesn’t show a Pork Tenderloin Sandwich.
The search yields M’tuccis restaurant and a” Crispy Green Chile Roasted Pork Tenderloin Sandwich” for lunch at $12; the best of Iowa and New Mexico.
THINK OLD!
AUTOMATING OLD AGE – health care
Posted: April 24, 2017 Filed under: geezerHealth, Life Style, SIMPLICITY, Uncategorized | Tags: health, PACE Leave a comment »
Health care must be automated. The geezer is no longer able to remember what to do as far as health care is concerned. He must rely on systems that automatically make sure that he gets the care that he needs. In addition, he needs a mentor to have a health care power of attorney so that there is a third-party checking up on the geezer.
The following can be scheduled or fixed so that little or no thought is required.
- Dental appointments – Every six months.
- Primary care/physicals at least annually
- Flu shots – annual
- Social groups – at least weekly
- Day care – as required – transportation will be needed
- PACE – Program for All Inclusive Care for the Elderly is a Medicare and Medicaid program available to Medicare recipients where available that includes everything you need from Adult Day Care, nursing home care, drugs, to hospitalization. In Albuquerque it is available and should be checked.
- Pill box – As many pills as old people seem to take, some organization is necessary. The geezer can’t deal with a bunch of bottles. I need the pills to be sorted by day, so that if I can figure out what day it is, I can find the right pill; maybe!
- Telephone speed dial – cellular – I can’t remember phone numbers; so I put the few I need on speed-dial.
- Life Alert – I will fall. I need someway to call for help if I can’t get up. However, I find that most people forget to wear them when needed the most; like, in the shower, or getting the morning paper in the snow.
- Identity bracelet – weld shut – use super glue to lock it on the wrist. Old people have a special ability to remove bracelets, much like criminals in monitored release programs.
- Door alarms – if a spouse/partner has dementia, you want an alarm/lock on the door to alert you when they leave or to keep them from leaving. The escaping spouse always leaves when you are in the bathroom.
- Neighbors – The best protection comes from neighbors who keep an eye on you.
- Urgent care centers – A better source for minor problems and triage, than waiting for hours in an emergency room.
- Refrigerator Instructions – Tape your meds list, doctor’s name, “Do Not Resuscitate notice,” people to notify list and other information for Emergency Responders. The refrigerator is where they look.
- Canary Home Security System – This is a cheap camera that you can put in your home so that your mentor/kid can check on you with his/her cell phone. It also beeps if something unusual occurs. The videos are kept for 24 hours so that you can monitor them. Just remember that this is a privacy invasion and no one wants to look at a nude 76-year-old.
Interesting sites;
THINK OLD!
AUTOMATING OLD AGE – a financial umbrella for the geezer!
Posted: April 21, 2017 Filed under: geezerFinance, geezerSecurity, Uncategorized | Tags: finance, financial health, scams Leave a comment »
“Seventy-Five” may be a senior’s financial tipping point. You have memory lapses, don’t think as clearly and worry more, or worse, don’t worry at all about financial matters. Financial planners are targeting you, beady eyes glistening in the darkness. And, of course, deep down, you are beginning to realize that you don’t trust your own decisions; and, really don’t know whom to trust. Your financial life, like the rest of your life, has become uncertain and confusing.
You need to automate. A few suggestions:
- Direct deposit social security, pensions, dividends, rents and other income.
- Automatic payment of regular bills, using a credit card or your checking account. Pay gas, electricity, water, mortgages, taxes, rent, car payments, insurance, church pledge, long-term care premiums and credit cards on-line. Pay anything you can automatically.
- Have a geriatric mentor. A trusted person (kid) who will receive copies of all financial documents and who can monitor for suspicious activity, receive late or termination notices, and who can generally track your financial old age.
- Periodic alerts:
- Tax filing deadlines – accountant
- Property taxes – mentor, mortgage company, accountant
- Long-term care insurance – mentor – You don’t want to default on this.
- Minimal number of accounts
- One credit card
- One debit card
- One brokerage account
- One bank account
- Investments
- Index funds
- Cash account
- Contacts – you should have habits that alert people when you don’t participate
- Church
- meals-on-wheels
- Mail carrier
- Neighbors
- Senior Centers
- Regular social get-togethers
- Clubs
- ie “Have you seen the geezer recently?”
- Monthly review of accounts, etc. by mentor or trusted person.
- Hire a property manager if you own rental units; direct deposit of rents and copies of statements to mentor.
The bottom line is that you can change any of these depending on your level of competence and how you feel about dealing with financial matters. The point is that your survival should be automatic if you don’t feel like dealing with it. You should not have to think about the basics; your financial health should be based on checks and balances.
THINK OLD!
HERITAGE ARTS – a learning vacation at Southwestern Community College in the land of the Cherokee!
Posted: April 13, 2017 Filed under: geezerLearns, geezerQuests, geezerTrips, Uncategorized | Tags: Cherokee, Travel Leave a comment »I recently attended the local Quarterly Chapter Meeting of the Trail of Tears Association, which was held at Swain Center Southwestern Community College, Almond, North Carolina. The speaker was Jeff Marley, a professor at Southwestern Community College, who will teach you how to print in Cherokee.
Jeff gave us a tour of the arts program which includes pottery making using three different kilns for firing: gas, electric and wood-fired. The clay is local and the techniques for making the pottery are both traditional and contemporary.
The school is located about 75 miles from Asheville, NC, on the edge of the Eastern Band Cherokee Indian Reservation. It has a Casino and Museum in Cherokee.
The school has a summer art program that features ceramics, pottery, photography, drawing, printing and “Cherokee Language Printing.” The classes cost around $25; and $50 for a 5 week independent study course. Jeff will help you design your own course if you want. Beats a lot of things you could be doing and it is interesting.
Printing in the Cherokee language struck me. You use Cherokee fonts and print on an old-fashioned press.
Cherokee language fonts.
You set the type by hand in boxes, you place it in the press, you run the press by hand, make a proof and then do as many copies as you want.
A very old press.
If pottery is your thing, there is a large class room;
Pottery Classroom
resulting in as much pottery as you can make:
Pottery
The Swain Center offers hands on instruction in techniques that you would not get elsewhere. How many wood-fired kilns are there? Where else can you learn to set type in the Cherokee Language and then print posters, books and stationary in Cherokee. You may need a translator.
The Cherokee property, not a reservation, is the home of the Eastern Band of Cherokees; the ones who were left and who bought their property, after some of their ancestors were forced to move to Oklahoma where they became the Western Band. There are museums to see; and of course Harrah’s Casino in Cherokee, NC. and the art community of Waynesville, NC. Don’t forget the Biltmore Estate in Asheville.
You can fish, hunt, sail, hike, etc.
The real point of this blog is to encourage people to check out community colleges wherever they happen to be; or happen to be going. You can frequently gain access to college facilities and can learn something new.
THINK OLD!