Still Clickin

“Peace on Earth” and “Joy to the World” usually elicit sentiments of good cheer, family, and friends. For those that are alone, isolated, and weary, however, the opposite can be true. The cheer promoted by others can underline the degree of isolation and grate upon a weary spirit. The ‘same old, same old’ answers of our faith can become to feel tired and unreal.

Somewhere between the late 20’s and early 40’s, many people go through a period of time where they question the faith that was passed on to them by their families. They question at that age because they feel invincible and immortal. A little more living and a crisis or two usually brings them back to a deeper, more sanguine faith. You’d think that would be enough.

But the weariness of age can occasion a reprieve of this questioning. With age, our perspectives seem to simplify. Specific, little rules, whether issued by governments or religions, take on less and less importance than the spirit and basis from which they empowered. Such basics can be reevaluated by seniors under the harsh light of a lifetime of experience. Faith, as one of those basics, is not immune. If it wavers, a powerful counterpoint to the Holiday Blues, as well as the vicissitudes of everyday life, is lost.

For those in this state, the most powerful antidote to the Holiday Blues is one, true friend. Unfortunately, that friend may exist, but not know, that they are needed. (Don’t we all love to wallow?) In that situation, it is the blunt responsibility of the wallowing senior to alert that friend. Otherwise, that senior is disavowing the friendship.

On the other hand, if that senior can identify no friend and feels friendless and isolated, it can become a real challenge to face the day each morning. Just when you feel the weakest, you need to act the strongest. Once again, attitude is everything.

In this situation, a senior has to accept the responsibility to change the situation. They first need to announce their Holiday Blues by reaching out to their caregivers, their careless family members, their merchants, and their neighbors. That reach should not include bitterness or wallowing because it dilutes the message. If that reach is genuine, the warmth of the human spirit will respond.

One way to enhance that reach is for the senior to serve it accompanied by the delicious drink of forgiveness, especially to caring, but hurt, family members. Forgiveness is one of the most freeing experiences for the giver and a treasured prize for the receiver. That gift could transform a Blues Holiday into one of the most treasured of your life.

For anyone reading this who is not a senior, this is a good time to reach out to old Aunt Ellie and Uncle Joe who nobody talks about anymore. It will help build your faith and cheer as well as theirs.

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.

‘Tis the season to keep the ID scam artists at bay.

As a senior, there are few things that make me more uncomfortable than the exposure to ID Theft. It is a mystifying, ever-present reality that I, like most seniors, feel ill-equipped to deal with.
However, there are some simple steps that anyone can take to limit their exposure. There are more extensive steps to take than these that you can access at the links below, but you should at least attempt to follow these basics.

Telephone -

• Place your telephone number on the national Do Not Call List. An enrollment is good for five years.
• If you receive any call from a government entity, bank, mortgage company, credit card company, or retailer asking for any information, just SAY NO! Ask them to make their request in writing, and then HANG UP!
• Unfortunately, some charitable organizations use the phone to solicit donations. Again, just say NO! Ask them to send a written request. Hang up.

Email -

• If you receive an email from a government entity, bank, mortgage company, credit card company, or retailer asking for any information, just delete. No trustworthy organization operates in that fashion.
• Do not even open emails from sources you do not recognize. Most especially, do not open their attachments.

Regular Mail -

• Rip to bits any piece of mail that includes an account number or any personal information. Discard it with the food garbage, the wetter the better.
• Rip up and discard into the garbage any unsolicited credit card applications.

Credit Card and Bank Statements -

• Keep credit card and ATM receipts, and compare the items on the statements you receive to these receipts.
• Contest any unfamiliar transaction. This is your first alert system and first line of defense against ID Theft.

These are just basic activities. Additional information can be found at -

• Your Credit Advisor
• AARP ID Theft Prevention Seminar

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.

TV’s used to be the simplest gadget to buy, quite reliable and relatively inexpensive. All that has changed. Now we face the questions of when to buy and what. For me, I’ve decided to act like a loosing sports team and “wait until next year”. There are too many changes still taking place.

What are the changes?

1. Date: February 17, 2009
This is the biggest change. It is the date that the US Congress has set for all television stations broadcasting at full-power to transmit digital-only signals. Whoops! That means the old standard analog sets will no longer work, unless -

• you buy a box for each set that converts the signal to analog, or
• your cable or satellite company, who are still allowed to distribute the analog signal, converts the signal for you, or
• you buy a new digital TV.

2. Definition: HDTV
Because this digital signal can carry more content, the TV manufacturers have been moving toward the technology to use it, called High Definition TV (HDTV). “Definition” means how refined the picture is on the screen for sharp, crisp details.
TV pictures are composed of a number of lines, and are written onto the screen in two passes (interlaced) or one pass (progressive). The definition for digital TV currently progresses from -

• SDTV - standard definition that shows 480 interlaced lines, labeled (640 x 480i),
• EDTV - enhanced definition that shows 480 or 576 progressive lines, labeled (720 x 480p) or (720 x 576p),
• HDTV - high (enough for smaller screens) definition that shows 768 progressive lines, labeled (1366 x 768p), to
• Full HDTV - high definition for screens over 40″ or for video games and computers, labeled (1920 x 1080p).

3. Display: Aspect Ratio

• 4:3 - the traditional width-to-height ratio of older TV’s.
• 16:9 - the wide-screen format like you see at the movies

4. Display: Flat screen
The screen is the most expensive component of a TV set. The old tube is gone and has been replaced by -

• Plasma - for darker rooms where the furniture is spread out.
• pros - generally less expensive, wider view angle, high contrast, accurate colors, handles fast motions, offers largest sizes.
• cons - has dimmer picture in bright room, reflective glass surface, shorter useful life, burn-in of images, heavier, uses more electricity

• LCD - for brighter rooms with tighter viewing angles and video game usage.
• pros - better picture in bright room, longer useful life, lighter, no image burn-in with video games, uses less power.
• cons - a bit more expensive, smaller viewing angle, less contrast, more blur with fast motion, smaller sizes.

Given the amount of change that is still going on, my choice for Santa is to “wait until next year”. If I had to buy today, however, I’d choose a wide-screen, full HDTV set with the largest flat screen I could afford that was best suited for the room and its use. Even though many broadcasts don’t transmit full HDTV, I’d opt for it because it is only a matter of time before they will. I’d make that choice because the technology changes in progress have a while to go before they reach any stable plateau.

Some experts out there may disagree. I’d love to know why.

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.

‘Tis the season, 11/15/07 - 12/31/07, to review drugs. Today, I’m changing my Medicare-Part D Plan, the one that covers drugs. Last year, I just kept the same plan and let it roll over to the new year. Now, it is time for a change.

During this time, it is worth repeating a word of caution on ID Theft, i.e. DO NOT RESPOND TO A TELEPHONE SOLICITATION OR INQUIRY REGARDING ANY MEDICARE ISSUE. You have to initiate the call to a number listed for Medicare. Never give information over the phone if you do not initiate the call.

This is the way I understand the 2008 Medicare-Part D rules.

• It is a one-year policy with a Medicare-approved insurance company that complies with or exceeds Medicare rules.

• You have to sign up for a policy during your initial “Medicare Eligibility Period” or pay a penalty if you decide to join later.

• The policies may limit the specific drugs covered, as listed in their “formulary”, as well as the participating pharmacies, as listing in their “network”.

• You can either pay the monthly fee or have Medicare deduct it from Social Security.

• You pay the first $275 of any drug costs.

• The plan pays 75% of the next $2,510 of drug costs, and you pay 25%.

• You pay all of the costs ($3,216.25) between $2,510 and $5,726.25, i.e. for the famed “Donut Hole”.

• Once the total drug costs exceed $5,726.25, you make co-payments of $2.25 for generic prescriptions and $5.60 for all other drugs.

There are slightly different rules for folks that already have some drug coverage, are institutionalized, or are on Medicaid.

To evaluate the various plans for my state, I went to Medicare.gov and clicked on “Prescription Drug Plans”, then selected “Plans in Your Area”. This gave a concise list of available plans. After reviewing the formulary, network, and premium of a few plans, I picked a new plan that seemed to suit me better. I was able to complete the enrollment right online, and the deed was done well before the year-end deadline.

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.

Challenging the “Look-Through”

Adapting to life as a senior citizen seems to require more than a few adjustments. Some of them are physical, e.g. hearing aids. Others might require a shift in our mental attitudes. I’ve begun to detect a certain attitude in casual situations, e.g. mid-day at the mall, where I’ve noticed a subtle shift in how I’m approached by others. I’ve begun to refer to it as the “look-through”.

At times, we have all guilty of some prejudice, a.k.a. pre-judging. I now believe that it seems to come in two flavors, look-away and look-through.

• Look-away prejudice is the most common type. Typically, it is sparked by a rejection of diversity in racial traits or physical disabilities. Whether based in fear or indifference, it projects the “I don’t want to get involved” attitude. Looking away means you don’t have to deal with this person, issue, or situation.

• Look-through prejudice is a relatively new experience. It has always been around and, on any given day, we unconsciously may be subject to it or may be doing it ourselves. With this prejudice, the person is simply ignored or dismissed. They are either too young or too old to deserve serious consideration and can simply be dismissed with a polite smile. There is no need for a look-away.
  

Because it is so subtle, most people would deny having any prejudice against senior citizens. Unfortunately, it seems to be all too real. As such, I feel it is the responsibility of the senior to recognize and deflect.

1. I firmly believe that humor is the very best foil against any form of prejudice. I try to be engaged and challenging in a polite, but slightly aggressive, manner.
2. Turning the tables by making a witty observation coupled with an offer of help can often switch an attitude and engage a dismissive person.

Am I being paranoid? Am I the only one that has observed this? Love to know what you think.

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.

How do blogs and wikis differ? Which is better? For me, these are important questions which I’ve yet to totally resolve for the folks I’d like to connect to.

In some ways, blogs and wikis are very similar. They both -

• incorporate immediate, web based, postings,
• directly involve the participation of the individual user,
• typically invite anyone to join, and
• provide a structured access to prior postings.

There are, however, dramatic differences.

Blogs - discussion, diversity, disagreement

• are focused upon the kind of opinions and stories that people might share with friends in a café or parking lot,
• are typically oriented toward a few specific topics for a targeted interest group,
• elicit inquires, opinions, and discussion about various aspects of those core topics,
• present and hold these postings in reverse chronological order structure,
• may encompass the reactions of dozens of participants in any specific discussion,
• contributions of participants are usually visceral and conversational in nature, and
• may evolve into social networking sites.

Wikis - cooperation, collaboration, consensus

• are assembled like research articles or progress reports produced by a study group,
• usually encompass a broad array of topics as a service to a wide, diverse audience,
• elicit participation both about the current array of topics as well as any new, affiliated topics,
• may include the collaborative participation of thousands of members with interests spread across a broad array of topics,
• organize the repository of the accumulated research and insights into a flexible, topically structured, cross-referenced database,
• offer a varied, considered presentation of the topics covered that their many participants continually enhance, and
• may evolve into respected reference sites.

Both blogs and wikis have their place.

• If you want to chat with an Internet friend or learn the gut reaction that a few others might feel about your immediate issue, use a blog.
• If, however, you need to learn from the accumulated research and wisdom of many so that you may apply that knowledge to your issue, use a wiki.

Rather than choose one or the other, however, I thought I’d do both. Obviously, this is the blog. If you’d like to see the wiki, go to wikiSenior.com. Which do you think is best for my fellow seniors?

N. B. Click below to make a comment. If you would prefer to make an enhancement to the original article, please go to wikiSenior.com and click on edit.