Boomers June 1, 2024

BOOMERS

BOOMERS SOUTHSIDE

Life’s riches

Couple uses spare time for good.

Southside Boomers is published by the DAILY JOURNAL 30 S. Water St. Second Floor, Suite A Franklin, IN 46131

For editorial content, contact Amy May in the Daily Journal special publications department at 317-736-2726 or by email at amay@dailyjournal.net

For advertising content, contact the Daily Journal advertising department at 317-736-2730

Care for seniors

PAGE 10

Health

Ensure you’re not a victim of a common surgical mistake.

PAGE 12

Food

Try these light and easy summertime recipes.

PAGE 14

Travel

Connect with Flannery O’Connor in Milledgeville, Georgia.

PAGE 17

Money

Tips to make your money go further on a fixed income.

Column

Phyllis Bex laments the things we’ve lost to time. PAGE 18

Opinion

It’s time to reform the United States tax code. PAGE 19 PAGE 8

photo by warrie dennis

Rock star photographer focuses on ordinary people

By riChard guzman/orange County register

Throughout his long career as a photographer, David Alexander has been at the center of pop culture, shooting album covers for artists such as The Eagles, Aretha Franklin and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and iconic posters for films like “The Blues Brothers” and “The Terminator.”

But for his first photography book, the 80-year-old pointed his lens at something much more ordinary.

“A lot are photographs of just regular people living their lives but they’re people in the world and I started seeing these connections between all living things,” said the Los Angeles native, whose debut book is “Pictures of Time: Seeing Time in the Ordinary World.”

The 124-page collection is made up of images that at first glance seem, well, ordinary — but deceptively so. Alexander

uses his artist’s eye to place images together in dialogue.

For example, there’s a photo of a woman talking on her cell phone, her hip slightly bent; it’s paired with a picture of a tree with a slightly curved trunk, each echoing the other. Another is a closeup of a person’s eye, and next to that is a picture of dark clouds that appear to be the eye of a storm. In one, he captured a couple entwined in a romantic embrace, mirroring it with a photo of tree branches twisted together.

For Alexander, these images are all connected by nature and he hopes his book unveils these natural links often hidden in plain sight around us.

“So, photographing a tree or a person, or a flower or a weed, to me they were the same as I realized that what I was looking at was life, and that’s what I photograph,” he said.

But his book goes even deeper than just showing similarities in shapes.

“I realized that what my subject was wasn’t the tree in front of me or the tree in front of me. My subject was time, that time is the quality that binds everything in life. That’s what I became fascinated in and that’s what the book is about,” he added.

Before becoming a photographer, Alexander got a law degree from the University of Chicago Law School. But

one day, realizing how much he disliked it, he made a life-changing decision.

“Until I was in law school, I’d never taken pictures. But I knew the law wasn’t right for me and it just occurred to me one day that I would probably enjoy doing photography, So that was it. I just basically made that decision,” he said.

So he bought his first camera and began shooting. “I just taught myself how to shoot photographs,” he said. His keen eye led to a decades-long career as a commercial photographer shooting iconic images like the cover for the Eagles’ “Hotel California,” as well as album covers for Franklin, Petty, James Brown, Linda Ronstadt, James Taylor, Bonnie Raitt, Tina Turner and many others.

After retiring from commercial photography in the late 1980s, Alexander continued taking pictures of anything that caught his eye, which led to this book.

Audrey and Mike Harris work on containter gardens at the Johnson County Fairgrounds.

‘A wonderful LIFE’

Harrises find time to volunteer and have some fun

By JoyCe Long

Photos By Warrie dennis

WWhat were the chances of Mike Harris from Greenwood discovering the love of his life while crashing a November 1977 party in Largo, Florida? Despite the odds, it happened. He met Audrey Takarchek.

“We played pool together and totally connected,” Mike said.

Their marriage, officially notarized, started six weeks later in an apartment complex where they’d met and where Audrey worked. Soon they moved to Indiana with Chemlawn and planned a more traditional wedding in Pittsburgh, the city where she grew up.

Two years earlier Chemlawn Corporation had hired Mike, then transferred him from Indiana to establish their first Florida branch office. His 1975 degree in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University prepared him for this challenge.

“I grew up in Center Grove in a subdivision, but at age eight or nine years old, I started working for some farmers and fell in love with agriculture.”

He enjoyed riding tractors, participating in 4-H, and showing sheep.

Feeling isolated from his family, he took a new position in Anderson, where their first daughter Kim was born. That proximity was short lived when Chemlawn transferred them to the Chicago area.

“Our second daughter Lisa was born in 1982 at Arlington Heights Hospital, the same one mentioned in Jerry Jenkins’ ‘Left Behind’ series.”

In 1987 Mike Harris left Chemlawn and moved back to Greenwood where the couple worked together in

Six generations of our family have supported and assisted this community during difficult times. Today, we continue to help those who need our services. As a local, family-owned funeral home, we are deeply committed to every family who walks through our doors. You can trust our expertise when the time comes.

When you need us, we’re nearby.

Paul St. Pierre President & Funeral Director

Kristin St. Pierre Advanced Planning Manager

“ After 46 years together, we pretty much know what the other is thinking and when to close our mouths. I couldn’t be more blessed. It’s a wonderful life. — Mike Harris

their own Bonus Express (American Advertising Distributors) franchise.

“We wanted to have a job where we didn’t have to move all the time,” Mike said.

Eventually deciding they needed more income stability. Audrey began working as an aide at Center Grove (Central) Middle School, then later for Center Grove and Maple Grove Elementaries.

Mike Harris interjected: “Here’s a fun fact. As a first grader, I walked off the school bus in 1959, and since then we’ve had someone in the family, either as a student or employee, in the Center Grove School Corporation.”

Both daughters attended Center Grove schools and now three of their five grandchildren are students there. Andrew and Lisa Bauermeister with their three children live a mile from her parents while Brandon and Kim Lesher live in Mt. Washington, Ky. with their two children.

In 1987, Mike accepted a job with Lesco Inc. to open and manage their first location in Indiana, which later merged into John Deere Landscape Supply, a landscape, irrigation and golf course supply company. As regional

manager, he oversaw 21 stores around the Midwest — from Madison, Wisc. to southern Knoxville, Tenn. to eastern Cleveland, Ohio and western St. Louis, Mo.

His typical week included leaving either Sunday or Monday and returning Thursday nights.

“I enjoyed working with the different people and helping them meet the needs of those areas.” Mike spent his last year with John Deere Landscape Supply as a zone agronomic trainer, retiring in January 2015.

Audrey left the schools to work at Mount Pleasant Christian Church (MPCC) in their Community Impact Ministries (2011-2022).

“I really liked what I was doing at the Impact Center, so I kept working after Mike retired,” she said.

Currently they enjoy volunteering, Audrey at Center Grove Elementary, helping teachers she once assisted as an aide—Melia Casper and Megan McKinney. Mike is president of the Johnson County Extension Advisory Board; a member of Central Nine’s Horticulture Advisory Board and the Purdue CARET (Council for Agricultural Research, Extension and Teaching) Committee. The latter he defined as “an advocate group with county, state,

national officials and legislators.” He also participates in the Johnson County Garden Club and volunteers at MPCC’s Impact Center to sort donations and help with the monthly Meijer load-out.

While the Harrises work hard, they’ve wintered in Florida for the past four years. There they enjoy golf, pickleball and bocce ball, the latter described as “a mix of horseshoes and bowling.”

He added fishing to his list and grinned.

“In the complex where we rented this past season, there were five couples we knew, so that’s the neighborhood,” he said.

Family matters to the Harrises. When his daughters were born, he had no frame of reference because he grew up with three brothers.

“Raising them was like finding your way in the dark, but at this point, seeing them successful in their fields of nursing and teaching has made it quite satisfying.”

Audrey added, “The joy is seeing our children parent our grandchildren. It’s also fun to watch them participate in choir and sports like track, softball, volleyball, cross country and hockey.”

Fun permeates their marriage as evidenced by his wife’s surprise birthday trip.

“When I turned 60, Mike made a game out of it. He gave me a daily letter from the alphabet as clues to the destination. It turned out to be Montego Bay, Jamaica.” She paused. “He’s so creative.”

Other travels include Alaska, Germany, France, Italy, Greece, Austria, England, Canada, Mexico and Cuba. Mike especially enjoyed Greece because they went with his youngest brother and sister-in-law.

“With her Greek and U.S. dual citizenship, we saw beyond the touristy part into the true country through visiting with her relatives,” he said. They plan to return to Cuba this fall to do more mission work.

When asked about their life, Harris smiled. “Great! It’s been good. After 46 years together, we pretty much know what the other is thinking and when to close our mouths. I couldn’t be more blessed. It’s a wonderful life.”

Left: Mike and Audrey Harris take a break in front of the Purdue Extension office as they work on gardening projects at the fairgrounds. Left: Working on a planting.

Every moment matters - A game of chess and then off to dinner with neighborsenjoy your day, your way!

Johnson County Senior Services looks to fill unmet needs extending a hand

By Jenn guthrie

Photos By daiLy JournaL

FFor nearly 50 years, Johnson County Senior Services has blazed its own path to help underserved seniors living in isolation, loneliness and depression. Today, under the leadership of Executive Director Kimberly Smith, JCSS and its army of volunteers continues to offer help to the county’s most vulnerable populations while building its presence in a county whose need for services is dire at best.

“The number of seniors suffering in silence in our county is staggering,” Smith said. “Seniors should not be eating dog food, they should not be abandoned in their senior living communities, abused or scammed. It is horrible and we do a terrible job in our country taking care of the elderly.”

As many countries throughout the world revere and take care of their elderly, here in the U.S. that is just not the case, Smith continued. And when focus is narrowed to individual states and counties, the picture, oftentimes, becomes bleaker.

“In our county, we truly are the most underfunded, underserved, and most unappreciated souls in the entire county,” Smith said. “And we are over here doing no duplication of services at all.”

Of the nearly one-half dozen area senior centers in Johnson County, JCSS is not one of them.

JCSS was originally founded 45 years ago when a group of concerned citizens gathered to discuss the greatest challenges facing area seniors. Overwhelmingly, the verdict was a need for transportation.

“JCSS has been the only free door-to-door transportation provider for area seniors for more than four decades now,” Smith said. “And that means transportation to life-saving treatment, as well as medical and non-medical appointments.”

As transportation remains a significant need, the organization is only partially funded for transportation, Smith said. Additional resources, including donations, grants and fundraisers, make up the difference.

“Fundraisers are paramount,” Smith said. “It is either you help less people or you move heaven ad earth to take care of as many as we possibly can and that is where my mindset is. We often feel like we are on an island, but it is such an honor to serve these individuals.”

Almost 9,000 seniors receive assistance from JCSS each month, Smith said. Over Christmas last year, JCSS

distributed to more than 3,400 seniors and responded to nearly 30,000 calls.

“We are the Switzerland of the county, so we help everyone no matter what age,” Smith said. “We share with not only a lot of other nonprofits, churches and whoever has a need, but it is our desire to walk Matthew out every single opportunity we can.”

Spearheading the effort alongside Smith is an army of volunteers. Last year alone, an estimated 500 individuals — including groups of one-time volunteers from area businesses and organizations — assisted at the JCSS food pantry by pulling items and delivering to food insecure individuals.

Franklin resident and volunteer Mike Dale has offered his time to JCSS for nearly a decade and said once he discovered the nonprofit and saw what they were doing, there was no way he couldn’t not help them.

“I got involved with seeing where they needed things the most,” 72-year-old Dale said. “The food side was where I really focused on.”

Expanding his ministry to JCSS, Dale bought one of their busses, removed all the seats and now uses it to haul overflow items or pick up things in bulk. It is not

uncommon for the organization to receive skid loads of donations; however, that doesn’t always mean they can use what’s been offered.

For instance, as has happened, a skid load of Skittles candies might not fill a JCSS need, in which case, Dale travels around the county delivering to those places and individuals who can benefit from the donation.

“Depending on the situation or what is on the bus, I do multiple things, as well as being there for Johnson County Senior Services when they have an event,” Dale added. “I wear multiple hats.”

Subscribing to the expression ‘Every movement of God begins with prayer,’ not everything is a fundraiser as JCSS regularly offers area seniors frequent fun and educational activities to keep them engaged, involved and active.

“I call it my help with the least, the last and the lost,” Dale says. “It is not only transportation; it is also the food and events that JCSS puts on for the seniors

VOLUNTEER

A laminated guide posted near the top of a Christmas tree at the Summerfield Crossing Kroger in Greenwood explains how to take part in Johnson County Senior Services’s senior tree project. The tree is filled with names of seniors who are alone at the holidays.

that are just fantastic. Not only are we helping, we are also expanding and pouring out of things God has already given us — giving back.”

From its Too Blessed to be Stressed ladies’ tea event, an elegant event that pampers participants with a special swag

bag of goodies and a guest speaker offering tips for relieving stress, to the JCSS’s quarterly Johnson County Aging in Action event and annual Johnson County Senior Summit that always has a waitlist for attendance, there’s always something happening, Smith said.

“There’s a lot going on and we have to do a lot because the seniors deserve it,” Smith said.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of JCSS’s Dining in the Dark fundraiser where attendees spend an evening blindfolded and eating in complete darkness. The event is officiated by an emcee and features a multitude of silent auction items, Smith said.

“The event is designed to raise awareness for not only the seniors we serve who are visually impaired, but for the multitude who are out of sight and out of mind suffering in silence,” Smith said. “A chef comes out at the end and tells you what you’re actually eating and it is never what you think it is.”

If you have time to share, volunteer opportunities include: Office work, answering phones Organizing inventory (medical equipment and food) Fundraising and outreach Cleaning and maintenance

Looking to the future, Smith said JCSS would like to raise the funds to purchase a property adjacent to its existing building for the purpose of establishing a community center or venue that could be used to host fundraisers not only for JCSS but other nonprofits, as well.

Current JCSS needs include first and foremost, prayers for the seniors and the agency, Smith said. Additionally, there’s always a need for pantry food items, durable medical equipment and volunteers. During the holiday season there’s always a need for not only gifts, but sponsors for JCSS fundraisers, monetary donations and more. The best way to find out how to help is to reach out, Smith said.

“It is multiple layers of things going on,” Dale says. “Of course, we believe God is in the middle of it. It has to do with the efforts and talents of those involved. We have to go with the flow of what God is doing, it is hard to keep up with Him.”

information: Johnson County Senior Services is at 36 W. 600 N, Whiteland, IN 46184 317-738-4544 www.jcseniorservices.org/signup

Having surgery? What to ask your doctor to avoid a harmful error

By Wendy

WWhen a surgeon accidentally leaves a surgical tool inside a patient’s body after a procedure, the harm can be severe. The patient can suffer from life-threatening infections, organ damage and an additional surgery to remove the object.

This type of medical error is extremely rare. But it does happen:

An Inquirer investigation identified 203 cases in which patients at 39 Philadelphia-area hospitals received treatment related to a surgical item accidentally left inside their bodies during a procedure, according to an analysis of Pennsylvania hospital billing records from 2017 through 2022.

Patient safety experts say a single case is one too many. Government health regulators call these medical errors “never events” because they should never happen.

Sponges used to sop up blood during surgery are the most common item erroneously left inside patients. Another frequently missed item is

a broken catheter fragment, said Marcus Schabacker, president of ECRI, a national nonprofit organization aimed at improving patient safety in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania.

Schabacker, an anesthesiologist and intensive care specialist, is not your typical patient. He prefers to stay awake under local anesthesia and watch to make sure surgical teams don’t mistakenly leave catheter parts or other objects behind. “If you are conscious, you can say, `Hey, did you remove the whole thing?” Schabacker said.

Most patients don’t stay awake during surgery, but can still take steps to protect their own safety. For example, Schabacker recommends that patients familiarize themselves with safety measures that hospitals employ to prevent objects being left behind and talk to their surgeon before the procedure about which protocols will be followed.

The Inquirer spoke with Schabacker and Carl Sirio, chief medical officer at Temple Health, about some of those safety measures:

ruderman and sarah gantz/the PhiLadeLPhia inquirer

Photo By JessiCa griffin/the PhiLadeLPhia inquirer

Virginia Lowe, a practicing doctor and a lawyer who specializes in medical malpractice cases, discusses a CT scan of client Todd Gordon. It shows a mass that turned out to be wadded-up surgical gauze mistakenly left inside the patient during a routine biopsy.

MANUAL SUPPLY COUNTS

A designated operating room staffer, typically a nurse, counts all items. This includes a count of sponges and instruments before, during and after the procedure (but before closing the incision). Protocols include:

•Surgical instruments should be arranged carefully on trays, each in a designated spot where it must be returned after a surgeon uses it and hands it back.

•Surgical teams should have a “time out” before and after the procedure to confirm that counts are correct and that all items are accounted for.

•For all counts, one nurse should count aloud, as two other OR staffers watch. Typically, an operating room has a “circulating nurse” to help provide oversight. All used and counted items should ultimately be placed into a designated container.

•Staff should count supplies in bundles of 10 to reduce the likelihood of a miscount.

Schabacker, however, noted that manual counts are time-consuming and more prone to mistakes, with an accuracy rate of 75 to 80%.

RADIO FREQUENCY ID TAGS

Many hospitals use sponges, towels and other supplies with special tags that emit a radio frequency that can be detected with a special device, much like a security tag on clothing that will sound a security alarm if not removed at the register. Staff can use a handheld device to scan a patient’s body to check for these tagged surgical items.

“It’s very, very effective, but it’s not cheap,” Schabacker said. “You need proprietary gauzes and sponges and other materials.”

BARCODING SURGICAL ITEMS

A cheaper alternative is a computerassisted barcoding system. Every sponge, piece of gauze, or other surgical tool gets barcoded and scanned before it’s used. A nurse, using a handheld device, scans the

barcoded object again when it is handed back. A computer tracks the count, which is displayed on a screen. The barcode scanner has about a 97% detection rate, according to Schabacker.

X-RAY DETECTION

If an item remains missing after other safety checks are completed, an X-ray should be taken while the patient remains on the table. A radiologist should read the X-ray immediately. The approach is more expensive, but has a high detection rate. An X-ray is a good option for high-risk surgeries, such as long procedures with multiple surgical teams, Schabacker said.

CLEAR COMMUNICATION

Each hospital should have a universal protocol carried out “in every room, every day, every case,” said Sirio of Temple Health. Hospital administrators also should foster a culture in which nurses and other OR staff feel comfortable speaking up if a surgeon breaks protocol or tries to take a shortcut. Likewise, patients should be encouraged to advocate for themselves if something doesn’t feel right after the procedure.

Be Our Guest!

Be Our Guest!

Summer is here! Time to relax and enjoy the weather.

My name is Teresa Glidden and I am the Executive Director at Astral at Franklin. Myself, our associates and residents are excited to offer you the

Now, until September 1, 2024, you can enjoy a FREE three-night stay and explore our services and amenities including:

•Enjoy restaurant-style dining from our in-house Chef

•Try out the latest fitness equipment in our wellness center

•Enjoy the sun and a cool breeze on the terrace

•Take in the latest blockbuster or one of the classics in our theater

•Pamper yourself at the barber/beauty salon & spa

•And much more!

* Terms and conditions apply

To learn more about this limited time offer, call Astral at Franklin at 463.200.7990 to book your stay today.

Scrumptiou S summertime

Make weekday dining a breeze with easy recipes

»From everyday weeknight dinners to picnics in the park, warmer weather and longer days mean families want to spend more time together and less time in the kitchen. This summer, look for kitchen hacks that can make fresh and healthy weeknight seasonal recipes a cinch.

Skipping complicated prep work is the first step toward simplifying meals. Rather than recipes that call for a lot of prep or cooking time, consider easy dishes that require only a handful of steps and use everyday ingredients you may already have in your pantry, fridge or freezer.

For example, these Shrimp, Broccoli and Potato Skewers with Lemon and Thyme can let you put a little spring in your weeknight dinners. Grilled skewers keep the whole family happy and come together in less than 30 minutes, making them perfect for quick and healthy meals without the hassle. The versatility of potatoes means you can grill them, and this version calls for a 5-minute microwave steam first to cut down on grill time.

With easy-to-prepare potatoes, The Little Potato Company makes family dinners like this one a breeze as they come pre-washed, require no peeling and are small enough they don’t need to be cut. This allows for less time in the kitchen and more time for outdoor play to enjoy a little moment of happiness. Plus, the Microwave and Roast or Grill Ready kits come with their own seasoning packs for added convenience.

Grown on family farms, Little Potatoes are a fresh whole food packed with nutrients you can feel good about serving your family and are ideal for this Easy as 1-2-3 Potato Salad. With just three ingredients and minimal prep time, this delightful dish becomes an ultimate springtime solution for busy families. Plus, it’s easy enough that little ones can join in on the fun of preparing it.

Simply pop the tray of Microwave Ready Little Potatoes in the microwave for 5 minutes then add the included Savory Herb seasoning pack, chopped green onions and mayonnaise for a delicious side — no potato boiling or peeling required.

By famiLy features

e asy as 1-2-3 Potato s a L ad

Prep time: 2 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Servings: 4

1 package A Little Savory Herb Microwave Ready Little Potatoes, with included seasoning pack

2-3 tablespoons green onions, chopped 1/2 cup mayonnaise or plain Greek yogurt

In microwave, cook potatoes 5 minutes according to package directions. Combine seasoning pack, chopped green onions and mayonnaise or Greek yogurt. Pour dressing over cooled potatoes. Stir gently and serve.

s

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

1 pound bagged Little Potatoes

1 bunch broccoli

12 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 1/2 lemons, juice only

3 tablespoons fresh thyme, chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

Salt, to taste

Pepper, to taste

In large, microwave-safe bowl, microwave potatoes on high 5 minutes.

Chop broccoli into large pieces.

Add broccoli and shrimp to bowl once potatoes are steamed.

Add lemon juice, thyme and olive oil; evenly coat potatoes, shrimp and broccoli. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Build skewers and grill 10-15 minutes on medium-high heat, until shrimp is cooked through

Charming Georgia town a treat for ‘Flanatics’

By mary ann anderson, star triBune (tns)

WWhen the Savannah-born Flannery O’Connor, widely regarded as the queen of Southern Gothic literature, moved home to Georgia from Connecticut in 1951, she was diagnosed with lupus, an incurable, crippling autoimmune disease. Her mother brought the then 25-year-old to live with her at Andalusia, the family farm just north of Milledgeville, a town of some 17,000 in the heart of Georgia’s lake country.

Environment is everything to a writer, and the venerable yet charming two-story white house rising on a hill and overlooking a quietly serene pond where Regina Cline O’Connor and her daughter lived is set among the hardwoods and pines on more than 500 acres of bucolic pastures and woodlands. It is peaceful here, despite the hectic four-lane U.S.

441 a stone’s throw away, and was the ideal place for the young writer to spend the last dozen years of her life writing much of her two novels and 32 short stories before she died at age 39 from the illness that also claimed her father.

The fans and scholars who appreciate Flannery O’Connor, Andalusia is the holy grail to absorb and understand all that is and was the writer and from where her creativity sprang.

“We call them Flanatics,” says Suzy Parker, a lively student-docent at Andalusia from nearby Milledgeville’s Georgia College and State University (GCSU) and expert on all things Flannery.

Among that number of Flanatics are Ethan Hawke, who directed, pro-

Above: The Old Governor’s Mansion and state legislative chambers in Milledgeville are open for public tours. The town where Flannery O’Connor did much of her writing is getting attention due to Ethan Hawke’s new movie “Wildcat,” a 2023 biopic that brings O’Connor to life and rolls out nationally in May. Opposite page: Family photos, including one of Flannery O’Connor, center, are among the artifacts at Andalusia Farm.

produced and co-wrote “Wildcat,” a 2023 biopic that brings O’Connor to life and rolled out nationally in May, and his daughter, Maya, who portrays the radical if not groundbreaking O’Connor. Laura Linney, whose mother is from Georgia, plays the steel magnolia of Regina. “Wildcat” weaves together O’Connor’s life story with reenactments of her short stories, with Hollywood heavyweights Liam Neeson, Steven Zahn and Vincent D’Onofrio rounding out the stellar cast.

Southern Gothic literature captures the essence of the rural South that we sometimes really don’t want to admit is real. If you’ve read O’Connor, then you know her stories and characters are disturbing, strange and specialized.

Outside of these peaceful red-clay landscapes and small towns is a side of Georgia that O’Connor conjures in her mind, among them the sinister murderer called The Misfit in “A Good Man is Hard to Find,” the loquacious Tom T. Shiflet in “The Life You Save May Be Your Own” with Shiflet, a name that O’Connor plucked from the Milledgeville phone book; and the ungrateful, selfish Julian in “Everything that Rises Must Converge.”

Equally impressive is that in a BibleBelt state where just about everyone is Baptist or Methodist, O’Connor, who was Catholic, managed to somehow incongruously weave threads of religion onto almost every page that she wrote.

“People come from all over the world for Flannery,” Parker explained. “Spain, California, India, England. She is considered a saint by Europeans. They come here to understand who she is and where she came from and can relate more to her writing by coming here. It humanizes her.”

Andalusia Farm, dating to 1814 when it produced primarily cotton, isn’t the only Flanatic stop in Milledgeville. The first stop, even before the farmhouse tour, should be GCSU’s

Andalusia Interpretive Center, perched on a hill as you drive through the gate of Andalusia and up a gravel road. Open for just over a year, the bright barn-like structure encompasses more than 5,000 square feet of exhibition and conference space, a gift shop and, most importantly, an extremely detailed timeline of O’Connor’s life and artifacts including a few of her dresses.

I visit Andalusia with family members, and as we begin the house tour after visiting the interpretive center, Parker tells us that about 90% of the furnishings in the house are original. We walk patiently through the kitchen, dining room and other rooms before we come to O’Connor’s bedroom.

“Flannery’s health didn’t allow her to climb the stairs,” explained Parker, so familiar with the writer that she calls her by her first name. “So her first-floor bedroom served doubleduty as her office.”

The room is much the way O’Connor left it, even her crutches that she used when she couldn’t walk on her own anymore lean silently against the armoire. Her bed with its plaid quilt is still there, as are the dark blue plaid matching curtains. A typewriter is on the desk beside the bed and looks at the back of the armoire. Parker said that O’Connor wrote religiously every morning for three to four hours, facing the bleak rearmost of the armoire so that she wouldn’t be distracted from the goings-on around the farm, including birds galore and her famous peacocks that roamed the yard. The room was simple, dark, maybe a little musty — the home was built in the early 19th century — but it also had the ambiance that great words and stories were created within these wooden walls.

Later, as we stand and talk on the long, screened-in front porch with its row of white rocking chairs, a fat black rat

If yOU GO

Milledgeville is about 100 miles from Atlanta and Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. For more information on what to do, where to eat and where to stay, visit MilledgevilleBaldwin County Convention and Visitors Bureau at www.visitmilledgeville.org or call 478-452-4687.

For more information on Andalusia, visit www.gcsu.edu/andalusia. Milledgeville offers ghost walks throughout the year, Milledgeville Burger Week May 17-25, and the Deep Roots Festival in October. If you visit during the Christmas holidays, don’t miss the enviable décor at the Old Governor’s Mansion.

snake suns itself in the garden, oblivious and uncaring as it enjoys the warmth of the springtime sun. Andalusia is in the countryside, and snakes, coyotes and other varmints are not uncommon.

Moving past Andalusia

Several historic sites dotting Milledgeville also tell the literary legacy of O’Connor. GCSU’s Heritage Hall in the downtown houses a special collections library including the Flannery O’Connor Gallery of Southern Literary Works. Other memorabilia and papers include the works of Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker, author of “The Color Purple,” and former U.S. Sen. Paul Coverdell, as well as collections related to Milledgeville’s contributions to the music industry.

Other places represent O’Connor’s childhood and life, including the Gothic Revival-style Sacred Heart Catholic Church, built in 1874 and where the writer attended church. You can also drive by the Cline-O’Connor-Florencourt House, often referred to as simply the Cline Mansion, where O’Connor lived throughout high school and college. The 1820 federal-style home is adorned with Ionic columns and Victorian touches. The house remains in the family as a private residence. Also visit O’Connor’s plain grave at Memory Hill Cemetery where she’s buried next to her father and mother. Fans have left tokens such as peacock feathers, coins, pebbles, poems and journals.

Milledgeville more than Flannery

There is more to do in Milledgeville than chase the ghost of Flannery O’Connor. Long before the state capital moved to Atlanta, it rotated between Augusta and Savannah, then Augusta alone, and after that Louisville. In 1807 Milledgeville became the capital, and a new capital building reshaped the city’s low-set skyline. Partially because it was the capital, Milledgeville was built in gor-

pork, mac-and-cheese and sweet potato souffle. And biscuits. Oh, those biscuits. For breakfast, brunch and lunch, you’ll love the Local Yolkal, known for its award-winning eggs benedict and indoor and outdoor dining.

Milledgeville, with GCSU and its global students, has gone international with Kai Thai for traditional Thai and sushi. Go for curry, stir-fry, noodles or hibachi or all of the above. If you’re hankering for Italian, then hop to The Brick, known for its pizza, calzones, pastas and sandwiches. But don’t miss its Stuffed Sticks, a bit of heaven with fresh pizza dough, stuffed with mozzarella and a choice of other fresh ingredients.

Sleeping, Milledgeville style

Milledgeville offers a variety of hotel and lodging options with standard hotels, RV sites and campgrounds. Vacation rentals offer a variety of accommodations from antebellum homes to cozy lakeside cottages. For a unique stay and to soak up the local ambience, try the Inn on North Jefferson, a well-appointed bed and breakfast in a 200-year-old home, or the Rockwell House, a stunning 1838 home.

The last word

geous, flower-lined squares still in place today. It remained the capital until Atlanta was named in 1868, but the bonus is that you can still visit the Old Governor’s Mansion and state legislative chambers.

Popping into the Milledgeville-Baldwin County Convention and Visitors Bureau, I meet Rebekah Snider, its executive director.

“People come for the lake and for the history and culture,” she says, noting that nearby Lake Sinclair covers some 15,300 acres of coves, marinas and vast open stretches of water perfect for fishing, swimming and boating. She also says that two “high demand” trolley tours are offered on weekends by reservation only, including a one-hour history tour that will take you past some of the most beautiful antebellum architecture in Georgia.

The other is a two-hour tour to the 2,000-acre Central State Hospital, originally known as the Georgia State Lunatic, Idiot and Epileptic Asylum. Now almost completely abandoned – a few patients are still housed at the hospital –the site, dating to 1842, gained national if not notorious recognition as the U.S.’s largest mental institution with more than 12,000 patients and 6,000 employees scattered across the then massive 8,000-acre complex.

Eating and drinking, Milledgeville style

Milledgeville is a small town with big flavor. We stopped in at the Reel Grill of Milledgeville right in the heart of downtown. My sister-inlaw raved about the crab bisque, as did her sister about the bourbon salmon. I chose blackened shrimp with cheese grits as a side, and since then have been trying to figure a way to get back to Milledgeville soonest to have them again. For the drinking Flanatics, try the Flannery O’Connor Love Letters, a unique bourbon cocktail.

As I make the two-hour drive back home to south Georgia from Milledgeville, I ponder a great deal about O’Connor and her impact, even some 50 years after she passed away, on how others view Georgia and the South in general. Expressing her view of the region’s identity, if you will, she wrote in an essay in 1963 for The Regional Writer, “Southern identity is not really connected with mockingbirds and beaten biscuits and white columns any more than it is with hookworm and bare feet and muddy clay roads.”

Greene’s Fresh Farmhouse is a wellliked weekday lunch spot that offers traditional Southern fare. Think: pulled

And snakes, I think, as I’m reminded of the rat snake at Andalusia. When you visit the farm, and watch “Wildcat,” you just might gain a better understanding of where she came from, too.

Andalusia Farm, just off U.S. Highway 441 north of Milledgeville, Georgia, was once the home of author Flannery O’Connor and her mother, Regina Cline O’Connor. Now a house museum, about 90% of its artifacts are original to the home. Below: Regina Cline O’Connor’s cookbook. O’Connor’s bedroom and office at the home.

3 ways to save money for people on a fixed income

By hunter B oyCe/atLanta JournaL-Constitution

Living on a fixed income in 2024 can be a tough task for U.S. retirees.

Here are some tips to help you make the most of your budget well into your golden years.

Downsize

From scaling back on personal possessions to moving into a smaller home, downsizing for retirement is all about improving affordability. Downsizing is not always the right move, but can help rein in your monthly costs. Those already considering moving for other reasons — such as to live in a state with more retirement-friendly tax laws — might find the strategy of downsizing as an added financial bonus.

“The financial benefit of downsizing in retirement typically results when going from a large mortgage to a small mortgage, or from a small mortgage to no mortgage at all,” Greg McBride, chief financial analyst for Bankrate, said in a report. “If you have substantial equity in your existing home, downsiz-

ing can mean taking that equity when the home is sold and using it to pay cash or make a large down payment on a lower-priced home, reducing your monthly living expenses.”

Location, location, location

When it comes to paying income taxes, some states are better than others for retirees. Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wyoming, for instance, have no state income tax. That being said, not all income tax-free states are necessarily more affordable for retirees. Florida remains one of the best states in the country for retirees because of its tax laws overall, according to U.S. News and World Report.

“Making the move to Florida comes with multiple tax benefits,” U.S. News reported. “It doesn’t charge income, estate or inheritance taxes, and its state and local effective tax rate of 9.1% in 2022 was the 11th lowest in the country, according to the Tax Foundation.

“Florida’s state sales tax rate is 6% and local governments add an average of 1.02% in sales taxes for a combined rate that ranks in the middle for the U.S. Property taxes are below average and residents 65 and older and veterans can receive extra breaks.”

Account for inflation

Within reason, it is best to underestimate your income and overestimate your expenses when financial planning on a fixed budget. This is because, over time, inflation can significantly damage your spending power.

According to Corebridge Financial, an average inflation rate of 3% over 20 years would turn a $60,000 budget into the equivalent of $33,220.55 — nearly half its original value.

“Inflation erodes the value of savings and will continue to do so after you retire,” the company reported. “Considering the near-zero interest rates of savings accounts, retirees who are living off their savings are especially vulnerable to high inflation. Therefore, it’s important to assess your investment strategy and retirement income plan to see if you’re protected against inflation for the long term.”

By PhyLLis Bex

PHYLLIS BEX HAS BEEN A RESIDENT OF JOHNSON COUNTY SINCE 1973 AND DIvIDES HER TImE BETwEEN GREENwOOD AND FLORIDA SHE CAN BE REACHED AT PBEX49@GmAIL.COm

caSketS, newSpaperS and pogo StickS

hDo you know the difference between writing a column and fixing dinner? Well, if you don’t, you are in real trouble. Here is the similarity. When my young daughters were all at home, fixing dinner was easy. The hard part was coming up with the menu. It’s the same thing when writing a column. Once a subject is decided, then putting it on paper is a snap. So here we go.

As we age, we notice things we were oblivious to before. For example, the price of caskets and funerals. Who knows the costs of such things until you are in mourning? Nobody. People find cremations are not frowned upon as much as they once were. Therefore, many choose that method of respectfully laying the remains of loved ones to rest.

Though it all sounds morbid to speak of, it is a fact of life and death. For example, the price of a casket alone can be from $2,000 to as much as $10,000 or more. Whereas the lowest cost for a cremation is around $1,300. Of course, all the variations of each method will determine the end cost for a respectable home going. In the end, the living must decide what and how the deceased will be laid at last. Technically, the business of caskets is a dying business. The cremains urns, boxes and lockets are markets on the rise. This is something to think about. Truly, many of us do not want the burden of planning to be difficult for those who remain. For all, preplanning is a good idea.

Another thing that’s dying is newspapers. People around my age love the written word on paper. Especially the newspaper. Maybe the printed version of newsprint is on the decline, nevertheless for us diehard folks, we prefer to hold the paper in our hands. We cut out pictures, captions, and articles for keepsakes. We enjoy sharing the paper with others when they come to visit. Many oldsters enjoy living in a community with a newspaper to read to read what’s happening locally. Isn’t that what we love about our local newspaper?

If you are like me, I read with a pen in hand. Underlining important points when reading the newspaper, a book, or any periodical is important to me. Every Sunday at church, taking notes helps me pay attention. I underline scriptures and write

messages in the margins of my bible. Later when I reference that page, I see my scribbles.

There are some things we used to see all the time but are no longer around. Take the pogo stick for example. It is a stick with a place for your feet and handles at the top. The length of the pogo stick is about chest high. Underneath the footrests is a big spring around the stick. The idea is to stand on the stick and jump around while keeping your balance. That’s all there was to it.

Clara had one of those for her kids. It was rather hard to keep our balance as we didn’t have any hard surface to bounce on. We tried our best but the most we could do was about three bounces. The pogo stick has gone by the wayside except for maybe entertainers. They were popular when we had hoola-hoops and yo-yos. Occasionally, we still see hoola-hoops in exercise classes, the circus, and sometimes on silly reels.

As for yo-yos, those were all the rage back in high school. Kids brought them out at recess or after lunch and did tricks like, “walk the dog,” “around the world,” “over the falls” and “rock the baby.”

A few years ago, George’s grandson Daniel taught at the Tabernacle Christian School in Martinsville. He decided to form a yo-yo club. Daniel looked on YouTube and learned numerous tricks and fun ways to play with the yo-yo. Then he taught them to the club members. In fact, his and other schools met for competitions. Can you imagine that? One time at our family Christmas get-together, he did a little demonstration to show off his talent. Daniel felt it was another way for kids to gain confidence by doing yo-yo tricks. Now as a father of three, what a fun activity he can share with his children.

We never had a unicycle, but we knew kids who did. Again, this one-wheeled cycle was more for the circus than everyday kids to use. But where are they today? Who knows, maybe since most circuses have closed, there are no entertainers to ride them while they juggle?

Sure, many things of yesteryear have passed us by. However, there are new ways of dealing with life and entertaining ourselves. One thing has stayed the same, the age-old question will forever be: “What’s for dinner?”

fixing our cruel and unuSual tax code

iIt probably escaped your attention, but the Internal Revenue Service recently piloted a program to help Americans cope with their notoriously complex tax system. Direct File was meant to help taxpayers in 12 states prepare and submit their returns electronically. Some 19 million people were eligible to use it. Thanks partly to a rollout late in the tax-preparation season, fewer than 1% of them actually did.

The IRS was pleased with the results nonetheless: Taxpayers who used the system said they liked it, according to a survey, and the idea all along was to “start small, make sure it works and then build from there.” Fine. So what about next steps? “No decision has been made about the future of Direct File at this time,” the agency says.

Dull as the topic of tax administration might seem, it demands far more ambition and urgency. Each year Americans spend roughly two billion hours and more than $30 billion on personal tax-preparation fees. This compliance burden falls disproportionately on the less well-off. The system’s complexity also means that credits often go unclaimed; again, in relative terms, the lower-paid suffer the biggest losses. At the top of the income scale, in contrast, complications yield loopholes — and every loophole dictates higher taxes for the rest.

A working Direct File system would be a start, but it’s the least of what’s required to disentangle the mess Congress has created. Next year, legislators will have to think about tax reform as changes in the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire. They should use the moment to simplify the system and follow the example of many other advanced economies: Spare taxpayers the need to fill out any return at all.

Two complementary strategies would make this feasible.

First, go one better than Direct File by tasking the IRS to pre-populate the main tax form for most taxpayers. The agency already has much, and in many cases all, of the information it needs.

According to one recent study, roughly 70 million returns — upward of 40% of the total — could be accurately pre-filled.

By BLoomBerg oPinion

Second, simplify the code. This is desirable in its own right, because endless accretion of complexities is self-defeating. (Each new incentive or accommodation confounds the others.) In addition, a simpler code would allow more comprehensive use of pre-filled returns. A recent report from the Brookings Institution suggests some options. To be sure, even the least ambitious of these ideas is radical by contemporary standards. It would repeal itemized deductions, preferential rates for capital gains and dividends, head-of-household filing status and the alternative minimum tax, and replace existing personal credits with refundable ones of $1,000 for each family member and a work-related credit that phases out as income rises.

A tall order, politically speaking — yet consider the benefits. By design, it would be both revenueneutral and fairer than the current code. It would also be vastly easier for the IRS to administer and for taxpayers to understand and endure. With such a system, pre-populated returns could be standard practice.

As it stands, the US system delights the tax-prep industry but imposes enormous avoidable costs on the country’s citizens. It’s abysmal by international standards and violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. Next year, changes to the tax code will be unavoidable. For once, maybe Congress can come up with a reform worth the name.