Mature Focus September 2024

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309-292-3681 2 September 2024 • Mature Focus

September • 2024

features 6 10 30 36 42 46

A rare perspective A little cagey The ‘oys’ of summer Life lessons The joy of reunion Growing up with cousins

6

favorites 4 12 16 20 24 32

From The Desk Tinseltown Talks Humor Hotel Savvy Senior The History of Ordinary Things Midnight Gardener

10

health 18 34 40

Touching face and mouth Healthy Eyes: Eyelid lumps Mayo Clinic: Energy drinks

12

finance 14 38

Special tools for special needs Outliving your money

recipes 8 44

Meatless Mondays Shrimp and grits

16

games 22 23

Mind Gym Super Crossword

extras 25 33 35 41 45

Now Here’s a Tip Strange But True All the News That’s Fit Moments in Time Mature Focus Volunteer Spotlight

Our Cover: “Up the Middle” by Gary Patterson. See page 34 for more information.

24

8 Mature Focus • September 2024

3

From the Desk of the Publisher ByKevin Ferris

“The human race has one really effective weapon, and this is laughter.” - Mark Twain Laughter is often referred to as the best medicine because it has numerous physical and mental health benefits. When we laugh, our body releases endorphins, which are natural painkillers that can help reduce feelings of stress and anxiety. Laughing also boosts our immune system by increasing the production of antibodies and activating immune cells.

Additionally, laughter can improve our mood and overall sense of wellbeing. It can help us relax, improve our relationships with others, and increase our resilience in the face of challenges. Studies have shown that people who laugh regularly tend to have lower levels of depression and a more positive outlook on life.

This explanation of laughter was the answer to my question to AI of why is laughter the best medicine?

Figuring it had a firm handle on why laughter is so important, I asked AI to tell me a joke. Here it is and please don’t blame me.

Why couldn’t the bicycle stand up by itself? Because it was two tired!

I don’t know about you, but my body is not releasing all that many endorphins.

CELEBRATING

33 YEARS

September 2024 • Vol. 33 • Issue Number 5

P.O. Box 1031 Moline, IL 61266-1031 (309) 277-2000 email: kevin@maturefocus92.com Facebook.com/MatureFocusQC

4 September 2024 • Mature Focus

In the early days of Mature Focus, before you could find anything you wanted online, we used to scour old copies of Reader’s Digest looking for a good chuckle that we could run. I remember that no one wanted to admit that someone else had found a funny chuckle. It would take going through several issues before we settled on something we could agree was funny instead of the usual “eh, that’s okay.”

This one from January 2003 made the cut: Shirley wakes up terrified in the middle of the night and shakes her husband. “I had a horrible nightmare,” she gasps. “I dreamed I died young.”

“Now dear,” her husband comforts her, “you know that’s no longer possible.” Eh, that’s okay.

I now leave it up to my sister and graphic designer Tonya to choose each month’s chuckle. You’ll have to turn to page 17 to read and debate the hilarity of the September chuckle.

It doesn’t take long while surfing the internet to find a search related to the 101 easiest jokes to remember, the 113 best jokes of all time, the 10 funniest jokes ever told, the 200 best Reader’s Digest jokes of all time and last but not least, the best jokes ever told in the history of laughter.

I need more than just a chuckle which is why I keep my favorite cartoon, a Far Side day-by-day calendar on my desk. It doesn’t matter if I’ve seen it before because I always look forward to that days cartoon which often features anthropomorphic Publisher Kevin Ferris

Associate Publisher Schary SantAmour

animals, strange creatures and bizarre situations that play on common social norms and human behaviors with clever wordplay and unexpected twists in the punchlines.

It definitely gets my endorphins going. In one of my favorite Far Side cartoons, during a flight the pilot turns to the co-pilot in the cockpit: “Say... what’s a mountain goat doing way up here in a cloud bank?” I hope you get it.

I don’t know if the following joke is one of the best of all time but I laughed. It’s from noted comedian and former President, Ronald Reagan.

An evangelical minister and a politician arrived at heavens gate together and St. Peter after doing all the necessary formalities took them in hand to show them where their quarters would be. He took them to a small single room, with a bed, chair and table and said this was for the clergyman. The politician was worried about what might be in store for him and he couldn’t believe it when St. Peter stopped in front of a beautiful mansion with lovely grounds and many servants and was told this would be his quarters. He couldn’t help but ask, “how do I get this mansion when that good and holy man only gets a single room?” St. Peter says, “you have to understand how things are up here. We got thousands and thousands of clergy, you’re the first politician who ever made it.”

Layout Design Tonya Ranum

Mature Focus, Inc. is a monthly newspaper, distributed to the greater Quad-City area, Geneseo, Muscatine, Aledo, DeWitt, Iowa City, Coralville, Cedar Rapids, North Liberty, Solon, and Tipton. It is designed to inform, serve, and entertain mature readers.

Publication of columnists’ views, as well as advertising herein, does not constitute endorsement. Mature Focus reserves the right to reject or edit any advertising.

Letters to the editor must be signed and include the writer’s address and phone number for verification. All letters must be received no later than the 15th of the month preceding publication.

Annual subscription - $25. See page 35 for more information.

Image credits: Vladimircech, jcomp on Freepik.com.

© 2024 Mature Focus, Inc.

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Mature Focus • September 2024

5

Tuesdays with Mitch: Open spaces provide a rare perspective on the crowded, anxious world

By Mitch Albom NUUK, GREENLAND – When we landed at this remote outpost, just shy of the Arctic Circle, we asked the lone tarmac worker where to go for passport control.

“Is not open yet,” he said in broken English.

“What time does it open?” we asked.

“Half a year,” he replied.

We laughed, figuring he meant “half an hour.” But a few minutes later, after wandering around freshly laid asphalt amidst a panorama of snow-capped mountain peaks, we realized he was serious. This little airport was brand new, and passport control had yet to be built. Another half a year. Give or take.

So we wandered through a doorway, carrying our bags, until eventually a nice woman found us, took our passports, walked over to a bench and stamped them.

“Thank you,” she said, handing them back.

And off we went.

I am writing this at the end of a nearly two-week sojourn to Nova Scotia, Iceland, Greenland and the

But it’s a sensation we rarely experience in urban America, and one we are wise to seek out. I’m talking about the feeling of vast, naked skies, building-less landscapes, long, barren beaches and

Faroe Islands. A trip that brought us to icebergs, glaciers, mountains, waterfalls, black sand beaches, a volcano and a sun that stayed in the sky well beyond midnight. I am writing it now because I know once I return to my working life, I will lose the feeling of what I want to share with you. It will fritter away, as memory does.

wild, empty seas.

The solace of open spaces.

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200,000-year-old air Now relax. I am not that guy. The one who takes a vacation and comes back with a shaved head, a bunch of oils and a surfboard. This was not a Vision Quest. I did not convert to a cult.

“The Solace of Open Spaces” is actually the title of a book I read years ago, about a woman exploring the inspiration of Wyoming landscapes. The concept has long stuck with me. We get so entangled in our busy lives, we lose perspective on the natural world around us. We live inside electronics. We see the world through a windshield. We envelope ourselves in news, social media, politics, TV shows, sports. Endless noise and clutter.

The only antidote — to me, at least — is to try and reset now and then. This is hard. It takes time. It can take money. But it’s an investment in perspective, and in ourselves, a rekindling of the wonder many of us had the first time we felt an ocean wave smack against us, or gazed into the staggering breadth of the Grand Canyon. Majesty. It’s about majesty.

And for all our petty criticisms of this world, we have been gifted a planet of great majesty, if we find the time to explore it.

On this recent trip, in a deep blue bay off of Ilulissat, Greenland, I paddled a kayak alongside icebergs, hundreds of them. What astonished me wasn’t their stark white shapes, or the blue patches where the ice had melted and reformed, or the broad bases that went so much deeper and wider than the protruding tops. It was the sounds! Amidst the dead silence of freezing water, these icebergs were constantly groaning as they shifted and melted, and hissing as air escaped pockets.

“Some of that air,” a guide told us, “might be 200,000 years old.”

Makes you think, doesn’t it?

On the Faroe Islands, we hiked through misty fog that draped vast, deep green mountains, until we reached a giant crevice that fell to the sea, so high and rugged it would shame a set designer for “Game of Thrones.”

In Iceland, we swam in a blue lagoon of hot thermal water. We stood under huge waterfalls. We hiked for hours over massive, lonely hills. Time seemed to crawl. Hours

passed without seeing another soul.

We stretched our iPhones in contorted grips to try and capture the magnitude of what we were witnessing. It never worked. Maybe it’s not supposed to. Some things you can only capture with your eyes, and can only store in your heart.

Meanwhile...

Now, I have a running joke with friends in the media business: every time I go away, something major happens. This trip only proved my theory.

From the time we took off, Donald Trump took a grazing bullet from a would-be assassin, survived, then chose JD Vance as his running mate at the Republican National Convention. Joe Biden exited the presidential race and Kamala Harris took his place. A major crash of a cybersecurity system crippled airlines and businesses for days. And the Paris Olympics got underway.

And yet, while I fretted over my timing, and foolishly imagined the world needed my input on these big events, the truth is, it doesn’t. There are plenty of other people who do

what I do, as I imagine there are others who do what you do. We are never as important to this world as we believe.

But the world should be important to us. When I take trips like this one, I realize we have been given this enormous gift of nature that so often sits ignored, like an unopened birthday present, as we scurry past, blindly engrossed in our petty distractions.

We should, whenever possible, give ourselves a walkabout. Find an empty place. A natural wonder. It needn’t be as far as Iceland. It can be as close as a nearby lake, or a quiet morning in a park.

There is solace to be found in open spaces. Seek it out. When this journey is over, and my daily demands begin to pile on, I hope to occasionally close my eyes and remember, therapeutically, a yowling iceberg, a midnight sun, high skies, empty mountain ranges and things that take half a year to open and are in no hurry to go faster.

Email Mitch Albom at malbom@ freepress.com.

Mature Focus • September 2024

7

1/2 1

Pierogy Burrito Bowls Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 10 minutes Servings: 4 Burrito Bowls: 1 tablespoon avocado oil 1 bag (2 pounds) four cheese pierogies 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved 1 cup fresh or frozen corn, lightly roasted 1 ripe avocado, pitted and thinly sliced 1 cup pickled red onions 3/4 cup Cotija cheese fresh chopped cilantro, for garnish Avocado Mayo Crema:

cup mayo ripe avocado, pitted and roughly chopped 1/2 lime, juice only To make burrito bowls: In medium skillet over medium heat, add avocado oil. Saute pierogies in batches, approximately 8 minutes on both sides, until golden brown. Remove from heat and set aside.

Divide pierogies, cherry tomatoes, corn, avocado, pickled red onions and Cotija cheese evenly among serving bowls. Garnish with cilantro.

To make avocado mayo crema: In food processor, process mayo, avocado and lime juice until smooth.

Drizzle avocado mayo crema over bowls, as desired.

Cauliflower Tacos with Peanut Sauce Cook time: 30 minutes Servings: 4 1 medium head cauliflower, chopped into florets (about 6-7 cups) 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 8 tortillas chopped green onions, for

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garnish peanuts, for garnish lime wedges, for serving Cabbage Slaw: 3 cups shredded red cabbage 1/2 cup shredded carrots 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup 1/4 teaspoon salt Peanut Sauce: 4 Sunsweet prunes 1/2 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk 1/3 peanut butter 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup 1 teaspoon minced ginger 1 teaspoon sriracha 2 tablespoons water, plus additional for thinning (optional) Preheat oven to 425 F. On large baking sheet, place cauliflower in single layer. Add olive oil and salt; toss well to combine. Roast 30 minutes, tossing halfway through.

To make cabbage slaw: In medium mixing bowl, add cabbage, carrots, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, maple syrup and salt. Toss to combine; set aside to soften.

To make peanut sauce: In blender, blend prunes, milk, peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, maple syrup, ginger, sriracha and water until smooth. Taste

and add more water, if desired.

Warm tortillas, fill with roasted cauliflower and top with slaw, peanut sauce, green onions, prunes and peanuts. Serve with lime wedges.

Veggie Stir Fry with Prune Teriyaki Sauce Cook time: 15 minutes Servings: 4 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil 1/2 large onion, diced salt, to taste, divided 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 tablespoon minced ginger 2 cups shredded carrots 1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 medium zucchini, diced 8 ounces sugar snap peas pepper, to taste, divided 1/2 cup roasted salted cashews, plus additional for serving, divided 1 cup edamame 2-3 cups cooked jasmine rice, for serving 1/3 cup sliced green onions, for serving Prune Teriyaki Sauce: 1 cup canned pineapple, plus 1/4 cup pineapple juice 6 Sunsweet prunes 6 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup 1 tablespoon rice vinegar 1 garlic clove 1 teaspoon sriracha In large skillet over medium heat, warm sesame oil. Once hot, add onion and pinch of salt; saute 5 minutes.

Add garlic and ginger; cook 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add carrots,

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bell pepper, zucchini, snap peas and pinch of salt and pepper. Saute 10 minutes, stirring often, until veggies are crisp tender.

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1-309-764-7780 Mature Focus • September 2024

9

A little cagey the trail, sniffed the air, sniffed the trail, looked at me, and for the longest time, wouldn’t settle enough to go to the bathroom.

Scout even seemed restless when we were in the house - not able to relax, pacing a lot - and this is a dog that sleeps at least 20 hours a day.

She remained nervous about going to the bathroom, but eventually, nature’s call came, no matter how particular or nervous she was. She learned to do her business…but very quickly.

There were some excellent, steep hills to climb daily, sometimes two or three times a day. One afternoon, on our way back down the hill, I saw a movement ahead of us. I thought, “Wow, that’s a big black dog. Hope it’s friendly.” When it lumbered across our path, less than 100 feet in front of us, throwing a disinterested “What’s up” look our way, it was clear what I was seeing.

A bear.

A wave of adrenaline traveled from the top of my head to my toes as the bear scampered down the hill. Scout and I were frozen. She hadn’t moved

By Taprina Milburn When I arrived in the small town in the western foothills of North Carolina’s Blue Ridge mountains, I breathed a sigh of relief. The beautiful fall leaves, still holding tightly to branches, were as lovely and colorful as thousands of prom dresses on display. Nature was showing off so boldly, and it made me feel confident about my decision to take a solo cross-country trip.

My golden retriever, Scout, and I had been in the car for about eight hours that day, so the first item on the agenda after I arrived at my Airbnb was to let her out of the car to do her business and take a long walk.

The house was tucked deep into the woods in a neighborhood that didn’t feel like a neighborhood because the four homes on the street were spaced very far apart and separated by woods.

What I noticed about Scout, however, was that despite how badly she needed to go, she acted cagey.

She stopped, sniffed the air, sniffed

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or barked. I hadn’t moved or even breathed. Once it was no longer in sight, Scout looked at me, and if I could have read her mind, I’m sure she was thinking, “Now you understand why I don’t feel comfortable pooping in the woods.”

When I was convinced the bear was far from us, Scout and I started walking toward our house very quickly. We first stopped at the

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nearest neighbor’s house and told them about the bear sighting. The couple told me it wasn’t uncommon and that the bears usually didn’t hurt anyone.

They said, “Just make a lot of noise, but be very careful if it’s a mom with her cubs.”

That following day, on the local news, there was a story about a man not too many miles from where I was staying who had a dangerous encounter with a momma bear with cubs while taking out his trash. She attacked him; he fought back. She removed some of his flesh and scurried off with her cubs, but he had to go to the hospital.

Nightmarish.

Our bear sighting and what I heard on the news halted our daily walks. I became hesitant to go outside, which put me into a funk. I wanted to be reasonably cautious but didn’t want to be scared or cagey like Scout (although we learned she had good reason to be).

Here’s the irony in my bear story.

When my husband and I were newlyweds, we went on a camping trip together, the first of many. He explained that at night, we’d need to put all our food into a bear bag and string it from a tree away from our campsite.

“Why in the world would we want to camp where there are bears?” I asked him.

He laughed and told me not to worry.

“No, really. Why would we want to camp with bears?” I persisted.

He explained that bears are more afraid of us than we are of them.

I was never convinced.

During the 27 years we were married, we often camped deep in the mountains and woods. When we did, we hung our food at night in bear bags and hiked with bear bells on our backpacks to make noise, but he never worried about bears. He didn’t have to. I did enough for us and the whole family, lying awake at night listening to every noise in the woods.

We never saw one bear during those years of camping together.

Now, with my dog, alone in the

woods, I see my first bear.

When I told the story to someone, she asked if I believed in getting signs from my late husband.

“Maybe your hubby had sent the bear as a funny little hello,” she said.

Even if I believed in signs, my husband would have known better than MOLINE HIGH SCHOOL to send me that kind of hello. And, CLASS OF 1962 Get Together for sure, I would tell him if he were here today that he was wrong - as I 80TH BIRTHDAY PARTY Celebration had known he was all those years ago.

Casual Open House I was more afraid of that bear than Sep 14, 2024 it was of me.

Music • Refreshments • No Charge Finally, tired of enjoying the nature Viking Club-Moline around me only from the Airbnb 5-9 PM, Cash Bar window, I had a plan. I found a camping store and purchased a Buffet Brunch, Sep 15, 2024 canister of bear spray. Scout and I TPC Deere Run-Silvis returned to the woods on high alert and a little cagey but building confi10 AM-Noon, $15 dence, nonetheless.

Taprina Milburn is an essayist who Tell your friends and plan to have fun! lives in the Pacific Northwest with More details visit moline1962.com her golden retriever, Scout. Contact or call Terry Kramer at her at writeyourstoriesworkshop@ 309 373 7239 gmail.com.

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11

With a catchy melody, simple lyrics, and an unforgettable repetitive chorus, Peggy March's “I Will Follow Him” possessed all the ingredients to create a classic 60s hit. And it did. Released in early 1963 and showcasing the singer’s impressively mature 14-yearold vocals, Little Peggy March’s song soared up the Billboard Hot 100 chart in just three months to reach the Number 1 spot. Since then, she’s performed the song thousands of times and today remains especially popular in Europe.

“I was in school when I signed with RCA,” recalled March in a Zoom interview from Marburg, Germany, where she spends several weeks each year when not in Florida. “They sent me all over the world to promote the record which became hugely popular in Germany. The country essentially adopted me and I’ve been part of the German recording industry ever since.”

Just exactly when she first per-

Photo: Peggy March

Peggy March’s monster 1960s hit still follows her

Peggy March signing CDs for fans in 2020.

formed the song live in public remains a bit hazy. “Probably at one of the record hops I was doing,” she said, “In the 60s, a lot of high schools had dances and I would do those occasionally as a way to promote the record.” But she does recall the original studio recording and initially not being keen on

the song.

“When I walked into my producers’ office, they played it and said, ‘Peggy this is your next hit,’” she recalled.

“My sister remembers vividly that I didn’t like the song because it was too repetitive. But I was clearly wrong!

We all know now that that is its great hook.”

However, there was a time when she almost left the business. “I was very young when I started – 14 when I recorded the song and 15 by the time it went to Number 1,” she said. “By my early 20s, I was tired of being on the road and really didn't think I wanted to do this anymore. But, I got over it!”

Although March followed her big hit with other singles and continued to have modest chart appearances in the U.S. with songs such as “Hello Heartache, Goodbye Love,” she could never recapture the commercial success of her first hit. Today, however, at

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12 September 2024 • Mature Focus

We can stop HIV, Iowa— by staying up-to-date on recommended screenings!

Health screenings help to identify diseases and chronic conditions before symptoms occur.

The CDC recommends:

All people ages 13-64 should be screened for HIV at least once in their lifetime.

All people ages 18 and over should be screened for hepatitis B at least once in their lifetime.

All people ages 18 and over should be screened for hepatitis C at least once in their lifetime.

Pregnant women should be screened for HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C during each pregnancy.

Talk to your healthcare provider about getting screened! Forgot if you’ve had a screening?

Ask them to check your records!

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76, she still travels the world cranking out her popular tune to enthusiastic audiences.

In 2013, exactly 50 years after the release of her 1963 hit on January 22, she even recorded an anniversary video of “I Will Follow Him” in Holland, her voice just as strong and perhaps even richer than her youthful rendition.

“We updated the original to make it a little more interesting, but didn't want to change too much,” she explained.

“It was one of the shortest songs I've ever recorded, around two and a half minutes, so we made the new version a little longer. Instrumentally it's pretty much the same except there's a key change, but I really like it.”

(Portions of the author's interview originally appeared in Florida Currents magazine in 2022).

Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, in Alabama, and has written features, columns, and interviews for numerous magazines and newspapers. See getnickt.org.

Scan here to learn more about hepatitis B screening recommendations— Or visit https://cdc.gov/hepatitis-b/testing/

Scan here to learn more about hepatitis C screening recommendations— Or visit https://cdc.gov/hepatitis-c/testing/

Trivia Test

By Fifi Rodriguez

1. What is the highest peak in Europe?

2. What is the name of the town in the Netflix series “Stranger Things”?

3. What is the title of the book about a little girl who lives at The Plaza Hotel in New York City?

4. What is the traditional stone associated with the July birth month?

5. Which mythical creature has snakes for hair?

6. Who voices the character Joy in the animated movie “Inside Out”?

7. What is the outermost layer of skin called?

8. Which poem begins with the line, “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary”?

9. Who was crowned as Emperor of the Romans in 800 A.D.?

10. Which state has produced the most presidents by birthplace?

1. Mount Elbrus; 2. Hawkins, Indiana; 3. “Eloise”; 4. Ruby; 5. Medusa; 6. Amy Poehler; 7. Epidermis; 8. “The Raven”

by Edgar Allen Poe.; 9. Charlemagne; 10. Virginia, with eight.

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Mature Focus • September 2024

13

Elder Law

By Ben Bekel, Quad City Life Planning

Special tools for special needs

rather than needs?”

Whether the concern is a spouse with a capacity-reducing disease or an It’s not a conversation I have adult child with a disabling injury or a frequently with clients seeking my child with a lifelong disability, the help with their life and estate planning, worry is the same: how can I make but it’s certainly one of the most sure my disabled loved one is proimportant types of conversations I tected and taken care of if I’m not have, and it usually starts something around? After all, the world is full of like this: “My husband has dementia, unscrupulous predators who target the and I want to make sure he’s taken elderly or the disabled; nobody wants care of if I go before him.” Or: “My to think of such woes befalling their daughter has a disability – what husband or child. Moreover, many happens to her when I’m not here to clients would like to leave their loved take care of her?” Or: “Does the ones a nest egg that they can spend on money I leave my disabled son have things they want rather than basic to be spent for his care, or can there be needs like care and treatment. a little bit left over for things he wants Luckily, there is a solution for clients who present this problem: the supplemental needs trust.

A supplemental needs trust, or SNT for short, is named in a very straightforward manner – it is a trust that is drafted and intended to provide for an UNIQUE GOLD JEWELRY individual beneficiary’s AT AFFORDABLE PRICES! “supplemental needs.”

Rings, Watches, Chains, That’s a little bit of a circuJewelry Repair, Religious Medals lar way to define a SNT, but we can further define CLOSED: SEPTEMBER 1 - 18, 2024 “supplemental needs” in Hours: Thursday, Friday & Saturday 11-6 this way: “anything a ben925 4th Avenue, Moline eficiary may find themLay-a-way 309-762-2999 Available selves in need of that is not

already provided for them, either by their current resources or for any governmental benefits for which they may be eligible.”

This definition sounds restrictive, but in real-world application is not. The concept of “supplemental needs” can embrace housing, transportation, food, clothing…virtually anything that a beneficiary may need or want, so long as it is not provided for through government benefits or is within the other means of the beneficiary. More importantly, because of this phrasing, the beneficiary of a supplemental needs trust retains their eligibility for most, if not all government benefits – meaning that with a properly drafted SNT you can have your cake and eat it too. Your beneficiary can still receive benefits but be able to set aside money for other things!

That’s not to say that care shouldn’t be used when using SNT’s. There are a number of different types which may be better for a given situation than another, and as with other life and estate planning tools the individual(s) you select as trustee of the SNT must be someone who can and will handle the responsibility properly and well.

But these are specific questions which are best tailored to the client and their situation. Besides, there’s only so much room in this space before I intrude on the space of others.

It’s best to leave things this way concerning SNT’s: they are powerful tools for those clients who want security for their disabled loved ones, but like any tool they should be used carefully and with the assistance of your preferred life and estate planning expert.

Ben Bekel is the attorney at Quad City Life Planning in Moline, Illinois.

He handles elder law and life planning including probate/trust administration, guardianships and disability/ Medicaid planning. Learn more at quadcitylifeplanning.com.

14 September 2024 • Mature Focus

ˇ˔˜˟ˢ˥˘˗ ʶ˔˥˘˚˜˩˘˥ ʴ˦˦˘˦˦ˠ˘ˡ˧ ˔ˡ˗ ˅˘˙˘˥˥˔˟ ʴ˥˘ ˬˢ˨ ˛˘˟ˣ˜ˡ˚ ˦ˢˠ˘ˢˡ˘ ˪˜˧˛ ˕˔˧˛˜ˡ˚ʟ ˗˥˘˦˦˜ˡ˚ʟ ˘˥˥˔ˡ˗˦ʟ ˠ˘˗˜˖˔˧˜ˢˡʟ ˚ˢ˜ˡ˚ ˧ˢ ˔ˣˣˢ˜ˡ˧ˠ˘ˡ˧˦ʟ ˢ˥ ˔ˡˬ ˞˜ˡ˗ ˢ˙ ˛˘˟ˣ ˔˧ ˔˟˟ʲ

ˌˢ˨ ʴ˅ʸ ˔ ˖˔˥˘˚˜˩˘˥ʡ ˌˢ˨ ˔˥˘ ˡˢ˧ ˔˟ˢˡ˘ʔ ʵ˘˜ˡ˚ ˔ ˙˔ˠ˜˟ˬ ˖˔˥˘˚˜˩˘˥ ˖˔ˡ ˕˘ ˦˧˥˘˦˦˙˨˟ʡ ˊ˘ ˔˥˘ ˛˘˥˘ ˧ˢ ˛˘˟ˣʡ ˇʶʴ˅ʸ ˜˦ ˔ˡ ˔˦˦˘˦˦ˠ˘ˡ˧ ˧ˢˢ˟ ˧˛˔˧ ˙ˢ˖˨˦˘˦ ˢˡ ˬˢ˨˥ ˡ˘˘˗˦ʡ ˇ˛˥ˢ˨˚˛ ˔ ˦˘˥˜˘˦ ˢ˙ ˤ˨˘˦˧˜ˢˡ˦ʟ ˔ˡ ˜ˡ˗˜˩˜˗˨˔˟˜˭˘˗ ˖˔˥˘ ˣ˟˔ˡ ˪˜˟˟ ˕˘ ˖˥˘˔˧˘˗ ˧ˢ ˛˘˟ˣ ˬˢ˨ ˠ˔ˡ˔˚˘ ˬˢ˨˥ ˥ˢ˟˘ ˔ˡ˗ ˖ˢˡˡ˘˖˧ ˬˢ˨ ˧ˢ ˦˘˥˩˜˖˘˦ ˢ˙ ˦˨ˣˣˢ˥˧ʟ ˘˗˨˖˔˧˜ˢˡʟ ˔ˡ˗ ˔˦˦˜˦˧˔ˡ˖˘ʡ

ʶˢˡ˧˔˖˧ ˧˛˘ ˅ˢ˖˞ ʼ˦˟˔ˡ˗ ʶˢ˨ˡ˧ˬ ˆ˘ˡ˜ˢ˥ ʶ˘ˡ˧˘˥ ˧ˢ ˚˘˧ ˖ˢˡˡ˘˖˧˘˗ ˪˜˧˛ ˔ ˖˔˥˘˚˜˩˘˥ ˦ˣ˘˖˜˔˟˜˦˧ʭ

ʦʣʬʠʪʫʫʠʩʦʦʨ Mature Focus • September 2024

15

Should the ‘quiet car’ really be that silent?

Between the Midway Airport and Roosevelt stops, I learned the following: The servers were malfunctioning, and he may have to work this weekend to ensure proper uptime.

By Greg Schwem If Celine comes to the party The man sat in the half full subway Saturday, the least she could do is bring some White Claws. But car as the Chicago skyline whizzed that’s probably not going to by on a humid Thursday morning. happen because, after all, we are Oblivious to the heat or the scenery, If you're as lucky as Greg Schwem, you talking about Celine. he was only interested in discussing may find the “quiet car” on the train isn't You’d think Southwest would his problems with the unseen and so quiet after all. unheard voice at the other end of his have cheaper fares to Denver, but AirPods or headphones so they the airline industry has gotten so phone. wouldn’t have to listen to the nongreedy since COVID. stop stream of chatter, which only Biden STILL has his grew louder as the train rumbled vote, despite calling along and became more crowded. A Trump his “vice president.” NOTE: This con- few were probably convinced they versation occurred before knew Celine.

This scene plays out daily: Mobile a certain commander-inphone users rambling on as if the chief agreed to step aside.

Family Owned & Operated world’s population had suddenly Fellow passengers 1406 W. Locust, Davenport • (563) 323-8807 shrunk to two inhabitants. Debate glared at him. Head 1800 11th Street, Rock Island • (309) 786-8134 shakes and eye rolls over talking on cellphones in public began about five minutes after cellServing the Quad Cities Community Since 1904 abounded. Some donned phones were invented, with no consensus ever reached.

Thankfully, air travel is still phone-free once flight attendants make the “switch to airplane mode” announcement and everyone complies except the guy in 12D screaming at his bathroom contractor about the shower door that has yet to arrive and he is looking at another TWO WEEKS of showering in his THIRD bathroom!

Trains, such as the one I use to commute between Chicago and its suburbs, have designated “quiet cars.” Passengers in these cars tap on their phones but avoid talking on them, confident they are obeying the rules.

But are they?

Some of these passengers amiably chat with fellow riders. Some conversations

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16 September 2024 • Mature Focus

turn lively. Also loud. How, I wondered, is this not a violation of quiet car etiquette? Is talking on a phone rude, or is talking in general rude if doing either disturbs the inner tranquility of those within earshot?

Personally, I enjoy eavesdropping on other people’s lives, no matter who they are talking to. I’ve met new friends in bars this way. Recently, I booked a corporate speaking date after overhearing an insurance agent in an airport food court praising Tucson as the site of his company's upcoming annual conference. I asked if that conference included keynote speakers. He put me in touch with the company’s meeting planner, and now I’m researching plane schedules. Southwest is slightly cheaper, by the way.

COVID-19 may have resulted in higher travel fares, but it also deprived us of communication skills.

We grew used to and, in some cases, thrived on solitude. Zoom enabled us to mute our microphones and turn off our cameras if we wanted to step away from the world around us.

I am certainly not condoning public phone conversations, for I don’t know if I could handle sitting next to a fellow commuter yammering about his or her weekend plans, even if mine were more interesting. But I find a world of conversation preferable to one of silence, as society learns nothing from the latter. In past

columns I’ve written about my habit of inserting myself into strangers’ conversations, some with pleasant results and others deteriorating into looks that say, “Please get away from us, you creepy nosy old guy.” But I will never cease my habit, for I find it educational. Also fun.

So, guy on the train with the server issue, continue your conversation; but please imagine if the person on the other end were standing next to you. Keep the volume at that level.

You will not get an eye roll from me.

When you’re done, maybe we can discuss Kamala.

Greg Schwem is a corporate standup comedian and author of two books: “Text Me If You’re Breathing: Observations, Frustrations and Life Lessons From a Low-Tech Dad” and the recently released “The Road To Success Goes Through the Salad Bar: A Pile of BS From a Corporate Comedian,” available at Amazon.com.

Visit Greg at gregschwem.com.

september ChucklE A man once said to God, “What’s a million years to you?”

And God said, “A second.”

Then the man said to God, “What’s a million dollars to you?”

And God said, “A penny.”

So the man asked God, “Would you give me a penny?”

God replied, “I certainly will, just a second.”

Mature Focus • September 2024

17

Do you touch your face and mouth a lot? often, and the face touching habit can transfer pathogens from screens to your face. Do you touch your face or mouth a lot? What about your hair, or nose.

By Suzy Cohen, R.Ph. We express our emotions by touching our faces. When we're surprised or scared, we might instinctively cover our mouths with our hands.

During moments of deep concentration or attentive listening, a hand often finds its way under our chin.

This habit isn't just random; it's a hands-on coping mechanism that helps soothe us by engaging our senses.

Our phones play a role in this too.

With the rise of smartphones and computers, face-touching behaviors have increased significantly. Most people don’t clean their phones that

Five Types of Face Touching Mouth: Touching the mouth and nose 3-5 times per hour increases the risk of pathogen transmission.

Nose: Touching the outside of your nose or scratching it is pretty common. Surprisingly, nose picking is also common, with 91 percent of people admitting to it on a questionnaire.

Eyes: Touched 1-2 times per hour, which could be due to irritation or contact lenses.

Ears: Touched 2-3 times per hour, typically during stress or when adjusting accessories.

Hair: Frequent in individuals with long hair, occurring 4-6 times per hour.

You are going to start noticing yourself doing this more often, lol!

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And other people too. Frequent face touching can lead to the transfer of pathogens, causing infections and illnesses especially during high cold/flu season..

Why do we do it so much? When face touching becomes really excessive (and “really” can be defined differently by all of us), it may be attributed to various psychological and physiological conditions.

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Psychogenic pruritus, for instance, involves itching without a physical cause and can lead to frequent scratching. People with small fiber neuropathy sometimes have what’s called neuropathic itch. Tactile hallucinations, often associated with psychiatric disorders or substance use, create false sensations of touch, prompting individuals to rub or scratch their faces. Then there’s dermatillomania, a condition characterized by compulsive skin picking, which can result in persistent face touching.

Formication, the awful sensation of feeling ants or other bugs crawling on (or under) your skin! The word “formica” means ants. This tactile hallucination is sometimes related to illicit drug use and can cause frequent touching and scratching.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) may involve compulsions that include repetitive face touching for some sufferers. I don’t want to

medicalize it too much because for some people it’s just a matter of feeling nervous or anxious.

Understanding these behaviors is fun, and crucial for those with immune systems that are compromised. Keep good hygiene practices to reduce the risk of infections, like washing hands frequently, or applying hand sanitizers. Try becoming

more mindful of the frequency of face touching to help mitigate health risks if you have immune problems.

For more detailed insights into face touching and its causes, please read my longer version of this article posted on suzycohen.com.

For more information, visit SuzyCohen.com.

Mature Focus • September 2024

19

SAV VY SENIOR

Best walk-in bathtubs for 2024

You ask the SENIOR question - We find the SAVVY answer

By Jim Miller Q: Because of my back pain and mobility problems, I’m interested in getting a walk-in bathtub that’s safe and easy to get in and out of.

What all can you tell me about

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20 September 2024 • Mature Focus

walk-in tubs, and can you recommend some top options?

A: For mobility challenged seniors, a walk-in bathtub can be a terrific option to consider because they’re much easier to get into and out of than a standard tub, which also helps prevent falls. Here’s what you should know, along with a reliable resource to help you choose one.

Age-Friendly Tubs Walk-in bathtubs are uniquely designed tubs that have a watertight, hinged door built into the side of the tub that provides a much lower threshold to step over (usually three to seven inches) versus a standard tub that’s around 15 inches.

Most walk-in tubs have high sidewalls, usually between three and four feet high, and are between 28 and 32 inches wide, but will fit into the same 60-inch-long space as your standard tub without having to reconfigure the room.

In addition to the low threshold, most walk-in tubs also have a built-in seat, grab bars, anti-slip floors and anti-scald valves. Some tubs also come with handheld showerheads and quick drains (that drain the tub in under a minute), and many higher-end models offer therapeutic spalike features that are great for seniors with arthritis and other ailments.

The best kind of tub for you will depend on your needs, preferences and budget, and the size and layout of your bathroom. But be aware that walk-in

bathtubs are not cheap. Prices range anywhere from $3,000 to $10,000 or more for the tub and installation costs.

Insurance and Aid Because walk-in tubs are not considered durable medical equipment, original Medicare does not typically cover them nor do Medicare supplemental (Medigap) policies, but some Medicare Advantage plans may help pay.

If you’re receiving Medicaid, many states have Home and Community Based Services that may provide some assistance. Or, if you’re a disabled veteran, the VA has some home modification grants that may help pay.

There are also grants and loans available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture that help elderly, low-income residents of rural areas make home modifications, which

may be used to pay for a walk-in bathtub. And, depending on where you live, there may be local programs that can help like Habitat for Humanity or Rebuilding Together.

To find out if these options are available in your area, contact your Area Aging Agency (call 800-6771116) or nearby center for independent living (see ilru.org).

If, however, you can’t locate any financial assistance and you can’t afford to pay upfront for a walk-in tub, most manufacturers offer financing so you can make monthly payments. You should also know that if you’re using a walk-in tub for a specific medical condition, you may also be able to deduct the costs of the tub from your taxes as a medical expense (see irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p502.pdf).

Best Walk-In Bathtubs To help you choose a walk-in bathtub the National Council on Aging, which is a national nonprofit organization that advocates for older Americans, put together a review team to research the different companies and tubs. Their list of best walk-in bathtubs of 2024 includes: * Best Walk-in Tub Overall: Ella Ultimate Walk-In Tub * Best Walk-in Tub with Shower: Kohler Walk-In Tub with Shower Package * Most Affordable Walk-in Tub: Ariel Walkin 3052 Soaker * Best Soaking Tub: American Standard Gelcoat Entry Series * Best Wheelchair-Accessible Tub: Ella Transfer * Best Walk-in Tub for Small Spaces: AmeriGlide Sanctuary 2646 WIT See NCOA.org/adviser/walk-intubs/best-walk-in-tubs for detailed reviews and product links.

To get started, contact a few walkin bathtub retailers who can send a professional to your home to assess your bathroom and give you product options and estimates. Lowe’s and Home Depot also offer free evaluations of walk-in tub options.

Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.

Mature Focus • September 2024

21

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22 September 2024 • Mature Focus

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Answers on page 47 ACROSS 1 It's removed from skim 8 Guitar's cousin 16 Nautical mop 20 Be cautious 21 Conditionally free, in a way 22 Rock's ZZ Top, e.g.

23 Building full of periodicals for soldiers?

25 Outer edges 26 Cursed 27 Takes too much, in brief 28 Moose cousin 29 Fries lightly 31 Unit of work 32 Body of water on which there are frequent haircutters' cruises?

35 Not sinking 40 Smart -- (wiseacres) 42 Safecracker, informally 43 Hailstorm on the highway?

45 Deg. from MIT Sloan 47 "Anaconda" director Luis 51 Savoir faire 52 Dumbbell selling for half off?

55 1950s-'70s defense gp.

56 Weapon in a boxing ring 58 MGM motto starter 59 Deliver, as a verdict 60 Politico Hatch 62 "Sure thing, guv'nor!"

64 "Sommersby" star Richard 65 Cleo's snake 68 World's best singer of Venetian gondoliers' songs?

72 Born, in Brest 73 South African Dutch 75 First name of Dr. Oz 76 Cereal grass disease 78 Quick on the uptake 80 Many eras 81 -- -Seltzer 83 Suggest 87 Sticking the singer of "White Christmas" with a fishhook?

90 Tell the story of 92 Certain building brick 93 Guitar's cousin, for short 94 Actress Brigitte playing a Bohemian dancer?

96 "NFL Live" airer 98 Disconnect 99 Sailor's "Roger!"

100 16-ounce drink from a Starbucks next to a bodega?

105 Quick on the uptake 107 "No idea" 108 Frozen cubes 109 Gloomy -110 Tent securer 115 Unleavened cornbread 116 One-wheeled cart carrying supplies for a toga party?

121 Guitarist Clapton 122 Dining places 123 Perfume

124 Marina fixture 125 Area with bad reception 126 Frankfurters DOWN 1 Relatives of zinnias 2 Caesar's "vidi," in English 3 Certain building brick 4 1980s Chrysler 5 Unnerve 6 Jackie's hubby #2 7 Choir male 8 Irate crowds 9 Ortiz of "Kristin" 10 "Ask Me Another" airer 11 Risk-taking types 12 Toothbrush brand 13 Actress Sondra 14 Type 15 Moniker of a loch monster 16 Having a hard time 17 Judges' orders 18 Singer Mann 19 -- nova 24 Artist Degas 30 "Gemini Man" director 31 Capts.' guesses 32 Sired, biblical-style 33 Aspire PC company 34 "French Kiss" co-star Meg 35 Pooch barks

36 37 38 39 41 44 45 46 48 49 50 53 54 57 61 62 63 65 66 67 69 70 71 74 77 79 81 82 84

-- gras (goose-liver paste) Singer -- Del Rey Keats' "-- Autumn" Soak up Test centers Shoot again, as a gun Mother of Bart Simpson Capital of Kyrgyzstan Witty Nash -- Khan ("The Jungle Book" tiger) "If -- falls in the forest ..."

Author Sheehy Incorrect Restrained Noodle soup Turn sour Capital of Albania Addis -- (capital of Ethiopia) "What a pity" -- -Canada (oil brand) Love, to Luigi City near Lake Tahoe Become silver-haired Gawk -- Haute Links (with) Higher than Country rocker Lovett "I did it!"

85 "This is not --" (warning label) 86 Head, in Nice 88 -- -ho (keen) 89 Raced 91 Blind as -95 "Sauer" topping 97 Vanished, informally 98 Villains' looks 100 Two-legged beast 101 Love a lot 102 Of an ancient alphabet 103 Ranch rope 104 Made believe 106 Amp (up) 109 Main idea 110 Curing stuff 111 Trampled 112 Mythical ship 113 Donkey or Hong follower 114 Some sheep 117 "Norma --" 118 Put a tear in 119 -- -noir 120 Ghostly cry

Mature Focus • September 2024

23

The advent of leftovers transport butter from his farm to local markets. He arrived in town with firm, brick butter instead of soft, melted Preserving food was a challenge tubs. over a millennia. In the late 1700s, In 1827 the commercial ice cutter food was stored in pits buried in the was invented, increasing the ease and ground with huts built above them. efficiency of harvesting natural ice.

Known as icehouses, these pits were This invention made ice less costly, filled with ice harvested from nearby and in turn, helped the icebox become lakes. The ice remained frozen all more common.

Ice distributors would summer with the use of straw for insudeliver ice daily using a horse and cart, lation and stone walls to reduce heat filling the iceboxes with new ice. transfer.

Blocks weighed 25 to 100 pounds.

The commercial ice harvesting Some homes had an exterior door industry in America was started in the behind the icebox allowing the ice to early 1800s by Frederic Tudor, known be inserted into the icebox from as the “Ice King.” He had ambitions to distribute ice from New England to the outdoors.

By the end of 1800s, many rest of the country. Most ice was harAmerican households stored their pervested by men with horses pulling a ishable food in an insulated wooden plow-like ice cutter from snow-packed icebox with straw or sawdust for insuareas or frozen lakes. These huge lation.

It contained a large block of ice blocks were then stored in large ice with the cold air circulating around houses. The ice had to be at least eight storage compartments in the lower inches thick, or it would melt too section.

The food was kept cool, but quickly during long distance not cold.

One 50-pound block might deliveries. last from one to three days depending The icebox itself was invented in 1802 by Thomas Moore, an American on the conditions. In cheaper models, farmer and cabinetmaker. His evolved a drip pan was placed under the icebox and had to be emptied daily. Fancier design used an oval cedar tub with versions had spigots for draining melthollow walls lined with tin or zinc. ed ice into a holding tank for reuse.

These were packed with insulating materials such as cork, sawdust, straw, Essentially rain water, the melted ice or seaweed. Moore used the icebox to was preferred for shampooing.

By Doris Montag

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24 September 2024 • Mature Focus

Two girls delivering ice in 1918.

During and after the Depression, saving unused food was vital. Food preservation using cold temperatures proved less labor-intensive, and more effective at preventing spoilage than the existing methods of salting, drying, and canning. Each of these were timeconsuming and altered the food's taste and appearance.

In the 1930s, urban Americans made the move to electric refrigerators.

People could shop for food less often because they could safely store excess food. This saved food, in the new refrigerator containers, were coined “leftovers.”

The Rural Electrification Act of 1936, promoted by President Franklin Roosevelt, provided federal loans for installation of electrical distribution systems to serve rural areas. With rural access to electricity, refrigerator sales grew. Manufacturers also offered large discounted prices to encourage sales.

Food could now be kept cold.

In 2023, the global refrigerator market was worth $89.06 billion. By 2033, it’s expected to grow to $167.17 billion, with an annual growth rate of 6.5%.

Each year, in the U.S., more than eight million refrigerators are sold.

A typical household spends almost 10% of their total electricity on a refrigerator. Looking for ways to reduce your electric bill? Then, cleaning the coil at least three times is mandatory each year, reducing the unit’s energy consumption by up to 6%.

In 2023-24, refrigerators were 41% more efficient compared with those just ten years ago.

Maybe it's time to buy a new refrigerator.

Follow Doris Montag on Facebook at HistoryofOrdinaryThings.

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here’s a tip

By JoAnn Derson

☞ Repair enlarged screw holes with a wooden golf tee. Use a hack saw to saw it flush, sand and finish! ☞ Punch holes in paint can rims with a nail so the paint that gets sloshed on the rim will drain back into the can. To seal the can, wipe the rim with a damp cloth, and rub it with a little petroleum jelly and cover with a piece of plastic wrap and tap the lid back into place. ☞ Help nylons and tights retain elasticity by giving them a final rinse in diluted vinegar before hanging dry. Never add nylons to a heat dryer. ☞ If your bananas start to brown on the outside, put them in the fridge. They will still get brown, but the inside stays firm instead of getting mushy. ☞ Sun protection shouldn't stop when the summer is over; the sun is still shining! If you have trouble putting sunscreen on your face, try this trick: Spray or smear it on a paper towel, then apply to your face. Use twice as much as you think you should, as some will get lost in the paper towel. ☞ While boating or fishing, tape small blocks of Styrofoam to your eyeglass arms so they will float if they go overboard. ☞ Recipe substitution: For each cup of brown sugar needed, use 1 cup of white sugar and 2 tablespoons of molasses. ☞ The best way to cook leafy, green veggies such as spinach and kale, is to stir fry them in just the water left over from rinsing. It works very well to steam them, and adds no fat! ☞ To avoid a dirty-smelling hamper, place a single sheet of fabric softener in the bottom of your laundry closet or in the hamper itself.

Mature Focus • September 2024

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26 September 2024 • Mature Focus

Mature Focus • September 2024

27

The Little Red Barn on Utica Ridge

By Mark Mess For the past 60 year the Mess family has been farming the farm that Elmer grew up on between the Davenport and Bettendorf city limits at 20770 Utica Ridge Road. It was originally a livestock farm with cattle, hogs, poultry, and 350 acres of corn and soybeans.

In the early 1980s Elmer's sister Joanne Fahrenkrog, who managed the Davenport Farmers Market, approached Elmer and Sonja about setting up a table at the weekly market. At first Sonja and the children set up a single card table to sell produce from their 4-H gardens along with fresh eggs that the family also sold at the farm. As time went on that single card table grew larger to make room for sweet corn, pumpkins, and even a venture into baked goods for awhile. Turning the page to 40 years later and the Mess crew is a sight to be seen with multiple tents, a commercial truck packed full, the “Milk Run” and a '50 chevy overflowing with sweet corn, corn roasters,

28 September 2024 • Mature Focus

cut flowers, with trailers full of plants or pumpkins.

Elmer and Sonja realized early on that there was always extra produce from the garden and multiple markets. They decided to build a little barn next to the farm's driveway tucked into a small apple and pear orchard with hopes to earn extra income during the cash strapped farm crisis of the eighties. A small greenhouse was attached to start garden plants and test the idea that people buying our produce may also be interested in plants for their own flower beds and gardens. With that, The Little Red Barn Produce and Greenhouse was born.

After the first greenhouse was built in 1986, two larger greenhouses were quickly realized as word spread of the high quality that was found at the “little red barn on Utica Ridge.”

The growing demand for springtime plants, farm fresh produce, and spectacular fall decor are no small task for the family operated farm.

With nearly everything planted or

picked by hand, it takes a small army of family and employees, some of which are friends and neighbors, to keep things moving. Elmer(84), the second generation on the farm, can still be found touring the gardens on his gator “checking up” on everyone and catching up with customers that have been stopping in for many years with family news. Sonja, who passed in 1998, has remained a driving force behind the long-tern vision and care for the farm - to honor the families hard work and rich history rooted in the land and sacrifices made for a fertile future. Their four children all completed college, married and grew their families. Elmer remarried Maria and together kept the farm stand going.

Success in all areas has been due to not just hard work, but also the help of friends and neighbors in a tight-knit community focused on promoting family owned small businesses. Thank you to all our loyal customers for almost 40 years of the Little Red Barn!

See you at the farm.

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Mature Focus • September 2024

29

The ‘oys’ of summer with air conditioning.

But the summer of 2024, which has been unusually hot, by the way, has made it very clear that I no longer wish to combat the effects of extreme heat and humidity, despite the promises of the world’s most annoying

By Susan Goldfein ob/gyn, Dr. Shannon Klingman, and It occurred to me the other day, as I her full-body deodorant.

Besides experiencing a constant gratefully entered an air-conditioned space, that I hate summer. Maybe it’s sense of personal mildew, I now find hot weather conducive to serial napglobal warming, or my finicky old ping. As a result, the pattern of my age, or a drastic alteration in my perday closely resembles that of a vamsonal wardrobe, but what used to be pire. Except for walking the dog, I the joys of the season are now just a prefer to go outdoors only after the string of nearly intolerable annoysun goes down, and retreat to my airances.

I’m not a big fan of nostalgia either, conditioned “coffin” shortly after sunrise. but I do recall the summers of my I’ve also concluded that my skin no youth with a certain longing. Back longer wants a tan. At this point of then, summers meant freedom, my life I concede that the sun is not sleeveless shirts, tank tops, short shorts, loving the beach, getting a tan, my friend, and in fact, presents a clear no homework, and long days to spend and present danger. At the very least, outdoors with friends. Funny, how we the appearance of more wrinkles and dark spots. If one spends time outnever seemed to mind the heat or the humidity, even though few of us lived doors in the good old summertime, constant applications of sunscreen are prudent.

There’s nothing like a combination of SPF 55 and sweat to appreciate the sensation of being smothOffering a full range of Funeral Service options ered and I don’t Family Owned & Operated recall putting that experience on my Call Caralee to schedule a bucket list! pre-planning appointment today.

Regarding hot weather clothing, I do believe there is an expiration date for women to wear tank tops and looking good in them. I’m not proposing a specific cut-off age, but to Halligan-McCabe-DeVries quote the late, Funeral Home great Nora Since 1889 Ephron, it’s 563.322.4438 around the time www.hmdfuneralhome.com when one’s

“Every life tells a story.

Let us help share yours.”

30 September 2024 • Mature Focus

cleavage starts to resemble a peach pit. And so it goes with the strappy little sun dresses, the short-shorts, the tube tops, and anything with sleeves that do not reach the elbows. Each year it becomes more difficult to leave one’s abode and be cool (in both meanings of the word) when you no longer care to bare arms. To say nothing of knees. Bathing suits are a topic for a whole other essay!

Don't get me started on the bugs of summer! I have no issue with insects who remain in their natural habitat.

But when they enter my domain, they become fair game. I understand that when temperatures reach the nineties even bugs will seek air-conditioning.

Summer means stocking up on an arsenal of retaliatory sprays to eliminate flying, crawling, and biting critters who have dared to cross my threshold. But the insects that perplex me most are those tiny little winged creatures who are attracted to my Kindle when I try to read in bed at night. Never visible during the day when they would be fair game for my bug spray, these myopic little bugs land on the screen as if they want to read along with me, but apparently need to be right on top of the printed word. At first, I thought they were punctuation marks, but I questioned why someone would put an exclamation point in the middle of a sentence.

I wave them off, but they return.

Apparently, we have the same taste in literature.

Finally, there are the allergens. As a child, I never suffered from hay fever or any similar type of upper

respiratory irritation. But at some point during middle-age, I became unable to leave home without a box of tissues and some Flonase. As a kid, I had no knowledge of grass pollen, fungus spores, or mold, all of which thrive during the summer. Now, they are three more reasons to remain indoors.

Did you know there is a condition called Aestophobia? It's fear of hot weather. I discovered this when I went online seeking a support group for like-minded people who hated summer. I’m happy to say that my

personal seasonal affective disorder is not sufficiently severe enough that I must seek psychological counseling, but also that I’m not alone in wishing we could skip from spring to fall.

While I sit in my air-conditioned woman cave, and long for September (it's finally here!), I’m also grateful that I’ve been alive for all the summers that have come and gone. I look forward to kvetching my way through many more summers that have yet to be.

Visit Susan’s blog, susansunfilteredwit.com.

Classic Travels October 3, “Rocky, the Musical” at The Fireside Dinner Theatre, Ft. Atkinson, WI. Rocky Balboa is a small-time Philadelphia boxer who is chosen to take on the reigning heavyweight champion when the undefeated fighter’s opponent is injured. Rocky begins a relationship with Adrian, a wallflower who is tired of being pushed around by her brother. Lunch is stuffed supreme cut chicken breast, with scalloped potatoes, roasted carrots, and dessert is homemade apple pie. Leave at 7:00 a.m. and return at 8:00 p.m.

Price is $154. Payment due Tuesday, September 3, 2024.

October 10, Apples and More. Over 13 varieties of apples, baked goods, a store full of candles, gifts, décor, pumpkins, and gourds. Bring a cooler for all your goodies! Leave at 8:00 a.m. and return at 5:30 p.m. Price is $99.

Includes bus, lunch, and snacks. Payment due Monday, October 7, 2024.

November 3, “As Long as We Both Shall Live” at the Barn, Goodfield, IL. Addison has finally met a man, the wealthy Jamie Wilcox. But marrying Jamie means wrangling with his disapproving mother, as well as her favorite wedding planner, Raul. When Raul is poisoned at the rehearsal dinner, tensions between the bride and her mother-in-law-to-be go from heated to inferno when Mrs. Wilcox points to Addison as the killer. Leave at 9:30 a.m., back at 6:00 p.m. Price is $119, includes show, bus and meal. Payment due Wednesday, October 2, 2024.

December 2-6, Branson. The shows are Doug Gabriel, #1 Hits of the 60’s, Yakov Smirnoff, Hot Rods & High Heels, Clay Cooper’s Country Express, Cassandre - The Voice of an Angel and the Hughes Brothers Christmas Show. Meals include Uptown Café, SS Dockside Café, Mel’s Hard Luck Diner, McFarland’s Restaurant, Lambert’s Café, home of the “throwed rolls,” lunch and time on your own in historic Branson. We’ll even stop at Buc-ee’s.

A deposit of $50 holds your space. A brochure is now available. Price is $1,079. dbl. and $1,299 sgl. Payment due Thursday, October 31, 2024.

January 9, 2025, Ultimate Elvis' Tribute, at The Fireside Dinner Theatre, Ft. Atkinson, WI. In honor of Elvis’ 90th birthday, honoring his legacy and bringing joy to those who adore the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Lunch will be Beef Tenderloin. Leave at 7:00 a.m. return at 8:00 p.m. Price is $156. Payment due Friday, November 29, 2024.

Check out our website or call (563) 332-0014 Jill Kirkpatrick • 3371 Eastridge Drive • Bettendorf, IA 52722 email: jill@classictravelsllc.com • www.classictravelsllc.com

Prevent your pet from becoming a statistic

By Sam Mazotta

Q: My dog, Shakes is a bolter he will bolt out the door and into the street if I’m not careful. I worry about him getting lost in the woods nearby. If that happens, what should I do? I feel that lost pets don’t get found very often.

A: Most dogs who get lost are found and returned to their owners at fairly high rates - between 81% and 97%, according to a 2012 report. That doesn’t make it any less stressful to their owners, who must scour the neighborhood and put up signs to find their dogs.

The statistics for cats are much worse, with only 45% to 72% being returned to their owners. Several things make it harder to find a lost cat: no ID tag, if the cat’s collar breaks away on an obstacle or no microchip. Cat owners wait much longer than dog owners to report their cat missing - probably because they feel most cats will come home on their own.

Those stats aside, Shakes would benefit from being trained not to react when the front door opens.

Each day, do about 15 minutes of training with him: T Put Shakes on a leash and lead him toward the front door.

Command “sit.”

T Reach out for the front doorknob. If Shakes starts forward, bring your hand back to your side and command “sit” again.

T Repeat the doorknob reach until he no longer reacts but remains sitting. When he does this, give him a tiny treat.

T Progress to turning the knob, opening the door and leaving the door open. Shakes should remain sitting for each level to be successful.

Keep the training fun, and be consistent. It’ll help Shakes stay safe inside and improve your peace of mind.

Mature Focus • September 2024

31

Autumn lawn care

Midnight Gardener

By Lori Rose The autumn months present a great opportunity to refresh and renew your established lawn. Grass seed germinates well during cool, moist weather, with little competition from weeds.

This is the best time of year to introduce healthy blends of new grass seed to your lawn.

Plan to over-seed your lawn two to four weeks before the first hard frost.

Rake up thatch and top-dress the area with a thin layer of fresh soil and organic matter before sowing seed.

Choose the grass or grasses that best

32 September 2024 • Mature Focus

meet your lawn's needs.

Kentucky bluegrass is one of the most common grasses in North America. It resists light traffic, but isn't particularly drought tolerant. Bluegrass can withstand colder temperatures than many other grasses. Mixing it with other cool season grasses, such as fescues or ryes, can keep lawns thick and lush throughout the growing season.

Fall is an excellent time to refresh and renew Native to drier areas of North America, buffalo grass has fine- your lawn. textured, gray-green leaves. It’s grows quickly, tolerates shade, and is drought tolerant, and resists heat well. more disease resistant than many Buffalo grass can be slow to green up other cool-season grasses. in the spring.

Select seed that's specially mixed for The fescues include cool-season reseeding. Make a checkerboard - use grasses suited to most climates. Most a spreader to sow half the seed by tolerate a range of soil types, as well walking in parallel lines and sowing as partial shade. They also resist trafthe other half by walking the same fic well, and are drought tolerant. area at a right angle to get full coverRyegrass is a cool-season grass. It age.

Maintain an even moisture level by watering the seeds and newly germinated grass regularly. Two weeks after planting, apply a fertilizer. Mow newly seeded grass when it reaches two to three inches.

Fall is also a great time to fertilize lawns. Given the extra boost of fertilizer and the cooler days, fall grass will thrive, and go into winter with additional vigor. The type of fertilizer you choose is important, whether organic or synthetic. Too much nitrogen can cause grass to grow too quickly, which can add to the risk of winter injury. Choose a fertilizer specially blended for fall feeding.

Cut your grass higher, especially during fall and winter months. A grass root system grows about as deep as the grass blades are tall, and a deeper root system results in a healthier lawn.

It's never too late to let the grass grow taller. Raise the deck height of your mower each time you mow until you reach the desired height, which should be at least two to three inches. Mow more often as the grass grows faster, cutting off no more than one third of

days can gum up the carburetor. A turkey baster can help remove the gas.

Change the oil.

• Tree Trimming • Tree Removal Dispose of it responsibly at a service staCall: 563-396-3894 tion that accepts used oil. Remove the spark

plug. Keep moisture

out of the cylinder by

spraying it with a little oil. Have the blade the blade. professionally cleaned and sharpened.

A mulching mower has the power Follow these easy steps this fall for to shred leaves into tiny particles that a lovely, lush lawn next spring. decompose in the lawn and add organic matter and essential nutrients to the soil. Depending on the amount Lori Rose, the Midnight Gardener, of leaves on the lawn and the horseis a Temple University Certified power of the motor, two passes with Master Home Gardener and member the mulching mower may be necesof the GWA: The Association for sary to pick up all the leaves, but the Garden Communicators. She has benefits for the grass make the extra been writing about gardening for over effort worthwhile. twenty years. Email Lori at midnightMinimize traffic on new lawns, at gardener@hotmail.com. least until it has been mowed two or three times. Young grass blades are tender, and if they're trampled repeatedly during their first few weeks of growth, they may not recover. Also avoid walking on the lawn when it’s frozen. Doing so can damage the grass blades. In the case of clumping grasses such as fescue and rye, the damage can be permanent.

When retiring the lawnmower for the winter, take these easy steps to ensure a quick start next spring.

Wipe loose grass Se Habla Español Providingand comfort clippings dirt and joy for 75 years. from theover entire 1305 Fifth Avenue • Moline, IL mower chassis with a soft rag. Drain all the 309-762-9423 gasoline out of the tank. Gasoline left in www.griffinsfloorcrafters.com the tank over thirty

You Stand On Our Reputation Providing comfort and joy for over 70 years.

By Lucie Winborne ✐ After ten minutes of looking at yourself in a mirror in a dimly lit room, your bored brain will distort your reflection, triggering the appearance of imaginary monsters such as “Bloody Mary.” ✐ Sologamy is the act of marrying yourself. ✐ In 1895, there were only two cars in the entire state of Ohio...and they still ended up crashing into each other. ✐ The record for most passengers on an airplane was set in 1991 when 1,086 Ethiopian Jews were evacuated to Jerusalem on a Boeing 747.

However, the plane landed with 1,088 passengers, as two babies made their earthly debut during the flight. ✐ Pineapples were a status symbol in 18th century England. In fact, they were so expensive that you could rent them by the night and take them to parties with you. ✐ The Apollo 11 astronauts had to go through customs upon their return to Earth and declare moon rocks, moon dust and other lunar samples, according to the form signed by all three and filed at the Honolulu Airport in Hawaii on July 24, 1969. ✐ Cymothoa exigua is a parasite that severs the blood vessels of a fish's tongue and becomes a new functional tongue. ✐ Bella and Edward's relationship in the “Twilight” book and film series meets all 15 criteria set by the National Domestic Violence Hotline for being in an abusive relationship. ✐ An estimated 10% of Europeans are immune to HIV infection because they have an ancestor who survived the bubonic plague. ✐ The main exporter of Brazil nuts is not Brazil, but Bolivia. ✐ A regular BIC ballpoint pen can draw a line that's about 2 kilometers long - more than six times the height of the Eiffel Tower.

Mature Focus • September 2024

33

Healthy Eyes: Eyelid lumps

By William J. Benevento, M.D. The two most common lumps in the eyelid are a hordeolum, which most people call a stye, and a chalazion. Though the two are different, they’re treated in pretty much the same way.

A stye occurs when an eyelid gland gets infected. Styes are very tender and tend to have lots of redness and swelling. A lot of times you’ll see a little nodule that comes to a head, almost like a pimple. Don’t pop it, though, because it will just spread the infection and cause more swelling and irritation. A lot of times they’ll just drain spontaneously with treatment at home.

A chalazion is a plugged up oil gland in the eyelid. If the oils don’t flow well and are sludgy, they can back up into the gland and pop it.

This causes an inflammatory response - redness, swelling, and mild tenderness, as the body tries to wall off the oils.

Though that may sound a lot like a stye, this is not an infection, just a reaction to oils being where they shouldn’t be.

Here’s the good news: it doesn’t matter a whole lot which lump it is, because you treat them both in about the same way. Hot compresses help the body to get in there and get rid of the infection or the trapped oils. And

you can treat both at home easily.

Get the compress as hot as you can tolerate, but don’t burn yourself.

Leave it on for at least four or five minutes at a time, four or five times a day. Some people like to use a thermal eye mask instead of the compress, which is more convenient. For example, you can microwave the Bruder eye mask, two little beanbags with a strap on it, for about 25 seconds. It gets warm and moist, then you just strap it on for a few minutes.

It stays hot for quite a while, which makes it a lot easier to use.

Both chalazia and styes frequently drain spontaneously in a week or two with just the hot compresses.

A lot of folks with chalazia also have dry eyes because of those sludgy oil glands. Don’t be surprised if the hot compresses make your eyes feel better and you keep doing it for a minute or two in the morning, even after the stye or chalazion goes away.

If the lump doesn’t start improving within a few days, or if it’s particularly inflamed or painful, we will sometimes start patients on oral doxycycline. This antibiotic has the beneficial side effect of making the oil glands flow better, so it actually works well for both styes, which are infections, and chalazia, which are not.

If this still doesn’t work after a couple weeks, we can drain the stye

or chalazion, or we can inject a little anti-inflammatory steroid around the chalazion. We try to avoid making incisions, because most people with chalazia have bad oil glands to start with, and the last thing we want to do is damage the neighboring glands that are still working.

The vast majority of patients recover nicely from these lumps in the lid. They can occasionally cause scarring, but it’s usually not significant. However, there are other lumps that aren’t so benign. Rarely, skin cancers can look a lot like a popped stye or chalazions. So if the lump doesn’t go away within a couple of weeks, or bleeds and becomes worse, please make an appointment with your eye doctor.

If you’re concerned about a new bump that isn’t going away, or is particularly bothersome, we’re more than happy to take a look, if only for your peace of mind.

Dr. Benevento is a board certified ophthalmologist. He practices in Bettendorf, Iowa. For more information, visit esaeyecare.com.

The material contained in this article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider.

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All the news that’s fit

By Scott LaFee Observation “I was surprised when I started getting old. I always thought it was one of those things that would happen to someone else.” - American comedian George Carlin (1937-2008) Body of Knowledge The average person ingests approximately 100 milligrams (0.003 ounces) of dust and dirt each day.

Doesn't sound like much, but in an average lifetime, it adds up to six pounds. It gets worse: Scientists have estimated that the average person inhales around 50 billion dust particles an hour. Over a lifetime, that works out to 45 pounds.

Medical Myths Potatoes are often vilified because they possess a high glycemic index, meaning their rapidly digestible carbohydrates can spike one's blood sugar level - not a good thing in terms of conditions like diabetes.

But much depends on the type of potato, how it's cooked and the total amount of carbohydrates consumed.

Starchy potatoes have complex carbohydrates, which break down more slowly in the body than simple sugars.

They're also rich in vitamin C, potassium, fiber and other nutrients, especially when consumed with the skin.

A whole baked sweet potato, for example, can be a fine addition to a meal. French fries, not so much.

Medical History In August of 1898, corn flakes were invented. At Battle Creek Sanitarium, superintendent John Harvey Kellogg and Will Keith Kellogg, his younger brother and business manager, invented many grain-based foods, including a coffee substitute and types of granola and peanut butter, to pro-

vide patients with a strict nutritious diet.

In 1894 they unintentionally invented a flaked cereal process based on wheat. By 1898, W.K. Kellogg had developed the first flaked corn cereal. Patients enjoyed the cereals and wanted more to take home, leading to Kellogg creating the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company in 1906.

harsh words were exchanged. Cahill ultimately grabbed McCarty/Bonney and threw him to the floor. The latter pulled a gun and shot Cahill dead, making him the first victim of Billy the Kid, who would claim to have killed 21 men in his 21 years of life, though the actual tally is likely far lower.

Stories for the Waiting Room For reasons of necessity, these folks all performed major surgery on themselves. Some possessed medical training, some did not. Sometimes things worked out, sometimes not so much.

1. Soviet explorer Leonid Rogozov successfully performed a self-appendectomy in 1961.

2. Australian veterinarian Robert Kerr McLaren did the same in a Filipino jungle in the 1940s - without anesthesia.

3. U.S. Founding Father Gouverneur Morris (1752-1816) was suffering from a painful urinary blockage. He took a sliver of whalebone and attempted to physically clear the obstruction. A fatal penile infection resulted.

4. Kurtis Kaser was a Nebraska farmer whose leg got caught in a grain auger, a sort of spiral conveyor device. The auger began consuming his leg. Kaser used a pocketknife to sever the remains of his lower leg, then crawled to a telephone to call for help. He survived.

5. Ines Ramirez Perez was a 40year-old pregnant woman living in a remote part of southern Mexico. In 2000, she went into labor. The nearest clinic was 50 miles away. After 12 hours of labor, Perez downed some hard liquor and used a six-inch knife to perform a C-section on herself. She and the baby survived.

Curtain Calls Francis P. Cahill was a blacksmith living in Arizona in the old West. On Aug. 17, 1877, Cahill got into an argument with Henry McCarty, alias William H. Bonney, during which Mature Focus • September 2024

35

Life happens when you aren’t looking learn from it and move forward

By Sandra Cline I’m not sure why, but it seems that I wasn’t meant to go. My first tour of England and Scotland was canceled, so I quickly locked into one with a different tour company. I needed to go just at that time, because my daughter had already scheduled a flight to Ireland, where I would join her for our own six-day tour. I was to leave for London on Thursday.

On Tuesday morning, I went for a walk in my expanded neighborhood area.

Total distance is about a mile and a half when I walk four blocks to Pine, then four blocks to the Duck Creek bike path, eight blocks to Division, then back home. Seven houses from home, I was looking at the houses, not the sidewalk, when in a flash, I was propelled to the sidewalk, jaw first. I hit hard and knew immedi-

ately that I was injured.

I had my senses, so I walked to the house of our good neighbors, who kindly took care of me immediately, then bused me off to the hospital and called my husband, who had left for the morning. After a few hours, I was shipped to the University of Iowa hospital to await surgery for three breaks in my jaw, which couldn’t happen until the next day. There are many more details than I need to tell, but I was so grateful for everyone who helped along the way.

Most importantly are the lessons I have learned, so far, in this adventure.

Where would we be without each other?

Express concern for others, don’t just feel it.

Lesson 1: Use wisdom; be more careful for your health’s sake. By this, I don’t mean to be afraid that every little thing will bring disaster.

No, that will just kill what life is in you. I mean think before you move, but move! I know there are raised cracks in the sidewalk. I should have been looking down instead of at the houses, especially since I was walking at a pretty good clip.

Lesson 2: Be grateful for those who care. I’m so thankful, first for my neighbors, Gary and Colleen, who took me in and took me to the hospital. I’m also thankful for the medical personnel, the people who clean the floors and toilets, prepare food, the ambulance personnel, and for the many friends who expressed concern through calls, cards and flowers. Their kindness will never be forgotten.

Lesson 3: Learn the importance of giving, not just receiving. This lesson somewhat echoes lesson 2, but the

36 September 2024 • Mature Focus

expressions of concern have literally brought me to tears of gratitude.

Where would we be without each other? Express concern for others, don’t just feel it.

Lesson 4: This is the most important lesson. While the love of others is great help, it is only the help of God that will carry me through to the end in victory, not just barely. In the hospital, the song that carried me

forward in peace Independent Senior Living 55+ • 1&2 BRs was, “Christ is My Firm Foundation.”

He has been with ng k in me every step of a T tio s! w this journey so far, No lica and I know He will p bring me through to Ap the end. To Him be 3425 60th St. all praise, honor and Moline, IL 61265 65 glory.

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An active ve lifestyle fe ty ffo or 55+ v The tiny plastic table protecting your pizza is called a pizza saver. Carmela Vitale filed a patent for the modern version in 1983; her creation has protected pies from being marred by sagging cardboard ever since. v The city of Detroit is actually north of the Canadian border. v Among the many artifacts that have been salvaged from the wreck of the Titanic is the bronze bell that lookout Frederick Fleet rang when he spotted the iceberg. It was recovered in 1987. v St. Drogo, afflicted by a mystery ailment that made him physically repulsive, is now considered the patron saint of unattractive people. Weirdly, he's also the patron saint of coffeehouse owners. v Owens Corning, which manufactures insulation, was the first company in the U.S. to trademark a color: pink.The shade is so entwined with Owens Corning's product that the company officially licenses the Pink Panther for use on its packaging.They defended their color trademark in 2011, when a UK-based insulation company came out with their own pink insulation materials.

Discover the Cranberry Experience The Warrens Cranberry Festival draws thousands of visitors from all over the world. This event continues to grow in popularitty every year. It's a great place ffo or you to immerse yourself in the rich culture and history of cranberry farming. Discover the story behind this unique fruit by joining Plus 60 memberrs for this Cranberry Celebration on Friday,, Septemberr fo 27, 2024!

Warrens Cranberry Festival located in the “Cranbe erry Capital of Wisconsin.” It boasts over 850 arts & crafts booths and 350 flea market and antique dealers. Add to that, ffo ood court areas located throughout the ffe estival with over 100 fo food vendors, many with cranberry infused delights, and live entertainment and you are sure to find something to enjoy.

USA To Toda ayy named the Warrens Cranberry Festival in their Top 10 Best US Fall Festivals. Requests fo for inffo ormation or to book the Plus 60 trip, go directly to Cindy at Tri-State Travel (call toll-free 800-779-4869 during weekday business hours 8:00 am – 4:30 pm).

QC Plus 60 Hosts Trivia Night Fundraiser for Senior Support The Quad Cities Plus 60 Club is excited to announce its Trivia Night to raise funds ffo or community grants benefiting nonprofits in the Quad Cities area that support seniors.

Friday,, October 11 • Doors Open:: 6:30 PM • Trivia Starts:: 7:00 PM Location: Senior Star (Independent Living Bldg.) 4502 Elmore A Avve., Davenport, IA Registration Inffo ormation: TTe eam Size: 8 people/table • Cost:: $120 per table The evening will include 10 rounds of trivia questions, a wine pull,, an opportunity to bid on gift baskets, 50/50 cash raffle and Senior Star will have desserts ffo or sale to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association. Each team is invited to bring g their own fo food and drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) fo for the evening. For more inffo ormation call Kathy Halter at 563-265-9045.

Last Call fo for Riverboat T Tw wilight Accepting reservations until September 6,, 2024.

Membership inffo ormation and all event and trip details are always readily y available at qctplus60.com.

Questions? Email il us at qctimesplus60@gmail.com.

Mature Focus • September 2024

37

FINANCIAL FOCUS

Are you afraid of outliving your money?

®

By Edward Jones Do you worry about running out of money during your retirement years?

If so, how can you help prevent this from happening?

In the first place, if you have this type of fear, you’re far from alone.

Consider this: 58% of retirement savers from all age groups, including current retirees, say that outliving their assets is their greatest retirement fear, according to a study by Cerulli Associates, a financial services research organization.

This type of fear can certainly affect your quality of life when you retire.

Still, there’s no need to panic – because you can take steps to help prevent the running-out-of-money scenario.

Here are a few to consider: • Know how much you’ll need during retirement. You need to get a

38 September 2024 • Mature Focus

clear picture, or at least as good an estimate as possible, of how much money you’ll need to support your retirement lifestyle. Once you do retire, some costs, such as transportation or other work-related expenses, might go down, while others – medical expenses, in particular – will likely go up. The fear of running out of money, like many fears, is caused largely by what you don’t know, so having a good sense of how much you’ll need in retirement can help reduce your anxieties.

• Build financial resources before retirement. You’re probably at your peak earning capacity in the years close to your retirement, so consider contributing as much as you can afford to your IRA and 401(k) or other employer-sponsored retirement plan.

• Maximize your Social Security payments. You can start collecting Social Security as early as 62, but your monthly benefits will be larger if you can afford to wait until your full

retirement age, between 66 and 67.

(Payments will “max out” at age 70.)

• Re-enter the workforce. Going back to work in some capacity is one way to possibly help build retirement resources and delay taking Social

The fear of running out of money, like many fears, is caused largely by what you don’t know.

Security. If you have a particular area of expertise, and you enjoyed the work you did, you might be able to go back to it on a part-time basis or do some consulting. You could boost your cash flow, and potentially extend your contributions to an IRA and to an employer’s retirement plan.

• Cut costs during retirement.

Possibly the biggest cost-cutting measure is downsizing – are you willing and able to move to a less expensive area or scale down your

current living space? Of course, this is an emotional decision, as well as a financial one, and downsizing isn’t for everyone, but it might be something to at least consider. As for the lesser ways of reducing expenses, take advantage of senior discounts, which are offered in many areas, including entertainment, public transportation, restaurants and retail establishments.

And look for other opportunities, such as cutting out streaming services you don’t use.

• Look for more income from your investments. As you get closer to retirement, and even when you do retire, you might want to adjust your investment portfolio to provide you with more income-producing opportunities. However, even as a retiree, you’ll want some growth potential in your investments to help keep you ahead of inflation.

Ultimately, the more you can bolster your financial security before

and during retirement, the less fear you may have of outliving your money.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor. Edward Jones, its employees and financial advisors cannot provide tax or legal advice. You should consult your attorney or qualified tax advisor regarding your situation.

Edward Jones, Member SIPC.

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Mature Focus • September 2024

39

Mayo Clinic Q & A: Energy drinks

By Michael Ackerman, M.D., Ph.D., Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota Q: My husband and son are constantly coming home with an energy drink in hand. I tell them that they are bad for you, but I don’t know enough to make a strong case. What are the effects of energy drinks on the body?

A: Energy drinks are a multibilliondollar industry and are the most consumed supplement not under the control of the Food and Drug Administration other than multivitamins. It’s a bit like the “Wild West” in the sense that energy drinks and their stimulating ingredients are under no FDA regulation and are not classified as a food or a drug but as a supplement.

Energy drinks contain ingredients such as caffeine, taurine and guarana

40 September 2024 • Mature Focus

Energy drinks are under no FDA regulation and are not classified as a food or a drug but as a supplement.

that affect the heart, the heart’s electrical system and the heart’s muscular pump. When our bodies react to these chemicals, the heart rate and blood pressure can change. The heart’s recharging of the electrical system can be affected by these chemicals.

For most people with a healthy heart, the consumption of an energy drink would have no serious impact on our health. However, if you have a genetic heart condition that predisposes you to sudden cardiac death, exposure to an energy drink may not be as harmless.

People with underlying genetic heart disease or adults with coronary artery disease or weaker heart pumps can be more vulnerable to the chemicals in energy drinks. About one in 200 people have a sudden death-predisposing genetic heart disease, including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, long QT syndrome, arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy and catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. A healthy heart can handle caffeine in moderation, but a fragile heart may not be able to.

Consuming up to 400 mg of caffeine a day is safe for most adults —

some energy drinks contain over half this amount in a single can.

Depending on the age of your son, he may need to stay under 100 mg of caffeine per day, which is the recommended amount for adolescents ages 12-18.

In addition to heart risk, studies have suggested an increased risk of stroke with energy drink consumption. Long-term exposure to these substances over time affects how the blood vessels and heart react to the chemicals. Our blood vessels that control our blood pressure are reacting to these chemicals, and the potential reason behind stroke risk is the tightening of our blood vessels.

For the 199 out of 200 people who have a healthy heart and who do not have a genetic heart disease, energy drink consumption in moderation is safe. However, you might want to ask yourself: Can you go three days without it? If not, you may be experiencing some dependency on the chemicals in the energy drink. Heavy caffeine consumption can cause physical and psychological dependence, restlessness and insomnia.

Overall, there is very little health value to energy drinks. Listen to your body - are they making you feel shaky or causing you to experience withdrawals? Can you be satisfied with your morning coffee or tea instead?

There is a lot of room for future research on these beverages.

Consuming the wrong thing at the wrong time in the wrong person is a setup for the perfect storm. Caffeine may also interact with a person’s medications.

Tell your healthcare team that you are consuming energy drinks and the unregulated supplements they contain, and you can decide together what the right choice is for you.

Mayo Clinic Q & A is an educational resource and doesn’t replace regular medical care.

E-mail a question to MayoClinic Q&A@mayo.edu. For more information, visit mayo clinic.org.

❖ On Sept. 2, 1987, the trial of Mathias Rust, the 19-year-old German pilot who flew his Cessna plane into Red Square in May 1987, begins in Moscow. Rust had become an international celebrity after he flew completely undetected through Soviet airspace. At his trial, Rust claimed he was merely trying to promote world peace. ❖ On Sept. 4, 1925, laws were enacted to ensure that farm wagons would be equipped with lights for traveling at night, due to an increase in the number of accidents the wagons were involved in during peak corn-packing season. ❖ On Sept. 5, 1969, U.S. Army platoon leader Lt. William Calley was charged with premeditated murder in the death of 109 Vietnamese civilians at My Lai, where Calley had led his men in a massacre that included women and children.

Though hushed up at first, the event was made public a year later. ❖ On Sept. 6, 1997, an estimated 2.5 billion people around the world watched the four-mile funeral procession of England's beloved Princess Diana as her coffin was carried to Westminster Abbey. After the formal service there, a private ceremony was held in which she was laid to rest on an island in the heart of her family's estate at Althorp. ❖ On Sept. 7, 1907, the RMS Lusitania set sail on her maiden voyage from Liverpool, England, setting a new trans-Atlantic record when she arrived in New York City a mere five days later. ❖ On Sept. 8, 2006, only a week after permission was granted for helicopter flights over the ancient Incan ruins of Machu Picchu in Peru, the country's government declared the area a no-fly zone following protests by environmentalists who claimed such flights would adversely affect rare plants and animals in the area. ❖ On Sept. 9, 2007, the NFL discovered that the New England

Patriots were illegally videotaping coaching signals from the New York Jets at an unauthorized location in a Week 1 game in East Rutherford, New Jersey. News media quickly dubbed the scandal “Spygate.” ❖ On Sept. 10, 1897, 25-year-old London taxi driver George Smith had the dubious honor of becoming the first person ever arrested for “being drunk when in charge of a motor car” after he slammed his cab

into a building, breaking a water pipe and window. Smith later pleaded guilty and was fined 25 shillings. ❖ On Sept. 30, 1868, the first volume of Louisa May Alcott’s beloved children’s book “Little Women” is published. The novel will become Alcott’s first bestseller and a beloved classic. Her father died in March 1888, and she followed him two days later at the age of 55.

Mature Focus • September 2024

41

The joy of reunion

By Lynn Walker Gendusa Summertime is filled with vacations, reunions, and visiting. My friend Michele just returned from a family gathering in Maine where parents, aunts, uncles, children, and grandchildren convened to celebrate “family.”

She reconnected with cousins she hadn't seen in years, and as they greeted one another in the summer breeze near the coast, the laughter of shared experiences filled the warm air.

Some of my fondest memories are when my fun-filled family once congregated in the backyard of a relative's house in the hills of Tennessee.

Tucked-away memories renewed tales of old sprinkled with giggles and tears.

Those who lived long ago were reborn when their life stories were retold.

I wonder how such a boisterous group of folks suddenly became silent.

The loss of my loved ones occurred too quickly, and those who remained scattered beyond the hills into their

separate worlds.

When friends share their summer reunion stories, I am reminded how much I miss those happy family moments. Heaven is now where many of my relatives recount tales in the backyard of God's house.

I often write about my cousin Bobby, whom I began to know well just a few short years ago. What a joy it is to be related to the person who reminds me of my father and the Walker clan with his wit, looks, and honesty. When I see Bobby Walker, my heart goes home.

And then there is Ann, my first cousin. Like me, she lost her siblings too early, and sadly, we lost touch for over 50 years. Now, that is ridiculous since we are only one year apart in age, and our dads were as close as two peas in a pod.

From the beginning, Ann and I were quite different - at least, that's what I thought. We didn't look or act alike, and I am not entirely sure we liked

each other!

Because of Bobby and our shared love of Walker family memorabilia, Ann and I reunited recently. I traveled to her home, bringing old pictures and heritage-related stores. Such family photos, heirlooms, and stories would play a significant role in our reconnection, sparking memories and conversations that bridge the gap of our 50year absence.

When I pulled onto the pasture road leading to her lake house in the Tennessee hills, I never imagined Ann residing in such a quiet, serenely beautiful place. When we were young, I envisioned her in a mansion and I in a barn. As I said, we were different.

She greeted me with a hug and welcomed me in. Within moments, I realized we had lost much more than mere years. She married a terrific man and bore two beautiful daughters.

Her dry humor reminds me of her mother, whom I adored. She is also a writer and should pen more absolutely

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!ƏǼǼ JȒǼƳƺȸ!Əȸƺ ɎȒƳƏɵٍ ɯɯɯِǕȒǼƳƺȸƬƏȸƺِƬȒȅ ٢‫ח׎ב‬٣ ‫בואאٮגהו‬

hilarious op-eds like the one for which she won an award long ago.

Her writing reflects her wisdom and charm, often sprinkled with insightful observations and a healthy dose of funny satire.

The more I observed her, the more I realized how much we resembled each other and our cousin Bobby.

This discovery of our similarities brought a sense of joy and belonging that I had not felt in a long time.

After all these years, the delight of finding Ann is a testament to the enduring, unbreakable power of family bonds. It's a comforting reminder that no matter how much time has passed, the love and connection within a family can prevail.

Ann and I tried to make up for our 50-year absence in three days, but time cannot be regained, nor can the loss.

Families are carefully bound together by God's hands. Such unions are to be treasured, and we should always gather to remember the profound significance of kinship. We can battle each other over different ideas or philosophies, but we must

remember we were placed together for a reason. This realization should fill us with a deep appreciation and gratitude for our relative connections.

For most of us, our family is our safety net. When the world's harshness overwhelms us, there will be that cousin, sister, or brother who will help us weather the storm, providing a sense of security and comfort in the face of life's challenges.

I can't recapture the lost years with Bobby or Ann, but I am beyond joyful knowing that we are a part of each other because we share a bond that time or distance cannot erase. We are kin, and one day, we will gather again in God's backyard and laugh at the joy of it all.

“Family is a bridge to the past, our comfort in the present, and our journey to forever.” L.W. Gendusa, “Southern Comfort.”

Lynn Walker Gendusa is a newspaper columnist in Georgia. She is the author of “It’s all WRITE with Me: Essay’s from My Heart” and her newest, “Southern Comfort.” She can be reached at lynngendusa.com.

Volunteer Spotlight Extra: Tucker

By Schary SantAmour Meet Tucker, our special fourlegged furry volunteer. Tucker is an 11-year-old Goldendoodle who works full-time at Childserve in Iowa City as a Certified Therapy Dog and playing expert. Tucker is also a Certified Emotional Support Animal and a Canine Good Citizen. Tucker’s mom, Ansley DeVrieze, is a Physical Therapist at Childserve who brings him to work every morning where he assists children receiving occupational, speech or physical therapy by providing support and comfort in many different and special ways.

Tucker helps children with sensory needs by allowing them to pet him and feel his fluffy fur.

“My favorite thing to do with Tucker is to give him treats when he follows my commands. I like to give him treats and cuddles, and he plays with me.”

- Drew, a patient and friend to Tucker.

He also supports children working on their balance by allowing them to pet him while they maintain their position. Or he can help with coordination and strength by fetching a ball the child throws.

Tucker also helps children practice certain sounds or alternative forms of communication by listening for commands he knows from the child and celebrating with them when they both achieve their goals.

Thank you, Grandma Sue for nominating your sweet grandpup, Tucker. He is such a good boy!

Mature Focus • September 2024

43

Southern comfort: Shrimp and grits for a special occasion brunch Looking for a fun brunch or dinner idea that will impress your guests?

Look no further than Shrimp and Grits - a beloved classic that epitomizes Southern hospitality. Imagine plump, juicy shrimp swimming in a rich, velvety sauce, nestled atop a bed of creamy, buttery grits. This iconic dish is not just a meal, it's a slice of Southern charm served with a generous side of hospitality.

Now, let's be real: While this dish is heavenly, it's also a special occasion treat due to its high fat and calorie content. In the South, shrimp aren't just an ingredient, they're a way of life. Treat them with the utmost care - overcooked shrimp are a cardinal sin! So, whether you're celebrating a milestone or simply want to elevate your dining experience, shrimp and grits are sure to steal the show.

SOUTHERN STYLE CREAMY SHRIMP AND GRITS Yield: 4 generous servings Total Time: 35 mins.

What You'll Need: 1 cup heavy cream 2 cups water 1 1/2 cups shrimp stock or chicken stock 1/4 cup butter 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1 cup stone-ground grits

44 September 2024 • Mature Focus

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated 1-pound raw shrimp, large (21/30 per pound), peeled and deveined 3 tablespoons lemon juice 3 thick bacon slices 2 tablespoons onion, finely chopped 1 clove garlic, minced 2 tablespoons green or red bell pepper, finely chopped Here's How: In a large saucepan over mediumhigh heat, combine cream, water and hot stock. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil. Add butter, salt and pepper to the boiling mixture.

Slowly pour in the grits while whisking constantly to prevent them from settling at the bottom and scorching. Continue stirring until all the grits are added, then reduce the heat to low.

Cook the grits for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. You're going to want a lid on this saucepan. You see, grits bubble and splash while they cook. I've noticed none of the old recipes I researched said anything about this. I think it's a little joke Southerners like to play on the rest of us. Anyhoo, they will become tender and have an irresistible creamy, dreamy consistency. Add the Parmesan and give them a stir to finish them off.

If the grits become too thick, you can add warm stock or water to thin them. Once cooked, remove the saucepan from the heat.

Meanwhile, sprinkle the shrimp with lemon juice, salt and pepper to

taste, toss to coat and set them aside.

In a large frying pan over medium heat, cook the bacon until it's browned but not quite crispy. Remove the

Creamy grits topped with shrimp in a velvety sauce. Perfect for a special brunch or dinner. bacon from the pan and rest it on a plate lined with paper towels. Let it cool, then coarsely chop it.

Reserve 4 tablespoons of the bacon grease from the frying pan and discard the rest. Add the onion, garlic and green or red bell pepper to the pan, and saute them for about 10 minutes or until the onion becomes transparent.

Reduce the temperature to low. Add the shrimp and lemon mixture and return the chopped bacon to the pan.

Saute them for approximately 3 to 5 minutes, or until the shrimp just turn pink and are opaque in the center.

You can cut one shrimp to test for doneness. Once cooked, immediately remove the pan from the heat.

To serve, spoon hot grits onto individual serving plates and top with shrimp mixture. Add one final squeeze of lemon and bask in the glory of your culinary masterpiece.

Lifestyle expert Patti Diamond is the penny-pinching, party-planning, recipe developer and content creator of the website Divas On A Dime Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! Visit Patti at divasonadime.com and join the conversation on Facebook at DivasOnADimeDotCom. Email Patti at divapatti@divasonadime.com

Mature Focus Volunteer Spotlight

By Ken Ferris

At some time in our lives we must deal with the loss of a loved one. The grief associated with the loss comes in many forms and degrees. The special volunteer this month is Jill Finn, 69, a Moline resident.

“Jill brings many gifts to our Grief Support Program.

She is instrumental in assisting with support groups and Spouse Loss Class, giving hope and encouragement as she shares ideas about how to cope with grief.”

- Lisa A. Levy BSN, RN, Grief Counselor Genesis Hospice Grief Support

Jill is a certified grief specialist.

“Although I spent my whole career in education, I always wanted to be a counselor. When my mother-inlaw passed in hospice, I knew I wanted to spend my time in retirement helping people who are grieving,” Jill said.

Three days a week Jill volunteers at Clarissa Cook Hospice House in Bettendorf approximately ten hours per week. She noted Genesis does not charge for Grief Support services.

“Our support groups are a dropin format,” Jill explained. “Families

are eligible to attend the group if they have been served by Genesis Hospice. We extend our bereaved services over a 13-month period.

We do not have an agenda. We discuss all issues the bereaved are experiencing as they adjust to their new normal without their loved one in the physical world,” she added.

Hospice Grief Support

“I enjoy watching our members form lifelong friendships as they assist and support each other in this difficult and stressful time in their lives,” Jill conveyed.

Jill pointed out that there is a Spouse Loss class weekly for eight weeks. She said this class has a specific, organized agenda versus the support group. “The first four weeks are dedicated to embracing and acknowledging the loss of a loved one. The second four weeks are dedicated to strategies to manage their rocky terrain of grief,” she mentioned.

“The most important interactions and lessons I have learned interacting with the bereaved is to meet people where they are, witness their grief, without judging or giving advice,” Jill related.

When asked what gives her satisfaction in volunteering, Jill said, “meeting and interacting with so

Jill Finn, certified grief specialist with Clarissa Cook Hospice House.

many lovely, bereaved families. It has truly been an honor and privilege to assist family members in honoring their loved ones as they move forward. Death teaches us to live with more love than pain and that living fully again is entirely possible.”

Do you know a volunteer who deserves to be recognized? Mature Focus is highlighting Quad City volunteers who go above and beyond for their community, making a positive difference in the lives of others. Email nominees to Kevin Ferris at kevin@maturefocus92.com and tell us why your nominee deserves special recognition for his or her exceptional service.

Ken Ferris is the founder and former publisher of Mature Focus.

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45

There is something about growing up with cousins

By Ana Veciana-Suarez Sometimes an event is best savored in retrospect. Sometimes an experience is burnished to a high gloss by distance and time. I think this is true of my last visit to two of my sons.

In one of those rare confluences of luck and duty, three of my four boys and five of my nine grandkids — a quorum of sorts — came together to celebrate the first birthday of the youngest in the next generation. The party was a blast, the food amazing, the birthday girl well-behaved and beautiful, but it was everything before and after that has gilded my re-entry into regular life.

Watching the cousins together — the hugs, the boo-boo-kissing, the encouragement of the older to the younger — provided me with a peek into the future and a sense of solace I don’t find often enough. Nothing says life will be alright as much as watching your children’s children play with each other.

The 16-year-old finger-combing the auburn wisps of the birthday girl.

The 11-old-old chasing the 19month-old down the hallway until both collapse on the wood floor in giggles.

The two babies playing in a ball pit supervised by their teenage cousins.

“I wish all my cousins lived close by,” confessed the eldest of my grandkids, who remembers a time

when everyone lived in the same city trips, organize fantasy football and played together regularly. leagues, and invest in who-knowsI second the sentiment. Proximity what together. encourages interaction, sure, but it also helps lay down the foundation for lasting relationships and lifelong memories. Quite simply, hanging out is a lot easier when the span of miles between two households is short.

I grew up surrounded by cousins, lots of them, and can’t imagine a childhood without the push and pull of such special relationships. Those who lived in other states visited every Compared to a sibling or friend, a summer, sometimes more frequently, cousin offers a different connection. and weekends and vacations were spent not with school friends but with peers who shared family bonds and There is something about growing bloodlines. up with cousins that no other relationThose weekend sleepovers and ship can replicate. Something summer Sundays at the beach, the between sibling and a friend, a cousin raucous holidays where food and gifts offers a connection that is rarely were beside the point, were wonderfraught with rivalry. A cousin also ful. But only in hindsight do I recognize that part of the fun came from comfort and familiarity. A cousin automatically understood family dynamics. Even the most embarrassing or mortifying situations required no explanation. In fact, the presence of a cousin made the overbearing aunt or the overly strict father so much more bearable.

My children were lucky enough to Voted Best Pet Groomer ‘21, ‘22 and ‘23 enjoy similar circumIT’S YOUR PET’S TIME TO SHINE! stances and even now, decades later, separated by hundreds of miles, alliances forged in childhood remain. The boys, now men, plan

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offers a perspective that can be simultaneously foreign and familiar.

Many years have passed, but I still remember the first time my cousin from Chicago showed up at our house in a two-piece swimsuit, the first in our generation to be allowed to wear such scandalous clothing. Seeing her in that candy-striped getup opened up

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possibilities. If she could, why not me? Her breakthrough became my challenge.

I recently read about a study that looked at demographic data for every country in the world. Unsurprisingly, it noted that families were shrinking.

While grandparents and great-grandparents were living longer, the number of extended family members, namely the number of cousins, nieces and nephews, was declining. In short, more children are growing up without cousins.

That kind of loss is hard for me to imagine. How can you play hide and seek at family gatherings without a crew of cousins? Can anyone truly understand the peculiar behavior of shared relatives like a cousin? And most important of all, who else can hold out the unexpected hope of owning a two-piece swimsuit as an entirely achievable fantasy?

Ana Veciana-Suarez writes about family and social issues. Email her at avecianasuarez@gmail.com or visit anavecianasuarez.com.

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