August 2013 Baltimore Beacon Edition

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Cycling is all about the journey

A workout “high” for body and brain For many years, cycling brought Datsko the endorphin-induced “high” that active athletes (be they of the weekend or professional variety) talk about.

AUGUST 2013

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PHOTO COURTESY OF JOE DATSKO

By Carol Sorgen Having logged close to 150,000 miles since he began cycling more than 40 years ago, you might think 92-year-old Joe Datsko would want to take it a bit easy now.

Not a chance. The retired University of Michigan engineering professor bikes 10 to 15 miles a day around the 1.3 mile loop road on the campus of the Charlestown retirement community in Catonsville, where he lives.

And as soon as he bounces back from a foot problem, he’ll be back to his regular rides at Patapsco State Park as well. All in all, this nonagenarian rides nearly 100 miles a week.

Datsko didn’t take up cycling until he was 50, when his younger son became involved in bike racing. Soon it was a family affair, and Datsko, his late wife Doris and their five children all became avid bikers.

Every year the group took a 210-mile bike trek along the Ohio River.

“Our first family trip was on Mother’s Day weekend in 1970,” Datsko recalled, “and we’ve been doing it ever since.” Even though his wife has passed away, the entire family — which now numbers about 21, with in-laws and grandchildren — still gets together for an annual reunion (although there’s more reuniting than biking these days).

At the age of 71, Datsko moved up to long-distance cycling, doing a cross-country trip. “I put my back wheel in the ocean at Bellingham, Washington, and [for] six days a week for 12 weeks I rode across the country, with a group of 35 people, until I put my front wheel in the ocean at Portland, Maine,” he recalled.

That was the first of five long-distance trips Datsko took: in 1993, cycling from Portland, Maine, to Orlando, Florida; in ’94 from Oceanside, California, across the South to St. Simons Island, Georgia; in ’95, from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Tijuana, Mexico; and in ’97, from Independence, Missouri, to Oregon City, Oregon, along the Oregon Trail.

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L E I S U R E & T R AV E L

Visitors enjoy feasts for both eyes and stomach in Lyon and the French Alps; plus, the joys of mother-daughter traveling page 25

Joe Datsko has pedaled nearly 150,000 miles, including five cross-country bike trips, since he took up cycling at the age of 50. Now 92, he continues to reap the benefits of biking, which not only improves physical health but memory and cognitive skills as well.

But now, he said, his main reason for getting on the step-through (for easy mounting and dismounting) Trek bike that his kids bought him for his 90th birthday, is not so much to give his body, but rather his brain, a good workout. “Keep the blood pumping, and your brain will stay healthy,” said Datsko.

Research seems to bear him out. In a Time magazine article last fall, titled “Exercise Trumps Brain Games in Keeping Our Minds Intact,” University of Edinburgh researcher Alan J. Gow said that people in their 70s who participated in more physical exercise had less brain shrinkage and fewer other signs of aging in the brain than those who were less physically active.

Previous studies presented at a recent Alzheimer’s Association International Conference also found that older adults who exercised regularly had a better memory than those who were less active.

And, of course, there are other health benefits as well. Studies conducted at Purdue University have shown that regular cycling can lower your risk of heart disease by 50 percent.

Perhaps especially good news for men (and their partners), is that Harvard University researchers have found that men 50 and older who cycle for at least three hours a week have a 30 percent lower risk See CYCLING, page 15

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North Oaks artist wins senior center art show; plus, summer stages have diverse offerings page 30

FITNESS & HEALTH k Brain scans can ‘see’ pain k Try these anti-aging drinks

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

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Intractable problems Should a civil trial follow, with a very difWhy do so many of the social issues we ferent burden of proof, it may well produce a currently face appear to be intractable? different result.

I think one of the reasons What about issues being deis that many problems in our bated in the forum of the world society are treated as having press? Edward Snowden and a very limited range of soluWikiLeaks would like to treat tions — as being black and the NSA’s gathering of metadawhite, leaning left or right, ofta as presenting us with a vivid fering a choice of yes or no, take it or leave it. choice. To them and others, it A few issues may really presseems we have lost our cherent such a stark choice, at least ished freedoms as Americans sometimes. But most problems and become pawns of Big are susceptible to compromise, FROM THE Brother. if people are honest about it.

On the other hand, a numPUBLISHER Sometimes options are By Stuart P. Rosenthal ber of world leaders and indilimited because of the forum viduals involved in diplomacy in which an issue is being addressed. Con- and international affairs suggest that gathcerning the recent trial of George Zimmer- ering intelligence from enemies, allies and man for the killing of Trayvon Martin, our even our own citizens is quite old hat and courts require a clear verdict and a unani- universally done. mous one at that. Guilty or not guilty?

More nuanced commentators point to But we all know that this is because our the checks and balances over the NSA — legal code requires establishing criminal the congressional committees, courts and guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Certain- judges who take competing interests into ly reasonable doubts cloud the space be- account and oversee the process. Because tween innocence and guilt in nearly every national security is at stake, the debates human interaction. But to reach a verdict, take place out of the public eye, but the we have to say, “If there’s a reasonable NSA’s requests are indeed judged and regulated. doubt, there’s no criminal conviction.”

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The Beacon is a monthly newspaper dedicated to inform, serve, and entertain the citizens of the Greater Baltimore area, and is privately owned. Other editions serve Howard County, Md., Greater Washington DC and Greater Palm Springs, Calif.

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• Publisher/Editor ....................Stuart P. Rosenthal • Associate Publisher..............Judith K. Rosenthal • Vice President, Operations........Gordon Hasenei • Director of Sales ................................Alan Spiegel • Assistant Operations Manager ..........Roger King • Managing Editor............................Barbara Ruben • Contributing Editor ..........................Carol Sorgen • Graphic Designer ..............................Kyle Gregory • Advertising Representatives ............Steve Levin, ........................................................................Jill Joseph • Publishing Assistant ....................Rebekah Sewell

The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915 (410) 248-9101 • Email: info@thebeaconnewspapers.com Submissions: The Beacon welcomes reader contributions. Deadline for editorial is the 1st of the month preceding the month of publication. Deadline for ads is the 1st of the month preceding the month of publication. See page 35 for classified advertising details. Please mail or email all submissions. © Copyright 2013 The Beacon Newspapers, Inc.

Seen in this light, the question is: Where do we stand along the continuum? Do we need to balance the interests differently?

Looking closer to home, what about the heated debates over whether Walmart should be allowed to open in communities such as the District of Columbia?

On one side there are those who argue that Walmart should be welcomed for providing quality produce and goods at affordable prices and creating hundreds of jobs for local citizens.

On the other side are those who say that huge stores like Walmart decimate small and independent businesses and pay low wages that workers cannot live on.

The decision is typically presented in many communities as a clear choice, presenting an up or down vote. The D.C. City Council has brought an element of compromise to the issue by voting to require a minimum pay scale for large employers like Walmart.

Perhaps that could be seen as a middleground approach, but it ought to have been introduced at the start of the process, not as an afterthought once three stores were under construction.

Finally, I turn to the issue of government entitlements: Social Security and Medicare. Here, too, we hear arguments setting up a battle to the death.

Seniors who have long been promised a secure retirement with inflation adjustments — who worked hard for decades, fought in national wars, scrimped and saved for years — feel it’s completely unfair to change the rules at this time of their lives.

Others point out that rising longevity has extended by decades the years that

benefits are being paid, and that the retirement of the baby boom generation just now getting underway will, in a few years, be diverting two-thirds of discretionary federal dollars to senior programs, to the detriment of every other government program, including those for children, education, research, transportation and more.

Here, I think it should be clear that a variety of solutions exist. Yes, there are competing interests and legitimate points to be made on both sides. But there are also ways of adjusting payments to help the truly needy by reducing benefits to the truly wealthy without undermining the whole enterprise.

I have written many times about the changes that can be carefully crafted to protect those already retired or close to retirement. And I have pointed out that relatively subtle adjustments to different elements of Social Security and Medicare can spread the pain among different groups, over a period of many years.

Yes, some problems are intractable, and a rare few may even present a zero-sum game. But if we’re willing to step back and listen to each other, admit there are good arguments on both sides, and make a serious effort at compromise, we may find that many of our most divisive issues can be reasonably resolved.

I certainly believe entitlement reform is capable of such a solution, and I urge everyone to start considering it. We owe it to ourselves and to our progeny.

Letters to the editor Readers are encouraged to share their opinion on any matter addressed in the Beacon as well as on political and social issues of the day. Mail your Letter to the Editor to The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915, or e-mail to barbara@thebeaconnewspapers.com. Please include your name, address and telephone number for verification.

Dear Editor: The article “How to become more creative later in life” in the July issue is interesting and stimulating. But it focuses far too narrowly on artistic creativity. There is quite another dimension that needs to be recognized.

If you had a career in a profession in serious science, such as being a university professor (as I was), you had to stick to existing orthodoxies if you wanted to attain tenure and funding for your work. If you wanted to feed your family, it would have been foolish to do otherwise.

When you retire, many of these constrictions have been lifted. You can now follow some of your long-delayed dreams.

Since age 65 I have published four books — two self-published and two published by a university press. All of these are outside the mainstream; all allow me the luxury of following my creative yearnings.

I am convinced that I am not alone in having creative yearnings that were too-

long delayed, but are by no means dead.

My website, QuestForEffectiveLiving.com, describes my most recent book, an effort to jump-start a new science about the social space in which we humans live.

Fred Emil Katz Baltimore Dear Editor: I love reading every article in the Beacon. Thank you for such valuable information every month.

I wholeheartedly agree with the column in the July issue, “What is private anymore?” Who can we trust?

Whenever I go to my doctors, at the first visit, I’m asked to sign the HIPAA privacy form. Because I am a very private person, I do not divulge my e-mail address at most of my initial visits.

I had cataract surgery in December.

Shortly after my initial visit to my doctor, I See LETTERS TO EDITOR, page 35

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

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FROM IMMOBILE TO MOBILE Motor-powered exoskeletons help the paralyzed to walk again ANTI-AGING DRINKS These drinks aren’t the fountain of youth, but they do slow aging LYME DISEASE LIMBO To diagnose Lyme disease, other diseases must be ruled out first DO YOU HAVE HIGH CHOLESTEROL? If so, help test a new drug at the Sinai Center for Thrombosis Research

Brain scans can ‘see’ and measure pain

By Marilynn Marchione In a provocative new study, scientists reported that they were able to “see” pain on brain scans and, for the first time, measure its intensity and tell whether a drug was relieving it. Though the research is in its early stages, it opens the door to many possibilities.

Scans might be used someday to tell when pain is hurting a baby, someone with dementia, or a paralyzed person unable to talk. They might lead to new, less addictive pain medicines. They might even help verify claims for disability.

“Many people suffer from chronic pain, and they’re not always believed. We see this as a way to confirm or corroborate pain if there is a doubt,” said Tor Wager, a neuroscientist at the University of Colorado, Boulder.

He led the research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. So far it is only on pain felt through the skin — heat applied to an arm. More study needs to be done on more common kinds of pain, such as headaches, bad backs and pain from disease.

Pain is the top reason people see a doctor, and there’s no way to quantify how bad it is other than what they say. A big quest in neuroscience is to find tests or scans that can help diagnose ailments with mental and physical components such as pain, depression and PTSD, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

Looking for pain’s “signature” Although many studies have found brain areas that light up when pain is pres-

ent, the new work is the first to develop a combined signature from all these signals that can be used to measure pain.

“This is very exciting work. They made a huge breakthrough in thinking about brain patterns,” said Dr. David Shurtleff, acting deputy director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, which helped sponsor the research. “We need a brain-based signature for pain. Self-report doesn’t cut it.

It’s not reliable, it’s not accurate.”

The research involved four experiments at Columbia University approved by a panel to ensure no participants were harmed. In all, 114 healthy volunteers were paid $50 to $200 to be tested with a heating element placed against a forearm at various temperatures, not severe enough to cause burns or lasting damage. Some of the experiments required them to stand it for 10 to 20 seconds.

“It’s like holding a hot cup of coffee that you really want to put down but can’t quite yet,” Wager said.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI scans, which don’t require radiation as X-rays do, recorded changes in brain activity as measured by blood flow.

Computers were used to generate signatures or patterns from these readings.

The first set of experiments on 20 people developed signatures for pain versus the anticipation of it or mild warmth on the arm.

The second experiment validated these signatures in 33 other people and found they predicted how much pain they said they felt.

“It’s really what seems to be a true meas-

ure of the experience that the patient’s having,” and it gives a number to pain severity that can guide care, said one expert with no role in the studies, Dr. Costantino Iadecola, director of the Brain and Mind Research Institute at Weill Cornell Medical College.

Measuring emotional pain, too Researchers took their work a step further with the third experiment, which involved 40 people who recently lost a serious love relationship and were feeling intensely rejected. Besides the heat tests, they had scans while being shown a picture of their former partners and then a picture of a good friend. Researchers found the brain signatures for social or

emotional pain were different from the ones for physical pain.

“That’s very provocative,” said Dr. Allan Ropper, a neurologist at Brigham and Women’s and Harvard University who wrote a commentary in the journal. The signatures seem highly accurate and able to distinguish physical pain from other kinds, he said.

In the fourth experiment, researchers gave 21 participants two infusions of a morphine-like drug while they were being scanned and having the heat tests. The first time, they knew they were getting the drug.

The second time they were told they were getting dummy infusions but in fact got the See BRAIN SCANS, page 4

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Exercise can cause or prevent foot pain Q: Does exercise increase your chances of developing plantar fasciitis or help protect against it?

A: Plantar fasciitis is an inflammation in a band of tissue that runs from your heel to the bones in the ball of your foot, and it makes walking quite painful. One of the most common orthopedic complaints involving the feet, it most often occurs after age 40.

Exercise increases your risk of plantar fasciitis if you run long distances, especially on hills or uneven surfaces, or exercise in shoes that don’t provide enough support in the arch of the foot or padding in the heel.

On the other hand, risk of plantar fasciitis also increases with excess body weight or when the Achilles tendon (the tendon

connecting the muscles in the calf of your leg to your heel) gets tight.

Adequate exercise is a key factor in avoiding weight gain, and proper stretching to keep ankles, calf muscles and Achilles tendons flexible helps reduce risk of plantar fasciitis.

One of the main symptoms of plantar fasciitis is heel pain when you first get out of bed or stand up after sitting for an extended time. The pain usually gets better as you walk a bit more, but gets worse as the day continues.

If you think you have plantar fasciitis, see your healthcare provider to make sure this is the cause of your pain. It can take quite awhile for the problem to resolve, but most people do feel better

Tomato juice has been used in many within a year if they take certain actions.

Because it can take so long to improve, and studies because it’s been shown to effectively provide lycopene that can pose such an obstacle to the may help reduce risk of exercise that keeps you healthy, prostate cancer. it’s important to talk with your And in a laboratory study doctor about how much to rest, that tried to mimic human dihow to gradually add activity gestion processes to see how back in, and what sort of shoes, carotenoid compounds are afinserts, stretching exercises or fected, researchers calculated even night splints on your foot that in equal weight portions, you might need. more lycopene would be abWork with your healthcare sorbed from raw watermelon provider to find alternative than from raw tomatoes. ways to be physically active in NUTRITION When you bring it home, a way that is safe and comfort- WISE By Karen Collins, keep uncut watermelon at able for you. room temperature for up to a The American Academy of MS, RD, CDM week or until fully ripe. Not Family Practice website shows two stretches that are recommend- only will the melon get better tasting, reed to be done twice a day to help resolve search on uncut watermelon shows that lyor prevent plantar fasciitis, but do make copene content may even increase during sure to get individualized advice from room temperature storage.

Watermelon is also an excellent source your doctor before you try them if you alof vitamin C, and it holds on to virtually all ready have this condition.

To see the stretches, scroll halfway down of its vitamin C and carotenoid compounds this web page: http://bit.ly/plantarfascitis. during this storage period.

Refrigerate the watermelon once it’s Q: I’ve heard that watermelon is a good source of lycopene. Is watermel- ripe or after you’ve cut it in pieces, and use on as good a source of lycopene as within five days.

The American Institute for Cancer Retomatoes?

A: Watermelon is rich in lycopene, a search offers a Nutrition Hotline, 1-800phytochemical that is a carotenoid “cousin” 843-8114, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This free service allows you to beta-carotene.

Lycopene from watermelon seems to be to ask questions about diet, nutrition and well absorbed without the cooking or pres- cancer. A registered dietitian will return ence of fat that so markedly increases how your call, usually within three business days.

Courtesy of the American Institute for much lycopene we absorb from tomatoes.

Research is limited, but in one human Cancer Research. Questions for this column study, lycopene from raw watermelon juice may be sent to “Nutrition Wise,” 1759 R St., was absorbed as well as the lycopene from NW, Washington, DC 20009. Collins cannot respond to questions personally. heat-treated tomato juice.

Brain scans From page 3 drug again. Brain signatures showed their pain was being relieved both times in proportion to how much drug was in their systems.

“This is beginning to open a new wedge into brain science,” Ropper said. “There may be completely novel ways of treating

pain by focusing on these areas of the brain rather than on conventional medications, which block pain impulses from getting into the spinal cord and brain.”

Shurtleff also said he hoped the research would lead to newer drugs. “We want medications that can reduce this signature and don’t show a signature for addiction,” he said.

— AP

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New test aids prostate treatment decision

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Oncotype DX Genomic Prostate Score — was discussed at an American Urological Association meeting in San Diego in May. The results suggest the test could triple the number of men thought to be at such low risk for aggressive disease that monitoring is a clearly safe option. Conversely, the test also suggested some tumors were more aggressive than doctors had believed.

Independent experts say such a test is desperately needed, but that it’s unclear how much information this one adds or whether it will be enough to persuade men with lowrisk tumors to forgo treatment, and treat it only if it gets worse. Only 10 percent who are candidates for monitoring choose it now.

“The question is, what’s the magnitude of difference that would change the patient’s mind?” said Dr. Bruce Roth, a cancer specialist at Washington University in St. Louis.

One man may view a 15 percent chance that his tumor is aggressive as low risk, “but someone else might say, ‘Oh my God, let’s set the surgery up tomorrow,’” he said. “I don’t think it’s a slam dunk.”

Also unknown: Will insurers pay for the expensive test without evidence it leads to better care or saves lives?

The newest test was developed by Genomic Health Inc., which has sold a similar

F R E E

By Marilynn Marchione A new genetic test to gauge the aggressiveness of prostate cancer may help tens of thousands of men each year decide whether they need to treat their cancer right away or can safely monitor it.

The new test, which went on sale in May, joins another one that came on the market earlier this year. Both analyze multiple genes in a biopsy sample and give a score for aggressiveness, similar to tests used now for certain breast and colon cancers.

Doctors say tests like these have the potential to curb a major problem in cancer care — overtreatment. Prostate tumors usually grow so slowly they will never threaten a man’s life, but some prove fatal — and there is no reliable way now to tell which ones are which type.

Treatment with surgery, radiation or hormone blockers isn’t needed in most cases and can cause impotence or incontinence, yet most men are afraid to skip it.

“We’re not giving patients enough information to make their decision,” said Dr. Peter Carroll, chairman of urology at the University of California, San Francisco.

“You can shop for a toaster” better than for prostate treatment, he said.

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Prostate test From page 5 one for breast cancer since 2004. Doctors at first were leery of it until studies in more groups of women proved its value, and the same may happen with the prostate test, said Dr. Len Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society’s deputy chief medical officer.

The company will charge $3,820 for the prostate test and says it can save money by avoiding costlier, unnecessary treatment.

Another test for assessing prostate cancer risk that came out last summer — Prolaris

by Myriad Genetics Inc. — sells for $3,400.

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

Both companies can sell the tests without Food and Drug Administration approval under separate rules that govern lab diagnostics.

Myriad Genetics has published nine studies on Prolaris involving more than 3,000 patients. Genomic Health has not published any results on its prostate test, another thing that makes doctors wary. Yet it has a track record from its breast cancer test.

About 240,000 men in the U.S. are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, and about half are classified as low risk using current methods. Doctors now base risk estimates on factors such as a man’s age

and how aggressive cells look from biopsies that give 12 to 14 tissue samples. But tumors often are spread out and vary from one spot to the other.

“Unless you can be sure your biopsy has hit the most aggressive part that’s in the prostate, you can’t be sure” how accurate your risk estimate is, explained Dr. Eric Klein, chief of urology at the Cleveland Clinic, who led early development of the Oncotype prostate cancer test.

Testing the test For one study, researchers used prostates removed from 440 men. They measured the activity of hundreds of genes thought to be involved in whether the cancer spread beyond the prostate or proved fatal.

A second study of biopsies from 167 patients narrowed it down to 81 genes, and researchers picked 17 that seemed to predict aggressiveness no matter the location in the tumor.

A third study used single-needle biopsy samples from 395 UCSF patients scheduled

to have their prostates removed. The gene test accurately predicted the aggressiveness of their cancer once doctors were able to see the whole prostate after surgery.

Using one current method, 37 of the 395 men would have been called very low risk and good candidates for monitoring.

Adding the gene test put 100 men into that category, said another study leader, Dr. Matthew Cooperberg of UCSF. The gene test shifted about half of the men into either a lower or a higher risk category.

“It went both ways — that was the remarkable thing. In any category of risk it added independent information compared to the standard criteria we use today,” Carroll said. “More work needs to be done, but, in my opinion, this is a very good start.”

However, Dr. Kevin McVary, chairman of urology at Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and a spokesman for the Urological Association, said the test must be validated in more men before it can be widely used.

“It’s not there yet,” he said.

— AP

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Wednesday, July 31, 7 - 8:30 pm

July 28 thru Sept 1, Daily 10 - 7

Reserve now! Our distinguished specialists from the Parkinson’s & Movement Disorders Center of Maryland discuss treatments, therapies, and related lifestyle changes.

Also learn about our new support group! Light buffet.

It’s Free! It’s Inspiring! The “Quilt” was conceived and created to focus attention on the millions worldwide living with Parkinson’s and the urgency to find a cure. This year 600 people created 2’ x 2’ quilt panels to raise awareness. 32 will be on display.

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Medicare coverage has changed.

We can help.

We accept Medicare for diabetes testing supplies and have all the major brands for the same cost as mail order.

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

Exoskeletons enable paralyzed to walk

By Carla K. Johnson When Michael Gore stands, it’s a triumph of science and engineering. Eleven

years ago, Gore was paralyzed from the waist down in a workplace accident, yet he rises from his wheelchair and walks across

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the room with help from a lightweight “powered exoskeleton.”

The technology has many nicknames.

Besides exoskeleton, the inventions are also called “electronic legs” or “wearable robots.”

This version, called Indego, is among several competing products being used and tested in U.S. rehab hospitals that hold promise not only for people such as Gore with spinal injuries, but also those recovering from strokes or afflicted with multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.

Still at least a year away from the market, the 27-pound Indego is the lightest of the powered exoskeletons. It snaps together from pieces that fit into a backpack. The goal is for the user to be able to carry it on a wheelchair, put it together, strap it on and walk independently.

None of the products, including the Indego, are yet approved by U.S. regulators for personal use, meaning they must be used under the supervision of a physical therapist.

Gore, 42, of Whiteville, N.C., demonstrated the device last month at the American Spinal Injury Association meeting in Chicago, successfully negotiating a noisy, crowded hallway of medical professionals and people with spinal injuries in wheelchairs.

When he leans for ward, the device takes a first step. When he tilts from side to side, it walks. When Gore wants to stop, he leans back and the robotic leg braces come to a halt. Gore uses forearm crutches for balance. A battery in the hip piece powers the motors in the robotic legs.

“Being able to speak with you eye-to-eye is just a big emotional boost,” Gore said to a reporter. “Being able to walk up to you

and say hello is not a big thing until you cannot do it.”

Some drawbacks The devices won’t replace wheelchairs, which are faster. None of the devices are speedy enough, for example, for a paralyzed person to walk across a street before the light changes, said Arun Jayaraman of the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago, who is testing a number of similar devices.

“None of them have fall prevention technology,” Jayaraman added. “If the person falls, they can hurt themselves badly. If you fall down, how do you get off a robot that is strapped into you?” In addition, they need to be even lighter and have longerlasting batteries, he said.

Still, Jayaraman said, the devices might help prevent pressure sores from sitting too long in a wheelchair, improve heart health, develop muscle strength, lift depression and ultimately bring down medical costs by keeping healthier patients out of the hospital.

Made by several companies Companies in Israel, New Zealand and California make competing devices, and all the products are becoming less bulky as they are refined.

The Indego was invented at Vanderbilt University in Nashville and tested at the Shepherd Center, a rehabilitation hospital in Atlanta. It’s now licensed to Clevelandbased Parker Hannifin Corp., which makes precision engineered products like aircraft wheels and brakes.

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BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

9

Stay sharp with these 11 anti-aging drinks killers in the United States: heart disease, cancer and stroke.

In fact, researchers from Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock recently found that green tea can inhibit oxidative stress and the potential inflammation that may result from it.

“After 24 weeks, people who consumed 500 mg. of green tea polyphenols daily — that’s about 4 to 6 cups of tea — halved their oxidative stress levels,” said Leslie Shen, Ph.D., the study’s lead author. (The placebo group didn’t see a single change.)

6. Soy milk for firm skin and fewer wrinkles The isoflavones in soymilk may help to preserve skin-firming collagen. In a study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, mice fed isoflavones and exposed to UV radiation had fewer wrinkles and smoother skin than mice that

were exposed to UV light but didn’t get isoflavones. The researchers think that isoflavones help prevent collagen breakdown.

7. Milk to build muscle mass and strength

Studies show that we lose 1/2 to 1 percent of our lean muscle mass each year, starting as early as our 30s. Muscle strength also declines by 12 to 15 percent See ANTI-AGING DRINKS, page 10

E M !

CO U E YO W TO

By Brierley Wright Aging is inevitable. And there are many variables involved in how long you live.

But you can also add years to your life by making smarter food choices. Help keep your mind razor-sharp and body finely honed with these anti-aging drinks: 1. Pink grapefruit juice for smoother skin Pink grapefruit gets its pink-red hue from lycopene, a carotenoid that’ll keep your skin smooth, according to a small study published in the European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics. Researchers found that of the 20 individuals studied, those who had higher skin concentrations of lycopene had smoother skin.

2. Alcohol to ward off Alzheimer’s disease Drinking alcohol — moderately, which is one glass a day for women and two daily for men — may ward off dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

As we age, brain cells die, leading to gaps that slow nerve transmission within the brain and between the brain and the rest of the body.

Moderate drinking appears to somehow prevent these “potholes.” (Scientists aren’t sure why.) In high doses, however, alcohol kills brain cells, leading to brain damage that may manifest itself as permanent memory loss.

3. Cocoa for a healthier heart The Kuna people of the San Blas islands, off the coast of Panama, have a rate of heart disease nine times less than that of mainland Panamanians.

The reason? The Kuna drink plenty of a beverage made with generous proportions of cocoa, which is unusually rich in flavanols that help preserve the healthy function of blood vessels.

Maintaining youthful blood vessels lowers risk of high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, kidney disease and dementia.

4. Beet juice to beat dementia Beets are rich in naturally occurring nitrates, which — unlike unhealthy artificial nitrates found in processed meat — may be beneficial.

In a 2011 study in the journal Nitric Oxide, older adults who ate a nitrate-rich diet got a boost in blood flow to the frontal lobe of their brains — an area commonly associated with dementia. Poor blood flow contributes to age-related cognitive decline.

Scientists think that the nitrates’ nitric oxide, a compound that keeps blood vessels supple, helps increase brain blood flow. Cabbages and radishes also naturally contain nitrates.

5. Green tea to fight inflammation Even if coffee is your beverage of choice, don’t bag tea altogether, especially green tea. Green tea is full of potent antioxidants that help quell inflammation.

Chronic inflammation plays a significant role — as either a cause or effect — in many diseases, including type 2 diabetes, autoimmune diseases and the three top

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Anti-aging drinks From page 9 per decade.

The amino acids in protein are the building blocks of muscle — and one amino acid, called leucine, is particularly good at turning on your body’s muscle-building machinery.

Once that muscle-building switch is flipped — you need to do this at each meal — you’re better able to take in the amino acids (of any type) from protein in your diet.

Milk contains whey protein, an excellent source of leucine. Other dairy prod-

ucts, such as Greek yogurt, as well as lean meat, fish and soy, such as edamame and tofu, are also rich in this amino acid.

8. Carrot juice for memory Carrots contain luteolin, a flavonoid believed to reduce inflammation that can lead to cognitive decline.

In a 2010 study published in the Journal of Nutrition, mice that ate a diet that included luteolin had better spatial memory (e.g., how quickly they found a platform in a water maze) and less inflammation than mice that didn’t get any luteolin. Luteolin is also found in bell peppers, celery, rosemary and thyme.

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

9. Coffee may protect against skin cancer Drinking a single cup of coffee daily may lower your risk of developing skin cancer.

In one study of more than 93,000 women, published in the European Journal of Cancer Prevention, those who drank 1 cup of caffeinated coffee a day reduced their risk of developing nonmelanoma skin cancer by about 10 percent. And the more they drank — up to about 6 cups or so per day — the lower their risk. Decaf didn’t seem to offer the same protection.

10. Water for better breath Water keeps your throat and lips moist and prevents your mouth from feeling dry.

Dry mouth can cause bad breath and/or an unpleasant taste — and can even promote cavities.

11. Orange juice for eye health

Studies show that people with low levels of antioxidants are more likely to develop agerelated macular degeneration (AMD) than those with higher levels. (AMD is the leading cause of blindness in people over 60.)

Vitamin C, abundant in orange juice, is one antioxidant that seems to be especially protective against the disease. (Other antioxidants include vitamin E, lutein and zeaxanthin.)

While it’s not completely clear how antioxidants protect your eyes, it seems that they accumulate in the retina where they can mop up free radicals, compounds that damage cells by starving them of oxygen.

EatingWell is a magazine and website devoted to healthy eating as a way of life. Online at www.eatingwell.com. © 2013 EatingWell, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.

Exoskeletons

Paul Tobin, president of the nonprofit advocacy group United Spinal, said wearable robots present an exciting opportunity, but that patients should keep their expectations realistic.

“It’s going to be critical that people have a thorough medical evaluation before trying something like this, especially if they’ve been injured for some time,” Tobin said. “It won’t be appropriate for everyone. For some people, it will be a godsend.”

— AP

From page 8 personal use. Some technology news media reports have said $50,000 to $75,000.

Indego’s makers want to bring the cost below that, said co-inventor Ryan Farris of Parker Hannifin. Experts say it will take years of research to prove health benefits before Medicare and private insurance companies would consider covering the expense.

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BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

11

Varied ways to fight hospital infections

By Mike Stobbe They sweep. They swab. They sterilize.

And still the germs persist.

In U.S. hospitals, an estimated 1 in 20 patients pick up infections they didn’t have when they arrived, some caused by dangerous “superbugs” that are hard to treat.

The rise of these superbugs, along with increased pressure from the government and insurers, is driving hospitals to try all sorts of new approaches to stop their spread: Machines that resemble “Star Wars” robots and emit ultraviolet light or hydrogen peroxide vapors. Germ-resistant copper bed rails, call buttons and IV poles. Antimicrobial linens, curtains and wall paint.

While these products can help get a room clean, their true impact is still debatable. There is no widely-accepted evidence that these inventions have prevented infections or deaths.

Meanwhile, insurers are pushing hospitals to do a better job, and the government’s Medicare program has moved to stop paying bills for certain infections caught in the hospital.

“We’re seeing a culture change” in hospitals, said Jennie Mayfield, who tracks infections at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis.

Those hospital infections are tied to an estimated 100,000 deaths each year and add as much as $30 billion a year in medical costs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The agency last month sounded an alarm about a “nightmare bacteria” resistant to one class of antibiotics. That kind is still rare, but it showed up last year in at least 200 hospitals.

C-diff especially difficult Hospitals started paying attention to infection control in the late 1880s, when mounting evidence showed unsanitary conditions

were hurting patients. Hospital hygiene has been a concern ever since, with a renewed emphasis triggered by the emergence a decade ago of a nasty strain of intestinal bug called Clostridium difficile, or C-diff.

The diarrhea-causing C-diff is now linked to 14,000 U.S. deaths annually. That’s been the catalyst for the growing focus on infection control, said Mayfield, who is also president-elect of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology.

C-diff is easier to treat than some other hospital superbugs, like methicillin-resistant staph, or MRSA. But it’s particularly difficult to clean away. Alcohol-based hand sanitizers don’t work, and C-diff can persist on hospital room surfaces for days.

The CDC recommends hospital staff clean their hands rigorously with soap and water — or better yet, wear gloves. And rooms should be cleaned intensively with bleach, the CDC says.

Complicating matters is the fact that larger proportions of hospital patients today are sicker and more susceptible to the ravages of infections, said Dr. Marisa Montecalvo, a contagious diseases specialist.

There’s a growing recognition that it’s not only surgical knives and operating rooms that need a thorough cleaning, but also spots like bed rails and even television remote controls, she said. Now there’s more attention to making sure “that all the nooks and crannies are clean, and that it’s done in as perfect a manner as can be done,” Montecalvo said.

Portable germ-killing machine Enter companies like Xenex Healthcare Services, a San Antonio company that makes a portable, $125,000 machine that’s rolled into rooms to zap C-diff and other bacteria and viruses dead with ultraviolet light. Xenex has sold or leased devices to

more than 100 U.S. hospitals.

The market niche is expected to grow from $30 million to $80 million in the next three years, according to Frost & Sullivan,

a market research firm.

Mark Stibich, Xenex’s chief scientific ofSee SUPERBUGS, page 12

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Superbugs From page 11 ficer, said client hospitals sometimes call them robots and report improved satisfaction scores from patients who seem impressed that the medical center is trotting out that kind of technology.

At Cooley Dickinson Hospital, a 140-bed facility in Northampton, Massachusetts, the staff calls their machines Thing One, Thing Two, Thing Three and Thing Four, borrowing from the children’s book The Cat in the Hat. But while the things in the Dr. Seuss tale were house-wrecking imps, Cooley Dickinson officials said the ultraviolet has done a terrific job at cleaning their hospital of the difficult C-diff.

“We did all the recommended things. We

used bleach. We monitored the quality of cleaning,” but C-diff rates wouldn’t budge, said nurse Linda Riley, who’s in charge of infection prevention at Cooley Dickinson.

A small observational study at the hospital showed C-diff infection rates fell by half and C-diff deaths fell from 14 to 2 during the last two years, compared to the two years before the machines.

Hand washing is still key Some experts say there’s not enough evidence to show the machines are worth it. No national study has shown that these products have led to reduced deaths or infection rates, noted Dr. L. Clifford McDonald of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

His point: It only takes a minute for a nurse or visitor with dirty hands to walk into a room, touch a vulnerable patient

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

with germy hands, and undo the benefits of a recent space-age cleaning.

“Environments get dirty again,” McDonald said, and thorough cleaning with conventional disinfectants ought to do the job.

Beyond products to disinfect a room, there are tools to make sure doctors, nurses and other hospital staff are properly cleaning their hands when they come into a patient’s room. Among them are scanners that monitor how many times a healthcare worker uses a sink or hand sanitizer dispenser.

Still, “technology only takes us so far,” said Christian Lillis, who runs a small foundation named after his mother, who died from a C-diff infection.

Lillis said the hospitals he is most im-

pressed with include Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago, where thorough cleanings are confirmed with spot checks. Fluorescent powder is dabbed around a room before it’s cleaned and a special light shows if the powder was removed. That strategy was followed by a 28 percent decline in C-diff, he said.

He also cites Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois, where the focus is on elbow grease and bleach wipes.

What’s different, he said, is the merger of the housekeeping and infection prevention staff. That emphasizes that cleaning is less about being a maid’s service than about saving patients from superbugs.

“If your hospital’s not clean, you’re creating more problems than you’re solving,” Lillis said.

— AP

BEACON BITS

July 29

KEEP MOVING WITH ARTHRITIS

Learn different ways you can stay active with arthritis at this seminar on Monday, July 29, at 11 a.m. at the Overlea Senior Center, 4314 Fullerton Ave. For more information, call (410) 887-5220.

Aug. 6+

SEEDS OF HOPE BEREAVEMENT GROUP

Seeds of Hope, a bereavement group offered by the Palliative Care Program at Johns Hopkins Bayview, meets the first Tuesday of every month from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Care Center Conference Room in the John R. Burton Pavilion, 4940 Eastern Ave. The next meeting will be Aug. 6. For more information, call (410) 550-0291.

Immediate openings. s y Respite sta . available

Now that Mom’s at The Maples, our time together is all about the good stuff.

When someone you love needs care, you worry about them all the time. The process of finding the support they need in a place they’re comfortable can be overwhelming.

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BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

13

Pets and bugs can transmit Lyme disease Dear Pharmacist: bites/scratches, mites, fleas, mosquitoes, On Facebook, you said people catch biting flies and ticks. Sadly, antibody blood Lyme disease from their tests only detect a few strains. pets, which tote ticks.

So your test result may say That’s how I got Lyme, negative for Bart (and Lyme and I have Bartonella, too. for that matter), but you still I found this out thanks have it. to you, and it explained Physicians unaware of the my symptoms of joint limitations of standard ELISA pain, confusion, memory blood tests mistakenly accept loss and seizures. I owe a “negative” result and diagmy life to you!

— D.C. nose you with a neurological Dear D.C.: or autoimmune disease, fiThank you. Lyme is the DEAR bromyalgia, CFS or any one of PHARMACIST fastest growing epidemic in 300 diseases that Lyme mimBy Suzy Cohen the United States. It’s been a ics. focus for me ever since my It’s a terrible oversight befirst column which sparked thousands of cause you might really have Lyme and co“atta girl” emails from 27 countries. infections like Bart, Babesia or Ehrlichia.

Few medical journalists tackle Lyme beI’m sure you are alarmed by now, but do cause it’s extremely controversial. You you realize there’s no conclusive test for fisee, some physicians don’t believe chronic bromyalgia or CFS? These are diagnoses Lyme exists, and there’s a huge divide of “exclusion,” meaning your doctor tests about treatment protocols. you and rules out every other disease beSo while the docs are busy arguing fore stamping you with fibro/CFS. about whether it’s real, and how long to But you must ask if Lyme and Bartoneltreat it, most Lymies are misdiagnosed. la have been ruled out properly by capaThey bounce from doctor to doctor, suffer ble, specialized laboratories. For Lyme, I beyond belief, and some die. Others want recommend testing by Igenex Labs. For to.

Bartonella, I recommend either Igenex or There are 30 Bartonella-like or “Bart” Galaxy Labs. With all their limitations, species. You can get infected from cat they’re still more reliable than standard

ELISA tests, which are frequently wrong.

I interviewed a Lyme-literate medical doctor, Marty Ross, M.D. who said, “I often make my decision to treat Bartonella based on symptoms. If you have enough Bartonella symptoms, you should be treated for the infection regardless of testing.” I suggest you get Dr. Ross’s free treatment manual from www.TreatLyme.net.

Bart symptoms include chronic fatigue, pain, muscle twitching (fasciculations), anxiety, depression, abdominal pain, vomiting, fever/chills, autistic-like symptoms, hallucinations, neuropathy, tinnitus, joint pain, skin rash, stretch marks, memory loss, brain fog, cystitis and excessive day sweats.

Bartonella affects the brain. It also affects vision, causing conjunctivitis, foreign body sensation, vision loss, optic neuritis, redness, blurriness and light sensitivity.

I have more to say. To receive an extended version of my article, sign up for my free newsletter at www.DearPharmacist.com. I also recommend an excellent book by Stephen Harrod Buhner called Healing Lyme Disease Co-infections, available from Amazon.com.

This information is opinion only. It is not intended to treat, cure or diagnose your condition. Consult with your doctor before using any new drug or supplement. Visit Suzy Cohen at www.dearpharmacist.com.

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6

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

Health Studies Page

THE PLACE TO LOOK FOR INFORMATION ON AREA CLINICAL TRIALS

Study examines new cholesterol medication The Sinai Center for Thrombosis Research, under the direction of Dr. Paul Gurbel, has been actively fighting heart disease by designing and conducting clinical trials investigating novel drug therapies and devices.

The center is currently conducting a trial investigating the clinical effects of a

new cholesterol medication called Evacetrapib. The study will also investigate the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events in patients with “high-risk vascular disease.”

Cholesterol concerns Cholesterol is one of the many sub-

Do you have more trouble than usual remembering things?

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You may participate at: Johns Hopkins Bayview or Mays Chapel Ridge Participation involves 1 screening visit, 4 visits lasting 5 hours, and 17 visits lasting 1 hour.

You will be paid $620 for the study.

For more information, please call Christina at (410) 550-2688.

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stances created and used by our bodies to keep us healthy. There are two types of cholesterol: “good” (HDL) and “bad” (LDL). Cholesterol levels in the blood can be used to monitor a person’s risk for heart disease.

When there is too much LDL in the blood, it builds up in the walls of the arteries (vessels that carry blood to the heart, brain, and legs and all other parts of our bodies).

When the arteries become narrowed, the blood flow slows down and the blood vessels may be blocked. Patients who have blockages in their arteries may be diagnosed with “high-risk vascular disease.”

Those people are at high risk of having a heart attack or stroke, or may even die from the disease. HDL (the good cholesterol) helps to keep the LDL from getting lodged into your artery walls. An unhealthy diet or family history can cause high cholesterol.

If the low-cholesterol diet does not work to lower bad cholesterol and increase good cholesterol, your doctor may prescribe medications. Evacetrapib is being developed to reduce the risk of future cardiovascular events by significantly raising the good cholesterol and lowering the bad cholesterol in the blood.

Taking part in the study Approximately 11,000 patients are being recruited around the world for the study.

Participants must be 18 years of age or older, and must currently be taking medication to treat abnormal cholesterol levels. Prospective candidates must also have had a heart attack, unstable angina, stroke, peripheral artery disease or diabetes with coronary artery disease.

This study is expected to last from 18 months to four years and will include up to 14 visits at the study site at Sinai Hospital, 2401 West Belvedere Ave., and six followup phone calls for about three years.

Study participants will receive: • Reimbursement of up to $1,400 for time and expenses.

• Close lipid monitoring for the duration of the study and study drug at no cost.

• A physical exam with cardiologist and complete laboratory blood work-up.

The information learned about the study drug and how it works may be helpful to patients with heart disease in the future.

If you are interested, contact the Sinai Center for Thrombosis Research at (410) 601-4795 or email Kevin Bliden at kbliden@lifebridgehealth.org. The study team will assist you with determining your eligibility and with any questions you may have.

BEACON BITS

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BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

Cycling From page 1 of impotence than those who do little or no exercise.

Cycling Seniors club That may be one reason older adults in the area are once again taking up what has always been a popular childhood pastime.

At 79, Towson resident Bob Carson is the organizer of Ateaze Cycling Seniors.

It’s not a program of Ateaze Senior Center, but it does operate out of the center’s Holabird Avenue location.

Carson, a retired elementary school physical education teacher, had biked as a kid: As a native of Buffalo, he would regularly ride to Canada. But when he began working and got a car, “well, that did away with the bike,” he said.

In 1972, Carson took a summer job that required him to have a bike, and he picked up the sport again. Since then, he has been active in local cycling groups, has helped run national biking events, and eventually joined Cycling Seniors, first as a participant, and now as the leader.

About 300 people, from 50-year-old “youngsters” to the oldest active rider at 87, are on the group’s email list, and about 20 to 30 join the rides every Friday throughout the Baltimore metropolitan area and on the Eastern Shore. The trips usually range from 25 to 35 miles, though some may be longer, some shorter, so that all skill levels can be included throughout the year.

In deference to not being quite as nimble as he once was, Carson uses a recumbent bike, which he finds much more comfortable. And though his fellow cyclists are known to observe that “these hills are getting just a bit steeper,” Carson continues to bike most days, both for recreation and to run errands.

He believes his efforts produce benefits both physical and social. “My blood pressure is lower,” he said, “and the group also gives us a chance to socialize, which is just as important as you get older.”

Gaynor Collester, supervisor of technical product support for Performance Bicycle, Inc., a nationwide cycling retailer with locations in Baltimore and Columbia, added that another reason for the increased popularity among “gray beards” (not that women don’t ride too, of course) is that, compared to other sports, cycling is much easier on the body.

“There are no sudden stops and starts as there are in tennis, for example, and no stress on your joints, as there is in running,” Collester said. The circular, low-resistance motion of cycling “awakens” the joints, but doesn’t strain them, he said.

Furthermore, bike riding is an easy sport to come back to or to pick up later in life, Collester said. “You can do it casually, but you can also set ambitious goals for yourself.”

Buying a bike If you are just starting out, whether as a beginner or after a long bout of inactivity, Collester recommends getting the advice of a reputable bike salesperson who can guide you to the best bike for your body and your needs, including any physical limitations you may have.

Bikes can range in price from basic hybrids that generally cost $300 and up, to “flat bar” road bikes costing from $400 to $600, to full road bikes, from $500 and up.

Then, be smart about your training.

Start slowly and increase your distance, time and intensity no more than 10 percent a week.

“A little at a time goes a long way,” said Collester, an older rider himself at 65.

“Older riders especially need to be more careful about listening to their body.”

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Say you saw it in the Beacon | Fitness & Health

From clubs like Cycling Seniors, to online blogs like Bicycle-Riding-forBoomers.com, to custom-designed bike touring companies such as Senior Cycling (www.seniorcycling.com), biking seems to be all the rage.

Senior Cycling, headquartered in Northern Virginia, uses the tagline: “old folks on spokes.” Its popular custom-designed bicycling trips are already sold out for the rest of 2013.

They run about 12 trips a year, ranging from 2 to 10 days each, and hit the Florida Keys and Central Florida, Maryland, Virginia, Washington D.C., North Carolina,

15

Pennsylvania and Quebec, Canada. Singleday bike rides for older adults are also offered in the Northern Virginia /Washington, D.C. area.

For Senior Cycling founder Pat Blackmon, who is nearing her 75th birthday, with older cyclists there is more of an emphasis on the social aspect of the activity than there may be with younger riders.

“It’s not how far we go,” she said, “but how much we enjoy the journey.

“It’s great exercise too, but that’s not our focus,” she continued, adding with a laugh, “The more you ride, the more often you can have that extra cocktail.”

16

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

Mustard chicken with summer vegetables Few things go together better than chicken and an assortment of summer vegetables all cooked so that the flavors mingle.

Convenient and easy to prepare, this dish makes a great complete summer meal. It also allows you to combine the best of the garden into a single dish.

The delightful mustard sauce seals in the moisture of the chicken while providing a wonderful flavor. The hearty quality is gained from the stone ground mustard.

Mustard is made by grinding mustard

seeds to make a zesty, rustic condiment that is minimally processed.

The fennel with its subtle anise taste adds an unexpected flavor twist to the roasted vegetables. The smaller fennel bulbs are less fibrous, but if you have large bulbs, you can peel off the outer layers for more tender pieces.

The much underutilized fennel has a storied past. It was on Charlemagne’s list of must-have cooking ingredients and was reportedly Thomas Jefferson’s favorite

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vegetable.

When it comes to summer vegetables, the term “new potatoes” is often confusing.

They are not a separate variety of potato, but merely immature or younger versions of other varieties. Harvested during the spring and summer, the skin of new potatoes is generally thinner than the skin found on older potatoes.

Not surprisingly, they are rarely peeled before cooking. Because they are small in size, they blend well with the other vegetables. These qualities make them perfect for roasted dishes.

In addition to the mustard sauce and natural taste of the summer vegetables, the recipe derives great flavor from the thyme — a truly classic summer herb. The onions and celery further add to the layers of flavor.

You might want to make a little extra of this recipe because it makes great leftovers. Simply refrigerate and reheat later to enjoy again.

Mustard Chicken with Summer Vegetables Serves 4 4 Tbsp. stone ground mustard 2 Tbsp. reduced-sodium soy sauce 4 chicken legs, skin removed 4 chicken thighs, skin removed 1 medium fennel bulb, cut into 1-inch wedges

2 small yellow squash, sliced 1 1/2-inch thick 2 small zucchini, sliced 1 1/2-inch thick 4 carrots, sliced in half lengthwise 4 celery stalks, sliced into 2-inch pieces 1 red onion, cut into 1-inch wedges 8 whole baby new red potatoes or 4 small red potatoes, halved 4 sprigs fresh thyme 1 Tbsp. olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In large mixing bowl, whisk together mustard and soy sauce. Add chicken and coat well.

In large baking pan, arrange fennel, squash, zucchini, carrots, celery, onion, potatoes and thyme. Brush vegetables with oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Place chicken over vegetables. Brush chicken with mustard sauce. Cover pan with foil and roast for approximately 50 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are tender.

Remove foil, increase oven temperature to broil and roast another 4 to 5 minutes to brown vegetables and chicken. Serve.

Per serving: 400 calories, 12 g. total fat (3 g. saturated fat), 40 g. carbohydrate, 28 g. protein, 7 g. dietary fiber, 460 mg. sodium.

— Courtesy of the American Institute for Cancer Research

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Say you saw it in the Beacon | Fitness & Health

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

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Coping with obnoxious family members Dear Solutions: Dear Bernie: I have a brother-in-law who has The trouble with that “self-made man” is been very successful finanthat he worships his creator! cially and in business. The But does he really? Dig a trouble as far as I’m conlittle deeper and realize that cerned is that he’s also obhis scoffing at educated peonoxious, and I don’t know ple smacks of jealousy and inhow to deal with him withferiority. out insulting my wife, Instead of punching him since he’s her brother. when he puts these people He never stops reminddown, try something else. ing ever yone that he’s a First give him his due. Tell “self-made man.” Whenevhim you admire his accomSOLUTIONS er he hears of someone plishments.

By Helen Oxenberg, who is a well-educated proThen quietly point out that MSW, ACSW fessional but isn’t rich besuccess comes in different cause of it, he scoffs and forms. It’s not always about repeats his mantra, “What did all that money. It’s also about accomplishment and education get him? Look at me — I loving the work you do. didn’t have to go to school to get Dear Solutions: where I am. I’m a self-made man.”

We had an 85th birthday party for I haven’t punched him yet. Any sug- my brother Ben recently. Unfortunategestions?

— Bernie ly, my sister invited a really annoying

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H elP F orYour F eeT.C oM

nephew of hers whom we hadn’t seen in years.

He’s 32 years old, and he kept saying how amazed he is that Ben is 85 years old, since he assumed Ben was dead by now. He actually said that several times right in front of Ben. And then before he left he said, “Boy, if Ben lives to be 90 that will really be a miracle, so I’ll certainly try to come to that.”

— ???!!!

Dear ???!!!: Just tell this obnoxious bore that if he takes good care of himself, doesn’t smoke or drink, and exercises regularly, he might make it to Ben’s 90th — if he’s invited. © Helen Oxenberg, 2013. Questions to be considered for this column may be sent to: The Beacon, P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915. You may also email the author at helox72@comcast.net. To inquire about reprint rights, call (609) 655-3684.

18

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

Money Law &

PHONY PHONE FEES Scammers may be trying to sneak extra charges onto your cell phone bill; watch for third-party billing and “text spam” BIG BANK STOCKS Banking’s behemoths, like Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase, have made big stock gains

Investing to earn 4 to 8 percent or more

By Nellie S. Huang To earn up to an 8-percent yield in a world where safe investments pay 1 percent or less requires accepting significant risk. But if you really want or need to boost return and are willing to take some risks to do so, read on.

Many of today’s best bets for high yields — master limited partnerships (MLPs), mortgage-owning real estate investment trusts, and business development companies — trade on exchanges like stocks, putting you in the often gut-churning position of watching their share prices whip around like a roller coaster.

But there are also strong dividend-paying stocks and high-yield municipal bonds that more conservative investors might want to consider.

Master limited partnerships Becca Followill, head of stock research at U.S. Capital Advisors, thinks MLPs are a

great idea for superior income. Her favorite is Targa Resources Partners (symbol NGLS; recent price, $46; yield, 6.0 percent).

Morningstar analyst Steven Pikelny likes four closed-end funds offered by BlackRock: BlackRock Corporate High Yield (COY; $8; 7.6 percent); BlackRock Corporate High Yield III (CYE; $8; 7.9 percent); BlackRock Corporate High Yield V (HYV; $13; 8.2 percent); and BlackRock Corporate High Yield VI (HYT; $13; 8.1 percent).

All invest in “junk” bonds and take on a moderate amount of debt to boost their payouts, and all recently traded at close to net asset value. Pikelny suggests buying the one trading at the biggest discount to NAV (or at the smallest premium).

He also favors AllianceBernstein Global High Income (AWF; $16; 7.7 percent). Top holdings of this fund include bonds issued

by Brazil and Argentina, but more than 70

percent of assets are in corporate junk bonds.

Speaking of junk bonds, a key benchmark fund, the Bank of America Merrill Lynch High Yield Master II index, currently yields 5.9 percent.

Wells Fargo Advantage High Income (STHYX; 4.0 percent) yields less because of expenses and because it is more conservatively managed than many junk funds.

Still, High Income beat its typical peer over the past three years, with a 10.3-percent annualized return — and it did so with less volatility.

The biggest junk-bond ETF is iShares iBoxx $ High Yield Corporate Bond (HYG;, 4.9 percent). It charges annual fees of 0.50 percent.

Municipal bond funds If you’re in a high tax bracket, consider a closed-end fund that owns municipal bonds. Nearly all such funds use borrowed

money to boost income.

One that doesn’t is Nuveen Municipal Value Fund (NUV; $10; 4.4 percent), which mostly buys high-quality, long-term bonds.

Although at first glance the fund’s yield seems to disqualify it from this group, you really need to look at its taxable-equivalent yield — what someone would have to earn from a taxable bond to equal the yield of a tax-free bond.

In this case, 4.4 percent is the equivalent of a 6.1-percent taxable yield for someone in the 28-percent federal tax bracket and 7.7 percent for an investor in the top 39.6percent bracket, who also faces the new 3.8-percent Medicare surtax on investment income.

For those who can stand more risk, UBS analyst Sangeeta Marfatia favors BlackRock MuniYield Quality (MQY; $17; 5.7 percent), which also buys long-term, highSee EARN MORE, page 19

Senior benefits grow, shrinking all else

By Charles Babington With Congress increasingly unable to resolve budget disputes, federal programs on automatic pilot are consuming ever larger amounts of government resources.

The trend helps older Americans (including wealthy ones), who as a group receive the bulk of Social Security and Medicare benefits, at the expense of people (including low-income seniors) who benefit from almost all other government programs.

This shift of resources draws modest public debate. But it alarms some policy advocates, who say the United States is reducing vital investments in the future.

Because Democrats and Republicans can’t reach a grand bargain on deficit spending — with mutually accepted spending cuts and revenue hikes — Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid keep growing, largely untouched. Steady expansions of these nondiscretionary “entitlement” programs require no congressional action, so they flourish in times of gridlock.

Meanwhile, nearly all other discre-

tionary programs are suffering under Washington’s decision-by-indecision habits, in which lawmakers lock themselves into questionable actions because they can’t agree on alternatives.

A generational divide The latest example is $80 billion in automatic budget cuts (the “sequester”), which largely spare Medicare and Social Security. Growth in these costly but popular programs is virtually impossible to curb without bipartisan agreements.

Instead, the spending cuts are hitting the military and many domestic programs that benefit younger Americans as well as needy seniors. They include early education initiatives such as Head Start, scientific and medical research, and meals on wheels for the homebound.

This shift in public resources is dramatic and growing. While 14 cents of every federal dollar not going to interest was spent on entitlement programs in 1962, the amount is 47 cents today, and it will reach 61 cents by 2030, according to an analysis of government data by Third Way, a centrist-Democratic think tank.

“Entitlements are squeezing out public investments” in education, infrastructure, research and other fields that have nurtured future prosperity, the study said.

“The only way for Democrats to save progressive priorities like NASA, highway funding and clean energy research is to reform entitlements.”

But Democrats won’t consider entitlement cuts until Republicans agree to increase taxes for the rich. And Republicans, who control the House, refuse to do that.

The Third Way study was written 10 months ago. Since then, partisan clashes that produced the “fiscal cliff” and the automatic cuts have made matters even worse, said the group’s vice president, Jim Kessler.

“The foot is on the accelerator with entitlement programs, and it’s on the brakes on investments,” Kessler said. “And this country needs more investments.”

Society must care for the elderly and needy, Kessler said, “but we can’t do that at the expense of young people and new ideas.”

More retirees = more spending With baby boomers retiring in huge

numbers, total benefits for seniors are bound to grow. “But over the course of decades, Medicare and Social Security spending generally grow faster than inflation, per beneficiary,” Kessler said. That squeezes nearly everything else.

According to White House budget records, discretionary spending comprised two-thirds of total federal outlays in 1968 and mandatory spending made up 27.5 percent.

The estimate for 2018 has those shares nearly reversed: discretionary programs will consume 27.5 percent of total federal spending, mandatory programs will consume 62 percent and interest on the debt will take about 10 percent.

“Costs linked to the retirement of the baby boom generation,” the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service said in a recent report, “are a major cause of rising mandatory spending.” The current trajectory of federal healthcare spending, the report said, “appears unsustainable and could place heavy fiscal burdens on younger generations and generations not yet born.”

— AP

Say you saw it in the Beacon | Law & Money

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

Earn more From page 18 grade munis. But unlike the Nuveen fund, this one uses borrowed money to boost income. A 5.7-percent tax-free yield is equivalent to 7.9 percent taxable for someone in the 28-percent bracket and 10.0 percent for a top-bracket investor.

If you want more diversification, check out PowerShares CEF Income Composite (PCEF; $26; 7.4 percent). It’s an exchangetraded fund that owns dozens of taxable, income-producing closed-end funds. Most of its holdings borrow money, though the ETF itself does not.

Dividend-paying stocks Normally, to get even 4 to 6 percent yields, you have to take on a fair amount of risk. But in the case of dividend-paying stocks, that may not always be the case.

Some high-yielders, such as AT&T (symbol T; recent price, $38; yield, 4.7 percent), Verizon Communications (VZ; $50; 4.1 percent) and Intel (INTC; $21; 4.2 percent), are financially strong companies that have the wherewithal to sustain their payouts.

Jason Brady, of Thornburg Investment Management, favors telecom companies because of the rapid growth of smart phones. One of his favorites is Telstra (TLSYY; $24; 6.0 percent), a leading Australian provider.

We took a page from his book: iShares International Select Dividend ETF (IDV; 5.2 percent) tracks an index that includes 100 high-yielding stocks in developed foreign markets.

Preferred shares Preferred shares are stock-bond hybrids. They pay a fixed, regular dividend like bonds, but the shares trade like stocks. Preferreds suffered terribly during the 2008 financial crisis, but they’ve recovered strongly since then.

One ETF, iShares S&P U.S. Preferred Stock (PFF; 5.6 percent), holds 75 percent of its portfolio in banks, insurance and diversified financial-services companies.

Bonds in developing countries are paying yields of more than 4 percent these days. T. Rowe Price Emerging Bonds (PREMX; 4.3 percent) and Fidelity New Markets Income (FNMIX, 4.3 percent) hew closely to a JPMorgan emerging-mar-

BEACON BITS

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kets bond index. Aberdeen Asia-Pacific Income (FAX; 5.4 percent), a closed-end fund, focuses on Australian and Asian debt.

Real estate investment trusts Finally, real estate: Health Care REIT (HCN; $70; 4.4 percent), a real estate investment trust, and CBRE Clarion Global Real Estate Income (IGR; $10; 5.7 percent), a closed-end fund, offer exposure to two growing areas of the sector.

The growth catalyst behind HCN is the firm’s senior-living communities. CBRE is a real estate firm whose assets are mostly

19

invested in North America (59 percent), but which has a chunk across Asia (29 percent), making it a good bet for cashing in on rising consumer wealth in that region.

The fund recently traded at a 4-percent discount to net asset value.

Nellie S. Huang is a senior associate editor at Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine. Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. And for more on this and similar money topics, visit www.Kiplinger.com. © 2013 Kiplinger’s Personal Finance

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

How to avoid shady mobile phone fees

By Anya Kamenetz The average person is paying more than $70 a month on her cell phone bill.

With those kinds of prices, it’s infuriating to realize that small-time scammers may be sneaking extra charges into the fine print. But that’s exactly what the Federal Trade Commission says is happening.

It’s called cell phone “cramming,” and in April the FTC filed the first-ever case about it. The complaint alleges that an Atlanta company called Wise Media sent people

unauthorized text messages featuring news or horoscopes, and then billed them $9.99 a month in “subscription” fees for something they had never subscribed to.

How do you avoid having this happen to you?

Watch for third-party billing You may be familiar with fundraising efforts for presidential campaigns, disaster relief, and the like that ask you to make a $10 donation by texting a word or two to a

special shortcode on your cell phone. That charge then appears on your cell phone bill, which is called “third-party billing.”

The FTC doesn’t want to shut down third-party billing for mobile phones altogether because of these legitimate uses, even though third-party billing is also the way that the no-good crammers operate, and even though Verizon and AT&T have recently banned third-party billing for landlines. So it’s left up to individual consumers to police their own bills.

or pay for services — you guessed it, another pathway to cramming.

The safe policy is, if you get any text message written in all caps from a sender you don’t recognize, delete it.

By the same token, avoid signing up for contests or special offers that ask for your cell phone number. This is the major way that spammers get hold of cell numbers in the first place. In general, these free offers and prizes are too good to be true.

What you can do Scour your bill In the absence of an all-out ban on thirdparty billing, it’s important for each one of us to look carefully at our monthly mobile bill, especially if it’s more than you expected. You are looking for something under “miscellaneous charges” or “subscription fees” or “surcharges.” Note unfamiliar abbreviations, apps or downloads, and calls from area codes you don’t recognize.

Even if there aren’t any unauthorized charges, taking a close look at your bill has the added benefit of helping you figure out if you’re paying for services you don’t need, or need to switch to a different plan.

Be aware of “text spam”

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In March, the FTC filed yet another complaint against spammers who sent a total of 180 million unauthorized and unwanted text messages.

Sometimes consumers were charged for the messages. Sometimes they offered “free” gift cards or prizes, but in order to claim the supposed gifts people were asked to sign up for personal information

If it happens to you, take action as soon as possible.

The FTC is working to improve the dispute resolution process when it comes to mobile phone cramming. The first place to contact about an unauthorized charge is your cell phone carrier, who may agree to credit the money back to you. You should also ask the company to put a “block” on any third party billing in the future.

The company should be able to give you information about the third party so you can contact them directly to dispute the charge.

Follow up by putting your complaint in writing: email and certified mail both work.

Finally, the FTC requests that you file a complaint with it as well. Go to FTC.gov or call 1-877-FTC-HELP. You can also contact your state attorney general’s office with the problem.

Just because you’ve complained, don’t assume the problem is taken care of. Follow up by checking your bill next month to make sure the charges don’t reappear. © 2013 Anya Kamenetz. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.

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Say you saw it in the Beacon | Law & Money

21

Big bank stocks are staging a comeback

By Kathy Kristof Banking’s behemoths are on a roll. Bigbank stocks have soared over the past two years, and the companies’ prospects look bright, thanks to an uptick in business lending, better loan quality and cleaner balance sheets.

To be sure, the stocks are still well below where they were before the financial crisis struck five years ago. For example, Citigroup (symbol C) sold for as much as $552 in 2007 (adjusted for a reverse split in 2011). In late June, the stock went for $50.

Citi may be the most promising of the big-bank stocks. Analysts expect Citi’s earnings to grow about 14 percent annually over the next three to five years. The profit growth should boost the stock, which trades at a relatively low 10 times estimated 2013 earnings.

Bank of America’s big rise The hottest big-bank stock has been Bank of America (BAC). Its shares have

rocketed from $5 in late 2011 to $13 today.

B of A is slowly working through the disastrous results of a decade of acquisitions.

Strong results and the belief that B of A’s woes are finally winding down have driven the stock’s ascent.

The shares sell for 13 times predicted 2013 earnings. That seems expensive for a bank stock, but it looks like a fair price in light of expected annual earnings growth of 23 percent over the next few years.

Other bank stocks to consider Shares of JPMorgan Chase (JPM) continue to be held back by a London trading debacle that cost the bank a whopping $6.2 billion, said analyst Erik Oja, of S&P Capital IQ. Although a congressional report was highly critical of the company’s leadership, including chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon, Oja thinks JPMorgan is among the nation’s best-run banks. At $54, the stock sells for nearly 9 times estimated 2013 earnings and yields 3.1 percent.

BEACON BITS

Aug. 13

TREASURES IN SMALL TOWNS

Visit the charming towns of Shepherdstown, Boonsboro and Mount Airy on Tuesday, Aug. 13, with the Parkville Senior Center. Cost of the trip is $78. For more information and reservations, call (410) 882-6087.

An attractive big bank with a different focus is Capital One Financial (COF), one of the nation’s biggest credit card issuers. It generates about three-fourths of its income from credit cards and consumer loans.

The improving financial health of the consumer sector is driving down Capital One’s default rates and helping to put the company in a position to meet increasingly stringent regulatory capital requirements well ahead of schedule.

In fact, the bank is so well capitalized

that regulators recently gave it permission to hike its quarterly dividend sixfold, to 30 cents per share. At $62, the stock yields 2 percent and sells for 9 times projected 2013 earnings.

Kathy Kristof is a contributing editor to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine.

Send your questions and comments to moneypower@kiplinger.com. And for more on this and similar money topics, visit www.Kiplinger.com. © 2013 Kiplinger’s Personal Finance

22

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

Careers Volunteers &

Rabbi David Wiesenberg, a medical billing advocate, discusses errors in a hospital bill with a client. See story, page 23.

Helpline serves Alzheimer’s caregivers Help available at all hours The Alzheimer’s Association’s mission for its 24/7 helpline is to ease some of the pain and helplessness that those involved with the care of an Alzheimer’s patient can feel. Blount said she has nothing but admiration for the Association for the worldwide leadership role it plays in Alzheimer’s research, care and support.

Helpline specialists provide empathy and support, identify the caller’s needs and problems, and/or provide education or information about available resources.

Specialists receive extensive training, shadowing other experienced volunteers to learn appropriate listening skills and to understand when a situation is an emergency. Blount spent 15 hours undergoing training before becoming a specialist herself.

Honored for volunteering For her volunteer efforts, Blount was honored recently with the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) and Wellness Champion Award for her outstanding service to the Alzheimer’s Association. Each year, Baltimore County rec-

PHOTO COURTESY OF RSVP

By Jennifer Waldera Having lost her father to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in 2009, 57-year-old Pamela Blount has dedicated her volunteer hours to providing assistance to caregivers, families and medical professionals who work with other individuals suffering from the memory-robbing disease.

Blount serves as a Helpline specialist at the Timonium branch of the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Maryland Chapter.

Specialists like Blount provide assistance to more than 3,000 callers each year.

“Working part-time in real estate has allowed me time to volunteer at the Alzheimer’s Association,” said Blount, who spends four to six hours a week at the Helpline.

“In caring for my father for many years, I watched helplessly as this devastating disease slowly claimed him from our family,” said Blount, who lives in Hunt Valley.

“It was heartbreaking.

“Millions feel powerless against this disease,” Blount continued. “This is the sixth leading cause of death, and it has no cure or even a way to slow or stop its progression.”

Pamela Blount, center, recently won the RSVP (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program) Health and Wellness Champion Award for her work with the Alzheimer’s Association Helpline in Timonium. She is shown with RSVP Project Director Tonee Lawson (left) and Baltimore County Department of Aging Director Joanne Williams.

ognizes volunteers like Blount who have dedicated their time and energy to helping improve communities and provide services as volunteers.

Having already served nearly 200 hours so far this year, Blount was cited for her dedSee HELPLINE, page 24

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

Say you saw it in the Beacon | Volunteers & Careers

23

Advocates can help with high doctor bills

By Rebekah Sewell Rachel Smith (all names in this article have been changed for confidentiality) was thousands of dollars in debt. The Baltimore resident was born with a rare, incurable collagen disorder known as EhlersDanlos Syndrome, among whose symptoms are early onset osteoporosis, joint deformity, severe pain and other problems.

Due to early misdiagnoses, she had been labeled by many doctors as a hypochondriac, a “drug seeker,” “a noncompliant patient” and worse.

Smith, now 62, underwent 31 surgeries, including titanium and Kevlar implants in her foot, ankle and spine. Post-surgery recuperation involved months of bed rest and anxiety about upcoming procedures.

But the worst part of coping with her condition, Smith said, was dealing with the “nightmare of the incomprehensible billing practices by insurance companies and doctors.”

Her premiums for her self-employed coverage drastically increased, which forced

Common billing errors • • • • • • •

Duplicate billing Canceled services Misplaced decimals Upcoding Inflated operating room fees Inflated charges Unbundled charges

Trained billing specialists can considerably cut medical bills by finding such errors and negotiating with insurance companies and healthcare providers.

— Rebekah Sewell

her to give up health insurance and pay out of pocket. She was overwhelmed by the amount of paperwork, insurance letters denying coverage, and high medical bills she received, and didn’t know where to turn.

Help in paying bills Then a friend introduced Smith to Rabbi David Wiesenberg, president of Compassionate Patient Advocates, an organization that helps people reduce high medical bills through advocacy.

According to Wiesenberg, if medical bills seem too high, chances are they contain mistakes or overcharges. The Medical Billing Advocates of America, an organization that trains billing specialists and matches clients with advocates, estimates that 8 out of 10 medical bills they review contain clerical errors or up-charges, sometimes dramatically inflating costs.

Smith passed the paperwork, which included many unopened envelopes, to Wiesenberg saying she was relieved to no longer be facing the “medical billing juggernaut alone.”

Wiesenberg noted that interpreting the medical billing system can be confusing and stressful. The complicated coding language makes it difficult to spot errors or even to identify individual charges.

Following Smith’s last major surgery, she was left with an $11,000 bill. Through Wiesenberg’s intervention and negotiation with her surgeon, he successfully cut the bill to $4,500. Due to the complexity of her case, she paid him a one-time $500 fee and 20 percent of the overall savings for his services.

Wiesenberg saved another Baltimore area patient more than $20,000 in medical bills for his wife’s clinical depression. The patient told the Beacon that working with him “took away all the headaches.”

Free governmental help Laura Jones suffered from a severe case of psoriasis, a disease that causes an overproduction of often itchy skin cells. She experimented with several drugs for her condition, notably Humira and Embrel, and nothing worked.

When she finally discovered the drug Stelara, the only medication that had ever alleviated her symptoms, she was counting on her insurance company to cover the drug — though it wasn’t on its formulary.

Her physician wrote a letter saying the drug was necessary, but Jones’s insurance company denied coverage anyway.

She then turned for help to the Health Education and Advocacy Unit (HEAU) of the Maryland Attorney General’s office.

This state-sponsored organization has a hotline that put her in touch with an ombudsman — a nurse with 40 years of healthcare experience.

See BILLING ADVOCATES, page 24

24

Volunteers & Careers | More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

Helpline From page 22 ication to fulfilling the mission of the organization to help those affected by Alzheimer’s.

When asked what volunteering for the Alzheimer’s Association means to her, Blount explained: “Many of the callers are

Billing advocates From page 23 The ombudsman contacted her insurance company and gave them a comprehensive outline of her medical history, including

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

struggling with the challenges of caring for a loved one as I once did. I feel their pain and frustration, and I want to help.”

Blount added that volunteering as a Helpline specialist has also provided her with personal fulfillment. “My choice to volunteer at the Alzheimer’s Association has been rewarding, and when I answer a

Helpline call, I no longer feel helpless in the fight against AD.” Passionate about encouraging others to get involved as well, Blount wants people to know that many volunteer opportunities with the Alzheimer’s Association are available. “You are needed,” she said. “Get involved. You will be glad you did!”

If you’re interested in serving as a Helpline specialist for the Timonium branch of the Alzheimer’s Association Greater Maryland Chapter, contact Sally Drumm at (410) 561-9099, ext. 210 or email sdrumm@alz.org.

To reach the Helpline, call 1-800-2723900.

the failure of the previous drugs. Eventually, they approved Jones’ treatments, saving her $33,000 a year in out-of-pocket charges.

The HEAU offers free mediation services to Maryland residents who need assistance with their insurance companies or

healthcare providers. In some cases, they identify obviously wrong charges. In others, clients may simply need help understanding their bills or finding ways to better utilize their insurance coverage.

HEAU files appeals and mediates disputes with hospitals and other healthcare providers. For example, “we’ve appealed to dental practices whose patients have been charged for getting crowns on six teeth but have only gotten two,” said Kimberly Cammarata, director of the unit.

“Last year, HEAU saved or recovered over $1.8 million for consumers,” Cammarata said. She estimated that 55 percent of their appeals are successful.

All services are free, and HEAU does not turn clients away if they have a legitimate reason for an appeal. “Anyone we can help, we help,” Cammarata said.

However, some patients, like Smith, may need more individualized attention and want to find a private medical billing advocate, who may be able to take more time finding and fighting obscure errors.

Such advocates may go by other names,

such as claims assistance professional, medical claims professional or healthcare claims advocate.

How much does it cost?

Billing advocates are paid hourly or by commission. In this area, hourly rates typically range between $125 and $150 per hour. Advocates who work by commission collect between 15 and 33 percent of the savings they generate, so they are paid only to the extent they are successful.

Wiesenberg accepts payment in either fashion. His general hourly rate is $125, and his commission is 15 percent. He accepts payment of commissions only after settlement with the healthcare provider or insurance company.

Compassionate Patient Advocates may be reached at www.compassionatepa.com or (855) 855-8101.

To reach the Maryland Attorney General’s Health Education and Advocacy Unit, or to file a complaint, visit www.oag. state.md.us/Consumer/HEAU.htm or call 1-888-743-0023.

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Say you saw it in the Beacon

Travel

25

Leisure &

Making the most of mother-daughter travel. See story on page 27.

French Alps’ glorious food and scenery black currant liqueur (crème de cassis). Not only is the wine good in Lyon, it is cheap.

The calorie-conscious may find bouchon meals a bit heavy, since the bistros’ specialties are dishes like tripe soup, pork offal sausage, coq au vin and blood sausage. But when in Rome…

Banter with the chef and neighboring diners is expected. In fact, to not engage in hearty, elbows-on-the-table eating would be considered insulting. In the no-frills, checkered-tablecloth atmosphere, guests mop up juices and sauces with fresh-baked bread as they chat with fellow diners.

Local chefs will tell you that the authentic bouchons are only found in Lyon. Bouchon purists require a little plaque at the restaurant’s door showing Gnafron, a drunken marionette with a red nose and wine glass — a sign that the eatery is part of the official French bouchon association.

French novelist Stendhal commented, “I know of only one thing that you can do well in Lyon, and that’s eat.” Eat well you can, but there’s more.

PHOTO BY GLENDA BOOTH

By Glenda C. Booth According to Allrecipes.com, Lyonnaise potatoes, “a simple combination of potatoes and onions, can be absolutely extraordinary.”

What I discovered on a recent trip to Lyon is that all cuisine in that city is extraordinary. Lyon (pronounced “lee-on”) is France’s third-largest city and its gastronomic capital.

The city is a crossroads of several cuisines — the hearty meats of the cattle and sheep farms to the west, the olive-oil and tomato-ey flavors of the Mediterranean to the south, and the scrumptious butters and cheeses of the north.

Lyon is especially famous for its homey restaurants called bouchons. My introduction to these rustic eateries was a five-course feast at Chez Paul, highlighted by an entrée of ox tongue with piquant tomato sauce and a huge serving bowl filled with white beans shared by four — my travel mate and two friendly strangers at our table.

These heaping dishes were interspersed with beets, gherkins, pickled herring, four choices of cheese, and topped off with a crème caramel dessert. Maureen McFalls commented, after “surviving” her first bouchon meal, “I felt like a little piggie myself after that amazing meal.”

While studying the menu, we lubricated our own chitterlings with a communard — an aperitif of red Beaujolais spiked with

Passageway to the Renaissance Lyon is spliced by two rivers, the Rhone and the Saône. City center is the onesquare-mile Presqu’ile in between, a peninsula throbbing with activity in its squares, cafés, shops, restaurants, museums, theaters, opera house and perhaps a sidewalk protest.

PHOTO BY GLENDA BOOTH

The Basilique Notre-Dame de Fourvière sits atop a hill in Lyon. Visitors can either walk to the top of the hill or take a funicular.

Wildflowers blanket the 132,000-acre Parc National de la Vanoise in the heart of the French Alps. The park includes more than 100 lakes and 1,300 acres of glaciers.

Old Town, or Vieux Lyon, the Romans’ capital of Gaul in 43 C.E. and a silk-making center in the 15th century, is a zigzaggy, UNESCO World Heritage site, as it contains one of the largest concentrations of Renaissance buildings in Europe. You can escape to another age in this labyrinth of musty passageways, cobbled streets and narrow alleyways crammed with Renaissance and medieval facades.

Lyon is especially known for its 315 traboules — dingy, tunneled passages stretching for 30 miles and built in the 1800s to provide silk weavers shelter from inclement weather as they moved their delicate handiwork. In World War II, the traboules were hideouts for the French Resistance dodging German street patrols.

At the Musée Historique de Lyon, a 15th century mansion, you can learn about the decorative features of Lyon’s buildings. Here also is the Musée de la Marionnette, home of the town’s famous Lyonnais puppets — the 18th century creations, Guignol and Madelon — and the only museum in France devoted to puppetry.

As you meander, you’ll salivate as you study the offerings of numerous boulangers (baked goods), charcuteries (prepared meats) and fromageries (cheese shops).

No trip to a French town is complete without a visit to its cathedral. The Romanesque and Gothic Cathédral St-Jean,

bedecked with gargoyles, was built between 1180 and 1480. Inside is an astronomical clock, beautiful rose windows, and 13th century stained glass above the altar.

You can hike up to the Basilique NotreDame de Fourvière, a structure that defines the skyline looming from its hilltop position and irreverently known as “the upside-down elephant.” The walking weary can ascend via the funicular.

At the top, you’ll soak in a broad view of the city between the two rivers or maybe glimpse the Alps on a clear day.

On the promenade along the Rive Gauche of the Rhone, you can probe openair markets amid the walkers, runners, cyclists and a few relaxed loafers.

On and up into the Alps Lyon is the gateway to the French Alps, which climax at Europe’s highest point, the 15,780-foot Mont Blanc. The famous mountains are only an hour or so west from the bustle of downtown by train.

In the summer, the French Alps become a Sound of Music setting, exploding in natural beauty — soaring snowcapped peaks, crystalline lakes, jagged ridges and verdant meadows spangled with wild flowers of every hue. (Winter has its pristine beauty too, which attracts world-class skiers.)

The Savoie region starts in the north at See FRENCH ALPS, page 26

26

Leisure & Travel | More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com

French Alps From page 25 Lake Geneva and ends at the mighty Mont Blanc. In between are many towns, hamlets and resorts separated by rolling pastoral landscapes, meadows and hillsides dotted with grazing dairy cows, complete with tinkling bells.

One place to absorb all things alpine is the 132,000-acre Parc National de la Vanoise, France’s first national park designated in 1963 and home to five nature reserves.

The park contains 107 lakes and 1,300 acres of glaciers, as well as massive peaks, plateaus, meadows and hiking trails. La Grande Sassière Nature Reserve, altitude 7,500 feet, rises between the villages of Tignes and Val d’Isère.

Hiking and walking choices range from gentle paths to moderately challenging slopes. The treks are well worth the effort for summer sightings of animals like the

ibex (one third of the country’s 2,100 are here), the goat-like chamois (6,000 here), marmots, foxes, stoats, hares, 1,200 species of plants and 120 species of birds.

Bearded vultures and golden eagles soar above.

Wildflowers burst forth like multi-colored stars on a green velvet carpet. Park rangers and local guides lead walks in the summer and can drive visitors to a trail from the tourism office in Val d’Isère.

Alpine villages Parc National de la Vanoise is bordered by 28 villages. A year-round, convenient spot is the town of Val d’Isère, known as one of the world’s top ski resorts, but it doubles as an easygoing summer spot, especially for families because it offers activities like tennis, bocce, trampolines, hiking, biking, trekking, horseback riding, rafting and kayaking on the River Isère.

Val d’Isère boasts 27,000 hotel beds and a local population of only 1,500.

AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

The town is sprinkled with brightly colored flower boxes and beds from which four-foot lupines seem to lunge. For a 360degree alpine vista, take the ski lift to 8,200 feet above the tree line. At the top, you can fish in a mirror-clear lake — or just imagine Heidi romping over the crest of the nearest hill.

In the Old Village, the quaint Catholic church is always open. Don’t miss the town cheese factory for an authentic cheese-making experience, including a view of goats, whose milk is used to make the cheese, grazing next door.

Even the grocery (casino marché) is fun to explore — a warren of local wares like wines, pâtés, jams, herbs, cheeses and olive oils and a refreshing change from the big box, cookie-cutter American supermarkets.

Every region of France touts its own cuisine. The French Alps have an enticing food story too, summed up in one word — cheese. It’s not the bright orange processed chunks and slices common to

U.S. grocery shelves. France has around 400 types of cheese, their method of manufacture closely guarded.

The farmstead cheeses of the Alps mostly start with Tarentaise cows and result in yummy products like Beaufort, Tomme de Savoie and Bleu de Termignon. Sampling them all to identify the sometimes subtle, sometimes not-so-subtle, differences is a worthy culinary escapade all its own.

And the cheese dishes of the French Alps are what many tourists write home about. Warming on a chilly day is the tartaflette, a creamy assemblage of potatoes, ham, crème freche, wine, cheese and onions baked to perfection.

A raclette is a mixture of melting cheese, boiled potatoes, charcuterie and baby gherkins.

And finally, fondue. Fondue Savoyarde has three types of cheese — Emmental, Beaufort and Comté — melted in dry white wine for dunking fresh bread chunks.

Here in the mountains after a rainfall, you might see cooks collecting snails off roadside plants for dinner, as I did.

In the Alps, weather can change quickly in any season, so have layers at hand and be prepared for rain and cold.

Another jumping off point for the Alps is Annecy, a town by Lac d’Annecy, filled with bewitching 16th century passageways, canals, a 12th century chateau, castles and cafes.

Lyon and the French Alps are good examples of how varied, deep and enticing French gastronomy is and has been for years, and reaffirms for visitors that eating in France is essential to the art of living.

If you go Lyon Tourism: www.en.lyon-france.com.

Offers free booking services.

Val d’Isere Tourism: www.valdisere.com.

Staff speak English and can offer lodging options. Once you chose, they can book your room.

Annecy Tourism: www.lac-annecy.com To get to Val d’Isere: From Lyon, either take the train to Bourg-St. Maurice and then rent a car or take a taxi or bus 40 minutes. Or rent a car and drive from Lyon (three hours).

For information about Parc National de la Vanoise, visit www.parcnational-vanoise.fr.

Trains are easily available, reliable, comfortable and a hassle-free way to move around. One caution: If you are not fluent in French, using ticket machines may be daunting, so buying tickets from agents or online may be easier.

Train tickets are usually not collected but randomly checked, with heavy fines for freeloaders. The word “composte” means “punch your ticket” in the yellow station machines which record where and when you embarked. So be sure to composte before you board. Train information is available at www.raileurope.com; www.sncf.com; www.eurail.com (Eurail passes are valid in 21 countries.)

The lowest roundtrip fare to Lyon from BWI Marshall Airport in late August is $1,383 on US Airways.

Say you saw it in the Beacon | Leisure & Travel

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

27

The joys of mother-daughter traveling weeks in advance.

Childhood travel memories Back when I was in college, I would have never dreamed my mother would become my travel companion decades later. I might have even shuddered at the possibility.

You see, growing up in our family, vacations were rarely about splashing in hotel pools or relaxing on beaches. Vacationing was a form of boot camp. Think touring Washington, D.C. in July, when scorching temperatures wilt hair bows and drench summer shorts.

Even a trip as a child to Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., was not as much fun as one might think. My mother made sure it was squeezed between educational sightseeing trips to Cape Canaveral, home of the Kennedy Space Center, and St. Augustine, where my sister, brother and I learned about 16th century history and explorer Ponce de Leon.

But as the decades have gone by, my mom’s and my life’s circumstances have made the mother-daughter travel combo a natural, practical and enjoyable experience.

To be sure, I have taken plenty of trips with friends to a variety of places — Puerto Rico, Miami’s South Beach, San Francisco.

And over the years, my mom has traveled

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JOIN SENIOR BOX OFFICE Senior Box Office (SBO), a volunteer program of the Baltimore

County Department of Aging, provides complimentary or reduced rate tickets to members for cultural, educational and entertainment events. The 2013-2014 membership year runs Oct. 1 through Sept. 30. Those 60 and older are invited to join. Yearly membership costs $30 per household. For more information, or an

AP PHOTO COURTESY OF ANNE D’INNOCENZIO

By Anne D’Innocenzio When I was young, I learned a lot about travel from my mother. She taught me how and what to pack. She taught me to keep a travel diary to record my memories. And most importantly, she taught me how to power-sightsee.

“You never know when you’ll be back,” my mother used to say, as she and my dad pushed my sister, brother and me to yet another art museum, Gothic church or 18th-century cemetery.

Decades later, my mother and I still travel together, but now that she’s in her mid80s, our roles have changed. She’s hearing-impaired, and often uses a cane for balance, while I bring a notepad and pen to write down tour highlights for her.

I also handle hotel accommodations, hail the cabs, and make sure a wheelchair is waiting at the airport to take her to the gate.

Some might think of traveling with an elderly parent as a burden, but my mom is invaluable to me. She’s still vibrant and fiercely holds onto her love of travel.

She’s a globe-trotter and a wealth of knowledge — my personal version of a Frommer’s guide or smartphone app. I’m a journalist, perpetually time-strapped as I race to meet the next deadline, so I also depend on her to help me with the research for our trips. She often highlights hot spots

Anne D’Innocenzio (right) is pictured with her sister Donna and mother Marie on the banks of the Rhine River. In addition to vacationing in Germany, the D’Innocenzios have traveled to Italy, Ireland and other locales together. They find their different travel styles complement each other.

with her own circle of friends, and most often with my father, crisscrossing the globe to faraway places like Australia and Indonesia.

My father was a catalyst for travel — he worked for a major oil conglomerate that

took him on overseas assignments. But mom lost her most dependable travel buddy when my dad died in 2002, and her aging friends are too frail to travel now.

See TRAVELING W/MOM, page 29

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Say you saw it in the Beacon | Leisure & Travel

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

Traveling w/mom From page 27 As for me, most of my friends are married and often travel with their families. I don’t particularly like to travel alone, and it’s hard to synchronize my plans with my single friends’ crazy work schedules. Even if my friends were more readily available, I worry that taking trips with them might put stress on our relationships.

Complementing each other What makes this mother-daughter travel team work is that we understand each other. That includes our differences.

Unlike me, my mom is fearless — and has remained that way even into her 80s.

Turbulence on planes doesn’t bother her, while I get a pit in my stomach anytime a plane lurches.

At 80, she climbed the steep stone steps to the top of Ireland’s Blarney Castle. I, on the other hand, get nervous when I see spiral staircases. So I stayed at the bottom, and waited for her to come down.

My mother is also more organized than I am. Think of TV’s favorite “Odd Couple” — Felix and Oscar. Weeks in advance of a trip, my mom folds her clothes neatly in her suitcase and wraps her shoes with layers of tissue paper as if she’s wrapping a gift. I often find myself packing the night before, throwing things in a bag helter-skelter.

And even though I have adopted my mom’s sightseeing approach of trying to cover a lot of ground, we have our own styles.

We love to go to art museums, but I like to concentrate on the highlights of the exhibit. Mom studies every single painting for a few minutes before moving on to the next. So we compromise and meet at the end of the exhibit.

Traveling together we have also discovered similarities. We are both forgetful. In fact, losing eyeglasses has become our specialty.

After touring the massive Romanian parliament in Bucharest built by the country’s late dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, my moth-

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VISIT AREA GALLERIES AND MEET ARTISTS

Visitors can explore 24 galleries throughout Baltimore for unexpected and intriguing group and solo exhibitions during Artscape Gallery Network through Sunday, Sept. 1.

Guests can not only visit the galleries for free, but meet participating artists during opening receptions.

Five venues have been chosen as showcase galleries for the citywide event: Bromo Seltzer Arts Tower Gallery; Center for the Arts Gallery, Towson University; The Gallery at CCBC, Catonsville; MAXgallery @ Maxine Taylor Fine Arts; and The Wind Up Space. For more information, visit www.artscape.org.

er realized she had left her glasses inside.

The problem: She didn’t remember which of the hundreds of rooms she left them in.

We did find them eventually with the help of our tour guide, but not without confronting armed guards trying to keep us from retracing our steps.

lucky, but I’m already starting to feel nostalgic. A few weeks ago, after being hospitalized with a severe case of the flu, my mother confided in me that perhaps her traveling days are over.

I refuse to believe it. And so I’m plan-

29

ning our next trip. An Alaskan cruise maybe, or what about a trip to the South of France to visit her friend? If I have my way, the possibilities for more adventures with my mom remain endless.

— AP

BEACON BITS Connecting with family roots As I get older, I value more and more how my mother has used travel as a way to connect with our roots. As a family, we have been to Italy several times, where we visited relatives or tried to research our ancestors in small towns like Deliceto in the Southeast corner of Italy.

I have also admired the way my mom used travel as a source of comfort. Two years after my brother passed away at age 23, my sister, mother and father went to Europe. My mother was key in the planning.

Friends tell me how lucky I am to have my mom as my travel companion. I do feel

Oct. 12

SIGN UP NOW FOR CASA MARATHON Maryland CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) Association

is recruiting runners and walkers for its charity team, Team CASA, which will participate in the Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival on Saturday, Oct. 12, at M&T Bank Stadium. All Team CASA members will have the opportunity to walk or run in the marathon, half marathon, 5K or team relay to raise funds and awareness about CASA’s efforts on behalf of victims of child abuse and neglect. For more information or to register, visit www.GoTeamCASA.org, email Kay@marylandcasa.org, or call (410) 828-6761.

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

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Style Arts &

Lynn Perlin, who painted this watercolor of tulips, uses a bedroom for an art studio. See story below.

North Oaks artist wins art show at center media, including photography (color or black/white), drawing (graphite, pastels, calligraphy), jewelry (handmade), models (scratch and kit), painting (oil, acrylic, watercolor), and woodworking.

Diverse themes Perlin didn’t paint “Harvest” with the competition in mind, and had no inspiration per se when composing her painting.

“I work on five or so paintings at a time,” she said, “and my subjects vary.”

Indeed, in a tour of her works, which hang both in North Oaks’ public spaces as well as in Perlin’s own light-filled residence, where one bedroom serves as her studio, her subtly colored and shaded paintings depict still lifes, landscapes, animals and portraits. And while the inanimate subjects may be taken directly from nature or composed by Perlin — as in a grouping of onions she put together — the portraits are either drawn from Perlin’s own imagination or sometimes taken from black and white newspaper photographs.

“Whatever grabs my fancy is what I’ll paint,” said Perlin, adding that she’d rather not paint portraits of people she knows.

“They always want to change something!” she said.

Though Perlin is already an accomplished artist — a talent shared by her children and grandchildren — she continues to hone her skills by taking classes under art instructor Carol Zika, both at Liberty Senior Center and at North Oaks.

It was Zika who suggested that Perlin enter her painting in the contest.

“Lynn’s paintings have a skillfully drawn foundation, and she has a wonderful sense of color and is masterful in manipulating her materials,” said Zika, adding that the guest judge at the Liberty Senior Center Art Contest was impressed by so many strong contenders, but was particularly drawn to the colors in Perlin’s “Harvest” painting.

Perlin has no interest in selling her paintings — she said that 30 years of selling her pottery in craft shows was enough of a retail experience for her. But she gives admired paintings to friends and family (“My walls are getting kind of full,” she said) or will do a painting as a gift, such as one of a sailboat she painted as a wedding present for two avid sailors.

An affinity for watercolors

See It In-The-Round!

OPENING JULY 26

Working with both liquid watercolors and watercolor pencils, the latter of which Perlin finds “liberating” because they can be picked up at any time, Perlin said she enjoys the portability of watercolors.

“Everything is small enough and light enough that I can handle it all,” she ex-

PHOTO COURTESY OF LYNN PERLIN

By Carol Sorgen Lynn Perlin is no stranger to artistic pursuits. The 81-year-old North Oaks retirement community resident studied art as a youngster, worked as a draftsperson and graphic designer, spent more than 30 years as a potter, and dabbled in oil painting.

But now Perlin is finding success in her most recent endeavor, as a watercolorist. Her intriguing image of a woman surrounded by the fruits (and flowers) of her labor, entitled “Harvest,” was recently awarded a blue ribbon in the Liberty Senior Center Art Contest and will be entered in the Baltimore County Senior Expo Art Contest, which will be held as part of the annual Baltimore County Baby Boomer/Senior Expo at the Maryland State Fairgrounds in Timonium in October.

Perlin’s award-winning watercolor will be judged in the juried competition in the painting category. She will be competing with artists who are 60 and older and who represent the 20 Baltimore County Department of Aging Senior Centers.

The theme of this year’s art contest is “Remember the Past, Celebrate the Present and Energize Your Future.” Artwork can be expressed in any of six different

Lynn Perlin’s painting, “Harvest,” recently won a blue ribbon in the Liberty Senior Center art contest and will be entered in the Baltimore County Senior Expo art contest in October.

plained. “It’s a very practical art form for me at this stage.”

Watercolors also offer the opportunity of problem-solving — how much water to use, whether to use a pencil wet or dry, etc. — and Perlin said she enjoys figuring out the mechanics of what she’s working on, as well as the opportunity watercolors give her to change her mind.

Though North Oaks offers its residents a full roster of activities and classes to choose among (Perlin’s sister, for example, who also lives at North Oaks, takes writing workshops), most of Perlin’s time is taken See ART SHOW, page 31

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Summer stages have diverse offerings

Fiddler on the Roof Here in town, Spotlighters Theatre closes out its 51st season with the perennial favorite, Fiddler on the Roof, through Aug. 4 (Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m.). Based on the stories of Shalom Aleichem, this popular musical takes place in pre-revolutionary Russia and focuses on the life of Tevye, a milkman, who is trying to uphold his family’s tradition at the same time he is trying to marry off his three older daughters — who would rather make their own matches, thank you very much. You’ll enjoy hearing such familiar tunes as “To Life,” “If I Were a Rich Man,” and “Matchmaker, Matchmaker.”

Tickets are $20 for adults, $18 for those 60+, and $16 for students and military. Spotlighters is located at 817 Saint Paul St. Call (410) 752-1225 or visit www.spotlighters.org.

Me and My Girl Celebrating its 40th season is Cockpit in Court Summer Theatre at the Community College of Baltimore County-Essex.

Art show From page 30 up with her painting.

“I do something related to art almost every day,” she said, “even if it’s just contemplating what I’m going to do next.

“I’m always experimenting, and always changing my mind,” Perlin continued.

“But the main thing is, I’m having fun.”

Carol Zika said she hears regularly from newly retired seniors that they have always wanted to take up drawing or paint-

Through Aug. 4, enjoy another popular musical, Me and My Girl, first staged in 1938, revived in London in 1984, and then in New York in 1986.

The late Viscount Hareford had a youthful but unfortunate marriage, which resulted in a son and heir who is kept out of sight.

Lo and behold, the family solicitor later finds the rightful heir, much to the dismay of his newfound, upper-crust relations.

Also at Cockpit through Aug. 4, is A Murder is Announced, an adaptation of an Agatha Christie mystery. This classic Christie puzzle features mixed motives, concealed identities, several deaths, and of course, Miss Marple on hand to solve it all.

For ticket information for both shows, call (443) 840-ARTS or email cockpitincourt@ccbcmd.edu.

Tartuffe and Much Ado About Nothing Not far away at the Bowie Playhouse (16500 White Marsh Park Dr.), you’ll find the Annapolis Shakespeare Company, which is putting on both Moliere’s comedy, Tartuffe, as part of its Comedy in the Courtyard series, through Aug. 13, and Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, from Aug. 2 to 18.

Annapolis Shakespeare Company is just in its third season, but has been garnering rave reviews from Baltimore and Washington drama critics, being called “a new standard bearer for excellence in local theatre.”

Tickets range from $18 to $24. For more information and reservations, call (410)

ing. “Seniors like Lynn bring a wealth of experience to art classes,” Zika said. “With a positive attitude and willingness to try new things, it is never too late to start. It’s a fun and rewarding experience.”

Expo visitors will cast their votes in each category for the “People’s Choice” winners.

A local art expert will select the “Best in Show” winners. First-place winners will be announced on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 1:30 p.m. at the main stage. For more information about the art show or the expo, visit www.seniorexpoonline.com/index.html.

PHOTO BY KEN STANEK

By Carol Sorgen If you’re a theater-lover, you’re probably hankering for the start of the new dramatic season come September, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of stage offerings to keep you going for the rest of the summer.

Whether you opt for an offering by one of Baltimore’s community theaters, or venture a bit farther — but not too far — afield (road trip, anyone?), there’s plenty of live theater to enjoy.

Fiddler on the Roof plays at the Spotlighters Theatre through Aug. 4.

415-3513 or visit www.AnnapolisShakespeare.org.

Into the Woods The longstanding Annapolis Summer Garden Theatre is rounding out its summer season with Stephen Sondheim’s Into the Woods, on stage from Aug. 1 to Sept. 1. This “fractured” fairy tale, which has won numer-

ous honors, including three Tony Awards, is both an irreverent fantasy and a morality play about community responsibility.

Tickets are $20 and can be purchased by sending a check, payable to ASGT, to ASGT Ticket Office, 143 Compromise St., Annapolis, MD 21401. The ticket office is also open See SUMMER STAGES, page 33

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

A Chorus Line

The Fox on the Fairway

The 75-year-old Olney Theatre Center (2001 Olney Sandy Spring Road), which in its early days was dubbed â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Southâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s First Professional Summer Theatre,â&#x20AC;? has seen its share of stars through the years, such as Helen Hayes, Moss Hart, Carol Channing and Ian McKellen, to name just a handful. From Aug. 1 to Sept. 1, Olney will stage one of the most popular shows-abouta-show ever produced, A Chorus Line.

Following the story of 17 dancers who are competing for eight sought-after spots in the chorus of a Broadway musical, the

And finally, in the dollhouse-sized town of Oxford, just 90 minutes from Baltimore (and an ideal day or weekend trip), is the Tred Avon Players, founded in 1982. Next on stage will be The Fox on the Fairway, by Ken Ludwig, which begins with â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thrifty Thursday Preview,â&#x20AC;? on Aug. 15, and runs weekends through Sept. 1. This Marx Brothers-style comedy is filled with mistaken identities, slamming doors and the de rigueur romantic shenanigans.

Tickets are $15 each (2 for $15, or $10 for 1 on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thrifty Thursdayâ&#x20AC;?). For reservations, call (410) 226-0061 or visit www.tredavonplayers.org.

For a listing of theaters throughout Maryland, visit www.srbnet.com/mar y land.html.

From page 31

PHOTO BY JAMES HUNNICUTT

from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on performance nights.

For more information, visit www.summergarden.com or call (410) 268-9212.

show features such songs as â&#x20AC;&#x153;What I Did For Love,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;One (Singular Sensation),â&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;I Hope I Get It.â&#x20AC;? Tickets for seniors range from $38.50 to $48.50. For reservations and more information, call (301) 9244485 or visit www.olneytheatre.org.

PHOTO BY COREY SENTZ

Summer stages

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Say you saw it in the Beacon | Arts & Style

BALTIMORE BEACON â&#x20AC;&#x201D; AUGUST 2013

Stephen Horst (as Tartuffe) and Lauren Turchin (as Elmire) star in Moliereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s comedy Tartuffe in a production by the Annapolis Shakespeare Company at Bowie Playhouse.

ANSWERS TO CROSSWORD

FROM PAGE 34 ANSWERS TO SCRABBLE

The cast of the musical Me and My Girl, first staged in 1938, will be onstage at Cockpit In Court Summer Theater through Aug. 4.

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AUGUST 2013 — BALTIMORE BEACON

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Crossword Puzzle Daily crosswords can be found on our website: www.TheBeaconNewspapers.com Click on Puzzles Plus Not Just Detergent

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1. Product of a witch’s cauldron 2. Word before after 3. Prepare for takeoff 4. Hop ___ 5. Boat propeller 6. Settle in to the hotel 7. A canine 8. Little green men 9. Moon feature 10. Chapter One 11. Largest artery 12. Start (as applause) or end (as a bubble) 15. Sanctified 18. Prefix used for the tenth month 23. “Do ___ ...”

25. Pint-sized 26. Oklahoma city named for a character in Idylls of the King 27. Start a Monopoly turn 28. Fir instance 29. Backside 30. Spread for toast 34. Acid neutralizer 35. Off kilter 37. Unnecessary modifier for “pittance” 38. To be, to Romans 40. Butter subst.

41. 4, on many clocks 42. Like gouda, but betta (to some) 47. A canine 48. Equilibrium 49. Son of a salesman 51. Comprehend 52. ___ Live (diet book) 53. About 56% of college students 54. Bird of the Everglades 58. Successor to Claudius 59. Winner of three 2012 Academy Awards 60. Winged stinger 63. Class that may ignite the interests of 53D 64. Value of a “Goooooooollll!”

65. Docs. for preggos

Answers on page 33.

Answer: Easy to hold up on a rainy day -- AN UMBRELLA Jumbles: ABBEY PUPIL BENUMB YEARLY

BALTIMORE BEACON — AUGUST 2013

CLASSIFIEDS The Beacon prints classified advertising under the following headings: Business & Employment Opportunities; Caregivers; Computer Services; Entertainment; For Sale; For Sale/Rent: Real Estate; Free; Health; Home/ Handyman Services; Miscellaneous; Personals; Personal Services; Vacation Opportunities; and Wanted. For submission guidelines and deadlines, see the box on the right.

CAVEAT EMPTOR! The Beacon does not knowingly accept obscene, offensive, harmful, or fraudulent advertising. However, we do not investigate any advertisers or their products and cannot accept responsibility for the integrity of either. Respondents to classified advertising should always use caution and their best judgment.

EMPLOYMENT & REAL ESTATE ADS: We will not knowingly or intentionally accept advertising in violation of federal, state, and local laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, familial status or handicap in connection with employment or the sale or rental of real estate.

Caregivers NURSING STUDENT AND LICENSED, bonded, highly experienced CNA seeks fulltime, overnight caregiving position. I’m pet friendly, with an extensive resume, stellar references and solid background check. If interested, kindly call Jacqueline at 301-787-3555.

For Sale/Rent: Real Estate GARDENVILLE – LARGE, CLEAN BEDROOM, private bath, with microwave and refrigerator. For rent in 2nd floor of private home – reasonable references. 410-485-1702.

For Sale TWO SIDE BY SIDE CEMETERY PLOTS in Apostles Garden at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. Asking a fraction of the cemetery’s current asking price. Call, 410-484-8529.

PRIDE JAZZY SELECT 6 Ultra Power with charger unit. Power elevating pan seat with synergy cushion. Like new – never used. $1,900 or best offer. 410-465-5647.

TWO SIDE BY SIDE cemetery plots and vaults in Garden of Holy Cross at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. $35,000 or Best offer. Call, 410-357-0661.

Letters to editor From page 2

For Sale COLLECTION OF 78 RPM ALBUMS – by artists Cab Calloway, Pearl Bailey, Nat King Cole, Mahalia Jackson, Ella Fitzgerald, Ink Spots and more. Signed, Numbered and Framed Prints by Charles Bibbs. 443-8140678.

TWO SIDE BY SIDE CRYPTS in Cloisters Mausoleum at Dulaney Valley Memorial Gardens. Retail Value: $15,000. Sell For: $8,000.

410-870-1442.

2 SALVADOR DALI woodblock prints from Dante’s Divine Comedy. Signed and framed.

Asking $900 for the pair. Can email pictures if desired. Call Steve 410-913-1653.

Home/Handyman Services MIKE RUPARD – A FULL SERVICE PAINTING contractor. Interior. Exterior. “No job is too small.” 30 years experience. Free estimates. Fully-licensed and insured. 301-6741393.

BALTIMORE’S BEST JUNK REMOVAL – Clean Outs: Whole House, Emergency, Attics/Basements. Furniture and Junk Removal, Yard Waste Removal, General Hauling, Construction Debris Removal. Free estimates.

10% Senior Discount. Licensed, Bonded and Insured. Call Jesse, 443-379-HAUL (4285).

HANDYMAN MATTERS will help you stay safe in your own home. Professional, Reliable Skilled Craftsmen. Grab Bar Installation, Bathroom Modifications and your to-do list!

410-549-9696. MHIC # 89094.

SANFORD & SON HAULING Trash removal, house & estate clean-outs, garage cleanouts, yard work & cleanups, demolition, shed removal. 410-746-5090. Free Estimates. Insured. Call 7 days a week 7am – 7pm.

TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED Deadlines and Payments: Ad text and payment is due by the 5th of each month.

Note: Only ads received and prepaid by the deadline will be included in the next month’s issue. Please type or print your ad carefully. Include a number where you can be reached in the event of a question. Payment is due with ad. We do not accept ads by phone or fax, nor do we accept credit cards.

Private Party Text Ads: For individuals seeking to buy or sell particular items, or place a personal ad. Each ad is $10 for 25 words, 25 cents for each additional word.

Business Text Ads: For parties engaged in an ongoing business enterprise.

Each ad is $25 for 25 words, 50 cents for each additional word.

Note: Each real estate listing counts as one business text ad.

Send your classified ad with check or money order, payable to the Beacon, to:

The Beacon, Baltimore Classified Dept.

P.O. Box 2227, Silver Spring, MD 20915-2227 Personal Services

Wanted

ESTATE SPECIALIST Experts in estate clean-outs and preparing your house for sale.

Trash removal, house cleanouts, light moving, demolition, yard work, cleaning. 410-746-5090.

Free estimates. Insured. Call 7 days 7am - 7pm.

BUYING OLD BASEBALL CARD COLLECTIONS Baseball Card Outlet at 7502 Eastern Ave near Eastpoint Mall is always in the market for buying vintage sports card collections & memorabilia from 1975 & older. 410284-4440 Open daily at 10AM.

FUNERALS & CREMATION – Parkview Funeral Home & Cremation Service by Brent Francis, P.A. Family Owned & Operated “Celebrating Life.” Traditional burial, cremation, memorial services, pre-planning, affordable options for all budgets. 7527 Harford Rd. (2 blocks south of Taylor Ave.), 410-444-4683. www.parkviewfh.com.

LEARN ENGLISH – SPANISH – ITALIAN – FRENCH – PORTUGUESE Conversational.

Grammatical. Private lessons. Reasonable Rates. Tutoring students. 443-352-8200.

Personals PLATONIC FRIENDSHIP – SWF, 65, is seeking women for platonic friendship for dining out, picnics, movies, conversation, board games, travel day trips, concerts, walking, hiking, window shopping, museums, swimming, miniature golf, amusement parks, etc. Call Mary, 410-978-4887.

SINGLE MEN – SWF, recently retired, petite, senior, 65, Christian, blonde hair, blue eyes is seeking single men 55+ for dating, possibly marriage, who enjoys movies, dining out, day trips, watching TV, walks, exercise, hikes, swimming, concerts, travel, amusement parks, and church. Call Mary, 410-9784887.

terrorist, that’s great. But as a law-abiding citizen with nothing to hide, I want to know how years of this personal information might be used against me.

We willingly relinquish tremendous amounts of personal information each day, and again it doesn’t bother me. Why should I care if a manufacturer learns I prefer Brand B cereal to Brand X? But what concerns me, along with millions of other Americans, is just how much personal information does the government collect? Do I have to worry they are tracking the books I borrow from the library, or the phone calls I make to my senators and congressman? And why does the government need to know this in the first place?

There are millions of foreigners living in America in violation of our immigration laws, so it’s unfair the rest of us are singled out for such scrutiny.

You ask “whom do you trust?” Right now my answer is no one. We have a social contract and we have a Constitution. Sadly, both are being shredded.

Rosalind Ellis Heid Baltimore

35

Wanted CASH BUYER FOR OLD COSTUME JEWELRY – pocket and wrist watches (any condition). Also buying watch maker tools and parts, train sets and accessories, old toys, old glassware & coins. 410-655-0412.

VINYL RECORDS WANTED from 1950 through 1985. Jazz, Rock-n-Roll, Soul, Rhythm & Blues, Reggae and Disco. 33 1/3 LPs, 45s or 78s, Larger collections of at least 100 items wanted. Please call John, 301-596-6201.

WE BUY OLD AND NEW COINS, Jewelry, Silver and Gold, Paper Money too. Watches, Clocks and Parts, Military Badges and Patches Old and New. Call Greg, 717-658-7954.

a es ift! k a g M at e gr

$$$$$ WE PAY CASH FOR ITEMS $$$$$ We buy the following items and more: Toys, Collectable Glassware, Dolls (Barbies, Ceramic), Automotive and Motorcycle Parts and Related Items, Electronics, Musical Instruments, Trains, Items of Any Kind – Just Ask – Vintage or Current Cars, Trucks, Motorcycles, RV’s and More. Call Dave @ 443-514-8583. Davidbalt7@aol.com.

BUYING OLD BASEBALL CARD COLLECTIONS Baseball Card Outlet at 7502 Eastern Ave near Eastpoint Mall is always in the market for buying vintage sports card collections & memorabilia from 1975 & older. 410284-4440 Open daily at 10AM. OLD AND NEW WE BUY Sterling Silver Flatware, Tea Sets or Single Pieces., Furniture, Tools, Cameras, Good Glassware, Artwork Too. Toys From Trains to Hotwheels, Action Figures to Star Wars. Call Greg, 717-658-7954.

HELP WANTED - ZIPS DRY CLEANERS. Coming soon. 6201 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD. Help wanted for all positions, managers, counter service and production.

Apply in person between 1 and 4 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays in August 2013. Call for appointment. Sara: 516-312-0425, Ray: 601818-4876, Sam: 601-307-4612.

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was receiving unwanted e-mails about cataracts and cataract surgery.

For over two years, I’ve received phone calls from people identifying themselves as Verizon representatives calling with reference to my computer. When I spoke with Verizon and asked if they were giving my unpublished phone number to such people, Verizon told me I would have to report these calls to the police.

Lastly, one week ago, I ran a small item ad in the For Sale section of a local neighborhood newspaper. I found my ad plastered all over the internet yesterday — along with my phone number which at this time is still unpublished.

Beverly Grossman Baltimore Dear Editor: I have no problem with the U.S. government collecting phone records, but I want to know how they will be used. If massive data mining of phone calls can smoke out a

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