Golden Gazette January 2024

Volume 36, Number 1

January 2024

In January & Inside 1st New Year’s Day 5th First Friday Art Trail 12th New Neighbors meeting............................... page 5 15th Martin Luther King Jr. Day ........................... page 1 17th Alzheimer’s Support Group ........................ page 16 Beware of scams .................................................. page 3 Is this physician right for me? ............................. page 6 Wills: The cornerstone of your estate plan ......... page 8 Chicken Tortilla Soup ......................................... page 11 The field for the Texas primary election ........... page 12 Women’s Giving Circle ....................................... page 17 At the Cactus Theater ....................................... page 18 Making & keeping adult friendships ................. page 19 New Year’s Resolutions .................................... page 22 Lubbock Arts Festival wins ‘Best in Texas’ ..... page 23 Hope Tower at Covenant Medical Center ........ page 23

WRITE IT ON YOUR HEART THAT EVERY DAY IS THE BEST DAY IN THE YEAR.

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happy New Year 2024

24 Pages

Lubbock, Texas 79423

MLK Day to be celebrated Jan. 15 Martin Luther King Day, often abbreviated as MLK Day, is a federal holiday in the United States that honors the civil rights leader and activist, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, close to Dr. King’s birthday on Jan. 15. In 2024, it falls on Jan. 15.

The holiday serves as a time for reflection, community service, and the celebratio of Dr. King’s contributions to the civil rights movement.

MLK Day is a day to remember and celebrate King’s life and achievements.

It is also an opportunity to reflect on the ongoing struggle for civil rights, equality, and justice.

Martin Luther King Day was established as a federal holiday in the United States in 1983, after years of advocacy and activism by supporters of Dr. King’s legacy.

The holiday was first observed on Jan. 20, 1986, and has since become a day to remember Dr. King’s leadership in the civil rights movement and his dedication to achieving racial equality through nonviolent means.

As nations around the world continue to struggle under the weight of violence, hate and poverty, today’s social, political and economic landscape reveals the urgent necessity of. King’s philosophy and methodology of Nonviolence (Nonviolence365™).

The 6 steps of nonviolent social change King’s philosophy for social & interpersonal change.

• Information gathering • Education • Personal commitment • Negotiation • Direct action • Reconciliation

Martin Luther King, Jr. 1929 - 1968

The King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, provides education and training in Nonviolence365 while serving as the vital living memorial of Dr. King.

The strategic theme for 2024 is ‘Shifting the Cultural Climate through the Study and Practice of Kingian Nonviolence.’

The pioneering work of Dr. King demonstrated that Kingian Nonviolence (Nonviolence365™) is the sustainable solution to injustice and (See MLK Day, Page 3)

Page 2 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

A man is suing smart water for not making him smart, and I’d like to formally announce my lawsuit against thin mints.

Santa has been reading your posts all year. Most of you are getting dictionaries.

Dear Santa, Before I explain, how much do you know already?

Why must I prove that I am me to pay my bills over the phone? Do strangers call to pay my bills? And if they do, why don’t you let them?

Churches are wasting precious opportunities by not singing the old hymns. They had a message that is needed by young people today.

NOW ACCEPTING NEW PATIENTS Community Health Center of Lubbock, Inc. — Medical Providers

Allan Camacho, MD

Parkway Clinic – Family Practice

Karen Scott, DO

Main/MOP – Family Medicine

Donald Freitag, MD

Parkway Clinic – Family Practice

Edward Leins, DO

Main Clinic – Family Practice

Marissa Blanco, MS, MSN,LPC,FNP-BC Chelsea Patino, MSN,APRN,FNP-BC Main Clinic – Family Practice

Main Clinic – Family Practice

Susan McCartney, MD

Sarah Mankin, DO

Lindsey Grace, MSN,APRN,FNP-C

Stephanie White, APRN,CNM

Main Clinic – Internal Medicine

Main Clinic – Family Practice

Arnett Benson Clinic – Family Medicine

Main/MOP – Women’s Health Certified Midwife

Call for an appointment 806-765-2611 or register online

https://www.chclubbock.org/online-registration https://www.chclubbock.org/request-appointment-form/ Affordable healthcare is provided. CHCL accepts private insurance, Medicaid, Medicare, and other forms of insurance. Screening on-site for Medicaid and other programs available.

Albina Garoy, MSN,APRN,FNP-C

Chatman Clinic – Family Practice

Malisa Akin, FNP

West Medical Clinic – Family Practice

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 3

MLK Day to be celebrated Jan. 15 Beware of soliciting scams (Continued from Page 1)

violence in the world. https://thekingcenter.org/ king-holiday-2024/ In 1994, Congress passed the King Holiday and Service Act to encourage Americans to celebrate the King

holiday as a day of service.

At the time of its passage, Coretta Scott King said, “The greatest birthday gift my husband could receive is if all people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds celebrated the holiday by performing individual acts of kindness through service to others.”

During his lifetime, Dr. King sought to forge common ground on which people from all walks of life could join together as equals to address important community issues. Service, he realized, was the great equalizer.

“Dr. King once said, ‘Everybody can be great because everybody can serve,” said David Eisner, CEO of the Corporation for www.mlkday.org.

Martin Luther King Jr. was a Baptist minister, activist, and political philosopher who was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968.

To learn more about the King Day of Service, visit www.mlkday.org.

From The White House, Briefing Room, Presidential Actions

A Proclamation on Martin Luther King, Jr. Federal Holiday, 2022 “On a late summer day in 1963, Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., stood on the National Mall before hundreds of thousands of demonstrators who had gathered to march for freedom, justice, and equality. On that day, Dr. King shared a dream that has continued to inspire a Nation: To bring justice where there is injustice, freedom where there is oppression, peace where there is violence, and opportunity where there is poverty. Today, people of all backgrounds continue that march—raising their voices to confront abuses of power, challenge hate and discrimination, protect the right to vote, and access quality jobs, health care, housing, and education. On this day, we reflect on the legacy of a man who issued a call to the conscience of our Nation and our world.”

Lubbock Fire Rescue has been made aware of an array of scam calls portraying to be from Lubbock Fire Rescue and requesting donations from the public for new equipment.

To assist the citizens of Lubbock, Texas, we would remind you of the following: Lubbock Fire Rescue does not and will never ask the public for any sort of donations or make phone calls like such.

If you receive a phone call or communication similar to this, end the call and report it to the Lubbock Police Department at their non-emergency line at 806-775-2865.

G N & BLADE SHOW Sat. 9-5 Sun. 10-5

LUBBOCK CIVIC CENTER Admission: $8 adults, $1 ages 5-12 (CASH ONLY for ADMISSION)

www.lubbockgunshow.com info@silverspurtradeshows.com 806-253-1322

Page 4 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Seeds of Hope The love of God Miss Burrell was my second grade teacher and next door neighbor. It seemed as though I could never get beyond her “watchful” eye.

When she called on me in class, I would “shrivel” up inside and have difficulty getting any words out of my mouth.

And when I was out in our yard playing, I imagined that she was “peeking” at me and my friends from the corner of a window. Perhaps it was feelings of guilt for not being a better student or more gracious when she came to visit my mother.

But in spite of those feelings, I remember the many evenings she would knock on our front door and ask me to join her in the front yard and

study the stars and constellations. She would bring her flashlight and point out “The Big Dipper” and “The Little Dipper” and all of the constellations that God formed in the sky.

She would also point out different stars - some that shined brightly and some that we could barely see. I remember asking her how many miles they were from where we were standing.

“No one will ever be able to measure the most-distant star because we will always be finding new ones that are even farther away.” So, “We’ll never know,” was her answer every time I asked that question.

“For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who stand in awe of him,”

What a difference

your lunch hour can make!

Once a week, or once a month, use your lunch hour to deliver a hot, nutritious meal to someone who is homebound.

You will make their day, and they will make yours.

Call

806-792-7971 for more info.

Lubbock Meals on Wheels www.LubbockMealsOnWheels.org

www.SowerMinistries.org

said the Psalmist.

What a marvelous statement about the love of God. It is so immense, as are his heavens, that we will never be able to measure it.

A Plimsoll Mark While watching a large oceangoing cargo ship slip quietly into the Atlantic I noticed a mark on the side of the ship. Having been in the Navy for several years, I was rather embarrassed to ask my friend what it meant.

“It’s a Plimsoll Mark,” he said with authority. It was not an answer that helped at all, so I asked, “What’s a Plimsoll Mark?”

“It’s a load-line on the ship that shows how much cargo the ship can carry safely under different conditions.

For example, the closer the line is to the water, the more ‘at-risk’ the ship would be in a storm.”

The Lord has a “loadline” marking on each of us.

As we read in Psalm 103:14, “for He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.”

The Psalmist assures us that God knows our limitations - what we can safely and securely “carry.”

None of us are immune to trials - nor are any of us excused from being tempted.

All of us, in one way or another and at one time or another, face similar types of trials and temptations.

GUIDO EVANGELISTIC ASSOCIATION

good Christian, not get angry and to stop getting into fights. Did you count to a hundred like I told you to?” she asked.

“Well, I tried,” he said.

“But John’s mother told him to only count to 50, and that’s when he knocked me to the ground and jumped on me.”

Many of us get angry quickly. But not the Lord.

In Psalm 103:8 we read that “The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.”

Imagine what life would be like with an angry God Amazing grace - one who was quick to punAlbert came home from ish us for every sin. As soon school with bruises, a torn as we broke one of his laws shirt and tears. “he hammers” us. And if he “Fighting again?” sighed were not compassionate and his mother. “I thought it was merciful, there would be no clear that you were to be a (See Seeds of Hope, Page 18) None are new. None are different. They come at different times in different situations from different directions appealing to our different weaknesses.

As Paul wrote, “No temptation has seized you that is not common to others, And, God is faithful. He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide you a way out.”

He knows our “load-lines” and will not let us sink.

However, we must be careful not to put ourselves at risk.

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 5

Giovanni’s celebrating 70th Anniversary toNewmeetNeighbors Jan. 12 If any of you loyal readers remember my first columns many years ago, you’ll be interested in these up-dates.

At that time, I wrote about my maternal family’s beginnings in the restaurant business, and yes, while in high school I helped my Uncle Tony in his take-out pizza business.

After a few years, he went on to open a gorgeous restaurant which even had a gift shop. That restaurant became one of the top 10 restaurants in the USA. Many celebrities would dine there when in town – even Perry Como!

After many years, he sold the property and retired in Florida a very wealthy man.

Unfortunately, he passed away a few years later.

Another uncle, John, opened his small pizza takeout in Fairborn, Ohio, in 1953. Fairborn happens to be the home of Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

The pizza takeout soon became a favorite for the pilots and personnel of WrightPatterson.

The pilots would place food orders and then fly all over Europe delivering food to our AF personnel overseas.

You might say he became ”International.” Because of all the AF business, he expanded and opened a fullsize dining restaurant.

During all those years, I

also had a very busy life: getting married, following my husband in the military for four years, and raising four kids. We eventually settled in Texas.

My Uncle John, “Giovanni,” sometime in the 1980s retired and turned the restaurant over to my Uncle Louis.

Then the business was sold to the Spazianni family, keeping the name, Giovanni.

Mr. Spazianni added more dining area and also brought in sons of his family’s recipes.

His daughter, Cassandra, took over the business after her father passed in early 2023.

My eldest daughter keeps in touch with Cassandra, and when in Fairborn for family reunions she and my son-inlaw dine there.

Giovanni’s has been written up in several local magazines and newspapers. My childhood friend has always sent me newspaper clippings of columns written about Giovanni’s, keeping me upto-date on the latest news.

Well, lo and behold, she sent me a recent column that Giovanni’s was celebrating its 70th Anniversary! Can you believe it?

The recipe that put them on the map is for the pizza crust. My Uncle Louis asked me before I left Ohio if I wanted “the recipe.” I declined because I never wanted to open a restaurant. How

stupid was that?!! I could probably have sold it for $$$ -- maybe!

Another interesting bit of info about Giovanni’s even turned up here in Lubbock.

Several years ago I was in re-hab after back surgery and by eldest daughter came to visit. We were sitting in the guest area when a nice gentleman, who was visiting his father, started a conversation with us.

He told us that he was stationed at Wright-Patterson

Air Force Base while in the military. I asked him if he knew about Giovanni’s.

Of course he was shocked to be looking at Giovanni’s niece and great-niece sitting in front of him.

He said he and his wife ate there three times a week while living there.

What a coincidence. That name even shows up in Lubbock.

A happy 2024 and many blessings to one and all, Cathy

New Neighbors Club of Lubbock will hold its first general meeting of 2024 at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 12 at The Lubbock Women’s Club, 2020 Broadway.

Dr. Jason Clemmons will be speaking about wellness.

Cost for the luncheon is $20, and reservations may be made by calling or texting Roni Allen at 281-507-4083 or by email at okieroni1@gmail.com.

Page 6 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Is this physician right for me? How can I know?

My patients come to me and complain about their doctor. I’ve asked myself so many times over the years, “Why is it my job to take up for the medical doctors?

Do they take up for me?”

Doubtful.

A good question is, is this person the right doctor for you? Years ago, I got so many complaints about doctors not even touching their patients. Now when you go for a physical, they literally do not touch you, even if you have had breast cancer.

This is protocol.

We are living in a new time. It is not the old world where our family doctor had his own clinic with a few nurses.

Those times have gone by the wayside for the most part. Doctors do not neces-

sarily own their own clinic.

There are numerous doctors working out of one clinic.

Most of them have protocols the doctors must follow.

That means if you come in and have high blood pressure, this is the medicine you get. And if you have diabetes, this is the medicine you get.

These medicines will manage your care until more medicines are added, or medicines are changed or you die. That is our modern medicine.

When was the last time you heard them say, “Are you willing to do what it takes to cure this problem you have?” For the most part medicines aren’t curative.

They manage. There is a big difference.

This is a serious question:

‘Do you want to be managed or cured?

If you are NOT willing to do the hard work to work toward a cure, then be grateful for managed care.

If you want a cure, the internet is available and lots of other people who practice more holistically are available. On that, the decision is yours.

Please don’t be that patient that comes into my office and says, “I will do anything to get better,” and yet when I give them guidelines for a diet, they balk. You need to accept that we have to change our food massively. There are so many chemicals, pesticides, metals and so forth, that yes, avoiding certain food will be part of your recovery.

When you work with

your body for a cure, food is medicine. Right?

As for the doctor, make a list of what characteristics you need to have in a doctor.

health food store and get some vitamin C, echinacea and elderberry.

Learn the tricks of the trade.

For me it would be smart, open-minded, and kind.

When you go to a doctor, you are NOT looking for a best friend. You want a good doctor, so be a good patient.

It is perfectly acceptable to go to a doctor and leave without a prescription. But many patients are not willing to, so doctors write prescriptions to please the patient.

They have actually said this to me: “If I don’t give them an antibiotic, they will go down the street to someone else and get one from them.”

How can you be a good patient? When the doctor comes in, have your list of questions in hand. He or she has limited time. Having your list in hand will keep you from saying, “I meant to ask him/her, but I forgot.”

Be willing to say, “I just want you to check this. It might be a virus and I know that antibiotics don’t work on a virus. I’m not looking for a drug, just your diagnosis.”

If it is a virus, go by the

One is, “It is a virus, but I will give you an antibiotic in case it becomes bacterial.”

Just say, “That isn’t necessary. It if is a virus, I can treat it with vitamin C and echinacea and elderberry.

And if it gets worse, I’ll come back.”

Patients are sometimes afraid to say that to a doctor, so another option is, “I really try to avoid antibiotics, so if it is a virus, I will be fine without a prescription.”

I took my grandmother to an eye doctor who was not kind to her. He said things like, “I work with people all day long who can’t make up their mind.” That comment was after she didn’t know if she could see better looking through A or B lenses. As we walked out of his office, I said to my Granny, “We will not be coming back here.

This man needs to find a new job.”

Do not be the patient to a doctor who is unkind or does not have compassion. Period.

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 7

‘You’re Sixteen’ by Johnny Burnette & Ringo Starr Since you are reading this in a senior publication, there’s a good chance that you not only remember Ringo Starr’s “You’re Sixteen” from 50 years ago, but the original 1960 version by Johnny Burnette, as well.

(Rockabilly collectors now lust after those obscure plastic discs.)

Later, Johnny and Dorsey moved to Los Angeles to become songwriters for Ricky Nelson (“Believe What You Say,” “It’s Late”).

Blast To The Past!

By Randal C. Hill

‘You’re Sixteen’

Burnette was born in 1935 and lived with his parents and brother Dorsey in a Memphis housing project that included equally poor neighbors Vernon, Gladys and Elvis Presley.

After school days ended, music lovers Johnny, Dorsey and a mutual friend formed the hard-driving Johnny Burnette Trio.

They toured constantly and recorded some high-octane 45s that went nowhere.

As a solo artist, Johnny signed with Los Angeles’s Liberty Records and proceeded to cut some minor hit singles.

Burnette’s only Top Ten career tune was the bouncy, violin-saturated “You’re Sixteen,” which ended up on the best-selling soundtrack of George Lucas’s 1973 nostalgia movie “American Graffiti.”

In 1964, Johnny died in a California boating accident.

You come on like a dream Peaches and cream Lips like strawberry wine You’re sixteen, you’re beautiful and you’re mine You’re all ribbons and curls Ooh, what a girl Eyes that sparkle and shine You’re sixteen, you’re beautiful and you’re mine Mine all mine, mine, mine, mine You’re my baby, you’re my pet We fell in love on the night we met You touched my hand, my heart went pop Ooh, when we kissed I could not stop You walked out of my dreams, and into my arms Now you’re my angel divine You’re sixteen, you’re beautiful and you’re mine.

Ringo, the oldest Beatle, was born Richard Starkey in 1940 in the Dingle, Liverpool’s most depressed innercity district.

Housing there usually meant cramped quarters, poor ventilation and a rear door that opened onto an outhouse.

Young Starkey was often in and out of hospitals with various illnesses.

At age 13, he began a two-year stay in a sanitorium after he contracted tuberculosis.

As with many other longterm patients, he was encouraged to join the institution’s musical group. (He was often heard beating upon the cabinets next to his bed with a mallet that he fashioned from a cotton bobbin.)

“I was in the hospital

band,” he has explained.

“That’s where I really started playing. I never wanted anything else from then on.”

At 15, barely literate and uninterested in school, he took menial Liverpool jobs until he found employment as a rock ‘n’ roll drummer and soon became wellknown as a member of Rory Storm and the Hurricanes, one of the premier rock groups in the city.

As he wore two rings on each hand, he adopted the stage name Rings (later Ringo) Starr.

In 1962, he was hired by the Beatles to replace their dour original drummer Pete Best, who hadn’t meshed well with fun-loving John, Paul and George.

R i n g o ’s v e r s i o n o f “You’re Sixteen” featured a

“chugging” lope and a lot of help from his friends (get it?) on his million-selling Apple Records single.

Among the many musicians who offered background support that day in the recording studio were— no surprise here—John Lennon, George Harrison and Paul McCartney.

During the bridge of Ringo’s “You’re Sixteen,” Paul McCartney made a sound like a kazoo with his mouth, although his quirky contribution was credited as a “vocal sax solo” on Starr’s “Ringo” album. Go figure.

Sometimes thought of as the neglected Beatle who dwelt in the Lennon-McCartney-Harrison shadow, Sir Richard Starkey is said to have a net worth of $350 million today.

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Page 8 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Wills: The cornerstone of your estate plan (the most vital) If you care about what happens to your money, home, and other property after you die, you need to do some estate planning. There are many tools you can use to achieve your estate planning goals, but a will is probably the most vital.

Even if you are young or your estate is modest, you should always have a legally valid and up-to-date will. This is especially important if you have minor children because in many states your will is the only le-

state law. State intestate succession laws, in effect, act as a de facto will if you die without one. In general terms, your property is distributed to your closest blood relatives in proportions dictated by law.

The state’s distribution rules, howWills avoid intestacy ever, may not be what you desire. InPerhaps the greatest advantage of testacy also has other disadvantages; a will is that it allows you to avoid including the possibility your estate ‘intestacy.’ That is, with a will you will owe more taxes than it would if get to decide who receives your you had created a valid will. property, rather than leaving it up to gal way you can name a guardian for them. Although a will doesn’t have to be drafted by an attorney to be valid, seeking an attorney’s help can ensure that your will accomplished what you intend.

Wills distribute property according to your wishes

Wills allow you to leave bequests (gifts) to anyone you want. You can leave your property to a surviving spouse, a child, siblings, other relatives, friends, a trust, a charity, or anyone you choose. There are some limits, however, on how you can distribute property using a will.

For instance, your spouse may have certain inheritance rights as to a percentage of your property, regardless of the provisions of your will.

Gifts through your will take the form of specific bequests (e.g., an heirloom, jewelry, furniture, or cash), general bequests (e.g., a percentage of your property), or a residuary bequest of what’s left after your other gifts.

Wills allow you to nominate a guardian for minor children In many states, a will is your only means of stating who you want to act as legal guardian for your minor children if you die. You can name a personal guardian, who would take personal custody of the children, as well as a property guardian, who would be responsible for managing the children’s assets. This can be the same person or different people. The

probate court has final approval over guardianship, but courts will usually approve your choice absent any compelling reasons not to.

Wills designate an executor A will allows you to designate a person as your executor to act as your legal representative after your death. An executor carries out many estate settlement tasks, including locating your will, collecting and valuing your assets, paying legitimate creditor claims, paying any taxes owed by your estate, and distributing any remaining assets to your beneficiaries.

Like naming a guardian, the probate court has final approval of your executor, but will usually approve your nominee.

Wills specify how to pay estate taxes & other expenses The way in which estate taxes and other expenses are divided among your heirs is generally determined by state law unless you otherwise directed by the provisions of your will.

To ensure that the specific bequests you make to your beneficiaries aren’t reduced by taxes and other expenses, your will can include provisions that these costs be paid from your residuary estate. Or, you can specify which assets should be sold off to cover these costs.

Wills can create a testamentary trust You can create a trust in your will, known as a testamentary trust, that comes into existence as soon as your will is probated. Your will sets out the terms of the trust, such as who shall act as trustee, who the beneficiaries are, how the trust is funded, (See Wills, Page 15)

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 9 TEXAS TECH HEALTH SCIENCES CENTER Garrison Institute on Aging

January kicks off with several Holidays and Celebrations!

• Jan. 1 kicks off the New Year. It is a time when we have resolutions to change the things we can, keep the ones we like, and the wisdom to know the difference.

• Jan. 2 is when we delete the resolutions made on January 1!

• Jan. 3 is National ChocolateCherry Day. I remember getting these from my grandparents. YUM! • Jan. 15 is Martin Luther King Day and known as a day of service.

It is a great time to make a difference. Do something great for another.

• Jan. 29 is National Puzzle Day (and hope there are no missing pieces).

Mental health sessions

By

at Carillon Senior Living, Windsong Building at 4002 16th St. in Lubbock from 3 to 4 p.m.

Parking is next to the building and light refreshments will be served.

Contact the office for details at 806743-7821.

Meals on Wheels

We are continuing to host mental Lubbock Meals on Wheels has health sessions for caregivers as continued to increase its local service well as offering a free respite care in order to assist more individuals to program with the guidance of Dr. remain living independently.

Jonathan Singer, TTU Department of Volunteer efforts include route Psychological Sciences. delivery, assistance in kitchen or ofHe has openings for free respite RSVP fice, and packing weekend meals, pet care on Mondays and Thursdays RSVP is a federal grant funded food, fruit, and other items. of each week. Dr. Singer has also program that assists older Texans An hour or two a week can help so opened up ‘tele-health’ sessions for in finding volunteer activities that many. Call 806-792-7971. those living in rural areas. match their time and talents.

January jokes If you are an informal (unpaid) This month we are highlighting What is for breakfast on really caregiver of someone with Parkin- two places that are looking for you. cold days in January? son’s, Alzheimer’s, or other related • Frosted Snowflakes. dementia diseases, there are pro- UMC volunteers What can you catch in January University Medical Center grams that can benefit you at no cost. with your eyes closed?

Participation in his study can as- NEEDS YOU! • A cold.

UMC is looking for volunteers sist in providing future services for How was the snow globe feeling who can commit to one – four hour you and those you care for. in January?

Caregivers are encouraged to shift per week.

Care Partner Academy • A little shaken.

Locations include the Main CamThe Care Partner Academy will contact Dr. Singer for additional inWho is Frosty the Snowman’s pus, 602 Joliet Ave., and UMC meet at noon Jan. 10 at 6630 S. formation at 806-834-5884 or email favorite aunt?

Southwest Medical, 4004 82nd St. at jonsinge@ttu.edu.

Quaker.

• Aunt Arctica.

For additional information, conFrancisco Sotelo will speak on Healthy Aging Lecture Why did the snowman go to the tact Catlin McCune at 806-775-8238 “Got Questions…Need Answers?” doctor? or Catlin.McCune@umchealthsysHe will detail the services that the Series • He had the chills!

The Healthy Aging Lecture Series tem.com.

South Plains Area Agency on Aging (SPAG) can provide for you. SPAG is scheduled for Jan. 24.

Sherry Rosenblad, Ph.D., assistant Volunteers are paid in six figures – S-M-I-L-E-S. ~ Maya Angelou is the only organization representing all general-purpose governments, professor at Texas Tech University both cities and counties, in the re- Health Sciences Center will present “New Year, New Me: Taking Care of gion.

The event is free and open to the the Self You Have, Since You Can’t public. You can view on ZOOM as Have a New One.” 3323 SE Loop 289, Lubbock 79404 The event will continue to be held well (see ad for link). Call 806-743806-775-2057 or 806-775-2058 1217 for details. mylubbock.us/animalservices

Lubbock Animal Services & Adoption Center

The Garrison Institute on Aging was established in 1999 and named in honor of Mildred and Shirley Garrison in 2005. Our mission is to promote healthy aging through research, promote educational and community outreach programs, and serve the community with services and contacts. If you have questions on health issues, aging, chronic disease and mental health, please reach out to us. We can assist in connecting you with the right contact for your concerns.

Searching for the perfect addition to your family?

Dogs and cats (and sometimes other furry, scaly, or feathered species, too) of all ages and sizes just waiting for the right home.

Open M-F - 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. & Saturdays - noon to 4 p.m.

Volunteers always welcome.

Page 10 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Rules of life

1. Let it go.

Never ruin a good day by thinking about a bad yesterday.

2. Ignore them.

What other people think of you is none of your business.

3. Give it time.

Time heals almost everything.

4. Don’t compare.

The only person you should try to best is the person you were yesterday.

5. Stay calm.

It’s OK not to have everything figured out.

Know that in time you’ll get there.

6. It’s on you.

Only you are in charge of your happiness.

7. Smile.

Life is short. Enjoy it while you have it.

Don’t we know it!

The typographical error is a slippery thing and sly.

The best revenge is none.

Heal, move on and don’t become like those who hurt you. - Pamela Short

You can hunt it ’til you’re dizzy, but it somehow will get by. ’Til the forms are off the presses, it is strange how still it sleeps; It shrinks down in a corner, and it never stirs or peeps.

That typographical error is too small for human eyes ’til the ink is on the paper, then it grows to mountain size.

The remainder of the issue may be as clean as clean can be, but the typographical error is the only thing they’ll see.

People don’t always say, ‘I love you.’

Sometimes it sounds like:  Be safe.  Did you eat?  Call me when you get home.  I made you this.

Lubbock,Texas

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Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 11

Speak to your children as if they are the wisest, kindest, most beautiful and magical humans on earth, for what they believe is what they will become.

- Brooke Hampton

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients • 4 cups chicken broth • 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice • 1 cup chopped avocado • 2 cups chicken, lightly chopped • 1 cup chopped tomato • ¼ cup minced red onion • ¼ cup minced fresh cilantro • ½ cup shredded sharp cheddar • 1 tablespoon minced fresh jalapeno pepper • 12 tortilla chips

Instructions 1. In large saucepan, bring chicken stock and 2 tablespoon of lime juice to a boil.

2. Toss the avocado with the remaining 2 tablespoons lime juice in a medium bowl. Add the chicken, tomato, onion, cilantro, cheese, jalapeno and salt.

3. Divide the chicken mixture and tortilla chips among four bowls; pour broth over each.

Notes Makes 4 servings Nutrition Information: 320 calories, 15 grams fat, 75 mg cholesterol, 1270 mg sodium, 16 grams carbohydrate, 4 grams fiber, 32 grams Photo by Jesus Rodriguez protein Well, you can buy your wife jewelry, or an expensive purse or perfume for Christmas, but she will never, ever forget the Christmas you gave her a mop. Never. Ever.

Page 12 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

The field for the Texas primary election is set

By Patrick Svitek TEXAS TRIBUNE The field is set for the Texas primary — making way for a dramatic few months ahead of the March election.

At the top of the ticket, Texans will vote on who they want as their party’s presidential nominee — where Donald Trump has a landslide lead for Republicans and President Joe Biden has no serious competition among Democrats.

That means the most interesting action in Texas will be down-ballot.

With both Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton out for revenge, Republican members of the Texas House are the top target on the ballot. But Democrats are also facing ample drama as political dominoes fall in Dallas and Houston, creating new opportunities for ambitious members of the party.

Republicans

On the GOP side, much of the primary drama is being driven by Abbott and Paxton.

Paxton is working to unseat the dozens of House Republicans who voted to impeach him in May, while Abbott wants to defeat a smaller group of House Republicans who thwarted his yearlong push for school vouchers.

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That has created a rare dynamic where two of the most powerful Republicans in the state are backing primary challengers to House Republicans, sometimes aligning behind the same challenger and sometimes not.

It has led to a marked increase in primary challengers. After 43% of House Republicans faced opposition in 2022, at least 57% have primary challengers this time.

The Texas GOP said Tuesday it had “a record-breaking 387 candidates file in Austin, plus many more in their local county offices, marking the second-highest candidate turnout in the history of the” party.

The attorney general has endorsed nearly two dozen primary challengers to state House Republicans who voted to impeach him.

Those candidates, like Paxton, have positioned themselves as further right than House leadership and could prove to be antagonistic toward Speaker Dade Phelan — should he win his own primary.

The Texas Senate acquitted Paxton after a trial in September.

Paxton’s endorsees include Republicans like Mitch Little, a Frisco lawyer who represented Paxton at the trial and is running against Rep. Kronda Thimesch, R-Lewisville. Paxton also backed Wes Virdell, a pri-

mary challenger to Rep. Andrew Murr — the Junction Republican who chaired the House board of impeachment managers — before Murr announced his retirement last month.

Abbott is targeting a narrower group of 16 House Republicans who are seeking reelection and voted last month to strip a voucher program out of a broad education bill. Abbott has endorsed six primary challengers to those members so far.

Vouchers, which would have allowed public dollars to fund private school education, were Abbott’s top legislative priority.

He campaigned for reelection on the promise of passing vouchers, and threatened throughout the year to target Republican lawmakers who stood in his way.

Making good on that threat, Abbott has gotten behind challengers like Hillary Hickland, an activist mother from Belton who has taken her kids out of public schools in recent years. She is running against Rep. Hugh Shine, R-Temple.

Other notable primary challengers have emerged in recent days. Shelley Luther, the Dallas salon owner who became famous to conservatives for defying COVID-19 shutdown orders, filed for a rematch against Rep. Reggie Smith, R-Sherman.

(See - here’s what, Page 13)

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 13

— here’s what type of revenge to watch for (Continued from Page 12)

And Katrina Pierson, the North Texas activist best known as a spokesperson for Trump’s 2016 campaign, joined the primary against Rep. Justin Holland, RRockwall.

The aggressive involvement of Abbott and Paxton means Phelan will have his hands full defending his GOP members.

And Phelan has a primary of his own after running uncontested in 2022.

This time he faces two challengers, led by David Covey, the former chair of the Orange County GOP. Abbott and Paxton are also playing in open seats where they believe they can replace retiring House Republicans with a better political ally.

One example is House District 14, where antivoucher Rep. John Raney, RCollege Station, is not seeking reelection and Abbott has endorsed Bryan businessman Paul Dyson for the seat.

Abbott said in his endorsement that he trusts Dyson to “expand school choice for all Texas families once and for all.”

In House District 87, Abbott and Paxton have aligned behind Caroline Fairly, the daughter of an Amarillo businessman, Alex Fairly, who Texas conservatives are working to cultivate as a new mega donor.

Fairly is among four Republicans running to replace retiring Rep. Four Price, R-Amarillo, who opposes school vouchers.

In the Texas Senate, Re-

publicans are looking at only one competitive primary, to replace retiring Sen. Drew Springer, R-Muenster.

Four Republicans have filed for that seat, though one of them, Denton County GOP Chairman Brent Hagenbuch, is the frontrunner after getting endorsed

by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the powerful presiding officer of the Senate.

As for congressional primaries, the GOP focus is largely on two open seats — the 12th District, where U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, is retiring, and the 26th District, where U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewsiville, is not seeking

Democrats

reelection. Each primary has drawn a crush of candidates, though state Rep. Craig Goldman, R-Fort Worth, has piled up almost all the notable endorsements for Granger’s seat and conservative media executive Brandon Gill recently got the backing of former President Donald Trump for Burgess’ seat.

The closest thing to a competitive primary involving a congressional incumbent is probably in the 23rd Congressional District. U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio, is facing four primary challengers after splitting with his party on issues like guns and the border.

At the top of the ticket, Democrats have a primary for U.S. Senate that has drawn at least 10 candidates.

U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, DDallas, has crushed the pack in fundraising, and his competitors include state Sen. Roland Gutierrez, D-San Antonio; state Rep. Carl Sherman, D-DeSoto; and Mark Gonzalez, former district attorney for Nueces County.

But Democrats’ most spirited fights could be further down the ballot, especially in Dallas and Houston.

Democrats saw a major late development Monday, (See Texas primary election, Page 14)

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Page 14 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Texas primary election ballot is set

The guy at the furniture store told me the sofa would seat 5 people without any problems. Then it occured to me: (Continued from Page 13) I don’t think I know 5 people without when state Rep. Victoria Neave any problems.

Criado launched a primary challenge to state Sen. Nathan I was going to cook up an alligator, but Johnson, an uncommon faceoff then realized I only had a croc pot. between two Dallas Democrats.

There otherwise are few Making plans sounds like a lot of fun notable primary challenges on until you have to put clothes on and the Democratic side. U.S. Rep. actually go out.

Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, who went through primary battles in I had a lot of stuff to do today. Now I 2020 and 2022, drew no oppohave a lot of stuff to do tomorrow. sition this time.

As for open-seat primaries, You’re only as pretty as you treat people. at least 10 Democrats filed to succeed Allred in the 32nd May life treat you exactly the same way Congressional District, a group you treat servers, store clerks, senior that includes state Rep. Julie citizens, children, and animals.

Johnson, D-Carrollton; Brian

Williams, a prominent Dallas trauma surgeon; and Callie Butcher, whose campaign says she is the first transgender Texan to run for Congress in a major-party primary in Texas.

In Houston, at least six Democrats have filed for Whitmire’s seat in Senate District 15, which has not been open since 1982.

The field includes state Rep. Jarvis Johnson, D-Houston; Molly Cook, Whitmire’s 2022 primary challenger; Karthik Soora, a Houston renewable energy developer; Todd Litton, the 2018 Democratic nominee for a nearby congressional seat;

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Michelle Anderson Bonton, executive director of the Anderson Center for the Arts; and Alberto “Beto” Cardenas Jr., a prominent Houston attorney who filed at the last minute Monday.

Whitmire defeated U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in the mayoral runoff, and she quickly decided to seek reelection afterward.

But she will face a primary challenge from at least one fellow Democrat, former Houston City Council member Amanda Edwards.

In both Houston and Dallas, the big open-seat primaries have triggered other vacancies, providing for significant turnover among Democrats in the state’s two biggest metropolitan areas. Julie Johnson’s run for Congress left her state House seat open, Jarvis Johnson’s campaign for state Senate created a vacancy in his state House seat — and Neave Criado’s late primary challenge to Johnson left her state House seat open.

At least one other Democrat, Linda Garcia, filed for Neave Criado’s seat.

In other late developments, a Democratic member of the State Board of Education, Melissa Ortega, will not seek reelection.

That left Democrats without a candidate for the seat with hours left until the filing deadline — a Republican had already filed — though it had become clear by Tuesday afternoon that at least two Democrats, Jessica Cerda and Gustavo Reveles, filed at the last minute.

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 15

Wills: The cornerstone (Continued from Page 8)

how distributions should be made, and when the trust terminates. This can be especially useful if you have a spouse or minor children who may not be able to or adept at managing assets or property on their own.

Wills can fund a living trust A living trust is a trust that you create during your lifetime.

If you have a living trust, your will can transfer any assets that haven’t already been transferred to the trust upon your death. This is known as a pour-over will because the will “pours over” your estate into your living trust.

Wills can help minimize taxes Your will provides an opportunity to minimize taxes and other costs. If you draft a will that leaves your entire estate to your U.S. citizen spouse, none of your property will be taxable when you die because it’s fully deductible under the unlimited marital deduction. If your estate is distributed according to intestacy rules, however, a portion of the property may be subject to estate taxes if it’s distributed to heirs other than your U.S. citizen spouse.

Assets disposed of through will, subject to probate Probate is the court-supervised process of proving and administering a will. Probate can be expensive and time consuming, and probate records are available to the public.

Several factors can affect the length of probate, including the size and complexity of your estate, any challenges to your will or its provisions, creditor claims against your estate, state probate laws, the state court system, and tax issues.

Owning property in more than one state can also necessitate multiple probate proceedings (known as ancillary probate). Generally, real estate is probated in the state where it’s located, and personal property is probated in your state of domicile (i.e., residence) at the time of your death.

Provisions of your will can be challenged in court Although it doesn’t happen often, the validity of your will can be challenged, usually by an unhappy beneficiary or a disinherited heir.

Some common claims include: • You lacked testamentary capacity when you signed the will; • You were unduly influenced by another individual when you drew up the will; • The will was forged or otherwise improperly executed; and • The will was revoked.

Zach Holtzman, Financial Advisor 4412 74th Street, #D-100, 806-701-4083 zach.holtzman@raymondjames.com

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55+ Households are BOOMING! (pun intended) It's crazy! From 2000 to 2021, the number of households headed by older Americans (people age 55 or older) grew by a stunning 65 percent in the United States, according to the latest figures released by the Census Bureau.

This was more than double the 24 percent rise in total households.

Compare this with the number of households headed up by people, ages 35 to 54, which fell 3 percent.

And the number of households headed by young adults? Well, they only grew by 9 percent during that time frame.

Older Americans are now in charge of 46 percent of our nation's households and over three-quarters of its wealth!

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Page 16 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

‘Electrifying presentations,’ tenured denied, & ‘Love Story’ success “Be careful what you wish for, lest it come true.” - Aesop’s Fables

In 1958, Erich Segal grad- at Yale as a classics profesuated from Harvard Univer- sor.

He wrote scholarly works sity as both the class poet and a Latin salutatorian.

He earned a doctorate in comparative literature from Harvard and began lecturing

1970s

Alzheimer’s Support Group, Jan. 17 An Alzheimer’s Caregiver Support Group will meet on the third Wednesday of each month from 10 to 11 a.m. at the Alzheimer’s Association Lubbock office, 4601 50th St. Ste. 216.

The upcoming meeting will be Jan. 17.

The support group is sponsored by the Alzheimer’s Association of West Texas. The meetings will be led by a trained facilitator who has worked with support groups for 10 years.

The support group will be a safe place for Alzheimer’s care partners to develop a support system, and exchange practical information on challenges and possible solutions.

The group will also talk through issues and ways of coping, and share feelings, needs and concerns.

Attendees will also learn about community resources available.

Visit www.alz.org/westtexas to learn more or alzconnected.org.

on Plato and Plautus, and lecture halls were always packed for his talks.

One of his students, future Doonesbury creator Garry Trudeau, once pronounced Segal’s presentations “electrifying.”

But Erich also nurtured an obvious desire to be considered a hip guy as well as an erudite scholar.

Through some contacts on Broadway, he became a co-writer of the animated Beatles feature “Yellow Submarine.” (And what could be hipper than being involved with the Fab Four?)

Thus, Segal was able to enjoy being both a respected

university professor and a daughter who studies music pop-culture icon. “Some- at Radcliffe and calls herself times I amaze even myself,” “a social zero.” Eventually they fall in love and marry, only to have Jenny fall ill with leukemia.

There’s a key line in the story that is now iconic in our culture: “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.” he boasted to film critic Ali McGraw later admitRoger Ebert. “I blow the ted that she didn’t know minds of these freshmen who what that line meant at the come to take a Greek tragedy time but now has her own class, and the professor is the definition: “Saying sorry same guy who wrote “Yel- isn’t what it’s about. It’s low Submarine”! about really feeling badly Segal then turned to writ- for the hurt… and then abing screenplays on the side solutely trying never to do it and came up with “Love Sto- again.” ry,” which was released as a For a while, Erich Segal best-selling 131-page novella was riding high. “I lucked on Valentine’s Day 1970 be- out, that’s what happened,” fore it became a box-office he explained to Ebert. “My smash film at Christmastime. book came out just as the The primary “Love Story” world was turning from cynicharacters—two star-crossed cism to romance.” lovers—were wealthy preBut Segal eventually aclaw Harvard student Oliver knowledged that his incred(Ryan O’Neal) and Jenny ible, head-spinning success (Ali McGraw), a baker’s unleashed “egotism border-

ing on megalomania,” and for that he would pay a hefty price.

Also, despite the overwhelming popularity of Erich’s creation, critics often dismissed “Love Story” as a sentimental tearjerker— shallow, melodramatic and ultimately disposable.

He later claimed the book—a phenomenon among the hoi polloi—“totally ruined me.” In 1972, he was denied tenure at Yale, meaning that he would not be guaranteed a full-time professorship until retirement.

Segal was devastated at the rejection, although Yale never cited his mainstream popularity as the reason they denied him becoming a permanent campus fixture.

Perhaps Garry Trudeau explained it best. “You can’t dress up in tight leather pants to chat with starlets on ‘Johnny Carson’ Friday night and expect to be taken seriously in a classroom Monday morning.”

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‘Sometimes I Think About Dying’ — but it’s not about dying

bearded and friendly goofus arrives at the office as the new head honcho.

His name is Robert (Dave Merheje, a Canadian stand-up comic who plays Ahmed on the Hulu comedy series “Ramy”). He is slightly weird but takes an immediate and sincere interest in frumpy Fran.

The rapid-fire questions he throws at her in the break room drive Fran’s anxiety

By Randal C. Hill level to new heights as she stumbles through the mine(Rey in the “Star Wars” sequel trilogy) is all field of his unending attempts to befriend her. but unrecognizable here as a wan, slump- (Fran detests small talk—or indeed any talk that involves her.) shouldered office drone named Fran.

When it comes to establishing basic huShe is single, lonely and shy, and, contrary to the downbeat title, she doesn’t really want man communication, perhaps Robert will be as good as it ever gets for the lonely lady. to stop living.

Can Fran overcome her resistance to the What she desires—desperately—is to establish a connection to other people but efforts made to move close enough to possibly establish—gasp!—a real relationship? doesn’t know how to do so.

Robert blurts out at one point, “I like you.

Living alone in a dreary, rain-soaked town on the Oregon coast, she works in the I want to get to know you, but you just won’t let me. I don’t know what to do.” cramped port authority office.

Fran’s a hard nut to crack.

Here she processes spreadsheets and budScriptwriter Stefanie Abel Horowitz diget reports in a three-sided cubicle, which is set against a wall and isolated from the other rected the original short film that this movie is based on, and Rachel Lambert (“I Can Feel workaday folks.

She listens to the low-level thrum of her You Walking”) has ably handled the directbanal officemates (they are about her age) ing chores in this unhurried observation of when she’s not lost in one of her many death- loneliness that also shows the courage of unbased daydreams (brief images rather than dertaking cautious baby steps toward a more fulfilling life. complete thoughts).

“Sometimes” releases on January 26 and She’s not suicidal but then neither is she can be rented or purchased from iTunes or much involved with life.

When her lady boss retires, a balding, Amazon.

The first order of business here is to not be put off by the title of this quiet but worthwhile little gem of a film, which is worlds apart from the standard offerings found at your local multiplex.

The ravishing English actor Daisy Ridley

Movie Preview

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I have learned that even when I have PAINS, I don’t have to be one. - Maya Angelou

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 17

WOMEN’S GIVING CIRCLE IS A DIVISION OF THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF WEST TEXAS. The Women’s Giving Circle is an opportunity to forge new relationships and participate in a community of thoughtful, effective philanthropists who are diverse in age, interests, and backgrounds. $ For 100 a calendar year, you and your friends can make a difference in our region together.

How to become a member?

Mail a check to Community Foundation of West Texas 6102 82nd St. 8b Lubbock, TX 79424 or go online to cfwtx.org/womensgivingcircle

The Power of Endless Possibility The Community Foundation of West Texas exists to improve the quality of life for all people in West Texas through the development of organized philanthropy.

806-762-8061 julie@cfwtx.org

Page 18 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

AT THE CACTUS THEATER Need a doc?

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6 Casey James - Texas Blues/Americana - Solo Acoustic Tour 12 Encore: A Tribute to Journey, Fleetwood Mac & Chicago 13 Jon Wolfe - Full Band - Independent Texas Country Fave!

19 Jeff Leeson: The Unscripted Tour - Genius Improv Comedy 20 Gene Watson - The Country Legend Returns!

27 Guns N’ Roses, Def Leppard & Whitesnake Tribute

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Larry, Steve & Rudy: Gatlin Brothers Return The Music Will Never Die - A Tribute to Buddy Holly Arrival From Sweden: #1 ABBA Tribute (2 shows) David Gaschen: The Phantom Sings Love Songs (Rescheduled) 10-11 Diamond: The Legacy Concert (2 shows) 14 Valentine’s Date Night: Classic Film/Dinner Pkgs 17...

Sounds of West Texas: Love Songs On Sale Soon 23 A Rockin’ Tribute to the Top 10 Bands of the ’70s & ’80s

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. – Carl Bard I have a friend who writes music about sewing machines.

He’s a Singer/songwriter, or sew it seams.

Seeds of Hope (Continued from Page 4)

provision or pardon for our wrong doings. Or again, if we were suffering and brokenhearted and filled with grief and guilt for betraying him we would never hear him say, “My grace is sufficient.”

In the Lord we find mercy for our sins and comfort for our sorrows.

If God were not gracious there would be no grace - no

matter how wonderful and needed it is.

But it only has significance when we understand that it means God, at no cost to us, will unconditionally and willingly forgive us of all of our sins.

The Lord erases the ugliness of the past and provides us with clean, blank pages to fill with the potential of a new life committed to him.

Amazing grace.

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ACROSS

1. Artifice 6. Understanding 9. Membership fees 13. Electromagnetic telecommunication 14. Allot 15. Covetousness 16. Sandlike 18. Image 19. Intend 20. Upbeat 21. Mackerel shark 22. Skin eruption 24. Made a hole 25. Ploy 28. Unit in a sentence 31. Mountain nymph 32. Of great breadth 33. Father 36. Person who lies 37. Like a goose 38. From a distance 39. Son of Jacob 40. Unwarranted 41. Plants 42. Flowed out 44. Sense of loss 45. Traditional portion of Muslim law 47. Dry watercourse 48. Exhort 49. Caper 52. Restaurant 56. Widespread 57. Popular entertainment 59. Massive wild ox 60. Sea eagle 61. Standard of perfection 62. Old cloth measures 63. Handwoven Scandinavian rug 64. Confronts

Solution on P. 21

DOWN

1. Streetcar 2. Admirable 3. Notion 4. Vermilion 5. Hawaiian acacia 6. Greek island in the Aegean 7. Sewing case 8. Promontory 9. Moon of Mars 10. Neglected 11. Elicit 12. Church council 14. Lake or pond 17. Pious platitudes 23. Spanish hero 24. Not good 25. Yellow metallic element 26. Melody 27. Purposeful 28. Arrogant 29. Flexible tube

30. Narrow beam of light 32. Predict 34. River in central Switzerland 35. Damn 37. Oxlike African antelope 38. Preparation for killing algae 40. North American nation 41. Gave food 43. Scoffs 44. Speed contest 45. Rush 46. Wild sheep of S. Asia 47. Broad 49. Affirm with confidence 50. Not any 51. Large food fish 53. On sheltered side 54. Planar 55. Long fish 58. Vitality

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 19

The importance of making & keeping adult friendships 3 practices to embrace + common mistakes to avoid

For many, making friends seemed a lot easier when we were kids than it is now in adulthood.

Raising families and long work hours have taken priority over maintaining friendships.

And yet, medical experts report that social connection is essential to our overall physical and emotional wellness, especially as we age.

Transitioning into retirement or other lifestyle shifts may change the circles of people we’re with.

If the idea of making and keeping close friends seems difficult, good news.

Dr. Marisa Franco, a psychologist and professor, wrote a bestselling book that addresses this very issue – “Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make and Keep Friends.”

In an interview for the Growing Bolder podcast, she shared advice on improving social abilities.

3 practices to make adult friends 1. “Don’t assume it happens organically,” Dr. Franco explained. “It did when we were kids because we saw each other every day and we were vulnerable, and that creates organic connection.

We don’t have that as adults. That infrastructure’s not there.”

2. “Assume that people like you. When researchers told people to assume this, they became warmer, friendlier, and more open when they went in to interact with a group, and it was a selffulfilling prophecy.”

In addition to her suggestions of practices to 20% to 30% impact on how long we live, while adopt, she also offered advice on the pitfalls to social connection affects our longevity by 40% to 45%. avoid.

That means one of the best things we could do Common mistakes to avoid for our health is really to stay socially connected.

“I used to think that I can make friends if I Dr. Franco calls loneliness, not just a state of come off as smart, insightful, funny, persuasive, mind, but a way of viewing the world. entertaining. But in fact, this is the least valuable You actually report liking other people less and quality people report in their friendships,” Dr. having less compassion for humanity.

Franco said.

You focus less on others in social interactions “The most valuable quality is people want to be and more on yourself, because you get into this around someone who makes them feel like they really self-protective place. matter. Being good at friendships is less about who Your body’s working on overdrive because you are, and more about how you treat people.” you’re in a state of threat for a prolonged period Dr. Franco revealed that many times our own of time that promotes a lot of wear and tear on self-doubts likely get in the way of focusing on your body. others in the right ways.

By making and keeping adult friends, Dr. We can get caught up in how people are treatFranco believes that not only will the quantity ing us if they are reaching out to us and how they of years you have left increase, but the quality of make us feel, and neglect holding ourselves acthose years will grow as well. countable for how we are treating others.

“For me in college, going into a social group, - https://www.caringtransitionssouthplains.com/ blog/2023/11/16/the-importance-of-making-keeping-adultI would just be like, ‘Everybody’s clingy, nobody friendships introduced themselves to me, I feel lonely.’

But did I introduce myself to anyone else?

Did I make anyone else feel like they belong?

Save the earth.

I didn’t.

It’s the only planet with chocolate.

“That’s our egocentric bias. We think so much more about how people affect us and so much less Challenge yourself to pause, look around, and see just how much you have to be grateful for. about how we’re affecting people.

To be a good friend, we need to think more I need to get out of this bed. about how we’re affecting people and whether we I’m late for the couch. are making them feel loved and valued.”

3. “Join something that is repeated over time because you capitalize on something called the ‘mere exposure effect.’ Our unconscious tendency is to like people who are familiar,” Dr. Franco ex- The health benefits plained. of keeping adult friendships “Once you join that repeated group, maybe it’s While it can be intimidating to open ourselves a hobby that you do in community with others, up to others, Dr. Franco pointed to research that generate exclusivity by asking people to hang out shows just how crucial adult friendships are to our one-on-one before or after the group.” overall health and wellbeing.

Dr. Franco calls loneliness “one of the biggest By following these three keys, Dr. Franco bepredictors of mortality,” even more so than diet lieves the important challenge of making adult friendships can become easier for all of us and cre- and exercise.

Research shows that diet and exercise have a ate opportunities to change our lives for the better.

I swear if my memory was any worse, I could plan my own surprise party.

Once you hit a certain age, life is just a delicate balance of trying to stay awake and trying to fall asleep, while slowly getting worse at both.

To find joy in work is to discover the fountain of youth. – Pearl S. Buck

Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children. – Alex Haley

Page 20 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 21

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“I’m sorry we’re so late getting home,” said the husband to the baby sitter when the couple returned home later than expected.

“Don’t apologize,” replied the girl. “If I had a kid like yours, I wouldn’t be in a hurry to get home either.”

It used to take a whole bale of cotton to make a woman’s dress. Now a silk worm can do it on his day off.

“I’m getting so forgetful. I proposed to you last night, but I’ve forgotten whether you said ‘yes’ or ‘no.’”

“Sorry, Jack,” she answered. “I knew I said ‘no’ to someone last night, but I had forgotten who it was.”

Religion is at its best when it makes us ask hard questions of ourselves.

It is at its worst when it deludes us into thinking we have all the answers for everybody else.

- ArchibAld MAcleish

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Page 22 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

New Year’s Resolutions: ‘Beware the 19th of January!’

By Randal C. Hill Do you make New Year’s resolutions?

About half the folks in America do. But how many of us see our goals to completion?

The answer is a surprising 8 percent, but today we’ll offer some commitment guidelines that may help raise that lowly single digit.

First, though, let’s look at the history of formal intentions, which goes back 4,000 years to the Babylonians, who celebrated a 12-day, mid-March crop-planting ritual called Akitu.

Citizens back then reaffirmed pledges to their god, crowned a new king (or renewed their loyalty to the reigning one), paid off debts and promised to return borrowed farm equipment – always a good idea in a

primarily agrarian society.

Things changed a couple of millennia later when reform-minded Roman Julius Caesar created the Julian calendar in 46 BC. When doing so, he declared that January 1 would now officially introduce the new year and thus Caesar reset the long-established parameters.

(January was named for the twofaced Roman god Janus, who looks backwards into the previous year and ahead into the one about to unfold.)

Here in America, early Christians saw the start of the new year as a time to reflect about past mistakes and vow to eliminate them in the future.

Today, the nature of those aspirations has changed, and promises made now mainly concern self-im-

ALAN D. ROW MD, EYE PHYSICIAN PART-TIME OFFICE JOB

provement (which could be why they are so hard to keep!).

The five most common resolutions include

1. diet, weight loss and exercise, 2. reading more books, 3. learning something new (a foreign language, for example), 4. saving money, and 5. being a kinder, more patient person.

One additional popular January resolve is to drink less alcohol, pledges undoubtedly often made following a bit too much imbibing in celebration of the holiday season just passed.

What exactly is a resolution? It’s a firm decision to do or not do something, and it’s often about finding a solution to a problem.

It’s not about making majestic, wide-ranging changes; it’s a time to correct one’s behavior.

Do you want to make a personal list for 2024?

If so, here are some hints for making realistic commitments— with an emphasis on realistic.

1. Avoid using such negative terms as “quitting” or “stopping.”

2. Set aside adequate time to pause and reflect before creating pledges.

3. Keep everything simple by choosing only one or two goals.

4. Pick a goal or goals that you truly think will make you feel better.

5. Make choices that are specific and measurable.

6. Plan for a month at a time, not a lifetime.

7. Confide in someone about your goal; it may help you keep your intentions.

Email Bertha Gonzalez at alanrowjob@gmail.com or call 806-797-9550

8. If you slip up occasionally, don’t worry about it; however, if you err repeatedly, consider a less ambitious plan.

More than 90 percent of resolution participants don’t make it to their finish line. The most common day for people to throw in their metaphorical towels is January 19, which some cynics have labeled Quitter’s Day. Take note. You have been warned!

Golden Gazette • January 2024 • Page 23

Lubbock Arts Festival celebrates 3rd consecutive ‘Best in Texas’ win The Lubbock Arts Festival has won its third consecutive title as the “Best Festival in Texas” by the Texas Festivals and Events Association (TFEA).

The festival, organized by the Lubbock Arts Alliance, has once again secured the top honor in the category of “Best Overall Event” for festivals with budgets

between $250,001 $750,000. This recognition comes after a year of exceptional growth, with a 20% increase in attendance and an expansion of arts programming for both adults and children.

The event features visual artists from across the nation showcasing and selling their artwork, cap- Leaders and sponsors of the Lubbock Arts Festival - Ashley Hamm, tivating performance vice president external relations, Texas Tech Health Sciences stages with musicians, Center; Kassie Pelham, executive associate, office of the executive actors, and dancers, director of Texas Tech Physicians; Elizabeth Grigsby, executive Hope Tower at Covenant Medical Center on the corner demonstrating artists, director, Lubbock Arts Alliance; and Abie Rampy, director of public relations at The United Family. of 21st & Louisville has opened. Bishop Robert Coerver a dedicated children’s blessed the new building in a ceremony on Dec. 7. A tour “We’re thrilled and hon- that our small staff and large art area, special exhibits, and of the facility followed the Hope Tower Blessing. The stateored to be named the ‘Best group of volunteers put into entertainment. of-the-art facility will allow continued excellent health care Elizabeth Grigsby, execu- of Texas’ by TFEA yet again. making the Lubbock Arts to patients across west Texas & eastern New Mexico. tive director of the Lubbock It highlights not only the Festival bigger and better Here are a few other details about the new tower.

Arts Alliance, expressed her quality of the festival but every year. This award will • Only comprehensive stroke center in West Texas the excellence of the work (See 3rd consecutive, Page 24) • Capable of treating complex orthopedic trauma, gratitude for the recognition.

Hope Tower at Covenant Medical Center

•

•

•

•

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spine and cranial neurosurgery cases Six stories, approximately 200,000 square foot hospital 89 patient beds with room to expand to an additional 60 beds in the future 242 new surface level parking spots, 29 are handicap accessible Includes a public courtyard for patients and visitors and a private courtyard for caregivers Chapel includes Catholic and Methodist elements but is meant to be non-denominational.

Quality End of Life Care

● Fulltime Medical Director ● Pain & Symptom Management ● 24-Hour Support for Patient & Family ● Grief Recovery / Counseling Center ● Music Therapy ● Non-Profit Serving 19 Counties Since 1987 The Region’s ONLY Pediatric & Adult Hospice

806-795-2751 or 800-658-2648 www.HospiceOfLubbock.org

Page 24 • January 2024 • Golden Gazette

3rd consecutive ‘Best in Texas’ (Continued from Page 23)

help us do even more in our mission to bring people and the arts together.”

This year’s 46th Lubbock Arts Festival will return to the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center on April 13 - 14, with the theme, “Colorama.”

Abie Rampy is director of public relations at The United Family, the festival’s title sponsor for the last 15 years.

Elizabeth Grigsby reflected on the partnership with United.

“In the time that we’ve been partners with United, the festival has more than tripled in attendance. Together, we have created one of the very best festivals in Texas, and I am grateful for United’s long friendship and support.”

Amanda Graham, director of marketing and digital strategy for the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, highlighted the importance of the festival’s partnership with Texas Tech Physicians.

The Children’s Art Area at the Lubbock Arts Festival was recognized with the “Best Children’s Programming” award from TFEA. As the 46th Lubbock Arts Festival approaches, all those involved anticipate another year of artistic wonder.

For more information about the Lubbock Arts Festival, lubbockartsfestival.org