Huh? What's Up With That?

banks and others..   HUH? What's up with that? is all about adjusting to change. Years ago, my principal said to me, Aging is all about adapting .  I have thought about those words many times, both in the classroom and after retirement.  It's easy to criticize those who struggle with new ideas, but to move forward, each of us must continue to grow and that generally means embracing differences.     Most people take innovation in stride, but sometimes it is more difficult for seniors for one of several reasons. including:  a  reluctance on the part of the person to admit change can be positive ;  an unwillingness to change because it's always been done this way; and,   fear of the unknown .  But, take a walk in our culture to witness transformations in our lives that are coming or are already here.  Most of these differences appear to be irreversible.  So, these advancements are permanent.  For exampl...

encore performances..   In a previous post, I mentioned how my former department chair referred to my second career as an encore performance .  It was a perfect way to describe my work after I retired from the broadcast industry and began a second career that lasted 17 years.  Since my final retirement, I became interested in what other people do who have chosen a different walk of life.     HUH ? What's up with that ? talked with lots of retirees who now have a new purpose.  They are involved in their own encore performances !  You will meet them through several blogs sandwiched between other posts in the coming months.    After talking with the first dozen or so people, it became obvious and almost without exception, they share three characteristics: an enthusiasm for life; each one was excited about what they were doing; though sometimes wistful about the past, both men and women seemed to be  looking forward and not in...

Rebecca and the outdoors! Great Chemistry!   She drove past the 40-foot-wide clock for the last time and never looked back.  This particular  clock was seen in the movie, The Insider,  with Al Pacino and Russell Crowe.  It's an octagonal timepiece which faces the Ohio River in Clarksville, Indiana and is known simply as the Colgate Clock. It sits on top of a multi-story building and is held up by an Erector Set looking structure that's almost four stories tall.  The second largest clock in the world has been owned by the toothpaste company since 1924.  This is not a story about the clock, but rather a portrait of an impelling retired person who lives her life to the fullest.   HUH ? What's up with that ? caught up with former Colgate chemist, Rebecca Beyerle.     After graduating college, Rebecca began her career in 1977 at the Colgate-Palmolive plant across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky.  She retired 31 years later...

Where was grandpa?   HUH? What's up with that ? is about many different things, but chiefly deals with the disparity of treatment shown older people by a younger generation.  Too many times we speak without thought or consideration of others. All too frequently, we fail to activate any kind of filter and the gap between thought and deed becomes miniscule.  But, an area that is almost excluded from criticism of any kind from anyone is what we politely refer to as grandma's cooking !  In fact, grandma's cooking is very nearly on hallowed ground.   Every culture I can think of reveres grandma's cooking.  Family stories gain legendary proportions when reminiscing about a speciality or particular dish prepared by a grandmother on one side of the family or the other.  Sometimes a family really lucks out and two grandmas are fabulous cooks!  Interestingly, families of various ethnic backgrounds seem to have fostered many, many great cooks. ...

Ruth....   Ruth is 104 and plays Bingo or another game every Thursday at Wellbrooke Retirement Community in Westfield, Indiana.  For as long as I've known her, she is a woman who has commanded the room with her kindness and sincerity.  Judging by the Wellbrooke staff and fellow residents, she may very well be the most sought after lady in the house.  No one passes her without speaking or acknowledging her presence, and, in turn, she never fails to address the speaker with a smile and cheerful greeting of her own.  Ruth is in a wheelchair and is losing her hearing.  Her short-term memory is also fading, but she still knows me and her other three sons, Dave, Carl, and Ken, along with other family members and friends.  Just a few months ago, I had a conversation with her that focused on some of her early recollections of girlhood.   When she was 13 years old, my mother worked in her dad's corner grocery store.  A year later, she ...

I hereby resolve..   It's that time of year when I ask myself what I can do better next year.   HUH? What's up with that ?  According to The History Channel, ancient Babylonians were the first civilization to practice what we call New Year's Resolutions.   They were also the first to celebrate the new year, although back then it was held in mid-March, which coincided with the planting of new crops.    Early resolutions were religious promises to the gods that they would be loyal to their new king and that they would pay all debts. Some of us may even observe close to the same resolutions today.  However, unlike early civilizations, almost all of our declarations are secular.   We tend to make promises to ourselves to improve a habit or characteristic seen as faulty.  Once again, count me in as one of the 46% of Americans who will commit to promising to alter my lifestyle. But, resolutions are almost tedious and sound like a ...

Malarkey and then some   HUH? What's up with that ? is a way to express my disbelief at how older people are often times treated by younger citizens.  It's also a phrase I use when I can't believe what was just said or don't want to believe my own eyes.  In other words, it's fun to laugh at some of the absurdities of life.  There are so many times senior citizens are laughed at because of old-school language or choice of words.  Such is the case of our former vice president.       Joe Biden has begun his latest campaign tour in a bus with his campaign slogan #NoMalarkey .  It didn't take long for pundits, comedians, and critics to make fun of the politician because of his choice of words.  Why?  Probably lots of reasons, but one of the main ones is that no one under the age of 50 would ever use the word malarkey !   The Oxford English Dictionary says malarkey was first used in 1929 and could be Irish...