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Talk to me, not to my daughter
The first time Corky Alkin remembers being a nonperson was 20 years ago, at a shoe store in the San Fernando Valley suburbs of Los Angeles. Although Alkin was the one shopping, the salesman spoke...
Therapy of a different sort
The six women who gathered in Wendy Wilson’s living room in Massapequa, on Long Island, on a Saturday morning — five in person, one on speakerphone from Florida — were talking about dependence and independence,...
When illness makes a spouse a stranger
He threw away tax documents, got a ticket for trying to pass an ambulance and bought stock in companies that were obviously in trouble. Once a good cook, he burned every pot in the house....
Tips for fighting fraud
Maybe you’ve noticed unnerving warning signals that an older adult has become entangled in financial fraud. Her phone rings all day, but it’s not longtime friends calling. The house begins to fill with cheap junk, the...
For those wary of e-readers, help is on the way
Sharon Howard recalls being too intimidated years ago to use the computer until a friend forced her onto the Internet. And as recently as about two months ago, she was afraid to use an e-reader. "I'd...
Survival skills for a job you detest
We all have heard — or at least seen in the movies — great stories about people who are working in soul-destroying jobs, then quit in some spectacular fashion and move on to fabulous second careers. This...
Big gaps found in nursing homes’ disaster plans
Tornado, hurricane or flood, nursing homes are woefully unprepared to protect frail residents in a natural disaster, government investigators say. Emergency plans required by the government often lack specific steps such as coordinating with local authorities,...
An age-appropriate assist
John Antsy keeps a busy schedule. Tuesdays and Fridays, he heads over to see Don and Prudence Allender, who might need groceries or prescriptions picked up or a light bulb changed. “It’s a great boon, because...
Five ways to improve your memory
A momentary lapse of memory certainly isn't isolated to those over 50. But it is true that after half a century of life, humans frequently have incidents of what is commonly referred to as "brain...
Mourning the loss of a pet can be excruciating
Q: My aunt sent an email announcing the death of her dog and talked about it as she would a human death – a bit over the top, I think. I sent a condolence email...