Archive for June 2023
It’s Mid-Week . . .
, , , and longest day of the year
so pick something you like to do
and enjoy it aaalllllllll day.
Monsoon rains can arrive any day now.
Got A Full Week . . .
. . . of fun and frolicking
as we climb toward another weekend.
Coming up quickly is Name That Tune with Dale at
4 p.m. tomorrow (Tuesday).
Get a seat early in the 2nd floor theater
for a session you can’t avoid enjoying.
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Traveling Alone
Has its Own Allure
Travel can lose much of its attraction after losing your life-long partner that shared the sites and sights you encountered around the globe over the years.
There’s no longer someone to share views and viewpoints with, or to recall and recount the memories with when you return home. And many suddenly-singles don’t relish the thought of returning to a favorite voyage or villa without the person they enjoyed it with over the years.
As a result, many folks in this position simply tuck travel into the bag of things they no longer do.
This is at a time when, for the first time in their lives, they probably can travel to wherever they choose to and stay as long as they wish.
Most can recall chatting with a solo traveler or two over the years. One long-time friend has flown to several countries and cities without any reservations and rents a room or apartment for several weeks to soak in the culture and cuisine of the land.
Another acquaintance spends most of the year on freighters that take them anywhere at any time on comfortable cruises. All they have to do is make a few phone calls to find a ship and schedule that sounds interesting.
Both of these individuals are examples of how independent they can be in the type and time of travel they choose.
For the less independent or adventurous, there are tours designed to accommodate single people on the road.
If you don’t feel like going it alone, you can book tours for ski trips, museum visits, cooking schools, national parks and almost anything you can envision.
Some of the bumps on the traveling-alone road include finding time to go off on your own during the tour you’ve booked with a group, how to avoid paying the single supplement charged by hotels and cruise ships, as well as getting along with room-mates on the trip.
Some cruise lines have begun offering single-only rooms and salons where solo travelers can gather.
Solo travel takes a bit more planning and preparation, especially if it’s your first time. You might get a lot of helpful hints from other singles on the road.
I Really Don’t Care . . .
. . . if my glass
is half full or half empty.
I now have the time
to refill it.
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It’s Game Day . . .
. . . with bocce at 11,
billiards and
bridge at 2
and bingo at 3.
After . . .
. . . you get your hearing aids
cleaned and checked
at 3 p.m. in the 2nd floor multi-purpose room,
drop down (don’t jump) to the
dining room at 4 o’clock for root-beer floats.
How to. . .
. . . stay healthy and well
will be explained clearly and concisely by
Physician Assistant Clara Goodman from Health U Family Medicine
at 2 p.m. in the theater.
Then hop down to the dining room at 3:30 p.m.
for the monthly birthday party
for residents who have birthdays this month.
And hang around for Mary Weaver’s review
of things to do the rest of this month (while she’s away)
at 4:30 in the dining room.
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Acting Like Someone Else
Might Help Mental Health
By James Gaffney
Mature Life Features
While it sounds counterintuitive, there’s mental-health research suggesting one of the best ways to feel good about yourself is to try not “acting like yourself.”
You heard right.
“Being true to yourself” often means acting counter to your personality traits, according to research conducted by a Wake Forest University psychologist.
Because authenticity predicts a variety of positive psychological outcomes, this study can help people see they have options for how they behave.
One implication of these findings is it might be possible for individuals to improve their mental health by acting against their personality traits. Being flexible with who you are is OK. It is not denying or disrespecting who you are. People are often too rigid about themselves and stick with the comfortable and familiar.
Results of the study revealed that introverts feel more “authentic,” or true to themselves, when they are acting extroverted. When a shy person attends a party and acts like a social butterfly, the individual is likely to report feeling like showing off his or her true self at that time in that situation.
Some might argue that acting in this way suggests people are faking it. But the Wake Forest study shows that is not the case.
Authenticity is consistently associated with acting highly extroverted, even for those who characterize themselves as introverts. Also, people who think of themselves as disagreeable and rude feel more true to themselves when they are agreeable, considerate, polite and kind. And, people who consider themselves careless feel more true to themselves when they are conscientious.
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A Little Extra Attention . . .
. . . might be required for your plans
for rest of the month
because Mary Weaver is going on a
two-week vacation beginning Wednesday.
If You Can Get . . .
. . . decaffieneated coffee,
how come you can’t get
deiced ice-cream?
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‘Tis Good for the
Sole — er, Soul
Get ready to read this aloud to a crowd.
Start simply by pronouncing the word ghoti. Go ahead, say it.
You pronounced the gh as it tough – f – right?
Then the o like in women — i.
And the ti like in national – sh.
You got it right: fish
That’s the peril of this language. Drop a letter and what’s yours is ours. It’s rough, because you add a couple of letters and you’re through.
A simple alphabet change and you cough up your dough.
Are you saying these words out loud?
It was our Spanish teacher who pointed out Sir Winston Churchill’s admonition about paying attention to the pitfalls and peculiarities of the language.
“There certainly is a difference,” he pointed out, “between looking at a young woman sternly and looking at her stern.”
The Neat Thing . . .
. . . about weekends
is that
they keep coming back
about every seven days or so.
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Elegance Frames
Rockies Train Trip
By Pat Neisser
Mature Life Features
CALGARY, Alberta —- Smiling staff members greeted us with “Would you like some champagne or a lemonade, madam?” as we boarded what was to be our home-on-wheels for the next three days. Given the aura of elegance, I could have been on the Orient Express, but the atmosphere of this train was a bit more casual and friendlier.
We were aboard the Royal Canadian Rockies Experience round-trip out of Calgary, one of the several itineraries offered by Royal Canadian Pacific. The 32 passengers on the five refurbished
1930s executive cars relaxed quickly amid wood inlaid paneling in true luxury on rails.
My compartment had two beds and a desk, a complete bathroom with shower, and plenty of storage space. The large windows looked out onto the passing scenery of deep rivers, soaring glaciers, forests, small towns, and, of course, the majestic Rockies.
Squeezed in between excursions tailored for this train’s passengers were three gourmet meals and afternoon tea daily.
Our first stop was Banff and a visit to the historic Banff Springs Hotel. Then we were off to lovely Lake Louise, where a naturalist guide led us around the mirrored waters. Fond memories of skiing this site came rushing back. We reboarded and slid through the Spiral Tunnels along the Kicking Horse River to our overnight stop at Golden, British Columbia.
The next morning, we took a short motor coach ride up to Kicking Horse Resort, where a gondola carried us up to Eagle’s Eye Mountain for a view from the 7,700-foot level along breakfast in the Eagle’s Eye Restaurant.
Back on the train, we headed south in the Columbia River Valley to Cranbrook, British Columbia, where we stopped directly behind a museum and stepped down for a tour.
Lunch was served after reboarding, lunch was served. Our menus matched those of a four-star restaurant. Our dinner one night included sautéed shrimp with jalapeno chutney, orange and ginger glace, baby spinach salad, and crusted rack of lamb. Chocolate pate with spun-sugar crowned the banquet.
Next day, we visited Head-Smashed-in-Buffalo-Jump, a World Heritage site and explored the museum before peering over the cliffs where natives drove bison herds to their deaths for 10,000 years to provide food and clothing for a whole year.
The next morning, we visited Homeplace Ranch where we had lunch after riding horses and before boarding our rolling home for our ride back to Calgary.
Mature Life Features 