50plus Life Cumberland County – July 2023

Protect Your Pet from Heatstroke & Hyperthermia –Even in Moderate Weather

By Kimberly Blaker

According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, hundreds of pets die each year as a result of being left in parked cars.

This often occurs when pet owners make a stop with the intent of only being gone a few minutes. But the fact is, getting sidetracked or delayed can happen to anyone.

Many pet owners also believe a car can’t get too hot for their pet with the windows cracked open or on a cloudy day. Sadly, these mistaken notions have resulted in countless pet emergencies and deaths.

Car Interiors Heat Up Quickly

Studies have found that within only 10 minutes, car interiors can heat up by nearly 20 degrees Fahrenheit. At 60 minutes, the car cabin temperature can increase by 45 degrees.

Contrary to popular belief, there’s little difference in the temperature rise between a light-gray minivan with partially opened windows and a darkcolored sedan with the windows closed.

This was confirmed in a study by Lynn I. Gibbs et al., appearing in the Journal of the Louisiana State Medical Society. In the study, both vehicles heated up by 20 degrees within the first 10 minutes. At one hour, there was only a 2-degree difference between the two cars.

Most charts that show the rise in car-cabin temperature begin at 70-degree days. But even a 50- or 60-degree day can have temperature increases with similar increments. So a car can still heat up enough on those cooler days to cause hyperthermia or heatstroke. This is particularly true for dog breeds with thick or long hair or short snouts.

Even for those who would never intentionally leave their pet in the car on a warm day, pet owners have forgotten their pets in the car because the pet was quietly sleeping in the back. To prevent a tragic incident, place your pet’s leash on your purse or in a conspicuous place so you see it when you move to exit the car.

Exercising in Hot or Sunny Weather Poses an Increased Risk

Dogs are also particularly prone to heat exhaustion or heatstroke when they’re overexercised, especially during hot weather or even on mild, sunny days. As mentioned above, certain breeds are particularly prone.

If your dog begins to pant or drool or wants to stop, don’t push it. Give your dog the rest and shade it needs.

Signs of Hyperthermia or Heatstroke in Dogs and Cats

The signs of heatstroke or hyperthermia are similar in both dogs and cats. A pet doesn’t have to experience all the symptoms to be in danger. One or more symptoms can be a sign your pet is in distress. The result, if not caught and treated quickly, could be coma or death.

• Panting or excessive drooling

• Pale gums or bright-red tongue

• Difficulty breathing

• Increased heart rate or irregular heartbeat

• Little to no urination

• Vomiting

• Fever, 103 degrees Fahrenheit or more

• Heartbeat or breathing stops

• Muscle tremors

• Seizures

• Shock

What to Do if Your Pet Overheats

If your pet is experiencing heat exhaustion or shows signs of heatstroke or hyperthermia, you need to get your pet out of the heat and sun immediately. Move your pet into some shade or preferably air conditioning.

Also, for a dog, you can use a hose or put the dog in a tub of tepid, but not cold, water. Since most cats hate baths, try just dipping your cat’s feet in a sink of tepid water instead.

You can also wet a towel and rub your cat or dog down, particularly concentrating on the head, neck, and underside of the legs.

Although it might sound helpful to feed your pet ice or icy cold water, it’s dangerous to cool down an overheated animal in this manner.

What to Do if You See a Pet in a Hot Car

In the U.S., there are 13 states with laws about pets being left in vehicles. Pennsylvania is not among them, but good Samaritans can take action to protect or save the life of an animal left in a hot vehicle.

If you see a pet left in a parked car in temperatures that could quickly escalate inside the cabin, or if an animal shows signs of distress, call 911. Also, you can go into the store where the car is parked and ask that the owner of the vehicle be paged over the store intercom.

Kimberly Blaker is a freelance writer. She also owns an online bookshop, Sage Rare & Collectible Books, specializing in out-of-print, scarce, signed, and first editions; fine bindings; ephemera; and more at sagerarebooks.com

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By Lynda Hudzick

We’ve all experienced that feeling when we hear a particular song and it instantly transports us back in time to a wonderful moment we’ll never forget.

Music has the power to do that, and for Bill Shirley of the Red Satins singing group, being a part of that experience for the audience helps create wonderful moments for him as well.

Shirley, who lives in Downingtown with his wife and is the proud father of three and grandfather of one, has always made music a part of his life.

Member of

Growing up, he sang in the choir at church, when “Catholic masses were still sung completely in Latin,” he said.

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Shirley also held the lead part in his high school musical production of Oklahoma , which he said was “one of the most memorable experiences of my life and reinforced my love of music.”

Working fulltime in marketing/communications for several major insurance companies and doing freelance writing on the side, Shirley admits that during those busy working years, he didn’t have much time for music.

“One thing I did do, however, was rewrite the lyrics of familiar songs and sing them for special occasions, such as birthdays, graduations, etc., the most recent one being a tune for my grandson, named Apollo, for whom I rewrote the song ‘Tomorrow’ from the musical Annie,” he said.

Since retiring in 2019, Shirley has found more

time to devote to his enjoyment of music; he’s been a member of his church choir since 2019.

And it was his involvement in that choir that led him to meet and become friends with the other members of the singing group the Red Satins. After about a year in the choir, Shirley decided to ask if the group could use any new members.

“They were nice enough to let me join,” he said. “It’s been great to see how audiences love taking that trip back in time.”

The Red Satins were founded 11 years ago by John O’Donnell. At first it was a four-man group, all members of the church choir, but they wanted to grow.

“We started getting more and more requests to perform, and so we kept our ears open to pick out who we thought would complement the group, and that’s how we added two more people,” O’Donnell said.

Today, in addition to O’Donnell and Shirley, the group consists of four other singing members — John Bullock, Richard Carbo, Jeff Stevens, and Ray Walsh — and one member who handles sound equipment and lights, Dan Ziobro.

All retired or semi-retired except for Stevens, they seem to have found a perfect mix, according to O’Donnell.

“Now, we feel complete,” he said. “Some of us play instruments, some of us just sing, and one or two don’t even read music — but they can hold a tune!”

The name of the group was the brainchild of one of the member’s wives.

Last July, the red Satins transported residents of Ashbridge Manor in Downingtown back in time to the 1950s and ’60s.

the red Satins comprise, from left, John o’Donnell, John Bullock, ray Walsh, Dan Ziobro, richard Carbo, Bill Shirley, and Jeff Stevens.

“We researched and found that no one had that name,” O’Donnell said. “We do wear black jackets and red shirts and bowties for more formal shows, but we also have summer outfits with our stage names embroidered on the sleeves.”

O’Donnell goes by Johnny O when he’s performing.

“I’m Old Blue Eyes,” Shirley said.

So what kind of music do the Red Satins perform? It’s typically a mixture of hits from the ’50s and ’60s and some early ’70s, but O’Donnell said they’re always adding more songs to the lineup and usually focus on songs people will recognize.

“So many of the songs we do relate to particular times in the lives of our audience,” Shirley said. “People tell us all the time how they really identify with the music. Usually one of the last songs we do is ‘Sweet Caroline,’ and that really gets the audience going.”

Choosing the music is more involved than one might think. The rights to perform the music publically have to be purchased, there have to be parts for a lead singer and backup singers, and the tone levels of those parts have to be considered.

“In your 70s, it’s harder to hit some notes, especially the higher ones,” O’Donnell said.

Audience participation is a big part of putting on a good show, O’Donnell said.

“We try to interact with the audience, laughing and joking with them. We do have people who attend a lot of our shows, if they’re open to the public.”

Of course, their biggest fans — their wives — often attend the shows as well, depending on where the group has to travel.

The Red Satins have performed at many different events and venues, both private and public. Some of those include weddings, parties, community festivals, performances at retirement villages, and even fundraisers, if asked.

“We’ve done maybe a dozen of those, if it’s for a good cause. We absolutely are happy to do it. We’ve never turned anyone down,” O’Donnell said.

Although the group does receive payment for their performances, all of what they earn is used for new costumes, new equipment, marketing expenses — all the things that help them keep improving their performance.

“We’re constantly buying and doing new things,” O’Donnell said. “We have a Facebook page that we just redid, and we have mailings we send out. It all can be expensive.”

Clips of some of their performances are posted on their Facebook page, and the group also has a demo CD available for prospective venues.

For Bill Shirley, though, and the rest of the Red Satins, the most important thing of all is the feeling they get when they look out at their audience and see them truly engaged and enjoying the show.

“You see them singing those words, and it’s great. That’s what we’re trying to do,” he said. “We’re trying to keep those old, meaningful songs alive and let people have a little escape from the real world.”

For more information on the Red Satins, visit their Facebook page (facebook. com/TheRedSatins) or call John O’Donnell at (215) 534-0654.

on the cover: the red Satins appeared at Hershey’s Mill in West Chester for a Concert Under the Stars last August.

All photos courtesy the red Satins.

The Healthy Geezer Should Grapefruit Juice and Medication Mix?

Q. My daughter heard that grapefruit juice can be toxic for some people. Is that true?

The juice itself is not toxic, but you should be careful taking medicine along with any grapefruit.

Grapefruit juice can raise the level of some medications in the blood. The effect of grapefruit was discovered after using juice to mask the taste of a medicine. So, be sure to ask your doctor or pharmacist if it is safe to have grapefruit with your medications.

Taking medicine can be hazardous to your health. You have to know what you’re doing.

For example, calcium-rich dairy products or certain antacids can prevent antibiotics from being properly absorbed into the bloodstream.

Ginkgo biloba can reduce the effectiveness of blood-thinning medications and raise the risk for serious complications, such as stroke.

You should educate yourself so you know what active ingredients are in the prescription and over-thecounter medicines you are taking.

Some people treat over-the-counter pain relievers as if they are harmless, but

they can hurt you if you take them improperly. They contain drugs such as acetaminophen, ibuprofen, naproxen sodium, and aspirin. Acetaminophen is in Tylenol. Ibuprofen is in Advil. Naproxen sodium is in Aleve.

Many prescription or over-the-counter medicines that treat multiple symptoms, such as cold and flu medications, also include acetaminophen and the other pain-relieving ingredients. So you have to be careful not to take too much of any one ingredient by ingesting more than one medication that contains that ingredient.

Seniors take more medicines than any other age group because they have more health problems. Taking several drugs a day presents dangers. Here are some more tips to avoid these hazards:

• Always inform your doctor or pharmacist about all medicines you are already taking, including herbal products and over-the-counter medications.

• Tell your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist about past problems you have had with medicines, such as rashes, indigestion, or dizziness.

• Don’t mix alcohol and medicine unless your doctor or pharmacist says it’s OK. Some medicines may not work well or may make you sick if you take them with alcohol.

The best advice is this: Don’t be afraid to throw a lot of questions about your medicines at your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist. Here are some good ones:

• When should I take this medication? As needed, or on a schedule? Before, with, or between meals? At bedtime?

• How often should I take it?

• How long will I have to take it?

• How will I feel once I start taking this medicine?

• How will I know if this medicine is working?

• If I forget to take it, what should I do?

• What side effects might I expect? Should I report them?

• Can this medicine interact with other prescription and over-the-counter medicines — including herbal and dietary supplements — that I am taking now?

And, ask your pharmacist to put your medicine in large, easy-to open containers with large-print labels.

Fred Cicetti is a senior and health writer with more than three decades of experience. The Healthy Geezer is devoted to the health questions of seniors who are wondering what is going on with these bodies of ours.

fred Cicetti

Puzzle Page

It Was 50 Years Ago Today

‘Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy’

The once-ubiquitous Andrews sisters — Patty, Maxine, and Laverne — premiered “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” in the 1941 Abbott and Costello comedy film Buck Privates. For the beloved Minnesota trio, that perky ditty became their 24th consecutive Decca Records winner. Written by Don Ray and Huey Prince, “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” has always been associated with World War II, even though the song was actually recorded in January 1941 — nearly one year before the Pearl Harbor attack and soon after the establishment of a peacetime military draft imposed by Franklin Roosevelt’s administration.

The original, cheerful tune featured a storyline — good for laughs but an obvious fantasy — about a hip Chicago street musician/Army draftee. Apparently, without his bandmates, the cat couldn’t do justice to blowing a buoyant rendition of “Reveille” when he was ordered to play it to announce the dawning.

But his good-natured company leader (“the Cap”) saved the day by assembling a barracksbased band for the frustrated musician, who could then handily offer a spirited wake-up call for the snoozing soldiers.

In 1973, it would take a rising young star to bring the song to a contemporary audience.

By Bette Midler July 1973

Bette Midler, born in Honolulu in 1945, earned a bit part as an extra during the 1966 filming of James Michener’s novel Hawaii. Flushed with confidence, she moved to New York to try her luck in the entertainment world.

She rose to Big Apple prominence in 1970 when she began singing in the Continental Baths, a Gotham gay bathhouse. There she built a loyal following, along the way growing close to her pianist, the then-unknown Barry Manilow.

(Reflecting on her bathhouse times later, Midler professed, “I’m still proud of those days. I feel like I was at the forefront of the gay liberation movement, and I hope I did my part to help it move forward.”)

Manilow produced Midler’s future classic debut Atlantic Records offering, The Divine Miss M, which spent 76 weeks on Billboard ’s album chart and featured the track that first brought her to national prominence.

When Midler made “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” a summertime Top 10 single, a new generation of music fans came to embrace an iconic tune that had all but faded into the mists of history.

Most music historians credit the story’s inspiration to Chicago musician Clarence Zylman (who actually hailed from Muskegon, Michigan) for the “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” lyrics.

It is ironic that Zylman had enlisted in the Army — he wasn’t drafted — on June 9, 1942, long after the snappy hit had come and gone. It is said that Zylman got his fellow soldiers jitterbugging to his unique style of “Reveille.” In 2018, he was honored with a statue erected at the veterans museum in Muskegon.

Recording hit songs new and old wasn’t the only pursuit for the versatile Midler. During her five-decade career, she has earned a head-spinning three Grammy awards, three Emmy awards, two Tony awards, four Golden Globe awards, and a Kennedy Center honor, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards.

Wow!

Randal C. Hill is a rock ’n’ roll historian who lives at the Oregon coast. He may be reached at wryterhill@msn.com.

randal Hill

Publicity photo of Bette Midler, 1973.

“Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”

Brown Pelicans

In April, every so many years, I have seen wavering lines and V-shaped flocks, one after another, of low-flying brown pelicans migrating north along the Atlantic Ocean shores and beaches of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina.

Those majestic birds were going to their nesting sites on islands along Atlantic coastlines, up to the lower Chesapeake Bay.

I am impressed with how stately those goose-sized birds are in flight. They fly swiftly with their heads over their necks, each one alternately flapping and gliding in unison with other ones in its airborne group, as if they are one bird.

Often, a whole line will gracefully rise and fall, each bird in its turn, as if the pelicans are avoiding obstacles in the air.

The handsome brown pelicans are exciting to see diving from about 60 feet into the ocean and its harbors and estuaries to catch fish, including menhaden and anchovies, in their ample pouches.

Each pelican flies along and intently watches the water for prey. When victims are spotted, each flying pelican abruptly turns downward and dives quickly, folding its wings back just before hitting the water with an open beak and a splash.

It scoops up whatever fish it can, bobs to the surface to expel the water in its pouch, and swallows its prey. Then it rises into the air for another dive and another fish.

The stately brown pelicans have webbed feet and 7-foot wing spans. In summer, they are mostly brown, with white on the neck and the back of the head and yellow on their foreheads.

Hundreds of thousands of brown pelicans live and nest along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Pacific coasts of the United States. And about 2,500 pairs of them raise young on small, uninhabited islands in the lower Chesapeake Bay, which are the northernmost nesting colonies of brown pelicans along the

Nature’s Wonders

shores of North America.

The Chesapeake Bay colonies began in the summer of 1987, possibly because of population increases of this bird farther south. Those population pressures pushed some pelicans farther north to find new nesting places.

Brown pelicans arrive on those lower Chesapeake Bay islands by early May every year. Each pair makes a cradle of piled-up, dead grass in bushes or small trees or on the ground among tall grasses.

The female of each pair lays two or three eggs in their grass nursery. Pelican parents feed menhaden and anchovies to their ravenous, growing offspring.

The elegant brown pelicans are a joy to see in flight and exciting to see diving for fish. They are magnificent birds along our ocean and bay shorelines.

Clyde McMillan-Gamber

Brown pelican

The History of Ordinary Things festive fireworks

A firework requires three key components — an oxidizer, a fuel, and a chemical mixture — to produce the color. When any element burns, its electrons get excited, and it releases energy in the form of light — in this case, fireworks. But how was this discovered?

The popular legend is that a Chinese cook in 200 BC accidentally spilled saltpeter, a flavoring salt, into an open fire. It created a powder that, in the cook’s kitchen, made a colored flame. But if it were stuffed into a bamboo tube and left in the hot fire, it exploded with a loud blast.

These early fireworks were thrown into the fire, not blasted into air. The first fireworks produced only a loud bang. This was desirable in religious fireworks because the bang was what frightened the evil spirits away.

During 600-900 AD, Chinese alchemists mixed saltpeter with sulfur and

charcoal to discover a crude recipe for gunpowder. The use of gunpowder weaponry was documented in China in 1046 with a reference to a rudimentary gunpowder catapult and gunpowder bombs.

The Smithsonian reports gunpowder weaponry in use during the Crusades (1100-1300 AD). It credits the Crusaders, missionaries, and explorers like Marco Polo with introducing gunpowder into Europe and Arabia in the 13th century.

By the 1500s, inventors had developed cannons and muskets that used gunpowder.

But back to our topic: Fireworks were popular with European rulers for religious festivals and public entertainment. The addition of a fuse allowed for a controlled explosion.

Doris Montag

Hand-colored etching showing the royal fireworks at Whitehall, London, and on the river thames on May 15, 1749.

A firework display by the British illustrator Ebenezer Landells, possibly the display given by Napoleon iii on Queen Victoria’s 1855 visit to Paris.

In the 1700s, Italy developed selfpropelled aerial shells that shot into the air before exploding with a loud bang and, by this time, an orange flame. The Italians discovered they could mix various chemicals to create colorful fireworks — strontium for red, barium for green, copper for blue, and sodium for yellow.

Circa the 1830s, Italian pyrotechnicians produced the first modern firework by adding trace amounts of metals and other ingredients to enhance the colors and create shapes.

The shells contained fuel in a cone bottom, while the scoop of the cone contained an outer layer of pyrotechnic stars. These tiny balls contained the chemicals needed to produce a desired color. The shell also had an inner bursting charge.

Today, the shape the firework produces is a product of the inner anatomy of the aerial shell.

The firework’s sounds are the result of combining multiple layers of an organic salt with the oxidizer potassium perchlorate. As each layer burns, it slowly releases a gas, creating the whistling sound associated with most firework rockets. Aluminum or iron flakes can create hissing or sizzling sparkles, while titanium powder can create loud blasts.

In America, fireworks were used to celebrate events long before the American Revolutionary War. In 1777, one year after the Declaration of Independence, fireworks became a Fourth of July celebration tradition. In 1789, fireworks were used at George Washington’s inauguration. And, as they say, the rest is history!

Historically, the largest manufacturers of fireworks have been China, Italy, and Germany. Today, China produces and exports more fireworks than any other country in the world, according to History.com.

A word of caution: Fireworks can cause serious health effects in high doses. With each explosion, heavy metals, dioxins, perchlorates, and other air pollutants are released into the atmosphere.

Alternatives to the barium nitrate and oxidizer potassium perchlorate are being developed. The challenge is creating safer alternatives as cheaply as the gunpowder model.

In 2004, Disneyland in California launched fireworks with compressed air rather than gunpowder. Compressed air reduces smoke, fumes, and pollution. Electronic timers were used to explode the shells, thus allowing fireworks to be synchronized with music.

Fireworks without the loud bang were introduced in 2015, providing all the beauty of the sparkle without the loud sounds that traumatize pets, wildlife, and many humans.

Fireworks are often a source of personal injury, with about 65% of those injuries occurring in the 30 days surrounding the Fourth of July. More than 40% of the injuries involve sparklers and rockets.

Enjoy, but be careful out there!

Doris Montag is a homespun historian and an exhibit curator who researches and displays historical collections of ordinary things, such as can openers, crochet, toy sewing machines, hand corn planters, powder compacts, egg cartons, and more. Contact or follow her on Facebook, HistoryofOrdinaryThings.

independence Day fireworks in San Diego, Calif., 2004.

“Australia Day 2013 Perth 39,” by Kaoz69, licensed under CC-BY-SA-3.0. Australia Day celebrations in Perth, January 2013.

Learn How to Protect Yourself from Medicare fraud

More than 65 million people in the United States were enrolled in Medicare as of February 2023, with more people becoming eligible and enrolling each year. Anyone on Medicare is at risk of Medicare-related fraud, and the Medicare program continues to warn people to watch out for scammers who steal Medicare numbers and other personal information to exploit beneficiaries’ benefits.

Broadly speaking, Medicare fraud occurs when someone makes false claims for healthcare services, procedures, and equipment to obtain Medicare payments. Medicare fraud costs taxpayers billions of dollars and puts the health and welfare of beneficiaries at risk.

“Anyone on Medicare can be a target of Medicare fraud,” said Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services administrator. “But there are steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved ones by using CMS’ fraud tips to recognize and report potential scammers.”

How to Spot Medicare Scams

There are many types of Medicare scams, taking the form of unsolicited emails, phone calls, text messages, social media posts, and phony websites. Scammers often claim to be from the Medicare office, an insurance company, or a government office. They’ll ask for your personal and financial information, such as your Medicare or Social Security number, so they can submit false claims for payment.

Remember that Medicare will never call, text, email, or contact you through

social media asking for your Medicare number.

How to Protect Yourself

You’ll also need to know how to protect yourself from potential fraudsters. Remember to:

• Guard your Medicare number just like your Social Security card and credit cards

• Share your Medicare number only with trusted healthcare providers

• Review your Medicare statements, watch for services billed that look suspicious, and ask questions if something looks wrong

How to Report Scammers

Reporting Medicare fraud protects you and millions of other people with Medicare and those with disabilities. If you or someone you know has experienced Medicare fraud or suspect an offer you’ve received is a scam, report it as soon as possible.

To learn more about Medicare fraud, visit medicare.gov/fraud. To report potential Medicare fraud, you can call (800) MEDICARE — (800) 633-4227 — or report the scam to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov

Information provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (Family Features)

Photo courtesy of Getty i mages

the (Sort of) true origin of a treat

Americans love hot dogs. Every year we eat about 7 billion of them between Memorial Day and Labor Day alone. And the typical American eats about 60 a year.

Where do hot dogs come from (aside from ballpark vendors, of course)? Their origins are shrouded in mystery.

Some sources say they date back to the first century, when the Roman emperor Nero’s cook first experimented with stuffing the intestines of pigs with spiced meats.

The word “frankfurter” comes from Frankfurt, Germany, where pork sausages in buns are said to have been served in the 15th century; “wiener” is from Vienna (Wien), home to pork sausages originally called “wienerwurst” (Vienna sausage) in the 1800s.

In the United States, a German immigrant named Charles Feltman is credited with selling sausages in rolls around the year 1870, in Coney Island, New York.

Another German native, Antonoine Feuchtwanger, is said to have sold sausages in St. Louis at around the same time, offering a split bun to hold them at the suggestion of his wife.

And the term “hot dog” itself? That’s similarly disputed. According to one of the more popular tales, a newspaper cartoonist in 1900 drew a picture of a frankfurter with legs, a tail, and a head, but unable to spell “Dachshund,” dubbed it a “hot dog.” The story is disputed, however. What’s beyond doubt is that hot dogs are the meal of choice for lots of hungry people around the world — whatever condiments they want to load them up with.

Resource Directory delivers information about essential local resources: health and wellness, legal, financial, home improvements, leisure, and, of course, living and care options.

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More information than ever is available to consumers. This publication zeroes in on a targeted market rather than using blanket advertising.

is a collection of businesses that understands the mindset, special needs, and wants of older adults and are willing to personalize their approach to the consumer.

is not comprehensive: Because there are fewer organizations listed than in the Yellow Pages or on the internet, you are more likely to get noticed.

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Seniors with Anxiety frequently Don’t Get Help — Here’s Why

By Judith Graham, KFF Health News

Anxiety is the most common psychological disorder affecting adults in the U.S. In older people, it’s associated with considerable distress as well as ill health, diminished quality of life, and elevated rates of disability.

Yet, when the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force suggested last year that adults be screened for anxiety, it left out one group — people 65 and older.

The major reason the task force cited in draft recommendations issued in September: “The current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for anxiety” in all older adults. (Final recommendations are expected later this year.)

The task force noted that questionnaires used to screen for anxiety may be unreliable for older adults. Screening entails evaluating people who don’t have obvious symptoms of worrisome medical or psychological conditions.

“We recognize that many older adults experience mental health conditions like anxiety” and “we are calling urgently for more research,” said Lori Pbert, associate chief of the preventive and behavioral medicine division at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School and a former task force member who worked on the anxiety recommendations.

This “we don’t know enough yet” stance doesn’t sit well with some experts

who study and treat seniors with anxiety.

Dr. Carmen Andreescu, an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, called the task force’s position “baffling” because “it’s well established that anxiety isn’t uncommon in older adults, and effective treatments exist.”

“I cannot think of any danger in identifying anxiety in older adults, especially because doing so has no harm, and we can do things to reduce it,” said Dr. Helen Lavretsky, a psychology professor at UCLA.

In a recent editorial in JAMA Psychiatr y, Andreescu and Lavretsky noted that only about onethird of seniors with generalized anxiety disorder — intense, persistent worry about everyday matters — receive treatment.

That’s concerning, they said, considering evidence of links between anxiety and stroke, heart failure, coronary artery disease, autoimmune illness, and neurodegenerative disorders such as dementia.

Other forms of anxiety commonly undetected and untreated in seniors include phobias (like a fear of dogs), obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, social anxiety disorder (a fear of being assessed and judged by others), and post-traumatic stress disorder.

please see ANXiEtY on facing page

Share these facts about the Declaration of independence

You know July 4 is for fireworks and parades, but how much do you know about its history? The facts may surprise you.

The Automatic Payroll Systems website shares these little-known facts about the nation’s founding:

The Declaration of Independence wasn’t signed on July 4. The Second Continental Congress voted on the Declaration on July 2, 1776, and it was finalized on July 4, but it wasn’t signed by a majority until Aug. 2. Because of all this, John Adams, the second president of the United States, didn’t recognize or celebrate July 4 as Independence Day.

The vote was not unanimous. Richard Henry Lee proposed a bill declaring independence on June 7, 1776. Twelve of the 13 colonies voted to adopt it; New York abstained.

ANXiEtY from facing page

Anxiety is common. According to a book chapter published in 2020, authored by Andreescu and a colleague, up to 15% of people 65 and older who live outside nursing homes or other facilities have a diagnosable anxiety condition.

As many as half have symptoms of anxiety — irritability, worry, restlessness, decreased concentration, sleep changes, fatigue, avoidant behaviors — that can be distressing but don’t justify a diagnosis, the study noted.

Most seniors with anxiety have struggled with this condition since earlier in life, but the way it manifests may change over time. Specifically, older adults tend to be more anxious about issues such as illness, the loss of family and friends, retirement, and cognitive declines, experts said. Only a small fraction develop anxiety after turning 65.

Anxiety can be difficult to identify in older adults. Older adults often minimize symptoms of anxiety, thinking “this is what getting older is like” rather than “this is a problem that I should do something about,” Andreescu said. Also, seniors are more likely than younger adults to report “somatic” complaints — physical symptoms such as dizziness, fatigue, headaches, chest pain, shortness of breath, and gastrointestinal problems — that can be difficult to distinguish from underlying medical conditions, according to Gretchen Brenes, a professor of gerontology and geriatric medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Some types of anxiety or anxious behaviors — notably, hoarding and fear of falling — are much more common in older adults, but questionnaires meant to identify anxiety don’t typically ask about those issues, said Dr. Jordan Karp, chair of psychiatry at the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson. When older adults voice concerns, medical providers too often dismiss them as normal, given the challenges of aging, said Dr. Eric Lenze, head of psychiatry at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the third author of the recent JAMA Psychiatry editorial.

Simple questions can help identify whether an older adult needs to be evaluated for anxiety, he and other experts suggested:

• Do you have recurrent worries that are hard to control?

• Are you having trouble sleeping?

• Have you been feeling more irritable, stressed, or nervous?

On July 4, only nine of the colonies voted in favor of the declaration; Pennsylvania and South Carolina voted against it, New York abstained again, and Delaware was undecided.

The declaration had a strategic purpose. The point of the formal declaration was to attract foreign allies in the fight for independence. The signers wanted to present the 13 colonies as a united front, or they felt other countries like France wouldn’t take them seriously.

About the signers: Fifty-six people signed the document. Eight were born in Britain; the rest were born colonists (all were still technically British subjects at the time of the signing). One signer recanted after being captured by British forces.

The last person to sign was Matthew Thornton, on Nov. 4, 1776.

• Are you having trouble with concentration or thinking?

• Are you avoiding things you normally like to do because you’re wrapped up in your worries?

Stephen Snyder, 67, who lives in Zelienople, Pennsylvania, and was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder in March 2019, would answer “yes” to many of these queries.

“I’m a type A personality, and I worry a lot about a lot of things — my family, my finances, the future,” he told me. “Also, I’ve tended to dwell on things that happened in the past and get all worked up.”

Treatments are effective. Psychotherapy — particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps people address persistent negative thoughts — is generally considered the first line of anxiety treatment in older adults. In an evidence review for the task force, researchers noted that this type of therapy helps reduce anxiety in seniors seen in primary care settings.

Also recommended, Lenze noted, is relaxation therapy, which can involve deep breathing exercises, massage or music therapy, yoga, and progressive muscle relaxation.

Because mental health practitioners, especially those who specialize in seniors’ mental health, are extremely difficult to find, primary care physicians often recommend medications to ease anxiety.

Two categories of drugs — antidepressants known as SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and SNRIs (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors) — are typically prescribed, and both appear to help older adults, experts said.

Frequently prescribed to older adults, but to be avoided by them, are benzodiazepines, a class of sedating medications such as Valium, Ativan, Xanax, and Klonopin.

The American Geriatrics Society has warned medical providers not to use these in older adults, except when other therapies have failed, because they are addictive and significantly increase the risk of hip fractures, falls and other accidents, and short-term cognitive impairments.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.

Collecting Bell Charms

Along with shoulder pads, fingerless lace gloves, jelly shoes, parachute pants, add-a-bead necklaces, oversized hoop earrings, giant scrunchies, neon headbands, Sony Walkmans, Swatch watches, and Rubik’s cubes, one of the most popular and inclusive trends of the unforgettable 1980s was bell charms.

Collecting bell charms was widely popular, open to all ages, inexpensive, fun, diverse, and, ultimately, very satisfying. They were the ultimate birthday party favor for tweens and teens who danced to songs like Madonna’s “Material Girl,” The Go-Gos’ “Our Lips are Sealed,” and Bon Jovi’s “Runaway.”

So, you remember the drop-waist Laura Ashley dresses, the Official Preppy Handbook, and ruffle-collared blouses, but you just don’t remember bell charms?

Well, you are not alone. Why? Bell charms were not made of quality materials, they were not at the forefront of the collecting arena in the mid-

1980s, and since they looked like something that came out of a Cracker Jack box from the 1960s, many people missed the bell charm trend altogether.

Known interchangeably as bell charms or flash charms, the most coveted examples of these collectible toys were mass produced by a handful of toy companies: Jingle Gems, Imperial, and Boogie Oogie charms.

Each of the tiny bell charms hung from a colorful plastic clip that could be attached to the pocket of a denim jacket, plastic link necklace, backpack, belt loop, etc. There were different styles of bell charms, which helped collectors distinguish between which manufacturers produced a specific charm.

The plastic charms consisted of a tiny bell attached to a brightly colored and realistic miniature version of an everyday item: telephones, cookie jars, scales, articulated figures, batteries, fire hydrants, keys, Oreo cookies, traffic lights, mirrors, whistles, tennis racquets, birdhouses, dress shirts, racecars,

please see CoLLEC tiNG on facing page

you know a good story when you hear it.

Think

you or someone you know would make

central Pennsylvanians

Your address: ____________________________________________________________________

Your phone: ________________________________________ Email:_____________________________________________

Nominee’s name (if not self): ____________________________________________________________________________

Nominee’s town of residence: ___________________________________________________________________________

Nominee’s phone: __________________________________ Email: _____________________________________________

Why they would make a great story: _____________________________________________________________________

Note: Please get your nominee’s permission before submitting them!

Lori Verderame

Collection of bell charms from the mid-1980s.

Gray Love

It was supposed to be a nice night out.

But you drove around and around looking for the restaurant, and once you found it, you learned you needed reservations. Practically before the evening started, you sensed that your food could be as cold as your date.

As in Gray Love, edited by Nan Bauer-Maglin and Daniel E. Hood, looking for love wasn’t like this when you were younger.

You thought you’d be happy alone.

After the divorce, the funeral, the last breakup, you didn’t think a little you-time was a bad idea. And it wasn’t — but love, someone to go to the movies with or dine with or snuggle with, seems more and more appealing now.

Today, though, as the 42 essays in this book confirm and as you’ve learned, that’s easier said than done.

You want a partner, someone your age, but you fear becoming a caretaker. You like doing your own thing, but having someone around to do it with would be nice. You have company, but you are “without intimacy.” Or you don’t want a full-time someone, but it’s scary to think about “falling off a ladder alone.”

So you go online because, well, people don’t meet like they used to. That’s when you learn that dating sites are generally rife with people who lie about their ages, who seem clingy, who want things you can’t give, and — let’s be honest — who seem like jerks

You wonder, “What would I wear?”

Gray Love: Stories About Dating and New Relationships After 60

Edited by Nan Bauer-Maglin and Daniel E. Hood

c. 2023, rutgers University Press

303 pages

You learn about scams the hard way, while tales of love at way-up-there-ages are inspirational.

You date the wrong people, you date the right people, you’re exhausted and disappointed. And sometimes, even for a while, you’re someone’s “sweetie.”

According to a study quoted in Gray Love, about 25% of American adults live alone. If you’re one of them and open to a relationship, you need this book.

Just know this is not a how-to manual. Editors Nan Bauer-Maglin and Daniel E. Hood don’t offer advice in their introduction, and most of their storytellers didn’t Ann-Landers their way into this book.

Instead, you’ll read tales of dating and mating gone happily right and very, very wrong, told in ways that will make you laugh, sigh, and know you’re not alone in your late-life search for love. The mixture here is diverse and wide: If one tale makes you want to swear off dating forever, the next one offers “happily ever after.”

Be aware that a few of the tales inside Gray Love flirt with the explicit, and others might ruffle a feather or two. Still, it could be great to share it with a millennial or older Gen Z’er. If you see this book on a bookshelf, take it out.

The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Terri has been reading since she was 3 years old, and she never goes anywhere without a book. She lives on a hill in Wisconsin with two dogs and 14,000 books.

blenders, kitchen sinks, hearts, boom boxes, robots, shoes, eggplants, 7 Up bottles, calculators, basketball hoops, orange juice containers, fruit, dune buggies, Snoopy from the Peanuts comic strip, pool tables, footballs, pianos, guitars, baseball bats, unicorns, boots, mailboxes, candles, bicycles, vinyl records, and even toilets.

This list of bell charm types illustrates how wild collectors were about buying the tiny charms. The bright, neon-colored charms were traded actively and with vigor. Many collectors spent months looking for a specific, everelusive figural charm of an Olympic swimmer or a tub of Play-Doh.

Others attempted to amass the largest collection of bell charms. They’d continually clip the newest charm added to their collection to a bright-pink or yellow-link chain that could be worn as a necklace or hung from a bedroom mirror. Some dedicated collectors would collect bell charms and keep them in a protective vinyl binder, housing their collectibles for both storage and display.

Trading bell charms became so intense that some American schools banned the toys, as schoolyard trade deals grew into full-blown arguments. Teachers complained the tiny bells distracted students from learning.

Despite the criticism from school administrators and teachers over the little plastic items, some report that all the academic-based hoopla about banning bell charms just made them more desirable and more sought-after by kids.

Today, a large and diverse collection of bell charms can bring you some cash from collectors. Most charms range in value from $5 to $10 each for typical examples to $15 to $20 each for rare examples. Large collections with original link chains filled with charms command several hundred to thousands of dollars with devoted 1980s bell charmers.

Ph.D. antiques appraiser, author, and award-winning personality Dr. Lori presents antique appraisal events nationwide, appears on History channel’s The Curse of Oak Island and Pawn Stars Do America, and helps clients with appraisal services at drloriv.com. Watch her show you how to find valuables at bargain prices on youtube.com/drloriv or call (888) 431-1010.

terri Schlichenmeyer

CoLLEC tiNG from facing page

Who’s Dining in My Garden?

You take a walk through the garden and find branches trimmed, flowers missing, or bark damaged. Of course, the culprit is nowhere to be seen. You may have suspects in mind, but a close look at the damage and surroundings can help you identify who is dining on your plants.

Rabbits can be found year-round in the landscape. They have sharp teeth, making a 45-degree clean cut, much like your bypass pruners. Their damage usually occurs within their 3-foot reach.

They eat a variety of flowers and vegetables throughout the spring and summer. As these plants fade in fall, they begin dining on trees and shrubs. You may find bark gnawed and branches, stems, and buds clipped off the plants.

Deer tear vegetation, leaving a ragged tip on browsed plants. You may find damage on a variety of flowers, vegetables, trees, shrubs, and plants pulled out of the ground, with the distasteful ones left behind.

In fall, the bucks rub trunks of young trees, damaging the tender tissue below that transports water and nutrients between the roots and leaves. Deer usually feed at dusk, but as they become comfortable around people, they can often be seen dining during the day.

Voles are brown rodents that look similar to field mice with small ears and short tails. Early in spring, their trails of disturbed grass found as the snow melts may be your first clue they are present. These rodents are active yearround, unlike moles, which hibernate for winter.

Voles eat seeds, plant roots, and bulbs, not insects like moles. You may also notice bark damage on trees and shrubs. They leave quarter-inch, side-by-side grooves in the wood at the base of the plants.

Squirrels are fun to watch — that is, until they eat all the birdseed and damage your plants. They dig bulbs and uproot other plants, eat and bury nuts in the lawn and garden, and take a bite out of multiple tomatoes, strawberries, and more. They damage trees by ripping off the bark and clipping off branches. If that wasn’t enough, squirrels may gnaw on structures and furnishings.

Treating the damaged area and a 12-inch radius around it with a repellent can help discourage more damage.

Chipmunks are active from spring through fall. They don’t hibernate but are inactive in winter, depending upon their food stash to survive. You will find them digging in potted plants, hanging baskets, and rock walls. They eat grains, nuts, berries, seeds, insects, mushrooms, carrion, young birds, and bird eggs.

Their tunnels can be 20-30 feet long and are well hidden. The openings are only 2 inches in diameter with no surrounding mounds of soil.

Commercial and homemade scare tactics are an option. Unfortunately, most of these critters have become accustomed to people and are not discouraged. Motion-activated deterrents are a bit more effective, but make sure they are not annoying to you and your neighbors.

To prevent rabbit damage, install fencing — at least 3 feet but preferably 4 feet high — tight to the ground with a secure gate. Deer, on the other hand, need a much taller fence. Although deer can jump 7 feet or higher, fencing 5-6 feet high is often enough to keep them out of smaller gardens.

Sink fencing 4-6 inches into the ground to protect plants from voles.

Repellents labeled for controlling the critter causing the damage are another option. Organic Plantskydd (plantskydd.com) is labeled for repelling, not harming, all of these critters. Since it is rain and snow resistant, you won’t need to apply it as often. Always read and follow label directions for the most effective control.

A bit of defensive action goes a long way in protecting your gardens and landscape from hungry critters this season.

Melinda Myers has written more than 20 gardening books, including The Midwest Gardener’s Handbook, 2nd Edition, and Small Space Gardening. She hosts The Great Courses’ How to Grow Anything instant video and DVD series and the nationally syndicated Melinda’s Garden Moment TV and radio program. Myers is a columnist and contributing editor for Birds & Blooms magazine. melindamyers.com

Melinda Myers

Animal damage on a tomato plant.

Mission Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Part One

This summer, Tom Cruise is back on the big screen as the international spy/adrenaline junkie Ethan Hunt for the seventh (but not final) Mission: Impossible flick, this one subtitled Dead Reckoning, Part One. (Part Two comes out in June 2024.)

Back in 1996, probably very few movie buffs would have expected such an enduring franchise to emerge from the original Mission: Impossible releases.

In the 26 years since Brian De Palma’s espionage thriller first exploded onto the silver screen, we’ve seen five sequels and witnessed a film series that has proven to be just about Hollywood’s slickest action film series ever.

Christopher McQuarrie, now in charge of writing, directing, and producing, helmed the previous two Mission: Impossible blockbusters, Fallout and Rogue Nation.

Paramount’s recently released movie trailer revealed little about Dead Reckoning ’s central premise but did showcase the high-octane stunts that we’ve looked forward to over the years.

There are three main action set pieces here. One is a smash-’em-up 20-minute car chase through Venice, Italy. Another is when Cruise and his latest antagonist have a fight atop a high-speed train.

But we experience the primary head-spinner when Cruise ramps off a mountain cliff on a motorcycle before jumping off and opening a parachute.

Cruise, who turns 61 this month, has admitted that this last feat was by far the most dangerous he has ever attempted. (He performs nearly all his own stunts.) To prepare, he endured 500 hours of skydiving training, made 1,300 practice motorcycle jumps, and ran through his paces six times before filming.

Cruise is joined by a fine supporting cast, which includes Ving Rhames as tech wizard Luther Stickwell, Simon Pegg as fellow field agent Benji Dunn, and Rebecca Ferguson as former M16 operative Ilsa Faust.

Esai Morales, best-remembered as Ritchie Valens’s half-brother in the biopic La Bamba , takes on the role of the new primary bad guy.

Henry Czerny’s character of Eugene Kittredge, a former Impossible Missions Force director whom we haven’t seen since the first Mission: Impossible nearly three decades ago, plays a major role in connecting the dots to Hunt’s legendary past.

Film locales include Italy, Norway, the Middle East, and England.

McQuarrie got his movie title from a particular deadly source that poses the greatest threat yet to Ethan Hunt and his team.

“‘Dead reckoning’ is a navigational term,” explains McQuarrie. “It means you’re picking a course based solely on your last known position … There are many things emerging from Ethan’s past.”

He pauses, smiles, and then decides to explain nothing further.

The action begins on July 12.

Randal C. Hill enjoys getting sneak peeks of forthcoming movies from his home on the Oregon coast. He can be reached at wryterhill@msn.com.

randal Hill