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Archives
January - February 2006
Rock Bands and Electric Toothbrushes -
Baby Boomers Lose Their Hearing
Hearing loss used to be associated with old age. Now it's a
growing
problem for baby boomers.
According to Randy Wohlers, President of HearPod Inc., specializing in
the correction of baby boomer hearing loss, “Baby boomers are the first
generation to be exposed to electronically amplified sound. Today, we know
that prolonged exposure to loudly amplified music over 85 db can cause
permanent hearing loss. Many cases of hearing loss among baby boomers can be
traced to their youth when they listened to rock bands or played in them.
Additionally, baby boomers are the first generation to experience prolonged
exposure to loud sounds from electric blenders, lawn care equipment, power
tools, recreational vehicles, jet airplanes and even electric tooth
brushes."
February 28th, 2006
Baby Bummers?
CNN
reports:
Some experts say the boomers did not plan well for their future,
especially their financial futures, relying instead on the whimsy of a
historically rosy economic era to carry them along.
Others contend the boomers may have had sound, long-term plans, but were
sandbagged by economic and political shifts so dynamic that the boomer
generation became preoccupied with adapting to their new world and rewriting
the social contracts that bind our nation together, instead of fulfilling
long-term financial and personal goals.
"I think they've been baby bummers," says Suze Orman, a personal finance
expert and host of her own financial advice television and radio show.
"We are a fascinating generation," she says, admitting that she's a boomer
herself. "We're really independent and free-thinking," but from a financial
perspective, "we did not save money, and we loved to spend money. Many of
(the boomers) were saved by the real estate markets, and their wealth was
created for them; they did not create it themselves."
February 23rd, 2006
Is 60 the New 70?
The head and sub-head
tell the story, and frankly, it surprised me:
Boomers not the picture of heath
Lifestyle is slowly killing them: Report
It's from the Ottawa Sun. Here are some excerpts:
Heart attack survivor Dave Minion is not surprised by a Heart and Stroke
Foundation report that paints a bleak picture of baby boomer lifestyles.
The report, released yesterday, said baby boomers' big eating, slow moving
lifestyles could take years off their life expectancy.
"We are the couch potato generation. Too many of us don't exercise. We are a
remote control society," said Minion, 60, who lost his wife recently to a
stroke.
Minion said his parents were much more active. They did not have a TV set
keeping them home, he said. Baby boomers will die sooner than their parents
if they don't change unhealthy habits, according to the Heart and Stroke
Foundation's Annual Report on Canadians' Health.
Baby boomer obesity rates have soared by 60% over the past 10 years, said
the report.
...Things have deteriorated over time. Ten years ago, only 19% of boomers
were obese and 43% lived a sedentary lifestyle, said the report.
Already, 1.3 million Canadian baby boomers -- 21% -- have been hit by a
heart attack, stroke or high blood pressure. With many boomers turning 60
this year, the report said those numbers will increase.
And the newspaper quotes a cardiologist: "Unless boomers start taking their
health seriously, the report states that 60 will become the new 70."
February 18th, 2006
Re-Inventing Yourself
Baby boomers can
re-invent themselves and overcome that mid-life career crisis, according
to a press release from author Peter Fogel. His five-step program:
1. Get On The Reality Train
2. Don’t Quit You Day Job
3. Don’t Make A Lateral Move
4. Get Thee To A Mentor
5. Get The Family on Board
February 15th, 2006
Sex after Sixty - Enough Already?
A lengthy article in the
San Francisco Chronicle carries the headlines:
BOOMER LOVE
Too Much Sex
Now that Baby Boomers have discovered there's sex after 60, could they
please stop writing about it?
It's an amusing and informative article, looking at a vast series of
books - more than 200, according to an Amazon.com search - on the subject of
baby boomer sex.
Those of a certain age are no longer "over the hill." Dried-up has been
dead dropped, and middle-aged is a term reserved for discussions of cheese.
The preferred term now is "seasoned" according to author Gail Sheehy, whose
new book, "Sex and the Seasoned Woman: Pursuing the Passionate Life," is a
primer for boomers seeking to extend friskiness well into middle age -- and
beyond. "Seasoned women know best how to resonate with their sexuality,"
Sheehy writes. Women with maternal warmth and high-voltage sexuality, she
adds, are "seasoned sirens." Think Oprah, Tina Turner.
...Sheehy's book stands out in the crowded field. Though her subjects were
self-selecting, having responded to her Web site or a personal invitation to
join her focus groups, her research digs past the cosmetic level. In
addition to spinning out a plethora of life stories to illustrate the many
possible paths to a passionate life -- both sexually and otherwise -- Sheehy
addresses the sexual issues from many angles, gay, straight, married and
looking. However, she also emphasizes the importance of keeping oneself
active -- both in terms of having a strong engagement with life through
work, hobbies or causes, and in stressing the importance of keeping up
appearances. Peppered through the book are endorsements of hormone
replacement therapy, hair dye and a recurring echo on the pros of exercise
-- none of this news to Boomers.
February 13th, 2006
You Owe Us
Bernard Salt, a columnist for The Australian, tells Generations X
and Y
not to expect any hand-outs from their baby-boomer parents:
You see, my dear little generation Xers and Ys, we baby boomers are not
the greedy and rapacious generation we may seem. It's just that residential
property has been so good to us for so many years that we would feel dirty
and wrong if we passed on our assets to you both holus-bolus and gratis.
I'm sorry, but we just don't think it's right for the young to inherit a
house unencumbered of debt, and especially if it has European appliances and
is close to schools and transport.
It's a fun and well-written article. Read it all.
February 8th, 2006
Me? I'm Not Old
What is the "defining characteristic" of the baby boomer?
According to
a feature in the Kalamazoo Gazette, it's "their refusal to define
themselves as old."
February 6th, 2006
Second Calling
Spirituality is important (in my opinion).
Dale Hanson Bourke has started a website,
Second Calling, aimed at helping
baby boomer women develop their spirituality. She has also written a book, "Second Calling: Finding Passion & Purpose for the Rest of Your Life,"
and her blog is
called - yes, that's right - Second Calling.
February 4th, 2006
Happy Birthday to Me
Today is my 57th birthday. Three more years until the big SIX-OH!
Actually, right now, the prospect of turning 60 doesn't faze me, just as
turning 40 or 50 didn't really have any more meaning to me than turning,
say, 38 or 52. Life goes on.
But I've been thinking for a while about starting a blog of baby boomer
resources, and a few days ago I came across an article with the title "60 is
the new 40." The 60-year-old writer said that she feels as healthy now as
when she was 40. I feel the same. So I've used the title of the article as
the name of my blog.
A Google search reveals several hundred references for "60 is the new 40,"
so it's not a new expression (though it was new to me).
Essentially, I plan to write on whatever interests me, and as my interests
are pretty broad - ranging across health, food, drink, movies, gadgets,
sport, literature, electronics, spirituality and more - I assume others will
be interested too.
Please come back often.
January 27th, 2006 |
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