It occurs to me that, from time to occasional time, I go on about this-or-that event and achieve previously unparalleled levels of literary excellence in explaining what is going to happen at said event, but I may not do quite as good a job at explaining why you might care, so let’s start there.
I think most of us have figured out that many of us who populate the North Peninsula are well past worrying about puberty; specifically, we’re “Elders” (or within sight of that worthy goal) and have realized that immortality is likely…elusive – Terminally so; thus, if we’re smart, we start thinking about what these years might look like; VERY specifically, how we want them to look.
And if someone with too little to do comes along and asks how we want to spend those years, we’re likely to say something like, “I want to stay independent in my own home!” – Or, something a lot like that, but the emphasis is likely to be emphatic.
I hear you – Me, too – So, the event that I’m about to go on about is emphatically called a (the!), “Staying Independent Fair!” I know that doesn’t exactly roll off your tongue, but if we got too clever about the title, then nobody would know what-the-heck we were talking about and things probably wouldn’t go very well.
We, at “Information & Assistance,” sat down and said to ourselves, “OK, what might folks actually need or want to know in order to ‘stay independent in their own home’?” – Or something a lot like that, but we were pretty emphatic, too.
So, on Friday, May 3rd, from 10:00 in the morning until 2:00 in the afternoon, at the Port Angeles Senior Center (328 E. 7th in P.A., if that’s news), we’re going to give you an opportunity to learn a whole lot about what you didn’t know about a whole lot of stuff that has to do with “staying independent;” for instance:
· Blood pressure checks, blood oxygen saturation levels, sleep health and foot care info – The healthier you are, the more likely it is you can stay put;
· A presentation by Jim Hallett, local financial planner, on finances in (or about) retirement – This is America, money counts!
· Access to an Elder Law attorney – Ask questions, get answers, on-the-spot;
· “Environmental modifications,” meaning “how to make your home and the stuff in it as friendly as possible, so you don’t have to be 38 to keep living there;
· Depression, pain management, dental hygiene and diabetes prevention (or how to live with diabetes and still have a life;
· “Chronic Disease Self Management” – Learn about how to learn about how to get on top of these things, so they don’t get on top of you!
· “Balance & Falls” assessments, “Best Use of Your Pharmacy” (there’s a whole more to that these days, than there used to be), Paratransit, vision and vision loss and hearing loss and how to deal with it/them, housing options, library outreach and on and on…
Here’s one of the best parts (he said, modestly): All of us from “Information & Assistance” will be lurking about the entire time, with vast multitudes of info on vast multitudes of subjects, like advance directives, in-home care, Medicare, Medicaid and health insurance in general, assisted living and skilled nursing facilities – Just about anything you can come up with that has to do with “staying independent” – And here’s the best part of the best part: We’ll all just be there, so you can talk.
What often happens to many of us is that we know what’s “wrong,” or what the “situation” is, but we don’t have the foggiest idea what might help, because that’s not the world we’ve lived in; well, it is the world WE live in, so just come on by, find one of us, tell your story and then we’ll start talking (together!) about what might make things better – Remember, you don’t know what you don’t know, because you don’t know it.
This whole thing is free – Very, totally, completely, utterly FREE! Hey, we’ll even throw-in free sack lunches for the first 200 folks, and some of those lunches will have prize coupons for free trips with the Senior Center! There’ll be a “fun zone,” with all kinds of stuff from “Zumba” to “Line Dancing” to “Wii Fit.” The Humane Society is going to show up with critters available for adoption (loneliness kills) – Maybe an herbalist, and a massage therapist and an acupuncturist – And maybe a meteor shower! (Not really, I just threw that in to see if you were paying attention – I’ve cancelled the meteor shower)
Have I left things out? Sure! Because this isn’t “War and Peace,” that’s why, and there’s a limit to how much I can get into one column, so try this: Just come by – Whenever you want, for as long as you want – And see what you see. Just wander around, look at stuff, ask questions (if you have some) and see what you think:
· maybe something will “help;”
· maybe several things will help;
· maybe you’ll realize that you should have been thinking about something that you had no idea you should be thinking about;
· Or, maybe, you’ll just have a fun and interesting time and be kept off the streets, for a while.
Friday, May 3rd, 10:00 to 2:00 at the Port Angeles Senior Center, because one of the best ways to “stay independent in your own home” is to GET OUT OF THE HOUSE!
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