Bonus Years
Some people are evergreens, never dormant, always renewing
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, May 23, 2019 We’ve all heard of early bloomers, youngsters who perform at adult levels – and late bloomers, who are slow to get off the mark. These realities only show that different folks blossom in different seasons of their life. But occasionally, we…
Read MoreTelecom retirees answer call of history, preserve important artifacts
Unabridged from my weekly Bonus Years column the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, May 12, 2019 For nearly four years, beginning in 2005, I had the privilege of working as senior executive in the largest telecommunications company in a nation not my own. That company was Telstra, Australia’s telecommunications giant, which also owned…
Read MoreWork after a life of work appeals to many in their bonus years
For those of us in our bonus years, conversations with children and grandchildren are usually satisfying, often sweet. However, sometimes we’re faced with offspring who will skeptically roll their eyes whenever we speak with awareness and enthusiasm about issues they think they invented. Example: If you talk about recycling, some Millennials will dismiss your views…
Read MoreYou’re never too old to serve those in need — and there are many
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, May 3, 2019 During March and April, I visited a close friend who spent nearly two months in the rehab unit at Heritage Harbor. Nearly every visit included meeting other interesting people who were also visiting my popular friend. During one visit, I met…
Read MoreA life of service to the ‘seats of power’ does not end when your career ends
New Year’s Eve was a dreary day in Annapolis. It was cold and rainy. Little did I know that my day would soon be filled with the light of Frank Jones whose uplifting manner and inspiring story could raise the spirits of even a Scrooge or Grinch. It goes like this. Jones was born in…
Read MoreAging is about embracing life’s experiences
Pessimists abound. Especially when it comes to aging. During the holiday period, I was reading a magazine piece on aging where the theme was “so much behind us; so little ahead.” That caused me to recall another’s definition of “old” as when you cross the tipping point, with fewer years going forward than you’ve already…
Read MoreThe value of a story is in the telling, even the greatest story ever told
Among life’s many blessings are opportunities we have to help another realize a dream. We do it all the time, especially with our life partners and our children – everything from enduring faithfulness to a bicycle at Christmas for a hopeful 10-year-old. Less frequently, but sometimes even with a good friend or protégé, we learn…
Read MoreAnnapolis man turns his setbacks into a comeback
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, December 14, 2018 Last week, Mary Sue and I were ringing bells for the Salvation Army’s red donation kettle located at City Dock by Zachery’s jewelry store in downtown Annapolis. That’s when I first met Steve Rice. Like many others that brisk Monday morning,…
Read MoreGifts of ‘engagement’ and ‘experience’ are hard to beat
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, December 7, 2018 Buying a Christmas gift for friends or relatives in their bonus years can be a challenge. For example, what kind of gift do you buy for the bonus years empty-nester who is already downsizing? What do you get people who have…
Read MoreYou can’t separate a boy from his toys, no matter his age
I’ve known Bill Lesko for more than two decades. But not really, I discovered. Last week, I found out why: Lesko and his partner, Martha Fox, a retired elementary school math teacher, are always on the go. Lesko is always interesting – beginning with his six-years of volunteer work to restore and crew the SS…
Read MoreThanksgiving, fall’s finale, is just around the corner
Thursday next is Thanksgiving – first proclaimed by George Washington in 1789 and formally established as a national holiday by Abraham Lincoln in 1863. None of us should need a special day to count our blessings or express gratitude. Still, Thanksgiving is a special American celebration – dating back to the Pilgrims’ landing in Massachusetts…
Read MoreLife is an adventure every day, even in the bonus years, if you make it one
Unabridged from my weekly Bonus Years column the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, November 9, 2018 Most of us came face-to-face with a geography course somewhere along the way. For me, it happened in middle school. That’s when I learned there are many island nations. It’s not just the United Kingdom, Australia and…
Read MoreDisposing of cherished historic cars is a new kind of downsizing
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, October 26, 2019 Our bonus years spark thoughts of “the good ‘ole days.” I’m not talking about board games like Monopoly, card games like canasta or fads like hula hoops. I’m thinking about important things – like your first car. My first car was…
Read MoreDon’t wait till it rains till you start building the ark
Many in their bonus years will remember Michael Landon – the American TV actor (also screenwriter, director and producer) known for his role as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza as well as starring roles in Little House on the Prairie and Highway to Heaven. Landon, who passed away in his early 50s, once said “Whatever…
Read MoreThe need for transition assistance happens at all ages
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, October 12, 2019 (The 50-seat Light House Bistro is more than a restaurant. It is also what some people call a “social enterprise” — a business enterprise that has social goals embedded in its business objectives. [Joshua McKerrow / Capital Gazette file]) Several months…
Read MoreLooking after aging mother transforms lives of caregiving sisters
Unabridged article from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, October 07, 2019 I’ve just seen life from the inside out, a view that can only be conveyed by storytelling. That was my first thought as I finished reading Melanie Merriman’s Holding the Net: Caring for My Mother on the Tightrope of Aging, winner…
Read MoreA mission to repair the world does not end with retirement
Places like Myrtle Beach and Wilmington, North Carolina are names familiar to most of us – especially after their recent bashing by hurricane Florence. But if you travel about 300 miles to the west of these well-known coastal communities – to the foothills of the Blue Ridge – you will find Lenoir, a North Carolina…
Read MoreAging and the always inspirational, celebrational Kermit the Frog
Our culture seems to have an existential dread of aging – or at least dismay about looking like we are aging and certainly anxiety about admitting our age. Maybe we can blame comedian Jack Benny. The famed radio, television and film ham celebrated his 39th birthday on The Jack Benny Show, one of America’s most…
Read MoreDespite bumps, potholes and detours, later life brings many delights
If you stop to think about it, life is filled with all kinds of contradictory proverbs, oxymorons and other confounding words of wisdom. Example: “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” v. “Out of sight, out of mind.” Which is it? Or is it both? When is it one and when is it the other? What…
Read MoreBonus years travel comes in many sizes, shapes and destinations
Remember the late 1980s film, “Trains, Planes and Automobiles” – the comedy in which Steve Martin and John Candy struggled with each other’s foibles, challenging weather and nearly every mode of transportation to make it home for Thanksgiving? I thought of this several times during the past two weeks as Mary Sue and I joined…
Read MoreRenaissance woman finds new calling in her bonus years
The American author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, told us that “Vitality exists not only in the ability to persist, but in the ability to start over.” For a living example of “Fitzgerald’s Law,” journey down to Annapolis Maritime Antiques on Severn Ave. in Eastport. There, every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday afternoon beginning at 2:00, you…
Read MoreRetirement, for some, is an opportunity to keep on serving
(Dick Libby, of Annapolis, officiated at the Kirkin’ o’ the Tartan at Washington National Cathedral in 2010, 50 years after he had been ordained there as an Episcopal priest. [Capital Gazette]) Poet Robert Browning talked to us about “…the last of life for which the first was made.” For some, the link between the first…
Read MoreAging gives us new eyes to see people, issues and events
Our first Bonus Years column appeared on June 3, 2012. That was six years and 200 columns ago. Our aim was to write a column a week. That should add to 312. What happened to the other 112? Answer: We do our storytelling as a labor of love, so it competes with other affections –…
Read MoreRemembering the ‘old days’ of party lines and collect calls
Unabridged from the Life section of the Annapolis Capital, Sunday, July 15, 2018 All that’s going on in our community these past few weeks – from the tragedy of lives cut short to the hope symbolized by Independence Day celebrations – has caused me to think more about life’s many blessings. One of those is…
Read MoreA local newspaper is important to a community – and especially to those in their bonus years
The aftermath of the heartbreaking event of June 28, when five staffers at The Capital tragically lost their lives at the hands of a lone gunman, has been a time of mourning, especially for the families, friends and colleagues of those who were lost. But also for all of us. Indeed, as 17th century poet…
Read MoreDownsizing to a condo does not require downsizing memories
This past week I crossed paths with one of the most interesting women I’ve met in a long time. Her name is Anne-Marie Baikauskas (pronounced by-KAWS-kiss). She lives in Heritage Harbour, an active 55+ community in Annapolis which includes a community center with many community amenities and social events. Baikauskas lives in a mid-rise condo.…
Read MoreOnly a genealogist thinks a step backward is progress
The Maryland State Archives, located on Rowe Blvd. just west of College Creek, is the central repository for what the law calls “state government records of permanent value….” including birth and death, marriage and divorce records, last wills and testaments and records of the history of Maryland – from the earliest times of Lord Baltimore…
Read MoreRetirement can be an experience with many chapters
(Photo Credit: In 2017, Craig Sewell, longtime chef and owner of A Cook’s Cafe in Annapolis, announced his retirement after 15 years. [Joshua McKerrow / Capital Gazette file]) Annapolitan Craig Sewell is, to my way of thinking, a poster boy for the way many of us will spend our bonus years: in serial retirements that…
Read MoreGood literature tells truest truths about death and dying
Last December, just before Christmas, I read a retirement story in the Capital about Michael Parker, a US Naval Academy English professor, due to step aside after 38 years on the Yard. A notice that someone is about to retire always catches my attention. However, buried in the Parker story was an added attraction: It…
Read MoreNavigating the map of elder care providers often requires assistance
Want to make your head explode? Try to figure out all the different kinds of senior housing and elder care services that are available and which one has the best fit with your needs and your pocketbook – or, in the case of adult children, those you are caring for. Enter Cindy Jahr Evans and…
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