Barbara Klein

Recently, after the sun went down on a rainy, damp day here in Southern Oregon, there was a treat to be had when putting our garbage outside. An owl was hooting. Rare for us. While a nightly occurrence in our past Arizona life, we seldom hear them here; we agreed maybe less than once a year. (Of course, it doesn’t help if you have the TV chattering away in the evening.) The owl got me thinking about a post I did some years ago entitled: Bucket List Addition: Backyard Birding Literacy. I was remembering my ‘own’ owls (see the title picture) and was trying to recollect if there were new birds... Continue Reading

Ever weaken to the allure of check-out counter Enquirer headlines? Perhaps you shake your head (in disgust or disbelieve) and then pick out a more reputable magazine on popular psychology, science or health. If so, you’ve certainly seen stories about “self-efficacy.” In general terms, self-efficacy plays a role in how we think, act and feel about our place in community, and our ability to succeed in those roles. In less general terms, it’s all based on the work published in 1977 by Albert Bandura in his seminal paper “Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change.”... Continue Reading

The buzzer rings at 6:30 am. I don’t yet call it an alarm, but it is alarming, and I dislike its rude reminder to wake. It’s cold in my pink room with its white furniture and shag rug. At least my tiny feet aren’t cold in the long rug fibers as I hop across the room to hit the button on the new clock that offers me a way to capture 9 extra minutes of sleep. [It won’t switch to the standard 10-minutes until years later.] At 6:39 it rings again. Two minutes later a warning comes, although not from the clock. “You’d better get your lazy bones up. I’m not driving you to school if you... Continue Reading

I have long been involved with voting and electoral systems, and how to reform election methods for the best. One thing I have learned to explain is that “no electoral system is perfect.” Even the best of the alternative systems will have some short-comings, despite being superior to the norm. Speaking of elections makes one think of politics and ah, yes, it’s the ides of March. Those were bad politics. As the saying goes “If you want to avoid bad luck, beware the ides of March.” Of course, bad luck can come in many forms. Fortunately, a bit of planning can land you on the right side... Continue Reading

I recently read a pontification from a Physical Therapist stating: “In my PT experience, you have only two categories of exercisers: 1) Those who love to exercise; and 2) Those who don’t.” For any fan of House of Cards (British version), I will paraphrase “you might very well think that this is an absurdly simple statement. But I couldn’t possibly comment.” Joking aside, I prefer to take a broader perspective. Answer these 4 quick questions to evaluate your own perspective Score your responses to the following statements (using values of 1 to 5).  1.  I prefer days when I’m doing... Continue Reading

Note to readers:Aging_With_Pizzazz accepts submissions from Guest Writers. If you, or someone you know, would like to submit an article, please see the link for Guest Writers on the right-side column of the blog. Am I late for Valentine’s Day? I’ve prepared this post to follow the special day. If I had wanted to write about glowing hearts and flowers, I would have posted it earlier this month, instead of my ‘Yak Tracking’ blog. I avoided it purposefully. Valentine’s Day, like many holidays, can make people feel more alone and isolated than usual. Especially so, if they don’t have... Continue Reading

It’s still Winter where I live. It’s cold. And I’m not crazy about the cold. Still, it’s nice to get outside and enjoy a little local environment. I like to pursue some movement aside from indoor activity, or regular exercise routines (even aside from PizzazzEE© 25). And cold or not, like most, I can usually find a winter wonderland. Walking around the neighborhood is nice, but roaming further afield gives me the impression of bluer skies and crisper air. Not to mention it feels like ‘getting away from the house.’ Any activity is greater fun when with somebody who is entertaining... Continue Reading

Last October, I attended a webinar entitled “Making Sense of My Lab Test Results.” It was sponsored by our local hospital and “OLLI” (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute). OLLI, which is affiliated nationwide with various universities, caters mostly to folks over 50 with programs varying in subject and intensity. The Lab Results webinar was quite interesting and pleased me because the presenter was not a ‘doom and gloom’ type. I’m sure he wouldn’t panic at every score outside the normal or average ranges. He discussed most of the general lab tests that are standard, and shared recommendations... Continue Reading

Happy New Year to all, Wishing all of us the best possible 2023. drb For all those who have read AgingWithPizzazz during other years, you probably know this is always one of my pet posts to prepare. As I have mentioned before, there is no rhyme or reason for entries, and hopefully it isn’t ALL I’ve learned during the past year. Yet, it’s fun to contemplate tidbits here and there. As always, I hope that you each find at least one piece of info that adds to your own knowledge base as well. Before enumerating my dozen morsels, I have to share a thank you to those opening this post. Our reading... Continue Reading

Somehow, no matter what we promise ourselves, the end of the year leans toward being frantic. The schemes may be different for each of us, but they are noticeable in complicating life.  Especially so when the alternative of having downtime would feel so desirable. Ah, sigh, just the thought of it. Nevertheless, the tasks take over. Whether it’s yearly banking and insurance decisions, gift giving, ‘winterizing’ homes or closets, calculating your year-end donations, cheering up lonely friends, making last-minute health appointments, altering viewing habits to avoid cloying and schmaltzy... Continue Reading