October SENIOR NEWS: finding comfort with home entertainment

Welcome Lyons Seniors to the new Lyons Recorder online! By being online, we are able to insert into our article LINKS to things that will inform or entertain you.

Lyons Recorder career
I am supposed to be in my retirement years. But most of you will agree that retirement is almost non-existent in today’s world. I have now taken the ultimate job for a journalist: I now run the Lyons Recorder! With my Business Administration background and decades of journalism practice, it seemed to be a perfect fit.

If the newspaper business was also your dream career, contact me, and we’ll see where you can fit into the team: Want to share your skills for a few hours each month? Are you a retired bookkeeper who can help out now and again with reports or advice? Do you miss your sales work and would enjoy selling a few local ads and/or designing ads? Do you revel in writing bylaws and business plans? Do people ask your advice on a special advanced skill you may have, such as woodworking, or quilting? Are you a computer geek and know things like Elementor, and can offer a couple hours of advice each month? Volunteering keeps the brain active!

I have rounded up an amazing group of Lyons area writers to fill every week’s issue. It looks like we will have weekly Wellness, Nature, Government/Group Reports, Arts & Culture, Business News, and more. Contact me at LyonsRecorder.Editor@Gmail.com if you have comments.

LaVern Johnson has really pushed to keep a weekly newspaper in Lyons for decades. Thanks to her it has continued online this year. You can read her weekly column About Town, (the town’s social news column since 1983) and my weekly Notes from Your Editor, which gives behind the scene comments about the news.

Meals and Activities:
Since the last report in the Recorder, there are no changes in meals or activities in town for seniors. Boulder County Area Aging (BCAAA) is continuing its Wednesday and Friday lunch schedule. Nutritious quality lunches for seniors ages 60 and up can be ordered by 1p.m. the day before at (303) 441-1415, and picked up in front of the Walt Self Senior Center at 12 noon.

The Town of Lyons Senior Recreation Director Lisa Ramsey has offered two “plein air watercolor classes” for seniors in late summer that went very well, and another one is planned for October 14. Contact her to get registered for this free class at lramsey@townoflyons.com (ages 55 and up). She also runs a free walking and light exercise group every Wednesday morning at 9 a.m. It starts at the Senior Center, and goes to a local park, and returns. It’s great fall weather to do some healthy walking in.

Medicare Basics Classes are now offered online by BCAAA Medicare Counselors. The classes provide unbiased, up-to-date information about Medicare enrollment, benefits, costs, what and how Medicare pays, choices under Medicare plans, how they work, and prescription drug coverage. Everyone is welcome – pre-enrollees, people with Medicare, caregivers, family members, staff, and service providers, and community members. 
Monday and Tuesday, October 12-13, 1:30 – 3:00p.m. Register for this course here – https://bit.ly/2VePGYy.

Fake Mail
Always open your mail. You could be throwing away valuable documents that might cause you harm at a later date. This year, some people got what looked like credit cards that were not solicited. Just cutting them up is not enough. They were opened up under your name by criminals. You have to call the credit card company and notify them to cancel it. When the first Stimulus Check went out, there was one called ReliaCard. Call the number on it and cancel it.
Here are instructions that you may want to save: Fill out a fraud form at www.colorado.ui.gov Alert your credit agency. File a police report. Notify FTC at www.indentitytheft.gov. And, be sure to document everything. You can view your credit report free online at the three major credit card reporting companies. Here is the federal web site with all the information: https://www.ftc.gov/faq/consumer-protection/get-my-free-credit-report

Visit Museums online: This is something that you can do (1) in place of that vacation you had to cancel (2) to include grandchildren on an adventure, (3) to education yourself, or (4) just plain be entertained!

The Lyons Redstone Museum now has three virtual tours. You click on the link and it takes you to a web page where you can view either (1) Lyons Historic District, or (2) it’s “40 Years/40 Artifacts” 2019 exhibit, or (3) stories about some people buried in Lyons Cemetery. Go to the article for more information.

All of the small and big museums in the US have links to at least one tour or exhibit. Some have docents telling you behind-the-scenes information in one-time talks. Can you imagine (virtually) walking through the Louvre in Paris? I always felt that the architecture of the building was as beautiful as any painting that was on display. Go for it!

The National Gallery of Arts in Washington, D.C. spent years putting together its current “Degas at the Opera” blockbuster exhibit. But it had to close its doors to the public due to the pandemic. They have now put online a link to the 3-D exhibit! This exhibition is organized by the National Gallery and the Musées d’Orsay et de l’Orangerie, Paris.

Just pick a category, and you will find a museum that meets those needs. Search for National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma for some western fun! Or try the National Museum of African American History and Culture. My favorite is the National Museum of the American Indian, Washington, D.C. which covers the culture the indigenous peoples of the Americas. The Indian Museum search will open an even bigger door to the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. The museum has three facilities.

The adventure can include botanic gardens, zoological parks, national parks, like the sand dunes, and more. The National Zoo’s animal webcams are some of the most famous on the internet. Tune in to watch the Zoo’s giant pandas, elephants, lions and more.

Caregivers: The Estes Valley Library has an online class for Caregivers. Powerful Tools for Caregivers is an educational program designed to help family caregivers take care of themselves while caring for a relative or friend. You will benefit from the class whether you are helping a parent, spouse, friend, someone who lives at home, in a nursing home, or across the country. This class series meets once a week for six weeks. Note, by registering for this session, you register for all in the series from October 6th – November 11th; this is not a drop-in class. https://estesvalleylibrary.evanced.info/signup/EventDetails?EventId=27436

Smoke & Fires:
No, it is not your imagination, if you are smelling smoke. There are currently two fires burning starting about 60 miles north of Lyons. If you have asthma or respiratory issues, it is advised that you stay indoors as much as possible during these flareups. You may find your nose blocked more than usual when you sleep at night. It helps if you rinse out your nose with a saline nasal spray before going to bed.
Add to that the smoke from the California area fires this summer. It’s a serious matter. The ash, and particles from the smoke can get in your eyes and lungs. Vitamin C and ginger in your diet can help fight the effects.

If you haven’t been watching the news, there have been two forest fires this year that rose to the top of the all-time biggest fires in Colorado history. Out of the four major forest fires in Colorado this season, the Pine Gulch Fire, became the largest wildfire in Colorado’s recorded history. It is now 100% contained. The Cameron Peak Fire, which is closest to Lyons, is now the third largest fire. The Hayman Fire from 2002 went to the number two spot.

COVID News:
Some seniors have said they have heard enough about COVID-19, but there are new developments almost daily, and it is incumbent on seniors to stay alert. While the number of nursing home deaths for seniors has gone down, the number of lingering symptoms, often for up to six months, is increasing. This includes such things as “brain fog,” loss of smell, relearning how to walk. Even patients with mild cases describe persistent fatigue, trouble breathing, cardiac issues, and more. Extra precautions are still necessary.

We sadly report that this past week the United States now has 200,000 deaths due to the COVID-19. The worldwide number reached one million this week. Note, these are deaths! Not cases. And, Colorado has gone from approximately two percent daily cases, to as high as four percent in the past couple of weeks. This is mainly due to circumstances around students returning to the classroom, and some Labor Day gatherings. Grandchildren are going back to school and may be exposed to the virus, and bring it to your home. Do not get tired of following the precautions. We still have many months to go.

Voting News: In government news, I have posted a page that contains only Election facts and debate dates. I will post other significant election-related dates and information there through November. The ballots will be mailed out October 9, and you can track every step of your Ballot’s travels through the Secretary of State web site. The debates for president and CO senator are in October.

Senior Planet created a series of ‘Stuck-at-Home Guides’ to walk folks through online grocery shopping, filling prescriptions, online games, and even ballet.
Senior Planet has a Virtual & Phone Tech Helpline. The Colorado Hotline is 303-218-7320. Here is a quick Primer on finding easy online puzzles and games. They have 50+ online programs each week. And, here is the link to their Newsletter.

Well Connected is a telephone-based national program that offers free weekly activities, education, friendly conversation, classes, support groups, and presentations to individuals 60 years or older anywhere in the United States for English and Spanish speakers. Activities occur throughout the day, every day, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., depending on the day. Sessions run between 30 minutes to one hour. Well Connected offers a program called Social Call, in which volunteers call participants for a weekly phone visit. For more information, email coviaconnections@covia.org or call 877-797-7299. For more information or to register for Well Connected programs go to https://covia.org/services/well-connected/ or call 1-877-797-7299. NOTE: if you want a “check up” simple phone call from a Lyons volunteer, contact LEAF.

LYONS RECORDER: Please go to our HOME PAGE to see a list of the current 15 articles. We will be putting up a new professional-looking “front page” in the next couple of weeks that will show you links to dozens of recent articles, including arts // nature // wellness // gardening // history // astrology // library news // and more.
This week we feature a TRIBUTE to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ginsburg, which is thought provoking and contains insightful comments by locals. And, enjoy the “photo spread” of fall colors in our area.