The Nonagenarian Club of THD

During the past months I have been talking to a few residents about aging and I learned that five residents here at THD will turn 90 years old including myself at the end of the year 2024. If God willing I will be 90 years old this coming December 20, 2024.  My daughter Dinah has been planning a shindig  for this coming birthday and I am indeed looking forward to reach that goal. 

When I posted in my blog, that I am planning to form a social group ( Nonagenarian Club of THD) composed of 90 years old or older residents here at THD, several residents responded of their positive  interest. A few younger residents responded that this is an excellent idea. 

 Here was my e-mail to THD Management Activities  to reserve a space in the Calendar of Events for our First Meeting next month.  

"Galen,  Cidney or Teresa: It appears  that a few of us who will be 90 years old by the end of 2024 or over are interested in a Get Together to formally form a social group we will call the Nonagenarian Club of THD.  Could you gave us a space in your Calendar of Activities for the Month of August for our First Meeting.    Could you also set-up a sign-up in the Lobby and advertised it. We hope THD management will not suppressed or discouraged this activity. Thank You,   The purpose of the club is to enhance sense of Community and belonging here at THD. David". Here's the response from Galen.

Hi David,

 

I’d be glad to enter the Nonagenarian Club of THD in the August calendar as a resident-led activity.  You can choose a time in the Plaza Game Room when there isn’t another scheduled activity on the July calendar.  The August calendar should be essentially the same for the Plaza Game Room. Let me know the time you’re interested in and I’ll confirm that it’s available.

 

I’ll create a flyer for it, but we don’t typically create a sign up sheet for a resident-led activity because we don’t track the attendance in advance in order to purchase food, supplies, etc. 

 

Congratulations on starting your new club. Galen

Response to Galen: Please reserve the Last Sunday of every month from 4-5PM beginning August.   

 

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Now for the Article on the Secret to Living 90 Years Old. But before I begin here are some facts: 

What percentage of people live to 90 years old?

About 16% of the men and about 34% of the women survived to the age of 90. In fact, the authors found women who were taller than 5 feet 9 inches were 31% more likely to reach 90, compared to those who were under 5 feet 3 inches.

Here's a summary of the article: 

"Researchers from health institutions in the Netherlands conducted a study in 2019, published in the BMJ medical journal, to determine the link between body size and the likelihood of reaching age 90.

Alcohol better than exercise to live past 90, study says

To do so, they examined more than 7,000 men and women between ages 55 and 69 over the course of three decades. They recorded the subjects’ height and weight, as well as their physical activity, like gardening and walking. The team then grouped those activities into three categories: less than 30 minutes daily, 30 to 60 minutes daily, and 90 minutes or more daily.

The participants were monitored until they died or turned 90.

At the end of the study, about 16% of the men and about 34% of the women survived to the age of 90.

In fact, the authors found women who were taller than 5 feet 9 inches were 31% more likely to reach 90, compared to those who were under 5 feet 3 inches.

There was no apparent link between height and longevity among men. However, men who did physical activity 90 minutes a day were 39% more likely to make it to 90, compared to those who did less than 30 minutes. And every additional 30 minutes of daily physical activity resulted in a 5% increase in their chances of turning 90.

The findings weren’t the same for women, though. Ladies who got in 30-60 minutes a day were 21% more likely to see their 90th birthday, compared to those who managed just 30 minutes. For complete  details visit: 

https://www.ajc.com/pulse/heres-the-secret-to-living-to-90-years-old-study-says/CPYOM4J4L4UW3LBOIQDAYBHNWM/#:~:text=At%20the%20end%20of%20the,to%20the%20age%20of%2090.

We are the Elderly

I was born in 1934. So I am the Pre-Elderly, but still identify with the sentiments in this posting from My Face Book Page. I hope you are aging gracefully.

"Many have passed away, and those who are still here are called "the elderly." We were born in the 40s-50s-60s. We grew up in the 50's-60's-70's. We studied in the 60s-70s-80s. We were together in the 70s-80s-90s. We got married or not and discovered the world in the 70s-80s-90s.

We were adventuring into the 80s - 90s. We're settling in to the 2000s. We became wiser in 2010s.

And we’re going strong into 2020 and beyond. Turns out we went through EIGHT different decades...

TWO different centuries...TWO different millennials...

We've gone from phone with operator for long distance calls, pay booths to video calls worldwide.

We’ve gone from slides to YouTube, vinyls to online music, handwritten letters to emails and to What's App; Live games on the radio, black and white TV, color TV, then HD 3D TV. We went to the video store and now watching Netflix. We've known the first computers, punch cards, disks and now we have gigabytes and megabytes on our smartphones.

We wore shorts all through our childhood, then trousers, ep pants or mini-skirts, Oxfords, Clarks, Palestinian scarves, jumpsuits, and blue jeans. We avoided childhood paralysis, meningitis, poliomyelitis, tuberculosis, swine flu and now COVID-19. We've done roller skating, roller skating, tricycle, bicycle, moped, gasoline or diesel and now we drive hybrids or electric cars.

We played with the little ones horses and checkers, ostrich and marbles, 1000 threshold and monopoly, now there's candy crush on our smartphones. And we read... much. And our schoolmates religion was not a subject... We used to drink tap water and lemonade in glass bottles, and the vegetables on our plate were always fresh, today we get meals delivered, via DoorDash or Instacart.

Yes, we have been through a lot but what a beautiful life we have had! They might describe us as “ex-annuals”; people who were born in this 50s world, who had an analog childhood and digital adulthood. We should add Biological Revolution that we have witnessed. In 1960, biology was very descriptive. 

We have witnessed the event of Molecular Biology: the molecules of Life have been discovered: DNA, RNA etc. When you see everything that has come from it: gene therapy, gene fingerprints, and others the progress is considerable.

We kind of have "seen it all"! Our generation has literally lived and witnessed more than any other in every dimension of life. This is our generation that has literally adapted to "CHANGE". A big congratulations to all the members of a very special generation".

Every country in the world is experiencing growth in both the size and the proportion of older persons in the population. By 2030, 1 in 6 people in the world will be aged 60 years or over. At this time the share of the population aged 60 years and over will increase from 1 billion in 2020 to 1.4 billion.

Lastly enjoy my photo of the Day

Lastly, If you are a THD Resident who will be 90 years old by the end of 2024 or over, I am thinking of forming a NONAGENARIAN Club here at THD. It will be just a social club, we will meet once a month and talk our common concerns. It is another way to build sense of community and belonging we really need at the stage of our lives specially if we live alone. Let me know if you are interested!

Events Highlights and My Word of the Day

Here's THD Events Highlight for the Week of July 1. I plan on attending Meet-UP of Fairmount Residents on Tuesday and the Excursion Lunch at the Claremont Hotel Saturday on Saturday. Of course the July 4th Celebration is a must attend event for ALL.

AND Now my word of the Day 
Prosopography

[prah-sə-PAH-ɡrə-fee]

Part of speech: noun

Origin: Latin, late 16th century

1.

A description of a person's social and family connections, career, etc., or a collection of such descriptions.