(photo courtesy of  shesnuckinfuts and flickr)

Countdown to midnight here in the USA. May we all have good health, good friends and count each day a blessing. Happy New Year 2008 from After55.com and The Silver Pages

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We sat down at after55.com and tossed out ideas on what to give our viewers for the New Year. We all agreed that staying mentally sharp so as to continue being independent was the #1 goal for many people. So our roving reporter went in search of a website that could help all of us. We hit the jackpot when we found this site, Click Here 

The site, www.sharpbrains.com has a plethora of information on ways to keep our brain fit.  Start your new year out with your #1 resolution being to not only exercise your body but also exercise your brain. Enjoy!

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When doing your estate planning, it is important not to overlook the creation of Advance Directives and a Living Will. While many people routinely include Durable Powers of Attorney for their financial decisions in the event of incapacity, many neglect to execute similar instruments for healthcare decisions.

We spoke with Barbara Volk-Craft of The Hospice of the Valley about the various documents involved in a properly executed set of Advance Directives, including Healthcare Power of Attorney, Living Will and Pre-Hospital Medical Care Directive (DNR).

To listen now, click the play button:

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(photo courtesy of briankerr in Flickr) 

Being prepared in advance of an emergency is like carrying an umbrella just in case it rains. In our home, we recently went through the loss of my father-in-law. After he died we decided it was time for mom to make sure she had her papers in order. Why is it that when we try to help our parents they think we are trying to pull a fast one on them? We got dad’s paperwork in order but barely in time. We did not want to take the chance that we would not have the proper legal paperwork in order for mom in case she got ill suddenly. So the first document we tried to discuss with her was her power of attorney. “Tried” to discuss  is the operative word, tried. What an argument it sparked….

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(photo courtesy of lanier67 in flickr) 

Violent topic. Dying with lung cancer or COPD is violent too. Putting a gun to one’s head would be an easier death than gasping for every breath. If you are a smoker does it ever cross your mind as to the potential for lung cancer or COPD? If there is any one New Years Resolution you should make, it should be to stop smoking. I feel very strongly about this as I watched my kind, my loving, my compassionate mother die a death no one deserves to die. A death I did not deserve to have to watch. Do you want to die feeling as though someone is holding you underwater? Live life, don’t let smoking take it from you.

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