Senior Discounts: Who Cares

 Read in the media that some of the "younger" folks want senior discounts to stop. First of all, have they looked at the senior menus offered by restaurants? I am not toothless, tasteless and brainless. To eat that junk, you are better off getting the kid's menu. At least there's a toy to give to the great grandkids. Second of all, even though you are obviously a senior, you must ask for the senior discount and that feels like begging sometimes. Merchants should ask if you would like the discount and go from there. It is not an insult to ask someone if they are a senior, incidentally. Only silly elders think they look far younger than they really are. Go for it seniors and take whatever is offered. Young people do, why not you? Senior's day at the super market is packed with seniors and I don't see many that look like they don't need it. What the complainers who say that senior discounts should be stopped, must fancy they are all rich. Ridiculous. Working folks can depend upon raises and perks on the job. When you are on a fixed income, th-th-that's all folks - to quote a Disney pig. You don't have any more than what the government determines. And that's not enough if you pay rent or land taxes. Lots of younger people in their situations are getting free money for various reasons determined by the same government while seniors, being older and in some opinions, therefore dispensable before their "time", can eat cat food for all they care. Most seniors quietly have been paying their taxes over the decades to support education, medical services and infrastructure that they don't use but do share and appreciate. They often don't drive cars to muck up the air, they are law abiding and complain very little. To take away the tiny discounts that are mostly not used and matter very little, is in a word "cruel and selfish" of the younger set. Go and speak to the seniors who live in basements and old folks homes, not the rarer rich retirees who are on cruises and going off to their summer homes. To remove elder discounts doesn't mean a whole lot, but for some, it is essential and needed.

A Lot Of Crepe

 Who doesn't love summer fruits as they come along. And what better place to put them other than your tummy, is on a crepe. Crepes are actually skinny rich, and who doesn't love skinny and rich. You can be it and do it. At this moment I just finished off a breakfast plate of crepes with maple syrup and butter on the crepe with a topping of peaches and a dollop of whipped cream. Sorry dieters that you have to miss this delight. If you want to start  your day feeling rich do these easy crepes. I use my  small blender that is my second because I wore out the old one. Toss in two eggs, 2/3 cup milk, 1 tablespoon of soft butter, a dash of sea salt, a tablespoon of vanilla ( love it) , 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 cup flour. Whiz it up to the consistency of a very light runny batter and heat up the griddle. Make sure you have a wide big turner ready and maybe a swish of something to keep the pan top silky. This makes about four to six, depending on the size you choose, crepes. When your pan is waterdrop-sizzle, pour out the size you like and wait for the bubbles on top. You might want to slide the turner under first to see if the crepe is done just the colour you love. When it's there, slide that wide turner gently under the crepe and flip it over. ( At first you may have a learning experience but don't give up.) Allow the other side to sit for a bit, again, checking to see if the colour is right. You are looking for a light golden brown, not dark. I like doing large sizes for when you want to "stuff" your crepes with sauce and seafood or fruit and cream etc.  Crepes work any time and any way. Not all crepes end up as Cherries Jubilee but hey, why not CJs? Cherries are almost in season. Experiment. With fruit season coming up think of raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and the ever miraculous sweet blackberries. Mild meats do well in crepes, too. Have a crepey summer!

Un-prepared Foods

 Far too many people of my age group go directly to the super store's aisles: the huge glass doors full of prepared foods. They know that these items displayed so prettily in their plastic cases, are about as healthful as the plastic itself. They don't care. They are placed there for commerce. Truthfully, people who buy them are just plain lazy and they will admit it. "I don't want to bother cooking," they say. What's the difference between putting a few veggies into a steamer than sticking them into a microwave oven? Time it one day. One woman I know, prides herself in having "fresh vegetables and with dip" she says proudly. She states she is getting her good vegetable portions in. Really? Foods in plastic trays are not the same as fresh. Prepared foods are full of additives, ones that  keep them looking nice and tasting delicious. Read the labels, ones you cannot and do not understand.  They make you think they are tasty, they make the product last very long. You pay for the processing and the packaging. I have tried these "time savers". The fruit in the little plastic bowls does not taste the same as fresh. There is an odd flavour that isn't natural. The vegetables have that weird "store born" aura  that fresh vegetables do not. Read the labels on your prepared foods and see what you are really ingesting into  your body. Ho, ho, I am told, food additives are just chemicals and everything we eat is chemicals. Aha. That is true, but the chemical additives on the labels of prepared foods are not for your health, they're for your temptation to buy what's in the plastic. It's not a time saver to pick up these food foolers that you are told are okay. They aren't. When you go to the fresh aisle and buy a few stalks of broccoli, a handful of green beans, a few carrots, and a potato or two and put them into a pan with a bit of water and steam them you are getting what nature intended as food. Real food and it tastes good. If you want more flavour, add some herbs and seasonings. When you do the preparation yourself, it takes no longer than using the microwave oven or toaster. You know what you are putting into you mouth. You know that there is, on your plate, nothing but good food and that you serve your bodily needs with every bite. Eat smart. Start.

Save Your Energy

Why not find ways to save energy in your senior home and lifestyle. The biggies are, do you really need a car? I know lots of people who consider that "giving up" their car shows that they are elderly. Yikes.  No one will escape inevitable "elderly", so stop the shaming of it. Cars are expensive to own.  I sold mine and have never missed it. I take a taxi company that doesn't mind walkers, and I use deliveries. Online shopping is a boon. Delivery is usually free. Grocery stores charge for it but that's not the same expense and trouble as running a car and loading/ unloading groceries. My delivery guy is a prince. Get a freezer.  I recommend a cheap, small upright. Easier on the back and a bit of defrosting once a year, doesn't  hurt. When there is a sale on meats and other items, I'm there. I know someone who gets bulk buying of meats and it's amazingly less expensive. They bring it all to your door and you organize what you order your way. Check it out. Lights? Do you need to have your whole place ablaze all day. Half light is much easier on the eyes and nerves. It feels cool in summer and cosy in winter. Use bright light only when you need it to read etc. Cooking or anything that requires heat costs more to run. Try what the Danes have been doing for ages. Bring your veggies to a boil and turn off the heat. It'll continue cooking. For safely cooking meats, use a thermometer.  An airfryer is a tiny convection oven. I do anything and everything in mine. This very useful appliance does not fry, it broils. It will toast your bread and fry your eggs and do the meats as in a broiler. Delicious, easy and fun.  I also have a little egg cooker that does perfect jobs on eggs. What I wish we could return to, as those do, and have done for centuries, in other parts of world, are outdoor clothes lines. Global warming and sunshine beg for their use. Showers use less than tubbing. Dishwashers used wisely, take much less water than that dishpan some think is better. Not so. I think you already have many more ideas of your own for saving precious energy. Good on you!

Old Gold- Solid

There is a huge controversy lately about age being a bad thing. Old humans are regarded by younger humans waiting to get to the same ages if lucky, as worthless and useless. The whole mess of this kind of thinking is backward. Aging presents issues but they don't usually eliminate what is called "wisdom". And wisdom is lacking in every facet of our present daily life. Take a look and listen to what's around us. Technical "advancements" aren't all beneficial to regular living. A recent political speech during which an elder chap, only three years older than his debate mate, gave a bad impression according to media, because he didn't behave like a thirty year old. From my observation, what I saw was the older member  answering the questions and the other one doing something mysterious that had nothing to do with the debate topics.  Both men, their tone, their speed in mouthing as they did, apparently was more important to some critics than content. Of course older people will look and sound like older people. That's what they are. That's what they do. It is natural. If you want youth, get youth. But where are they?  They are usually behind a screen either large or so tiny you have to squint to see the tiny texts. And most of them are in initials that are the latest form of a crude short hand. Why? To save time of course. If you don't rip around at breakneck speed you aren't moving. Never mind the errors that occur. Youth is the future for sure but youth is dwindling. Fewer younger humans are having families mainly because they must work longer and faster and more frenetically and even then, can't pay their rent. The young I see look marvellous in their costly garb and nice cars but don't look any further. Don't look at the medicine cabinets with pills and the calendars that book appointments for counsellors, gym and spa. Where are the calendar spaces for leisure, and I don't mean going the a concert or a gym. What happened to camping in a forest? Ot going fishing? Is there a space to go see grampa or auntie and maybe pick up a bit of your private history or  a touch of family wisdom? Old is the gold.