Oldest Grammy Award Winner Ever

by Madeleine Kolb March 24, 2011

What can you say about a man who does terrific, award-winning work into his 10th decade? A man who’s the oldest performer ever to win a Grammy award? Legendary blues pianist Pinetop Perkins, born on July 7, 1913, is such a man. Last month at the age of 97, he won his third Grammy for his [...]

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Anti-aging Is Anti-life And Here’s Why

by Madeleine Kolb March 9, 2011

In our culture growing older is not something to embrace. It’s something to fight tooth and nail, something to defy. Ads for anti-aging products, photos in the tabloids, and geezer birthday cards hammer home the message that aging is decline–replete with wrinkles, cellulite, grey hair, incontinence, hearing loss, and worse. As a person ages, all functions— physical, [...]

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Five Compelling Reasons To Read Age Myths Even If You’re Not That Old

by Madeleine Kolb March 2, 2011

It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you in trouble, it’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” –Mark Twain As I’ve gotten older, I’ve been struck by how aging isn’t nearly as dismal and dreary as the conventional wisdom suggests. The year I turned 60, for example, I started a new [...]

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The Right Stuff: Senator Daniel Inouye

by Madeleine Kolb February 17, 2011

“The Right Stuff ” is a term popularized by author Tom Wolfe in his rollicking, uproarious, roller-coaster-ride of a book by the same name:  a book about the seven original astronauts selected for Project Mercury.   They were men who had what it  took to climb into a massive rocket loaded with explosive fuel and blast off into [...]

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Navigating Without A Compass: Lost In US Health-care System

by Madeleine Kolb February 6, 2011

When I set out to get routine health check-ups and screenings this year, I expected the process to be tedious, time-consuming, even baffling at times. Although I’m practiced in the art of Managing My Own Health, I figured that things would be a bit more complicated this time around. The reason was that early in 2010 my BF [...]

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Celebrate Life: Read the Obits

by Madeleine Kolb January 28, 2011

Maybe it’s just me, but as I’ve gotten older I tend to read the obituary page a lot more than I used to. It’s not a morbid thing. On the contrary. I love  the stories of lives filled with  accomplishments and challenges—lives of people who were talented or inspiring or sometimes just downright strange. Poppa Neutrino Clearly [...]

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When There’s No Cure, What’s The Best Treatment?

by Madeleine Kolb January 19, 2011

Is there any question more anxiety-provoking, more terrifying, more contentious than what kind of medical care a sick person should have when the possibility of a cure is zero? Two options At one extreme is the full-throttle option–hit her with the complete arsenal of medical weapons available even though none will cure her. At the other extreme, provide [...]

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More On Shingles: Viewer Discretion Advised

by Madeleine Kolb January 13, 2011

The concept couldn’t be simpler: the best way to avoid illness is to prevent it. To avoid getting the flu this winter, get a flu shot. And while you’re at it, get vaccinated for other diseases for which you’re at risk which—for those over 50 or 60—include shingles. Several days ago, I wrote about the obstacles [...]

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Don’t Get Shingles, Get The Vaccine Now

by Madeleine Kolb January 7, 2011

The Healthiness Project: Part 2 Two days ago standing at the prescription counter at CVS, I nearly lost it. I got very  frustrated and was taking it out on the young pharmacist at the counter. The more he tried to explain that CVS no longer carries the shingles vaccine, the more irate I became. Finally, I [...]

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Why Dr. Frances Kelsey Has The Right Stuff

by Madeleine Kolb December 27, 2010

“The Right Stuff ” is a term popularized by author Tom Wolfe in his rollicking, uproarious, roller-coaster-ride of a book by the same name:  a book about the seven original astronauts selected for Project Mercury. They were men who had what it took to climb into a massive rocket loaded with explosive fuel and blast off into [...]

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