17
THE GOOD LIFE
Mountain Views News Saturday, September 17, 2011
SENIOR HAPPENINGS
YOUR HEALTH MATTERS
Today’s Subject:
STRESS REVISITED
RECIPES OF THE WEEK
SEPTEMBER IS SENIOR
CENTER MONTH
NCOA’s National Institute of Senior Centers
has designated September as Senior Center
Month
“It Happens at My Senior Center”
Even though the Hart Park House Senior
Center is under renovation, things are still
“happening” at the center’s temporary home
in the Community Recreation Center (611
E. Sierra Madre Blvd.)so please join us:
September 2nd - The Senior Lunch Café is
serving a special menu of Cheese Burgers
with all the fixings & apple pie for dessert in
celebration of Labor Day; Noon . $2 donation-
advance reservations required by calling
355-0256.
September 7th - Community meeting regarding
the proposed assisted living facility
being built in Sierra Madre. Come to the
Recreation Center at 6:30 pm to hear more
or to ask questions.
September 15th - Senior Excursion to the
Historic Graber Olive House (see below for
more details).
September 21th - Lunch & Learn; 12:20 pm.
Join us for this special presentation by Lending
a Paw, Therapy Dogs & meet some of
their certified dogs. A special dry dog food
collection will take please so please bring a
bag to donate to families facing financial difficulties
(donation not required to attend).
September 24th - Wellness in the Park; 9 am
to 12 noon in Memorial Park. Free information
including hearing & osteoporosis
screenings and flu shots (Medicare participants
- $25 for others) plus the Senior Commission
will be handing out the File of Life
medical information packet to residents.
Come early and enjoy the Kiwanis Pancake
Breakfast 7 am to 11 am at $5 per person
September 30th - The Final Scoop - come
build your own ice cream treat as we end our
month of activities; 12:30 pm
For more information about the activities
listed, please call the Senior Desk at (626)
355-7394.
QUICK AND EASY
CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE GUMBO
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb light smoked sausage, cut into 1/2 inch thick
slices
1 -3 tablespoon vegetable oil
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup coarsely chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 medium green bell pepper, chopped
2 cups chicken broth
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 -2 teaspoon creole seasoning
4 cups chopped cooked chicken
hot cooked rice
DIRECTIONS:
Cook sausage over high heat in Dutch oven 5
minutes, stirring often.
Remove sausage with a slotted spoon.
Drain on paper towels.
Add enough oil to drippings in Dutch oven to equal
3 tablespoons, and whisk in flour; cook over medium-
high heat, whisking constantly, 5 minutes.
Add onion and next 3 ingredients; cook 5 minutes,
stirring often.
Stir in broth and next 2 ingredients.
Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 5
minutes.
Add sausage and chicken; simmer, covered, 5
minutes.
Serve over rice.
Read more: http://www.food.com/recipe/quick-easy-
chicken-sausage-gumbo-109348#ixzz1Y9Me1OzI
In his seminal work, The Stress of Life, Dr.
Hans Selye laid the groundwork for modern
stress research. His model, termed “the general
adaptation syndrome,” is as helpful today as it
was in the 1940’s when it was first developed.
His findings pointed out three major stages
of response to threats: alarm, adaptation, and
exhaustion. To understand how this works, let
me offer this example:
One of my first cars was a 1956 Pontiac. Aside
from the fact that it was a gas guzzler (12-13
mpg), it had a problem with the idle. Every time
I would pull up at a stop sign, it would stall. I
developed a way of coasting up to the stop,
putting it in neutral, and while applying the
brake, I would rev up the engine. Voila! No
stalling. After a time, I realized that it would be
effective to simply adjust the idle high enough
to avoid stalling in the first place. As you can
well imagine, the increased engine activity soon
caused the brakes to fade, the trans to slip, and
the radiator to boil over. I’ve always felt this was
a great example of the alarm, adaptation, and
exhaustion model (or GAS).
The principle hormone involved in stress is
cortisol and, like my Pontiac’s idle, its presence in
the system causes increased activity. In the long
run, negative changes result, which ultimately
lead to disease. Cortisol can continue to rise
even after the initial stress is resolved. Soon, the
body becomes used to functioning this way and
automatically defaults to cortisol-based activity.
In Closing
We must be careful in our understanding
of how the body works. By using Selye’s model,
it is easier to see that disease develops over
time. Because of this progressive adaptation, it
is entirely possible to reverse some of the effects
of stress. Being open to this idea allows us to
take control of the process and contribute to our
healing.
Have a healthy week!
Dr. John
Dr. John Talevich, D.C. has practiced in Sierra Madre
for thirty years. His clinic, LifeWorks! Chiropractic,
offers patient-specific approaches to the alleviation of
pain and individually tailored wellness programs.
September Birthdays
Yvonne Osti, Edwina Garcia, Donna
Anderson, Teresa Chaure, Cathy
Gunther, Esther Macias, Sheila Pierce,
Nancy Shollenberger
John M. Talevich, D.C.
CHIROPRACTIC: Simple, Elegant, Effective
31 S. Baldwin Avenue Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024
626-355-4710
HOW TO HELP FUND YOUR GRANDKIDS RETIREMENT
Meals-On-Wheels
Dear Savvy Senior:
Is there a way that we can put some money in
a Roth IRA account for our young grandkids
to use for retirement?Curious Granddad
Dear Curious:
There sure is! Funding Roth IRAs for your
grandkids when they’re young is a smart
move and an incredible gift to their financial
future. And you don’t have to be rich to do it,
either. Here’s what you should know.
Roth RulesThe Roth IRA is a fabulous
savings tool for your grandkids. A Roth
can literally turn a few hundred dollars a
year now, into tens of thousands of tax-free
dollars for your grandkids when they retire
by using the powerful combination of time
and compounding.
But in order for you to open and fund a
Roth IRA for a grandchild, one primary
requirement will need to be met. The child
will need to have earned income from some
type of work – allowances don’t count. So,
if your grandkid made a few bucks this
year mowing lawns, babysitting, delivering
newspapers or working an after-school or
weekend job, he or she qualifies. Just be sure
you keep good records including a log of the
dates and hours worked and amounts paid,
as well as any W-2 forms from employers or
1099s.
If your grandkids meet the earned income
requirement, there’s nothing in the rules that
says the child’s own money has to go into the
Roth. It’s perfectly legal if your grandkids
keep the money they earned and you make
the contributions for them. The key is
that you can’t contribute more than your
grandchild earned in any given tax year, up
to the limit of $5,000.
And to give you an idea of how these early
contributions can add up, consider this. Let’s
say, for example, that you contribute $500 a
year to your grandchild’s Roth for nine years
from the ages of 10 to 18 (a total of $4,500). If
that money grew an annual rate of 7 percent,
that $4,500 would accumulate to around
$144,000 by the time he or she reaches age 65.
And with a Roth IRA, the full amount will be
tax-free when it’s withdrawn in retirement.
It’s also doubtful that your grandkids
would be on the hook for income taxes.
Children who work as employees generally
don’t need to file a tax return unless their
income exceeds the standard deduction
amount, which was $5,700 for the 2010 tax
year. They should, however, file if they’re
due a refund for any withholdings. But a
child who has net earnings of $400 or more
from self-employment is required to file. For
information on IRS filing requirements for
children, visit www.irs.gov and search for the
page titled “Taxable Income for Students.”
FlexibilityYou also need to know that
opening a Roth for your grandkids doesn’t
automatically lock up the money for decades.
Like it or not, your grandkids, at age 18, can
withdraw the principle contributions (but
not earnings) any time, tax free and penalty
free.
Roth IRAs also offer special withdrawal
rules for higher education expenses. So if
your grandkid needs money for college,
contributions can be withdrawn tax and
penalty free, while the earnings can also be
dipped into without penalty, but they will owe
taxes on it. And when it comes time to buy a
first home, your grandson or granddaughter
can withdraw up to $10,000 (contributions
and earnings) tax and penalty free.
Savvy Tip: For more information on Roth
IRAs, see IRS Publication 590 at www.irs.
gov/pub/irs-pdf/p590.pdf, or call 800-829-
3676 and ask them to mail you a free copy.
Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior,
P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit
SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor
to the NBC Today show and author of “The
Savvy Senior” book.
Meals are delivered to home-bound
seniors by volunteer drivers through
the YWCA Intervale Lunch Program
M-F (with frozen meals for the weekend.)
Meals are delivered to the home-bound seniors
by drivers through the YWCA Interval Lunch
Program M-F (with frozen meals for the
weekend.)
Call the YWCA at (626) 214-9460 for more
information.
EXCURSIONS
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15th -
Historic Graber Olive House in Ontario.
Participants will get a short tour
& history of the Graber Olive as well as
learn more about how they are harvested.
After the tour you will venture to
a local restaurant to have lunch before
heading back to Sierra Madre.
The bus will leave the Community
Recreation Center at 10 am and return
around 2 pm. Cost is $8 per person
(transportation & tour only) so please
bring additional money for lunch.
SAVE THE DATES
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22ND - Big Bear
Oktoberfest ; $36 per person. Registration
begins September 7th online or in person.
*THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17TH -
Historic Castle Tour & Lunch at the Mission
Inn, Riverside.
*THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15TH -
Candlelight Pavilion Christmas Show
in Claremont. Reservation for this excursion
will start on September 26th either by
visiting the Recreation Center in person
or going online at www.cityofsierramadre.
com/onlineregistration
LUNCH & LEARN
Join the Senior
Community Commission
at the
Sierra Madre Recreation
Center
for a FREE presentation.
Lunch is available for a
$2 donation
Call (626) 355-0256 by
12 noon the day before.
DIAL - A - RIDE
TICKETS
Tickets can now be purchased at:
Sierra Madre City Hall
Sierra Madre Recreation Center
Sierra Madre Library
Pasadena Highlands, an independent and assisted
living community, is proud to provide a
special gift basket on the first Tuesday of each
month. Accredited In-Home nursing care will
provide a special prize on the 4th Tuesday of
each month. Bingo takes place every Tuesday at
1:30 pm at the Sierra Madre Recreation Center
while the Hart Park House is under remodeling.
The game begins at 1:30 pm but those wishing
to play must arrive 10 minutes before to secure
your Bingo cards. Join us on the 1st & 4th
Tuesday of each month
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