Elderblogging, Part II

Several weeks ago I wrote about elderblogging and introduced some of my favorites-Ronni Bennett’s Time Goes By, Gorgeous Grey and others. In today’s edition of Diane Driver’s monthly newsletter Resources in Aging from the University of California at Berkeley, she lists two new blogs for seniors and their families.

The first is by Candacy Taylor who has spent several years doing research on waitresses in diners and coffee shops and written about them in her blog, Counterculture Waitress.

The purpose of her blog is “to build a community around  (her) project Counter Culture: The American Coffee Shop Waitress.” She  wants“ to spark a new appreciation for the hardworking women who race to our tables, quarrel with the cooks, and bring warmth and culture to the American roadside dining experience. The project consists of a traveling photo exhibition, a NPR radio documentary and a forthcoming book and film documentary.  Candacy “hit the road in 2001, traveling over 26,000 miles throughout the US, . . . interviewed and photographed 59 waitresses in 43 cities. Each interview lasted 1-3 hours, all of which were transcribed, logged and indexed for the book and the exhibition. The waitresses are 50 and older and have worked in coffee shops or diners for at least 20 years and have a loyal following of regular customers.”

The second is the New Old Age from the New York Times about aging, finances, health and relationships between seniors and their adult children.   “Adults over age 80 are the fastest growing segment of the population, and most will spend years dependent on others for the most basic needs. That burden falls to their baby boomer children, 77 million strong, who are flummoxed by the technicalities of eldercare, turned upside down by the changed architecture of their families, struggling to balance work and caregiving, and depleting their own retirement savings in the process.”   Some of the recent posts are related to such topics as home safety (the bathroom, the most dangerous room in the house), why families wait so long to call hospice, a new easier email program for seniors called PawPawmail. The posts are insightful and well written. The New Old Age is going on my sidebar with the other Senior Links that I think are so important.

Also, I have two elderblogging friends who have retired in the past few years.  Carolyn Gopalon moved from the East Bay to her new home in Conoor, India last year and she chronicles her travels in her blog, Retirement Journey to India.

My other friend is Kathryn Hill who was the broker in my office for many years.  She now spends most of the year in Yelapa Mexico, but since her retirement, has spent six months each year travelling around the United States. Last year she was in the western U.S. and British Canada. This year she is in the southeast. Her blog is called Travelkathryn’s weblog. I am amazed at all that Carolyn and Kathryn have accomplished.  Their writing is great and their photographs are phenomenal.

Neither Kathryn nor Carolyn have special computer skills and taught themselves what they needed to know to produce their blogs.  They both felt that they had something to say and that others might be interested in what they are doing.  Their blogs are wonderful because they are so excited about their journeys.  If you think you might like to have a weblog and need some help, let me know.  I have very user-friendly instructions which were developed by the secretary in our office.  I would love to see the elderblogging community grow.