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Archive for the ‘About me’ Category

Color Magic

Posted in About me, Style and fashion, tagged , , , , on February 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Just like that her freckles disappeared! No expensive cosmetic cream or elaborate dermatological technique was used in the process. Only the magic of color was involved. Newly wed and in my twenties, my mother-in-law took me and one of her friends to “have our colors done.” As the color consultant draped each of us with different colored swatches of fabric, amazing things happened. As I watched, my mother-in-law’s friend’s freckles disappeared and reappeared throughout the draping process. My own face lit up or faded when certain colors were draped on me. I became a believer in the enhancing properties of color that day – some thirty years ago – and still refer back to my color palette when purchasing clothes and accessories.

I’ve had my colors analyzed a few times since that first time with my mother-in-law, but my last session with image consultant Galen Hall of Color U was the most helpful. I asked Galen a few questions about color that might be helpful to others:

1. What are the advantages to finding out what your best colors are? What does wearing the right colors do for a person?
A complementary color reduces the appearance of dark circles and skin imperfections, and allows you to look more youthful and rested. Your face glows when surrounded by your best colors. Of course compliments follow and you feel beautiful. People you deal with will react in a very positive way. The right colors enhance your success in life.

Your INDIVIDUALIZED color palette mixes your colors together resulting in a coordinated wardrobe. You will save money.

You can shop quickly and make faster decisions.
You will understand the most pleasing styles for your body type.
You will always have the perfect outfit for any event.
You can wear one lipstick with all your right colors.

2. Can wearing the wrong colors affect you?
If your outfit is in the wrong colors, you will look tired, dark circles are magnified, and your skin will look blotchy. You may receive a compliment on your clothes. However, the best remark is “You look beautiful in that outfit.”

3. What is each individual’s color analysis based on (skin, eyes, hair, etc)?
Skin, hair and eyes are clues to discovering your best colors, as well as, body language, bone structure, and my intuition. Creating a palette is like creating a painting with you as the theme.

4. Do your colors change as you age? What if your hair color changes?
Your coloring softens so maybe the brightest colors in your palette may be deleted as you mature. You are not an entirely different season. An artificial hair color does not affect your palette, nor does your hair turning silver.

5. Is there a color that universally looks good on everyone?
The medium to dark teals are attractive on many people. Blue reds in the deeper tones also work for many. Navy is usually a better neutral than black. However most people can wear black away from the face as a neutral. Both navy and black look best with bright colors added near the face.

6. Conversely, is there a color that looks bad on everyone?
The worst color anyone can wear is stark white. NEVER WEAR A WHITER WHITE THAN YOUR TEETH WHITE.

7. How strictly does one have to adhere to his/her individualized color palette?
Buying a color that is not included in your palette will be another piece of clothing that does not work with other pieces. You will not receive value for your purchase. That one perfect lipstick will clash with the wrong color. Most importantly you will not appear beautiful.

8. Some people feel the seasonal color palette analysis is too limiting. Do you agree or disagree and why?
We usually limit ourselves more than the colors in your individual color palette. Most clients discover new colors that they can wear. Generally new clients have very boring wardrobes with just a few neutrals and lack color. They really notice a difference in their shopping habits after a color analysis.

9. Why do some women only look good in silver jewelry or only good in gold jewelry, and yet, some can wear both?
Selecting metals are just like selecting colors. I would have to train the eye to see. No rule exists.

10. Are wearing the right colors only helpful for women? Would men benefit from a color analysis?
Men will find that many shirts and ties will mix and match with different jackets and suits. In a casual life style, shirts and pants mix more easily. Your INDIVIDUALIZED COLOR PALETTE does create a more youthful and rested appearance. Color can create more authority in business and personal relationships. Men do feel more attractive.

11. Do people use their personal color palettes for other purposes other than clothes selection?
Most important – your colors are the basis for cosmetic choices. Your right makeup colors work well with your wardrobe. Many clients learn to value what is unique and special about themselves. They also use their colors to select cars, to decorate their home or office, and to create the theme for a wedding or party.

12. In all your years of experience, what is your favorite color story you’d like to share?
A father gave his college graduating daughter a gift of an INDIVIDUALIZED COLOR PALETTE. Intentionally following my directives, she purchased a new professional wardrobe. As she entered an office for an interview, she received the comment “You are beautifully put together”. The first impression was extremely important. She got the job. Everyone needs the tools to make a good first impression.

13. Anything you want to say to the nonbelievers of individual color analysis?
Knowledge is power. Knowing yourself will allow greater success in all aspects of your life. You save the cost of color analysis over and over again by eliminating poor purchases. Most important you will feel attractive and confident.

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No Worries?

Posted in About me, Kids, Parenting, tagged , , , , on January 26, 2010| 2 Comments »

“Are you sure you don’t want to take more long-sleeved sweaters and fewer short-sleeved shirts?” I ask my daughter as she packs up her belongings for a study abroad in Greece. “I’ll be fine, Mom,” my daughter says without hesitation. I worry because I read that it can occasionally snow in Greece during the winter and my darling daughter is packing as if she were going to Hawaii.

If there were a job description for being a mom, I’m sure worrying would be right up there with nourishing. Being a mom is by far the most difficult job I’ve ever had and the white hairs on my head are proof. Using Sharpie pens to disguise those hairs has become too time consuming and, anyways, my triceps muscles are too weak to hold my arms above my head for extended periods of time. My parents have always said that no matter how old my siblings and I become, they still worry about us. Don’t get me wrong, none of us are hellions, but how well children are prepared to weather life’s up and downs are all causes of concern to parents.

Unfortunately children do not come with instruction manuals, so when mine were babies I would fret over whether they were getting enough to eat, whether sending them to daycare was the right choice, and whether they were developing normally. The latter was needless worrying since, thankfully, none of my children are normal. They are all extraordinary!

As they grew up and went to elementary school, I worried about constant colds, ear infections, and major childhood diseases. But also on my “worry meter” was their fine and gross motor skill development. Could they skip? That was always the test to see if they could progress on to first grade. When would they learn to read? Would they learn to say their “R’s” the normal way so that car did not sound like “caw?” These worries dissolved away as each concern was resolved.

When they approached junior high school, I stressed over eating habits, study habits, hygiene routines, and their burgeoning sport and social schedules. High school offered little relief for me as sports and social activities, driving lessons, high academic standards, and college applications all warred against each other. But alas, all that high school worrying was for naught; they all got into good colleges. Then the college years came and brought worries about drinking, driving, drugs, and roommates! After almost ten years I can see light at the end of the college-years tunnel.

You get the picture. My worrying can take a siesta now. All seems calm . . . but wait . . . will number one graduate and get a good job? Will number two continue to manage his health issues adequately? And will number three be alright in Greece? I don’t have a crystal ball that can predict the future, but I do know that I’ve tried to be the best mom I could possibly be and I must now rely on my children to remember all that I’ve instilled in them and to make the right choices. Hmm, I just noticed that it is 37 degrees in Athens right now. So why am I worried?

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Who’s the Boss?

Posted in About me, Pets, tagged , , , , , on January 13, 2010| 4 Comments »

Rsleeping_1

Most days I sit at my computer and keyboard one-handed. It’s taken me years of diligent daily training to reach my current level of proficiency with each individual hand. My right-hand is deft, but my left is almost as good. I know what you’re thinking. Why on earth would anyone train themselves to type with one hand?

More than a decade ago my family decided to adopt a puppy. It took seven years, four hamsters, and about five Betta fish before we were ready to fill the huge emotional void that the death of our dog Pippin left. Any dog following in Pippin’s paw prints was going to have to be extraordinary. The search was on. Breeders were contacted, classifieds were scoured, and puppies were cuddled, but none seemed to be the “it” dog. Finally after months of searching, a cock-a-poo breeder forty miles away called me. Her dog Chloe was due to have a litter soon. Having pick of the litter was a new experience for my family and we impatiently waited for the breeder’s call. The call finally came a few days after Christmas, “One little boy and three little girls,” she said.

A mother’s demeanor can be a good indicator of what her children’s temperament might be like. These were the words of a veterinarian, not a child psychologist, although they’re probably not far from the truth as far as humans go, too. If that statement were true, then all four of Chloe’s puppies were sure to be little angels.

The breeder was aware of our preference for a female and preferably a tea cup-sized one at that. We knew our decision was not going to be an easy one, but after multiple visits to the puppies, one little personality stood out. The adorable females had lovely dark coats, but it was the lone buff-colored male, nicknamed Brutus by the breeder, that caught our attention. Brutus was so named, because he was the largest of the litter and because he clumsily climbed over his little sisters to find the most abundant source of milk. How could we not fall in love with the little one who was born with a double chin, who played tug-of-war with artificial plants, and who did such ferocious kick backs that he’d kick his poop right off the piddle pad? Our decision was made. So much for the little tea cup-sized female, Brutus aka Romeo was ours.

The moment we brought Romeo home we started training him to ring a bell that hung from a family room door and opened to our backyard. Our intention was to train him to let us know when he needed to use the outdoor facilities. In hindsight, Romeo really trained us right from the start. That clever pup quickly learned if I ring it, they will come, for it didn’t take him long to figure out that he could also ring the bell for more food! As he is approached at the door, he either remains at the door or he runs back to the kitchen wagging his tail in hope!

So I finally come to the point of my story as to why I keyboard with one hand. It’s obviously because Romeo has trained me well. Most days when I am at my computer Romeo comes and sits by my chair and whimpers ever so quietly. I bend over and pick him up and put him on my lap so he can snuggle in my arms. I’ve even fashioned a sling that goes around both of us so that much of his weight is supported by it. I may not keyboard as fast or accurately when he is in my arms, but I wouldn’t trade these moments with my little muse for all the left hands in the world.

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She

Posted in About me, Aging, inspiration, tagged , , , , , , on December 29, 2009| 6 Comments »

She, with her copper-colored hair who has survived two breast surgeries and now faces a diagnosis of stomach cancer, hugs me and thanks me for the emotional uplift. I did not know her before she walked into the store looking for clothes to wear for the summer. She is buying clothes for a season she may not see, but is positively projecting her future. I tell her the story of my grandmother who had lung cancer, who denied she had anything but rheumatism, and who managed to live years beyond her original grim diagnosis. She is misty-eyed, yet smiling while listening to my story. We hug again and she leaves the store. I silently thank her for her courageous presence on this earth.

She sits in her wheel chair and waves goodbye from the window. I watch her as she blows kisses to my daughter and me as we drive away from the senior care center. Our hearts are sad that we can’t take her with us, but she does not belong to us and is destined to live in that place for the rest of her life. She has just told us that she “loves us so much.” Her words warm my heart and I silently thank her for allowing us into her life.

She wanders through the store refusing help from others. She approaches me and asks me about the unique sizing. In a matter-of-fact manner I relay the information to her. She looks me in the eye and softly says, “My husband is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s.” She tells me of the difficulties of being his caretaker and how she cannot leave him. I tell her she must take time to care for herself. We discuss this matter a bit more. How can I speak of things I do not know? The words seem to flow from my mouth. Then with a look of resignation, she weaves her way back through the racks of clothes and is gone. I silently thank her for her lesson on devotion.

She steps off the plane and my family says, “Is that her?” She is the wife and mother who has not been seen for over two decades. She is the grandmother who only knows of her grandchildren by the photos she’s kept safe in a basket back at home. She comes towards me with opened arms and utters my Chinese name “Lai Jyuh.” Her arms bear the strength of a woman who once hid in the mountains from the communists, yet as they wrap around me, I feel the soft tenderness of unconditional love. I silently thank her for sharing her love with me.

These are mere samplings of encounters with women, some complete strangers and some dear to me, that have enlightened my soul. Each encounter is like a shimmery thread that I have taken and gently woven into a beautiful fabric that wraps around my heart. I give humble thanks to each and every “She” who has passed my way.

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Christmas Passed – Whew!

Posted in About me, Husbands, tagged , , , on December 27, 2009| 1 Comment »

Laundry piles appear like colorful stalagmites strewn across floors, remains from indulgent holiday meals teeter on top of each other in the refrigerator, and unsent Christmas greetings are now destined to be new year’s greetings. Christmas has come and gone in its usual blur of activities. Have you ever noticed that during this time of the year there is never enough time? Einstein had his own theory on relativity, but here are a few of my perspectives on holiday time.

One thought is that the days are shorter. The winter solstice brings the shortest day – December 21st – and the longest night of the year. Plain and simple, there are just fewer daylight hours to get things accomplished.

But upon reflection, it seems to me this frustration with lack of time has more to do with gender. Every holiday season, in an attempt to gain control over holiday preparations, I delegate duties to my hubby. Two people can accomplish twice as much as one, right? Not so! As hard as my husband tries, he can only do about one-tenth of what I usually do. Plus, he needs direct supervision and constant reminding of his little holiday “to do” list. In all fairness, I just move faster, think ahead, don’t sleep, and most importantly, don’t watch sports on the television. I think, in general, men just don’t sweat the holiday details like women do. An example of this, my husband was in charge of putting up our exterior Christmas lights. This year only two little tiny bushes got lit and instead of searching for where he stored last year’s lights, he went out and bought new lights. This happens every year! I’m sure after he and I pass away, our kids are going to find nests of Christmas lights all over the house and in the garage! And while I’m on the subject of delegating chores out to men, why is it they always have to ask, “What needs to be done?” Can’t they just look around at the chaos and make an educated guess?

Along the same thought line, I think women tend to be the keeper of their family’s holiday spirit. That’s a lot of pressure. They set the images that will be remembered for a lifetime. They decorate the house, brainstorm for thoughtful presents, reach out to friends in correspondence and at gatherings, plan menus, and try to give back to the community. When my kids look back on the Christmases of their youth, they better have sparkles in their eyes!

Admittedly, I am a holiday overachiever. The holidays are a difficult season for me because I can easily get carried away with creative ideas. Over the years I’ve worked on becoming a more “go with the flow” holiday person. My decorations this year reflected a minimalist’s attitude and there were no visions of sugarplums dancing in my head. Next year, I vow to start my holiday preparations earlier, prioritize my creative projects, and delegate twice as much to my husband, but be more willing to accept the fact that his standard is different than mine. I have a rubber stamp that reads, “Once upon a time . . . there was more time.” That sentiment may be true, but next year I will again strive to balance my time and let myself enjoy all the wonders of the holidays.

Hope yours were merry.

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Oh Christmas Tree . . .

Posted in About me, Art and Crafts, Creativity, Holidays, Kids, Parenting, tagged , , , on December 21, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Crystal snowflakes sparkle as they dangle from chandeliers, Santa guides his sleigh from high above his lookout in the family room, and Christmas fairies gently perch on the mantle above the stove top to supervise holiday cooking. My home seems to come alive during the holidays.

One of the first things I rush to decorate every year is my kitchen tree. It’s a small tree that stands near my bookcase of cookbooks and it’s covered with measuring spoons and measuring cups, cinnamon hearts and gingerbread men, cookie cutters tied with ribbons, and cookie dough ornaments. It’s a happy, homey-type of tree.

Some of my fondest memories are centered around Christmas trees. As a young child I remember stringing the giant and hot Christmas lights around and around the tree and then throwing the lead tinsel up in the air and watching it land on little precipices of evergreen.

Then when I got married, a Christmas tree became a luxury item, because we lived off of my meager salary while my husband was in graduate school. We bought a tree to decorate – it was only a three-footer, but it was our first three-foot tree! And amazingly enough, when we stood it on a crate it became a five-foot giant! With no money for ornaments, I remember crafting my own out of dough, wood, and whatever material I could find cheaply. For the garland, I patted myself on the back for cleverly thinking of stringing foam packing peanuts on dental floss. From far away my garland really did resemble strands of popcorn.

With the birth of each of my children came new tree decorating traditions. Every year I purchased an ornament for each child that represented some milestone in his life for that year. Our family tree has become filled with Sesame Street characters, Disney characters, unique child-crafted ornaments made from pine cones, macaroni, toilet paper rolls, etc., dog-related ornaments, sports-related paraphernalia, ornaments picked up from our family vacations, school mascots, symbolic ornaments such as cars (representing driver’s licenses) and mini beer steins or mini champagne bottles (celebrating 21st birthdays). You name it and we probably have it on our tree! As old as my kids are now, they still ask me what their ornament for the year is and I have to admit it is getting more difficult to find those special ornaments that represent significant moments in their adult lives!

Would I trade my family’s memory tree filled with rag-tag, random ornaments for a designer tree? Never in a million years! When I first decided to have a tree like this for our family, my thought was that as each child grew up and finally had a home of his own, he could take his childhood collection of ornaments with him. Hopefully, as he reflects on his ornaments, each child will remember the happy moments in his life and the love our family shares.

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The Kids Are Gone Again Blues: Making Homemade Spiced Mocha Mix

Posted in About me, Gift Ideas, Handcrafted Cards, In The Kitchen, Parenting, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 30, 2009| Leave a Comment »

Sitting in front of the fireplace with my furry little dog at my feet, I warm my hands on a mug of hot cocoa and savor the rich chocolate flavor. Ah, the good life. You’d never guess that just a few short hours ago I packed up my kids and sent them on their merry way. Each got a hug and a goody bag of Thanksgiving leftovers. Since they left, I’ve washed six loads of laundry, stripped and remade all the beds, cleaned every sticky square inch of my kitchen, mopped dirty floors, and vacuumed leaf-strewn carpets. That was the easy part of my Thanksgiving holiday.

Despite the nonstop cooking and cleaning, the craziness of playing referee between my kids (yes, even at their ages they still have tiffs), and the constant scheduling of family time around their social schedules, I really love it when my kids come home! But four days goes by quickly, and soon I find myself standing in the driveway waving goodbye to them one by one. As they each drive off, I feel a little emptiness in my heart and sadly I turn around and head back to the house. Miraculously, though, every time they leave and I pass through the threshold of the front door and see the chaotic mess they’ve left behind, that sad feeling is gone! It’s replaced with the Do-You-Think-I’m-The-Maid feeling!

So whether you’re feeling blue because your kids are gone again or you’re just happy to be by yourself again, here’s a recipe for a nice, comforting spicy mocha beverage. A neighbor gave it to me many years ago and it’s a good mix to have around the house during the holidays to serve to guests. For a great gift idea, put the mix in a cellophane bag, tie it up with a pretty ribbon, attach the directions, and tuck in a small bottle of brandy or your favorite liqueur (such as Frangelico or Kahlua) to make your gift complete. Wrapping a bag of mix with a cute pair of coffee mugs is another way to give this mix as a gift. Marshmallows optional with this version!
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Spiced Mocha Mix
Mix together:
1 cup nondairy powdered creamer
1 cup hot cocoa mix
2/3 cup instant coffee powder/granules (decaffeinated or regular)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl. Store in an airtight container.

Directions: Place 2-4 tablespoons in the bottom of a mug. Add 6 ounces of boiling water and stir until smooth and blended. Garnish with whipped cream and shaved chocolate. Add your favorite liqueur or brandy to taste – not optional during the holidays!

Don’t forget: When packaging this mix as a gift, make sure to include a printed copy of the directions!

Note: My “Falling Leaves Snowflake” cards were made from outdated calendars. Calendars with beautiful images and high quality paper can be reused for other projects!

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The Twelve Posts of Christmas

Posted in About me, Art and Crafts, Creativity, tagged , , , on November 25, 2009| 1 Comment »

Andy Williams is crooning, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, everywhere you go . . . .” Well, not quite everywhere, but at least at the store where I work. Hanging from a little pop-up Christmas tree in the middle of the store are three-dimensional metal and crystal-embellished ornaments. Rich jewel-toned silky tops, shimmering sweaters, and sequined jackets hang from racks waiting for the holiday spirit to snatch them up. No offense to Pilgrim fans out there, but other than placing a fall wreath on my front door, I did not decorate my home for Thanksgiving. Although I enjoy Thanksgiving because of the obvious three F’s: fall, food, and family, for this holiday crafter there is so much to do with so little time. Like the retail stores, I’ve moved on to Christmas!

With only 12 planned posts before Christmas, I’m offering you my Twelve Posts of Christmas. The contents of these posts won’t stray too far from my original intent, but there will be an emphasis on recipes for entertaining, crafty gifts to make and take, and many other holiday ideas.

Here’s my first holiday idea for you. How about refreshing your front door Christmas wreath? Even if your wreath has seen better days, there’s no need to toss it out. As long as it still has good “bones,” it is salvageable! One of my friends always gets vouchers from me for her birthday. Last year I promised to rework one of her broken necklaces and when I was finished she had a totally different necklace plus two pairs of matching earrings. This year she received a voucher from me to refresh her two front door Christmas wreaths.

It was easy. First I removed faded flower stems by either carefully pulling them off or by cutting them off as close to the glue source as possible. Next, using wire cutters, I removed the bows. Because I wanted to reuse as many original parts of the wreaths as possible, I left the cream-colored berries, pine cones, and leaves on, but took off an overabundance of disintegrating tiny plastic berries and replaced them with more realistic ones. I also removed anything else that was on the verge of falling off.

At my local craft store I selected new ribbon. In my friend’s case, I wanted to get away from the faded, wide, red ribbon that the wreaths were sporting before, because between the poinsettias and the berries there was too much red. I opted for a wide cream brocade ribbon. I thought the light color would look attractive against her black doors and would match the cream-colored berries. I paired up a thinner, gold-edged, transparent, red ribbon with the cream ribbon to tie in the gold of the existing leaves. While at the craft store I also picked up new poinsettias, keeping the same diameter as the old ones, along with the new more realistic berries.

The flowers, berries, and loose items were all hot-glued into place. Pretty new bows were made and instead of placing them at the bottom where they used to be, I positioned the bows at about ten o’clock for the left wreath and two o’clock for the right one. I felt this made each wreath more unique, while still being part of a pair.

Overall, the project took me a couple of hours, but that’s because I was watching a Christmas movie at the same time!

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Juggling Three

Posted in About me, Kids, Parenting, tagged , , , , , , , , on November 16, 2009| 6 Comments »

I always say that raising three children is a juggling act. In three ball juggling, there is never a moment when all three balls are in the air simultaneously and that’s pretty much how it is with my three kids. If I can get two of them in the air, or in my analogy, concern-free, then the third is at the bottom and needs a boost up. Not to say that any of my children have huge issues or troubles, but more just a matter of dealing with the curves that life throws at them. Periodically, each of them needs a little parental support and my husband and I are happy to give it. That was the deal when we signed on to be parents. We knew it was a lifelong commitment.

My husband and I always wanted three children. When our first two children were born, we were over the moon with happiness, but in our hearts we knew we had room for one more. When I was pregnant with our third child, a wise friend informed me, that having three kids was not just a simple equation of 2 + 1 = 3, it was more like the chaos theory. Her point was that with two children you achieve equilibrium because you have one hand for each child. With three, there’s always one on the loose and you’re always off balance. Without a doubt, having three is challenging just by virtue of being an odd number. Pairing up for amusement park rides is awkward, packaged toys are often packed in twos, and the two-against-one argument is commonplace.

The thing about having three children is that there has to be one in the middle. Being a middle child myself, I know about threes. I am sandwiched between an older sister and a younger brother, so I am well aware of birth order characteristics. My sister, the oldest child, definitely has the leadership characteristic stamped in her DNA and my brother, the baby of the family, is characteristically comical and entertaining. As for me, three, yes, three, middle child characteristics jumped off the list when I first read it. “Creative.” Yes, I am creative – that’s why I’m a blogger! “Doesn’t like to follow authority.” Hmm, I view it more like I have a lot of questions for authority. “They can usually read people well, they are peacemakers who see all sides of a situation.” I’ve certainly had on the job training as peacemaker in my family.

As a kid, I thought I would never have three children, because I didn’t want to create a middle child. Obviously my husband convinced me otherwise. But as I raised my children, I made a concerted effort to be especially fair to my middle child. The tough thing, though, is life is not fair and will never be fair, so maybe I should have taught my middle child that lesson instead from the get-go. From a middle child’s perspective, it’s all about expectation, therefore middle children are better off if they have no expectations and then they can be pleasantly surprised.

If I had to do it over again, I would still have three, because I cannot imagine my life without anyone one of my children. They are three wonderful individuals marching to their own drumbeats who every now and then need a boost from their parents to get back in the air. Who will be up and who will be down next? Your guess is as good as mine.

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Lunch With Mom

Posted in About me, Aging, Community, Helping Others, Parenting, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on November 2, 2009| Leave a Comment »

iChat

My mother and I had lunch together the other day. We ate, we laughed, and we had a great time just being together. The only thing that would have been better is if we were in the same room. My mother lives about two-and-a-half hours away from me, so we lunched together via the magic of computers.

About a month ago my sister and I purchased my mother a new iMac. She’s no stranger to computers, but this new one is faster and has more bells and whistles, including a built-in video camera. Using the iChat video conferencing feature, we were able to sit at our desks that day and eat our sandwiches and carry on a face-to-face conversation. Also, by pivoting her computer screen around, the computer camera could scan the room, and show me the new furniture in her office, as well as my dad sitting in his recliner waving to me and watching television.

Despite her lack of formal computer training, my mom’s been an eager student and has become quite adept at Googling information, emailing her friends, working on Excel spreadsheets, and instant messaging and Skyping with family members all around the country. The screen grab above shows a three-way video conference with three generations of us laughing and having a good time. It’s been wonderful to see her empowered by her new knowledge of computer technology and it’s been a blessing for me to be able to spend time with my parents everyday.

Video conferencing could have a huge positive impact on senior citizens in general, but especially so for those who live in senior care facilities. The loneliness of these seniors is palpable. I volunteered in a senior assisted care facility for several years and found it difficult to observe residents who never had visitors. Wouldn’t if be wonderful if these senior facilities had video conferencing capable computers on site so that the residents could stay connected to the world by having video visits with friends and family? Of course, I know that this requires their friends and families also to have these types of computers, but I’m a dreamer and always believe that if there’s a will, there’s a way. Considering there are computers everywhere – surely neighbors, friends, employers all might be willing to share their computers periodically for these priceless visits.

Nothing can ever replace an in person visit, but sharing time together in any form possible is valuable. Thanks to computer technology, we have at our disposal the ability to stay connected with everyone we care about. With applications like iChat and Skype, which have basic services for free, we have few excuses not to include seniors as part of our connected group. So what about this – buy a relative you’d love to see more often a computer video camera for the upcoming holidays?

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