Technology For Seniors

Welcome to the Tuolumne County Commission on Aging blog: it’s our ongoing effort to bring information to help and inform seniors in our county. We actively solicit your comments. You can contact the Tuolumne County Commission on Aging by email: aging2010@gmail.com
Jots & Thoughts… by Roberta Goodwin

SAVE THE DATE FOR THE 2012 SENIOR EXPO!!!
The 3rd Annual Senior Expo is scheduled for June 13, 9AM – 1PM, in the John Muir Building at Mother Lode Fairgrounds. Presented by the Tuolumne County Commission on Aging. Don’t miss this information packed day!!!

Webcams?!? Sounds like futuristic technology not for us old fogies? Think again. It’s an easy and fun way to stay in touch with your relatives, perhaps best done with those family members who live a distance away, such as one’s grandchildren, as I am doing today with my grandson. Yes, it requires computers, and a little gizmo that I bought for myself, a device with built-in camera and microphone, for less than $5. You plug it in, bam, you’re on your way, face-to-face with your loved ones! Want to find one? Google “webcams” and you’ll see. Or go to your local friendly neighborhood store.

Speaking of technology, Facebook is another way to stay in touch with your loved ones, friends and the like. The algorithms used by Facebook enable you to find family or friends, by a process called “friending” based on your date of birth, your hometown, your schooling, and all kinds of facts you choose to input or not. Worried about privacy, as you should be? Facebook (FB) has recently implemented sets of blocks that allow you to choose who sees your information.

It struck me that it might be a wonderful way for a senior to connect with long-lost relatives and friends, opening up their world. A personal example: when my son was in junior high school and playing tennis, I started and coached a tennis team for the school. One of the people that FB found for me was a pal of his, a good athlete that I taught to play the game so that he could play on his school team. After we “friended” each other, he thanked me, saying he is now teaching HIS kids to play, based on what he remembers me teaching him to do. How cool is that?

Another personal example: I have also recently “friended” a couple of second cousins, who live, respectively, in Texas and Washington D.C., now married with their own children. We comment back and forth almost every day. It’s not email, and it’s not telephone. It’s almost better, because Facebook also allows you to post photos and videos.
Wondering about your memory as I am, at times? Here’s a fascinating piece of information on memory from the YOU Docs…

Improve Memory, Simplify Life, Get Stuff Done.

“Does your brain feel more crowded than Grand Central Station at rush hour? If you’re finding it tougher and tougher to focus … driving you to distraction, don’t blame the interruptions. It turns out that a prime reason for midlife concentration lapses and late-life memory gaps is an increasing inability to filter out the clutter, both human and digital. News flash: It’s not always a bad thing!” -Mehmet C. Oz, MD, and Michael F. Roizen, MD

If you wish to see more, go here: http://www.realage.com/blogs/doctor-oz-roizen/improve-memory-simplify-life-get-stuff-done

The Tuolumne County Commission on Aging’s next GENERAL MEETING date: Monday March 12th, 1:30PM at Area 12 Agency on Aging on Standard Road. All our meetings are open to the public. Join us!

To view our blog, go to: http://tuolumnecountycommissiononaging.blogspot.com