Longevity Explorers | San Francisco: Recent Episodes
Longevity Explorers
Continuing the discussion of Smart Homes, the Explorers take on the topic of Smart Bedrooms with examples of technology and devices helpful to older adults in that venue.
Questions and comments from older adults concerning helpful products and technology for kitchen use are addressed.
Longevity Explorers focus their discussion on tech and hardware that improves safety and convenience in the bathroom.
Longevity Explorers discuss their own experience and those of others close to them who need a little help with cognitive skills.
Longevity Explorers prioritize and select topics for discussion from a list of problems of getting older.
Longevity Explorers share and discuss experiences and situations in which equipment or software were of help to them or those cose to them.
AI Explorers discuss their experiences with devices and services that have been helpful to them or to someone close to them.
Explorer Lynn raises the topic of whole body scanning and genome testing at this meeting of the The San Francisco Explorers.
Explorer Lynn tells the group about gloves that need not be removed to operate the touchscreen of many electronic devices.
Explorer Steve describes a hearing assist system which works with the T-Coil feature in many hearing aids to broadcast directly from a microphone to the wearer's T-Coil enabled hearing aid.
The SF Explorer group lists the advances in 2018 which most benefit the lives of older adults.
Explorer Bonnie explains an unpleasant experience with a cellular provider, and seeks the input of group members as to how to deal with it or find a provider with better customer service skills.
The group engages and discusses the types of decisions and documentation that help assure that one's desires concerning person and property are known and followed late in life.
SF Explorer Lynn introduces the AliveCor EKG app, monitoring device and reporting service to the group.
Explorer Joe asks for suggestions for selling, giving away or disposing of unwanted household items.
The SF Explorer group is introduced to newly introduced versions of medical alert devices in the form of wrist watches.
Explorer Marty tells the group that having plants in easy reach makes it possible for her to continue gardening.
Explorer Marilyn tells the group about the book she recently read which tends to put the experience of aging into a more positive light. It evokes an appreciation for experiences and relationships which can enrich the process of aging.
She finds the message (and the title) uplifting and a useful tool for reaching out to connect with others and build friendships as a way to fend off the isolation that can steal the joy of longevity.
Longevity Explorers in San Francisco discuss gadgets which they have brought to the meeting to share. Explorer AnnieScott seems agnostic at first about a lighted cane that she bought, and passes it around, also sharing a new white noise machine.
As the group explores the lighted cane, facts about its operation emerge which shed new light on its usefulness. Whereas AnnieScott had deemed it worthless, she later revised her opinion, saying, "I realized that a tab needed to be removed from the battery to activate the light, and now it works perfectly." Another member shows her how to extend and secure the shaft.
Her opinion now reversed, she says that she would take the cane on her trip to Europe, noting that including an instruction sheet with the cane would have been helpful.
Explorer Karen says on behalf of her friend that deceptive callers have been 'fishing' for personal information. The group shares experiences on the subject, with a number of familiar reports.
San Francisco Explorers discuss how planning and preparing meals might interfere with living independently. They discuss various challenges around the topic of meals:
How they plan meals and the issues involved
Producing the meal - home meal prep, via delivery, or restaurant
Eating - alone or with others? What are the challenges?
Cleaning up - How do they do it? Dislikes or annoyances?
This topic evokes a lively group discussion with areas of both agreement and disagreement.
What is isolation? Is it a choice, a mindset or just a lack of options?
For some its something in the future, not now, but more associated with future incapacitation. Another view is from a member who likes to be alone - friends check in – so he may be alone, but not lonely.
The group engages in a lively discussion that covers the following dynamics:
The Challenges
Joe: what would happen if I needed help (neighbors/phone)
Loss of peers leads to cultural isolation
Completely disabled -need caregiver
The Possible Solutions
Build a ‘Buddy’ system
Play ‘Word with Friends’ daily
Make younger friends.
Overcome the tendency to hide one’s needs vs. ask for help
Practice reaching out to others
Live in a mixed-use building (non-age segregated)
Participate in group activity (commitment)
AI and robotic companions
Find a Smartphone app to reach others for companionship
Explorer Diana shares a recent Wall Street Journal article about the importance of having fun as we age.
Members offer ideas about continuing enjoyable activities from earlier stages of life, alone or with others.
Others suggest learning new hobbies or skills (one describes laughter yoga, for example).
The group agrees that the topic is important to healthy aging.
Explorer Steve explains the kind of hearing augmentation equipment (loop coil) in some public rooms that works with certain types of hearing aids. Efficacy varies with conditions:
Individual voices in a group are hard to hear
Distance from microphone affects sound quality
Individual differences vary in a crowd
Other personal hearing augmentation devices, resources and payment arrangements are also discussed.
Lynn starts the discussion by voicing her preference for the Flywheel taxi app. Members discuss the pros and cons of taxis vs. Uber or Lyft.
In favor of taxis:
No upcharge during 'surge' periods of high demand Local economy Drivers tend to know the city better
Cars for hire: / sharing a car helps reduce cost / the app gives cost estimate
The group is evenly divided between taxi, Uber and Lyft
Explorer Rich asks the group whether or not to plan to age in a place that has stairs.
Some members raise the 'pros':
Exercise may help longevity Stimulates the brain Sense of independence in 'younger' old age can always install a stair lift
Others point out the 'cons':
Disabilities of age prohibit use of stairs Carrying groceries and items on stairs not feasible
Conclusion: Give thought to whether stairs are for you. They become a big issue as you get older.
Explorer Ron frames the question "How does one decide whether or not to continue driving?" Should it be one's self, or someone else?
Members discuss the 'stages of deciding' which they have observed.
Barriers: ego, habit, instant trans gratification, status, safety, reflexes failing,
Solutions: (self testing) sharpness, specific skill testing, 'building in' to car
So - should it be one's self who decides, or someone else? The group agrees it should be a combination.
The group discusses Explorer Joe’s topic: seeking useful apps for older adults.
Joe remembers past discussions of certain apps which turn a smartphone into a flashlight, and another into a magnifying glass, but wants more helpful apps like one that would remind one of where the keys were left.
Group members then offer alternative reminder methods which are more analog in nature, using everyday items. Others offer apps they find useful for parking and car finding. And yet others recommend public transit apps which sound helpful, like Routesy, Next Bus, and Swiftly, although opinions differ as to which is best.
Learn more about Apps for Seniors: Useful Apps for Older Adults, Seniors, Boomers
Explorer Diana describes a service that is designed to enable long term home sharing, and the group joins in with feedback and other examples.
Discussion of the topic of necessary terms and conditions leads to the serious question of managing liabilities.
Whether a homeowner seeking companionship or help, or someone needing a place to live, the names of several organizations emerge in the discussion as facilitators for finding shared housing. Too, multigenerational sharing of housing, as in cohousing, is mentioned as a desirable alternative to the age restricted approach.
Recording, summary and transcript of this topic
from the San Francisco Village circle discussion April 3rd, 2018.
Explorer Steve is looking into ways to enhance the clarity of sound in a building's meeting rooms. His research has led him to the conclusion that the wisest next step is to consult the users about what they want, and what would work best in the space.
The problems include difficulty hearing soft voices, and the inefficiency of passing a microphone around a group during a meeting. Possible solutions include a T-coil installation to augment hearing aids, closed captioning on a screen, and directional microphone arrays or steerable microphone which focuses on the speaker. All are agreed that the status quo is less than ideal.
Recording, summary and transcript of this topic
from the San Francisco Village circle discussion April 3rd, 2018.
The group is asked for their observations and comments about isolation and loneliness in later life. Hearing loss is discussed as an isolating condition. Problems with vision, mobility and depression are mentioned as others which limit human contact and reinforce isolation.
Suggested solutions include various community living and care arrangements which provide companionship, either mixed use or age restricted. Members also cite group activities that tend to get people up and out of their homes to meet, talk and participate with others. Lifelong learning programs are popular with seniors. As well, senior centers offer a wide variety of arts, education, and physical exercise opportunities.
Just taking the initiative to make contact in informal, every day situations with someone who appears lonely can help, too, and can occur anytime a person is out and about.
Recording, summary and transcript of this topic
from the San Francisco Village circle discussion April 3rd, 2018.
Explorer Lynn laments that her New Year's resolutions have slipped away, and asks the group if they notice the same happening to them, or have suggestions about how to keep their resolutions.
Members make several helpful suggestions including having a 'buddy' or partner in an activity, or to enroll in a class for accountability. Writing notes or signs and placing them in plain sight helps another to remember. The group agrees that when it comes to weight control, not shopping when hungry is a universal rule for staying on the straight and narrow.
Establishing a routine is suggested to reinforce a beneficial habit, as is adding a new routine to an already established one until it is ingrained.
Recording, summary and transcript of this topic
from the San Francisco Village circle discussion April 3rd, 2018.