Facing foreclosure? Don’t delay; get help
The idea of foreclosure — losing your home because of a delinquent payment (even just one day late) — can be scary and daunting for anyone. It can be particularly intimidating for those who do not have the means to hire an attorney to guide them through the legal process.Maryland has the third-highest foreclosure rate in the country, according to RealtyTrac, Inc., with 1 in... READ MORE
Options for affordable local housing
After her husband passed away, Brenda Smith (not her real name) was “financially caught off guard” by her suddenly reduced income, and could no longer afford to live on her own. She moved in with her daughter, and immediately began looking for affordable rental housing. Many people like Smith find themselves in similar situations, and have trouble finding affordable housing in the... READ MORE
Funny? Serious? ‘Well’ is hard to describe
Well, now. How to describe Well — the quirky, perspective-shifting, serio-comic play from New York actor and writer Lisa Kron? That, as they say in the theater, is the question. What you see at 1st Stage, a non-profit theater in Tysons, Va., may depend on what you bring into the theater with you.It’s a mother-daughter play for some. Others may see it as an examination... READ MORE
Growing like weed
Last month, I addressed the subject of pain management in the context of opioid pain relievers such as Vicodin and Percocet. Use of these painkillers — both by patients with legitimate prescriptions and by those obtaining them illegally — has exploded in recent years, leading many experts to speak of an “epidemic” of addiction and overdose that is claiming many lives each... READ MORE
A visit to Pittsburgh: food, art and Fences
If you’re planning a trip to Pittsburgh, you’ll need to learn a few things first. Yinz is local for y’all. Carnegie is pronounced Car-NAY-gie (as in Andrew Carnegie, who made a fortune in Pittsburgh’s steel industry, and whose name adorns libraries, museums and more). And you don’t get French fries with your sandwich at Primanti’s. You get fries on your... READ MORE
Thinking about retirement? What to expect
We spend decades dreaming of the day when life won’t be dictated by alarm clocks, commute times, meeting schedules and office politics.Then reality sets in: Retirement can be kind of a drag. And there may be 20-plus years of it ahead of you.While traditional retirement planning covers financial essentials — expected returns, inflation, withdrawal rates, portfolio rebalancing,... READ MORE
Montgomery County volunteers honored
Miriam KeltyDr. Miriam Kelty has kept very busy post-retirement — to say the least.The career psychologist and researcher now spends most of her time volunteering — from sitting on various committees and boards, to chairing organizations, teaching ethics, and advocating for older adults.... READ MORE
Games, crafts may help prevent dementia
Even in your 70s and beyond, simple activities — including web-surfing, playing bridge and socializing — can stave off mental decline, new research says. Benefits were greatest in computer users and in those without a gene variation linked with Alzheimer’s disease. But even among seniors with that genetic trait, mental decline that sometimes precedes dementia was less ... READ MORE
Your phone can safely become a wallet
Smartphones have replaced lots of other accessories — cameras, flashlights, calculators. But many people are still reluctant to swap the wallets in their pockets for their digital counterparts.A key reason consumers are hesitant to use mobile payment services like Apple Pay and Android Pay, surveys say, is fear over security: High-profile retailer data breaches have made buyers wary... READ MORE
Venus Theatre focuses on women writers
Deborah Randall says her audiences have an “immersion experience” at the Venus Theatre in Laurel, and this could include, as it recently did, sharing a dinner being cooked up on stage.In Soft Revolution, a play about Afghans in Australia, Venus founder-director Randall felt the recent production needed a sign of authenticity, so a pot of Kabuli palaw, the Afghan national dish,... READ MORE
