Andrew Wyeth at the SAM October 19th – January 15th

Posted on September 27, 2017 by Jim deMaine

The Seattle Art Museum has a major upcoming exhibit of Andrew Wyeth’s art (click on the link to view) from October 19th to January 15th. The Skyline presentation yesterday was excellent. Here is a taste of his art.

 

 

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A view of the new improved First Hill

Posted on September 26, 2017 by William Calvin

The new filing for the Town Hall parking lot towers (1101 8th Ave) has a view of First Hill from downtown, with new building and proposals in color.  Skyline is just below that #16. The gold are the Town Hall Towers.  Red are the Swedish additions.

Here are the big towers around Town Hall, seen from north of Seneca.

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A disadvantage to being well informed

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Image result for new yorker cartoons

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Do you have the supplies on hand for an earthquake?

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Jim deMaine

 Thanks to Sally Soest for bringing us this information

Quake Preparedness Kit

By-the-Bed Mini-Kit:

  • Hard soled shoes (there may be broken glass)
  • Work gloves
  • Flashlight

1 Person Grab-and-Go Kit

(in case of evacuation)

  • By-the-Bed Mini-Kit PLUS…
  • Water for you and pet
  • Pet carrier or leash, muzzle, food
  • Extra prescriptions and OTC medications
  • Change of clothes
  • Rain gear and warm jacket
  • Ziploc bag with important documents
    • Medicare cards
    • Bank and insurance info
    • Out-of-area contact

3-Day Kit for 1 Person

Shelter-in-Place.

  • Water: 1 gallon per person per day for 3 days, plus pets.
  • Food: Enough for each person for 3 days. Pet food.
    • Eat and drink what’s in the fridge.
    • Additional non-perishables (canned goods, granola bars, dried fruit…)
  • Medications: extra supply of prescription meds.
  • Battery/hand-crank/solar powered radio (and extra batteries)
  • Flashlight and extra batteries.
  • Cell phone
  • First-aid kit
  • Hand sanitizer or sanitizing hand wipes
  • Large plastic bags (garbage and personal waste)
  • Solar battery charger
  • Cell phone and charger cable

2-Week Kit for 1 Person

Shelter-in-Place (recommended by Red Cross)

  • Grab-and-Go Kit (above) PLUS 3-Day Shelter-in-Place Kit (above) PLUS…
  • Water: 1 gallon per person for 14 days, plus enough for pets.
  • Food: Enough for each person for 14 days. Pet food.
  • Extras of medical needs (oxygen, hearing aid batteries)
  • Toilet paper
  • Plastic sheeting and tape to cover broken windows
  • Tool kit

3-day 4 person Kit

Costco

$140   

Solar powered Emergency radio/flashlight/cell phone charger

$40

 

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Volunteer opportunity in the Terraces

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Volunteers Wanted

 Want to be of service to your neighbors in the Terraces? Seeking ideas for engagement?

JOIN THE “IN2L” TEAM

IN2L = “It’s Never 2 Late”

IN2L training available in the Terraces

every Wednesday in October:

1:00pm on the 6th Floor 2017

3:00pm on the 9th Floor

Ed Note: You don’t have to be a “techie” to help others with the iN2L system. This volunteering can be a great way to engage with others in the Terraces.

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Our nature

Posted on September 24, 2017 by Jim deMaine

“The nature of every individual is determined by his or her deepest love.”

Emanuel Swedenborg, Heavenly Secrets

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“Forever Young” – a Bob Dylan tribute

Posted on September 23, 2017 by Jim deMaine

May God bless and keep you always
May your wishes all come true
May you always do for others
And let others do for you
May you build a ladder to the stars
And climb on every rung
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.

May you grow up to be righteous
May you grow up to be true
May you always know the truth
And see the lights surrounding you
May you always be courageous
Stand upright and be strong
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.

May your hands always be busy
May your feet always be swift
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
May your heart always be joyful
And may your song always be sung
May you stay forever young
Forever young, forever young
May you stay forever young.

Posted in Music | 2 Comments

Why are African-Americans not completing advance directives?

Posted on September 23, 2017 by Jim deMaine

First a disclaimer. As a Caucasian, I have only personal anecdotal impressions from the African-American patients I have cared for. To me their approaches to end of life decisions were not uniform by any means, but there was clearly often more initial trust in their Pastor than in a white male doctor. Yet, once I gained trust I felt a real bond. I loved the caring and support that their community provided. I’ve been on a constant learning curve over time and still have much to learn about cross cultural medical care.

In the end-of-life planning sessions I’ve given over the years, most of the attendees are white with only a few minorities on occasion. The reasons are complex and historical.

African-American professionals are beginning to try to address the under-utilization of Hospice, Palliative Care and the POLST form. It should be no surprise that there is often distrust of the predominantly white medical establishment – the tragedy of the Tuskegee Syphilis experiment and segregated wards are in recent memory.

PBS has a useful video essay below discussing the problems and some attempts to improve trust and communication. We unfortunately still have echoes of racism and discrimination. Trust will only come over time with positive leadership echoing the values of Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

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How can be be sure it’s genetically modified at the market?

Posted on September 20, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Image result for new yorker cartoons

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The big 620 Terry building begins; Boren & James construction tops out

Posted on September 17, 2017 by William Calvin

Looking east from Skyline’s 26th floor; that’s the Frye at left.  The two eight-floor buildings at Boren and James have topped out.

The lot clearing in this last week has been for the 620 Terry building.  It will become the biggest building in the photograph, matching Skyline’s elevation.  That’s Harborview’s 9th and Jefferson medical office building at the right, only half the height.

617TerryStartsShown below is about what it will look like from our direction, except they show the streets as wider than exist.  Note the nearby (without crossing James Street) shopping it should provide.

620Terry

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Candice Bergen talks about her father

Posted on September 17, 2017 by Jim deMaine

From Deadline Hollywood: “Before she was Murphy Brown and the star of such films as Carnal Knowledge, Candice Bergen grew up watching her father Edgar Bergen scratch his way to stardom with his arm up the back of the wooden puppet Charlie McCarthy. She has teamed with James Francis Trezza and Pam Widener to produce a feature film based on her father, based on her bestselling 1984 memoir Knock Wood. Barbara Turner, who was recently WGA Award nominated for scripting the HBO film Hemingway And Gelhorn, will  write the script. She reunites with Trezza and Widener after their collaboration on Pollock.

“Putting an innovative twist on the biopic form, the picture will take the POV of Charlie McCarthy as Edgar Bergen came of age during the early days of showbiz in America, from vaudeville to the Golden Age of radio, to features and the birth of television. The three-foot tall wooden puppet became a household name, with fame that eclipsed his straight-man partner, Bergen. In fact, when the latter tried to branch out with other sidekicks like Mortimer Snerd of Effie Klinker, audiences rebelled. They wanted Charlie.

Continue reading →

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Sky Opera Debuts September 21st

Posted on September 16, 2017 by Jim deMaine

We have arrived at the ninth season of SkyOpera. Welcome to all faithful friends and especially to our newcomers!

From Cornelius Rossi: “Let me start by introducing the changes we have made for this season. Up to now, in each month, we had a lecture on the first Thursday (more or less) and, on every third Thursday of the season, presented a whole opera streamed from a DVD, which was combined with a themed dinner. These so-called ‘Night at the Opera’ events remain the backbone of our program. But except for two, the lectures will be replaced by live performances. This means that in addition to the nine ‘Night at the Opera’ events, we will have six live recitals, one live opera, and only 2 lectures.

Please go to the Opera Page above for a PDF of the full season schedule for Skyline.

Continue reading →

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Climate denial

Posted on September 16, 2017 by William Calvin

Toles

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The Underground Railroad – a necessary memory

Posted on September 16, 2017 by Jim deMaine

The Slave Pen, the principal artifact at the Freedom Center, was transported from its original Kentucky location and reconstructed on the second floor of the Center.

The Skyline book club is reading The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, a best seller and historical novel of the ugliest years in American history. The National Underground Railroad Museum is located in Cincinnati curated by the well known and respected activist Carl Westmoreland. Click here for more information.

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Saving the ducklings

Posted on September 16, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Warms your heart – from Marilyn Webb.

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SAFE & SOUND in the Hospital – Tuesday September 19th at 2:30PM in the MBR

Posted on September 15, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Image result for medical errors pictures

Medical errors in the hospital are the third leading cause of death in our country. A successful hospital experience includes knowing what actions patients and their families should take. Learn about some of the opportunities and challenges that hospitals face and what patients and their families can do to help. Bring a notebook and pen to write down specific tips and tools that you can use when you or a loved one is in the hospital. This content was compiled and is presented with permission by Campaign Zero, a non-profit organization dedicated to zeroing out preventable medical errors.

Sponsored by the Health Care Committee

Posted in Education, Health | 2 Comments

Football and brain injuries – ESPN sportscaster resigns

Posted on September 15, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Image result for cunningham espn announcer

It’s now being called the guilty pleasure of watching. Personally I loved playing football and still watch. But like Ed Cunningham, I’m feeling more queasy about brain injuries.  From Salon: “Ed Cunningham, a college football analyst and prominent color commentator for Saturday collegiate games featured on ESPN and ABC, recently revealed that he stepped away from the broadcast booth for good over his serious concerns with the way football affects the brains of young athletes.

“In its current state, there are some real dangers: broken limbs, wear and tear,” Cunningham said in an interview with the New York Times that published on Wednesday. “But the real crux of this is that I just don’t think the game is safe for the brain. To me, it’s unacceptable.”

“I take full ownership of my alignment with the sport,” he added. “I can just no longer be in that cheerleader’s spot.”

Al MacRae sent along an excellent review from the Swedish Hospital blog. Click here for their analysis. Question for us all, would we encourage our grandchildren to play football?

 

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I’ll Fly Away

Posted on September 13, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Tennessee Ernie Ford, Grandpa Jones, Stringbean and Roy Clark – I’ll Fly Away. (Wish I could have these guys give me that send off by ‘n by.)

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Language control

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Jim deMaine

 

Image result for new yorker cartoons

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Good news from Congress

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Sometimes we don’t hear good news from Washington. But there has been a positive bi-partisan effort which benefits our health, research and innovation. Both the House and Senate have rejected the Trump administration’s attempts to severely reduce spending at the National Institute of Health. Mr. Trump proposed to cut funds for the health institutes by $7.5 billion, or 22 percent, to $26.6 billion. Congress instead has increased the budget by more than $1 billion. The legislation locks in the formula for funding which will be tamper proof from the White House.

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Something we have all heard – with trepidation

Posted on September 12, 2017 by Jim deMaine

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Thoughts on friendship

Posted on September 11, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Aristotle noted that “man is a social animal.” This implies that we need each other, need social interaction and, yes, friendships. My son-in-law’s parents, in their 80’s, were evacuated from their home in Boca Raton, Florida several days ago and the family was unable to reach them. Then today they called their landline and found them quite well, happy and watching television and windows open for the gentle breeze. They had dodged the bullet Irma and actually enjoyed their stay in a gymnasium of a nearby middle school. Their they met neighbors for the first time, made new friends, exchanged phone numbers, etc. Essentially they were brought into a new social structure enabling budding friendships.

Maria Paplova writes about friendship in her Brainpickings web site. It brought to mind the new friendships we’ve found with kindred souls here at Skyline. So many times I’ve heard, “It’s not the place (though it’s very nice), it’s the people!

Defining friendship can be done in so many ways. From Paplova, “We can count on so few people to go that hard way with us,” Adrienne Rich wrote in her exquisite meditation on the art of honorable human relationships. While it is hard enough to inoculate the integrity of the word “friend” against today’s epidemic misuse and overuse, it can be even harder to calibrate our expectations of those who have earned the benediction of the title — the chosen few we have admitted into the innermost chambers of the heart and entrusted with going that hard way with us. “Ponder for a long time whether you shall admit a given person to your friendship,” Seneca counseled in contemplating true and false friendship, “but when you have decided to admit him, welcome him with all your heart and soul.” Two millennia later, the question of whom to welcome and to what extent remains one of the most delicate discernments with which life tasks us.” Click here to read the full article.

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Skyline Surround: Updates to “Neighborhood population explosion”

Posted on September 10, 2017 by William Calvin

Its popularity has inspired me to put last week’s post about the Skyline Surround into a more updateable form:

So the two new downtown buildings blocking any sunset views we might have had to the west and southwest will be complete in 2018; the twisted 43-floor 5th and Columbia and the wider 34-floor 5th and Madison.

Close to us, you have all heard of Skyline Two across from our 1st floor entry, out there in the 2021 timeline.  And starting in January on the opposite corner just across Columbia Street from us, the 30-floor “800 Columbia Building.”

Skyline is currently the biggest building with the most people, but there is quite a lot else going skyward in our immediate neighborhood bounded by James, Boren, Madison, and the Freeway. Let me survey the new construction by direction from us (Skyline, whose front faces NE, has 270+125 residents and 300 parking spaces); the punch line is more than 2,700 new neighbors and 1,000 additional cars:

Continue reading →

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Getting your money’s worth?

Posted on September 9, 2017 by Jim deMaine

Image result for new yorker cartoons

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Blood pressure medications and falls

Posted on September 9, 2017 by Jim deMaine

September 22nd is the national fall prevention day. All to often, a major decline in our health is precipitated by a fall, broken bone and subsequent complications of treatments. There are multiple on-line sites such as the Mayo Clinic which give simple tips in preventing falls. In-house we’ll be having talks and demonstrations not only how to prevent falls but how to safely get up off the floor if we do fall.

One aspect related to falls often not mentioned are blood pressure medications. If our pressure falls too much, then the circulation to the brain decreases causing dizziness, blurred vision, weakness and even blackouts and falls. Often our doctors don’t measure our blood pressure sitting and standing. On standing it’s normal for blood pressure to fall a bit if we are on hypertension treatment. But it can fall at times more than 20 mmHg causing symptoms – particularly if we go from lying to standing quickly.

If you are monitoring your home blood pressure, one suggestion is to check it 5 times during a single day in order to get a good average. It’s a good idea to check it both sitting and standing, record everything and then give the results to your health care team. Making medication adjustments with only random blood pressure checks can be misleading.

The recommendations on the “ideal BP in the elderly” continue to evolve. Click here for a good review.

If you are experiencing dizziness or weakness on standing and your blood pressure looks low, check with your doctor urgently for advice.

For all of us as we age, it’s a good idea when getting out of bed to sit on the edge of the bed for a few moments, stand slowly, gain balance then move about. These slow movements help to prevent sudden drops in our blood pressure. This is a general recommendation for all seniors.

The condition is called postural hypotension or orthostatic hypotension – well known but likely under diagnosed.

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