"In this sticky web that we're all in, behaving decently is no small task." -- Novelist Stacey D'Erasmo

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Augustus Blogus Optimus


     This is the August edition of the Best of Boomer Blogs. That's what the title means -- at least to me. My Latin is pretty rusty, and last I checked there was no Latin word for Baby Boomer. I took Latin in 7th, 8th and 9th grades, and poor Mrs. Coates is probably rolling over in her sepulchrum right about now.

     Anyway, August was named after the Roman Emperor Augustus in 8 BC to commemorate several triumphs which took place in August, including the conquest of Egypt.

     And we Boomers, the classics of our time, commemorate the month of August by offering some consilium bonus on these following important topics.

     Finance:  John Agno at So Baby Boomer says that market trends, space programs and rogue waves are not linear. But he's not the first person to point out the nonlinear path of financial trends. In The Sun Also Rises Hemingway's character Bill Gorton asks the once-affluent Mike Campbell, "How did you go bankrupt?" Mike replies: "Two ways, gradually and then suddenly."

     But now in a new post Agno, a certified executive and business coach, shows how linear projections will often take us down the wrong path, and he warns us that nonlinear events can occur when you least expect them.

     Personal Power:  Meanwhile, Laura Lee Carter over at the Midlife Crisis Queen blog has lately been thinking about something else:  personal liberation. It is never too late, she says, to free yourself through the power of your own mind.

     Health and Aging:  Karen from The Generation Above Me laments that aging means experiencing odd physical changes. Read more in her recent post Weird Things on My Skin. One note of caution (or is it a teaser?): the post involves the word decolletage, which is not Latin, of course, but French for . . . well, you go read her blog post.

     History:  On The Survive and Thrive Boomer Guide Rita R. Robison, consumer journalist, writes about how to organize your photos. After a four-day marathon organizing photos that she found in her garage from the 1960s, '70s and '80s, she has a method using archival plastic pages with pockets of different sizes. Robison also has some advice for organizing more recent digital photos, including this:  Make sure to have a system to back them up!

5 comments:

stephen Hayes said...

Thanks for pointing us in the direction of these helpful sites. I wish I knew how to write something helpful or useful.

DJan said...

What fun! I'll go check these out; they sound very interesting indeed. :-)

Anonymous said...

My grandfather came to America from Greece in between the 19th and 20th Centuries. He was know as "Gus" which was both mine and my father's middle name. So, thanks for your August Best of Blogging Boomers, Tom. We who carry the name of Gus, appreciate your recognition of August!

schmidleysscribblins.wordpress.com said...

Being an oldest child, charged with the care of younger sibs, I have a life time of being an organized and neat person behind me.

I am not a Baby Boomer, I have always had my finances in order, and my photos well organized in albums. Recently I scanned all my travel slides and stored them on a disk.

Sadly, my BB brother has not led a comparable life.

Hopefully your readers will find helpful hints at these sites.

As for skin issues, yes, yes, and yes but it's hereditary like most health realted issues. I have experienced three bouts of skin cancer including melanoma.

Because I am proactive (don't you hate that word) I see a dermatologist semi-annually.

Dianne

J.G. said...

That bankruptcy line has stayed with me since I first read it about 30 years ago. Ain't it the truth! Lots of things happen just that way.