May/June 2017

Fitness

Rejuvenate Yourself

Get an Energy and Productivity Jumpstart

By Jeff Tomaszewski

Four hundred and thirty-eight million: That is the number of vacation days Americans failed to take last year, more than any other industrialized nation, according to Harris Interactive Research Group.

Here’s the result: America ranks first in both depression and mental health issues.

Americans are burned out. Our productivity and creativity are dropping, relationships are failing and our rising stress is leading to record levels of heart disease, stomach ulcers and depression.

All Work, No Play

We’re judged by how much we work. We’re afraid of being replaced or left behind, and we’re addicted to busyness. It’s not only destroying our mental and physical health but also our creative productivity.

This is especially true in our global economy, where our future lies with our ability to think creatively, innovatively and productively.

Rest and recovery are vital to looking and feeling your best. Unfortunately, it’s viewed as a weakness rather than as an integral aspect of growth and sustained performance.

We become flatliners mentally, emotionally and physically by endlessly spending sufficient energy without recovery. We slowly wear down and become ineffective.

Taking a break might be difficult for some of us. Consider these tips:

Reframe it: Instead of calling it time off and thinking we are slackers, reframe it as “rejuvenation time.” This sounds more purposeful and meaningful, doesn’t it? This might be mental manipulation, but we’ll take whatever works.

Schedule it: What gets scheduled gets done. Like any critical appointment, you have to plant your time-off flag on your calendar and defend it. Take a break from email. Put your phone and other electronic devices aside.

Declare it: Don’t feel guilty or try to keep it a secret. Lead by example and show others how to make rejuvenation part of an overall health plan.

Getaway

Hocking Hills

Find Romance, an Adrenaline Buzz or a Family Connection

Andrea Coats and Chad Gordon made their first trip to Hocking Hills the year they met. Both divorced with teenaged children, they needed a romantic escape to focus on each other. A few days in the woods worked — the Medina couple has been together five years.

From time to time, the two return to Hocking Hills in the southeast part of the state, and plan to return again this summer to enjoy the romance of the picturesque region.

“We get a cabin by ourselves with a hot tub and grill. We grill steaks, sit in the hot tub and watch the hummingbirds around us,” Coats says. “It has beautiful woodland scenery, which makes it romantic. It’s a holding-hands, walking-around, being-alone kind of place. That’s my idea of romance. I like to be alone together.”

Gordon says, “We like it as a couple because the seclusion allows us to give full attention to each other. With immersion into nature and escape from urban, suburban and digital routines, it sounds cliché, but it’s like going back in time.”

Choose Your Own Adventure

Coats and Gordon found — and have nurtured — their romance in Hocking Hills. But there are plenty of other things to discover just a short car ride from Northeast Ohio.

With only two hotels in the area — a Holiday Inn Express and a Baymont — most of the accommodations are cabins and lodges. These are convenient for anything from couples’ getaways to family gatherings. While most options include hot tubs, some larger properties offer in-ground pools for swimming or ponds for fishing.

When visitors venture into public, it’s usually to one of the six separate areas that make up the 2,356 acres of Hocking Hills State Park.

Michael Stanley

There’s No Place Like Home

By Breanna Mona

First, a flashback:

Heavy smoke shoots from a fog machine and rolls over the hill at Blossom Music Center. A crowd filled with restless young fans, hair teased to wild heights, chants, “MSB! MSB! MSB!”

Michael Stanley and his band finally emerge from the smoke clouds, and they give the crowd what they want — music, and lots of it. Energetic rock that keeps fans on their feet. Quieter ballads. The fans know every word to every song. Hits such as “Lover,” “My Town” and “Falling in Love Again” gave the band a phenomenal fan base that built a cult-like obsession in Northeast Ohio.

MSB performed at Blossom 17 times over a six-year period, with an astounding four-night run in 1982 that drew a total attendance of 74,404 — still a record for that venue. The band not only reached regional fame, but also landed on Billboard’s Top 40 list twice. Their music video for “He Can’t Love You” played on MTV.

Musician, Grandfather

Stanley is still very much a performer and a celebrity in his hometown. Since the Blossom days of the ’80s, Stanley has worked with several bands and done solo work. He estimates he’s made more than 30 albums.

Today he performs in venues all over Northeast Ohio and — fittingly — is an afternoon drive host at the classic rock station 98.5 WNCX. He and his band The Resonators in April sold out the Akron Civic Theatre. He’s working on another album from his home studio.

At a recent photo shoot at the Agora Theater and Ballroom on Euclid Avenue, he caught up with a handful of people who stopped by to say hi.

Stanley is reflective and private. Anyone who hasn’t seen him since their college days in the ’70s or ’80s would immediately recognize him.

Arts

Concert & Festival Season

No Excuse to Stay Home

By Breanna Mona

Summer may just be getting started, but it’s already sizzling with these red hot shows and festivals.

Whether you prefer your outings big or small, your seasonal calendar just got a bit fuller. Check out these sensational headliners and something-for-everyone festivals — and good luck picking just one.

Star-Studded Lineup

Quicken Loans Arena is hosting a couple of major milestone performances this season. First up, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Neil Diamond celebrates the big 5-0 with his 50th anniversary 2017 world tour May 30. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers are on what may be their final tour, celebrating 40 years. Petty recently confessed to Rolling Stone Magazine, “I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was thinking this might be the last big one. We’re all on the backside of our 60s. I have a granddaughter now I’d like to see as much as I can. I don’t want to spend my life on the road.” They’re coming June 10.

Other concerts: It’s always hip to be square with Huey Lewis & The News. Check out their Hard Rock Rocksino performance June 10. Paul Simon’s 2017 tour proceeds will benefit the Half-Earth Project, an initiative of the E.O. Wilson Biodiversity Foundation. Be a part of the effort June 13 at Jacobs Pavilion at Nautica.

Billy Joel knows how to fill a stadium, after breaking records with over 33 consecutive shows at Madison Square Garden. Perhaps the most anticipated show of the summer, Joel is up to bat at Progressive Field on July 14. Rod Stewart & Cyndi Lauper will make quite a pair at Blossom Music Center on July 28, right before James Taylor & Bonnie Raitt hit the same stage Aug.

Hobbies

Lessons Learned

The Sounds of Music

By Margaret Briller

Maybe you were a piano lesson dropout, or gave up the guitar after mastering a few chords. Or perhaps money was scarce — and time and attention were even scarcer.

These local music lovers put music lessons back on their bucket lists and are glad they did.

Going for It

Rick Brouman of Pepper Pike started guitar lessons at 63.

“I’ve wanted to play since I was a kid, but my mother always wanted me to play piano, so I played piano,” Brouman says.

“As time passed, life — working and raising a family — got in the way, so I had to put this hobby on the back burner. I’ve always loved the guitar, and the time seemed right, so here I am now.”

Brouman takes lessons from instructor John Rupert at the Sam Ash Music Store in Lyndhurst. He purchased a striking red PRS SE Custom 24 electric guitar.

“I’m a sucker for red,” Brouman says. “The bird inlays are a pretty cool option on many PRS models. But I didn’t want to make the investment without taking lessons from a qualified instructor. I’ve only had four lessons so far, and I’m still at the stage where I might struggle to find the correct placement of my fingers. But I have noticed that I can now pick up the guitar and play some chords reasonably well. I’m thrilled that I am starting to actually make sounds that resemble music, and I’m looking forward to getting better with time”

Having a flexible work schedule gives Brouman more time to pursue his dream. “I work from home so I can pick up the guitar and practice multiple times during the day, which I do.”