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Nothing is more valuable than the gift of tutelage. Spending time to explain the features and functions while showing older adults how to use the gadget you give is good for everyone. Trust me on this. I’ve heard more than once about well-meaning givers’ gifts that were never opened because the recipient didn’t know what to do with them. ...

If you want to keep your gift-giving local this season, Northeast Ohio has plenty of options. Even better news: You don't have to drive to buy most of these foodie favorites; most are available online, too. ...

If your grandkids come from across the street or across the country, our Grammy on the Go columnist has suggestions for making holiday memories with the little ones. ...

When you give money to a charity, does it go where you want it to? How can you know if your donation is getting in the right hands? Our legal expert has advice to help direct your charitable giving. ...

Many people say this is their favorite time of year. The weather gets cooler, the trees change from greens to autumn hues, then winter bareness. It’s also the return of pumpkin spice; coffee, muffins, candles… pumpkin spice everything. And it’s the time to celebrate with our families around the dinner table, a feast of warm and savory seasonal foods.

There’s an ingredient that you can add to your menu that will add zip to your recipes, and I’m not talking about pumpkin spice. Cranberries can brighten every part of your holiday menu. Cranberries come in several forms; they’re readily available and easy to use. 

A Berry Good Addition

You may already enjoy cranberry juice on a regular basis; it’s also a great ingredient for holiday cocktails. Dried cranberries are available year-round. They are a  healthy snack, often found in the better-quality trail mixes They also make a great addition to a salad, especially with toasted nuts and blue cheese. 

Fresh cranberries are too tart to be eaten on their own. Cooking them with something sweet like sugar or maple syrup helps balance the tartness. A homemade cranberry sauce can be a great addition to your Thanksgiving menu. Making it with fresh ginger and orange juice creates a condiment that goes well with turkey and stuffing but here’s a tip about homemade cranberry sauce that most people don’t realize: it’s even better on pumpkin pie. Topping your pie with whipped cream and homemade cranberry relish makes an often ho-hum dessert extra special.

Canned is Okay, Too

Store-bought canned cranberry jelly is usually served in a perfect cylinder with imprinted ribbed lines from the can still intact. There’s a very good chance you know someone who loves this stuff; my father-in-law certainly does. I make a blowout Thanksgiving feast with homemade everything. Even the cream of mushroom soup for the green bean casserole is homemade, but someone still sneaks in canned cranberry sauce for the family patriarch. 

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Years ago, my wife, Janice, and I took in our three nephews while their mother recovered from a car accident. They’re in their 20s and early 30s now but all were under school age when we had them.  

I told the 3-year-old to sit on the hassock so I could tie his shoes. “What’s that? My butt?” I realized that many of the common words that were used by our pre-Boomer parents were part of a different language.

When we visited my grandmother, she told us to hang our coats in the chifferobe and have a seat on the davenport. You scrubbed pans with a “chore boy” and canned foods were kept in the basement in the fruit bin, usually a room that was converted into a pantry that used to store coal. 

We drank out of garden hoses, babies sat on their mom’s lap during car rides with no seat belts and we ran around with sparklers on the Fourth of July. If the weather was “close” (humid) you suffered through it because who had air conditioning? And that brings me to modern conveniences.

 

Say What?

I made the mistake of mentioning to a classroom of college kids that where I live, we aren’t allowed to hang clothes outside. “Why would you do that? Is your dryer broke?” No, they smell better! 

Mistake number two: I mentioned that a lot of old houses had home incinerators in the basement. “Wait a minute! You burned trash in your house? You built a fire in your basement!?” No, it was a controlled fire in a container. The concept was foreign to them.

Then there was the party line. “You’d have a party on the phone? Why don’t you just invite them over?” This comes from a generation that has never actually dialed a phone or has heard a dial tone.

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Book Shelf

Who doesn’t like getting a book for the holidays? Below are a handful of gift-worthy books (all published in 2019) selected by the librarians of the Akron-Summit County Public Library’s Collection Development Department. 

 

The Art of Looking Up 

By Catherine McCormack

Critics and reviewers alike are calling this book a visual feast that is desirable as an art book and as a challenge to seek out art in unusual places. Forty spectacular ceilings are featured in this unusually dazzling book. Art historian Catherine McCormack guides readers through the stories behind the artwork depicted in this beautiful book of hypnotic ceilings from around the globe. Remarkable locations, great artists and glorious color photography make this book a great gift!.

Classic Restaurants of Summit County 

By Sharon Moreland Myers

Akron and Summit County’s classic hot spots have satisfied palates since the early 20th Century. Akron alone could sit up to 30,000 people at once during the golden age of the ’50s and ’60s. Marcel’s made a name for itself with its scampi, and Iacomini’s became synonymous with lobster. Ladd’s dished crowd-pleasing coney dogs, and Yanko’s sliced up its mouthwatering shish kabobs. Digging up vintage images and recipes, author Sharon Myers leads readers on a delectable trip down memory lane to the area’s most renowned and cherished eateries.

 

For the Love of Books: Designing and Curating a Home Library 

By Thatcher Wine and Elizabeth Lane.

A book about books – what could be better? Learn from the curation and design experts at Juniper Books and see your bookshelves in a whole new light. Explore the history of books, private libraries and celebrate the resilience of print books in the digital era. Marvel at the photographs and be inspired. Useful tips and illustrations will help you create and curate your own home library, whatever the size.

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By Traci McBride

Everything in life comes with its own inventory of pros and cons, especially how you decide to spend your time and efforts in volunteerism. Creating your own list of positives and negatives is good advice before starting any long- or short-term commitments.  

Strike up a conversation with someone who volunteers on a regular basis and ask about their experience. It can give you a good perspective and direction on organizations that match your belief system and interests. Your time is priceless; giving it with joy is selfless and satisfying.

 

Let’s Start with the Cons of Volunteering

Time commitment

Costs of travel/food

Unappreciative recipients of your efforts

Personality conflicts

Personal energy expenditure

Potential of choosing the wrong organization

Emotional drain when engaging with those in difficult life situations

 

And Now the Pros…

Staying active & engaged extends to graceful aging

Influencing another human being can be life-saving

Practicing or elevating your skill set

Mastering time management

Experiencing an organization from the inside

Socializing while creating new friendships with like-minded people

Increasing self-esteem & confidence

Creating the ripple effect in your community & in other people

Inspiring friends and family to get involved

Rewarding effect of aligning with a non-profit that touches you on a personal level

Spearheading ideas inside the organization                     

Source: CharityNavigator.org 

 

Traci McBride of TeeMcBee.com has passionately been a volunteer with Dress for Success – Cleveland since 2008.

 

Our Volunteer Salute

Meet NEO’s Givers

What better way to kick off the season of giving than recognizing some of our region’s most impressive volunteers? No other age group gives as much of its time, talent and energy as Boomers. We want to introduce you to a few outstanding givers recognized by our readers and provided by Greater Cleveland Volunteers (greaterclevelandvolunteers.org). 

 

Meet: Gail Tichy 

Where: Cleveland Metroparks

A retired federal worker, Tichy inherited a love of gardening from her grandmother.

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