Posts by Brigid Cahalan

You have no doubt heard that the world is getting older. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that by 2025, nearly 60 percent of the U.S. population will be 55 or older. And the age wave spans the globe.

Bearers at the Dublin Declaration Signing CeremonyBut, do you know about the Age-Friendly Cities initiative? Conceived in Brazil in 2005 at the World Congress of the International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics, the idea — with the goal of "addressing the environmental and 

Lions International, working with other organizations that fight blindness, commemorated the first World Sight Day in 1998. Since then, it has been observed throughout the world on the second Thursday of each year; the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness are the chief coordinating agencies at present. Communities and organizations have initiated activities to support the main 

I had heard a bit about Sharon Anyimi; but I didn't know much. I knew she visited Baychester Library in Co-Op City — a lot — and was always reading books with the help of the Closed-Captioned Television system (CCTV), also known as the video magnifier, located in the Library. I knew she was a "people person" with a friendly word for all. I decided to wend my way to the northeast Bronx and meet this intriguing library user for 

Something big has started in the Big Apple!

On July 1, 2011, the organization Coming of Age: NYC officially launched. Part of a national initiative and spearheaded by PSS (Presbyterian Senior Services), it brings together several leading innovative and diverse nonprofits to provide New Yorkers 50 years old and better with opportunities to connect and contribute to their communities.

These trailblazing nonprofits who joined forces 

Next Chapter.

We've been asked: "What does that mean?" Well, it's a forward-thinking (and book-evoking) image we like here at NYPL and use to describe this blog channel, as well as the Facebook page and Twitterfeed sharing news and views focusing on those 50 and older. Oprah likes it too—the cover of the current issue of O magazine asks readers, "What's Your Next Chapter?"

While looking ahead can excite and energize, looking back can provide 

NYPL is celebrating the Americans with Disabilities Act's 20th anniversary throughout 2010. One way we are getting the word out is via the Barrier-Free Library Facebook page. If you "FB," we invite you to take a look. But, though the current movie, The Social Network, tells us that more than 500 million people are users of Facebook, we realize there are many who opt out of that particular social network. So if you are one of those who don't subscribe to 

Choices...

I would choose to have only 70 degree days throughout the summer, and a light breeze wafting through the air, plus a New York City to live in just as it is—but with affordable rents in midtown. Wouldn’t you? Unfortunately, these aren't choices I can make. But there is a world of choices that we can make to make our lives better, and to make an informed choice we should hear from the experts first.

Those over 50, or perhaps helping an older friend or family member with care and/or information, may want to come to one of the Consumer 

Draw from your experience: six NYPL branches will offer creative aging programs this fall. The programs consist of a minimum of eight 90-minute classes and each will end with a culminating celebration.

President Bush Signing the Americans With Disabilities Act in the Rose Garden of the White House. bushlibrary.tamu.eduJuly 26, 1990: President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on the South Lawn of the White House. Described as "the world's first comprehensive declaration of equality for people with disabilities," this legislation broke new ground, building upon earlier legislation such as the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 and the

Are you hearing the same mixed messages about the state of the economy that I am? Though some aspects seem to be getting better, other indications are not so bright... Whatever our age or stage in life, now more than ever we need to learn about personal finance.

Fortunately, the Science, Industry, and Business Library has come to the rescue! To mark the opening of Financial Literacy Central there, SIBL is holding Financial Literacy Day, an information-packed mini-marathon of events starting at 12:15 p.m. 

Forty years of Earth Days... and each year we are encouraged to do something green. How are you doing with that? I've made a few changes—am making fewer copies, reusing paper, recycling lots of stuff. And today I shall eschew plastic bottles: it's just that superb NYC tap water for me. 

This morning I celebrated by walking through the alluring pedestrian plazas New York City created last year, midtown on Broadway. The beige gravel mimics sand, lending a beachy vibe. And, I just 

April is the cruellest month. —T.S. Eliot, opening of The Wasteland. What do you associate with April? April showers? April in Paris?

To celebrate Women’s History Month last year, I wrote about some women from the past who made history by doing amazing things in later life. This year I’d like to take a look at some superwomen over 50 who are making history right now.   First, let’s look at some of the women who have won the Purpose Prize, a prize awarded to several individuals over 60 each year for making extraordinary contributions in their encore careers.  Note: these 

If you enjoyed reading this collection of essays, there's always lots more Nora Ephron to read--I recommend Crazy Salad: Some Things About Women for a start.

If the humorous personal essay genre is what you savor, search out Erma Bombeck (gentler and more suburban),

I do hope you've had a chance to read or listen to Nora Ephron's elucidating and entertaining collection of essays. If not, it's not too late—these questions will be here waiting for you whenever you would like to post your responses, or any thoughts about the book you'd like to share.

Which essay did you find the most accurate? the funniest? the most surprising? the most typically New York? And, why?

In the first essay Ms. Ephron states that she can't stand authors who write about how great it is to be old. Why does she feel that way? Do you think that 

Nora Ephron was born in New York City in 1941, the first of what would be four daughters of screenwriter parents Henry and Phoebe Ephron. After growing up in Beverly Hills, she graduated from Wellesley College and has lived much of her adult life on the east coast, briefly working as an intern in the Kennedy White House.  She lives on Manhattan’s west side with her husband of over 20 years, writer Nicholas Pileggi.

In 1983, when pregnant with her second child, she learned her then-husband

Happy New Year! And welcome (or welcome back) to The Reader’s Den, now in its second year.

I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman by Nora Ephron, a former #1 New York Times bestseller, kicks off the list this year. As the years roll by, many over a certain age move into an increasingly-complex maintenance schedule, and several of the 15 essays in the book examine these efforts. If we can’t ultimately win the war against aging—as each of us knows somewhere inside—we might as well laugh 

Marc Prensky coined the term digital natives to describe those born after the advent of digital technology, circa 1980. He posits that they differ fundamentally from those who came before. To carry the natives analogy a bit further, Prensky suggests that even if we digital immigrants learn the language, we will always have an accent.

Lark Birdsong calls many adults older than 50 technological outliers—“people at the end of the curve