The "Terrible Ten" List

Being a baby boomer in the workplace can be very challenging. Why? Well, for one reason you have young-know-it-alls who come in and immediately get promoted over you. Then you have younger bosses who want to belittle you because you don't have the up-to-date technical skills they feel is necessary in order to do the same job you've been doing efficiently without them. Then you have downright DISCRIMINATION based on age, sex or race.

What gets on your last nerve when it comes to your workplace environment? What makes your skin crawl when dealing with the general public?

Johns Hopkins University teamed up with the University of Baltimore to find out what people thought about rude behavior and came up with a “Terrible Ten” List. 615 people were surveyed. See if your list matches theirs.

The complete list of "Terrible Ten" behaviors:

1. Discrimination in an employment situation.
2. Erratic/aggressive driving that endangers others.
3. Taking credit for someone else’s work.
4. Treating service providers as inferiors.
5. Jokes or remarks that mock another’s race/gender/age/disability/sexual preference or religion.
6. Children who behave aggressively or who bully others.
7. Littering (including trash, spitting, pet waste).
8. Misuse of handicapped privileges.
9. Smoking in non-smoking places or smoking in front of non-smokers without asking.
10. Using cell phones or text messaging in mid-conversation or during an appointment or meeting.

You see, this is EXACTLY why I’m so glad I work for myself these days!!!

What irks you?

Baby Boomers on the Move in Maryland

In addition to being the state where African-American baby boomers make the most money, Maryland now holds the distinguished honor of being the state where the first baby boomer has applied for social security.

61-year-old Kathleen Casey-Kirschling applied for the benefits on Monday. She will be eligible to receive her monthly checks in January 2008 after she turns 62. Casey-Kirschling is one of about 80 million baby boomers who will qualify for social security in the coming years.

Meanwhile, Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue says an estimated 10,000 baby boomers a day will become eligible for Social Security benefits over the next two decades, and the Social Security Trust Fund is projected to go broke in 2041.

So whose fault is this? Are politicians to blame for using social security money to fund unnecessary pork barrel funding projects? What about Corporate America Executives who mismanaged retirement funds? Or what about the wealthiest among us who have failed to pay their fair portion in taxes? My mother calls it “robbing Peter to pay Paul.” Whatever you want to call it, the social security tidal wave is going to hit and it’s going to hit HARD.

We baby boomers put the MOST into the system, so we should get the MOST out of it.

When asked about social security, the nation’s first recognized baby boomer said, “I think I’m just lucky to be at the top of the boom. I am blessed to have been in this generation and really blessed to take my Social Security now.” Casey-Kirschling encourages people to collect retirement benefits whenever they are eligible to take them.

I’ll only be 84 by the time the social security trust fund goes belly up so I think I’ll be in Maryland where the wealthiest among us live.

Aging, Depression and Heart Disease

There may be a link between depression and heart disease according to a study conducted by researchers at Ohio State University. The findings suggest that chronic depression may play a key role in starting the cascade that can lead to the buildup of plaques clogging coronary arteries.

Researchers have apparently connected an increase in two immune system proteins essential for inflammation to a latent viral infection and proposed a chain of events that might accelerate cardiovascular disease.

Ronald Glaser, a professor of molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics at Ohio State University, said, “To me, this suggests a new way of thinking about how these diseases develop. We carry around these latent herpes viruses in our bodies virtually all our lives and periodically they can hurt us, inducing biological events that could lead to an increased risk of atherosclerosis.”

Glaser, head of Ohio State’s Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research, has focused for years on Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), one of eight different herpes viruses that can remain dormant in the body for a lifetime.

“Perhaps more than 90 percent of the people in North America have been infected by EBV by the time they’re adults,” Glaser said. “Virtually everybody in the country is carrying this virus.”

Increased stress and depression, coupled with aging, can also trigger the latent virus to reactivate and begin reproducing inside cells.

“People need to remember how important depression is, and that when they’re depressed, it can reactivate these viruses, starting the cascade that leads to inflammation, perhaps increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, according to Glaser.

“So treating depression is very important,” he said.

The next time a doctor tries to tell you “It’s all in your head,” be sure to ask the physician what impact that could have on your heart.

Wakin' Up with Whoopi!

This baby boomer diva woke up with Whoopi on Monday. I normally switch between Whoopi and the Tom Joyner Morning Show but on this particular day, I was cruisin’ down the highway with Whoopi, Cubby and the rest of the crew. It was around 7am and I was beginning a four-hour road trip to Columbia, South Carolina for a television interview.

Suddenly, I heard newest host of The View invite listeners to call in and ask any questions they had for her guest psychic, Joan Marie Whelan. Of course, you know I had to call in. I mean, what else did I have to do for the next four hours other than listen to the radio and talk on my cell phone?

I don’t know if I was more surprised that I got through right away----or by the answers the psychic gave me to my questions.

Now I have to tell you right up front that I don’t believe in psychics---but I do believe dreams can come true!

Give a listen: http://www.whoopi.com/audio.html

Click on hour #3

Baby Boomer Message: "Show us you know us!"

Hallmark has become the latest major retailer to stand up and take notice of the demographic with the most spending power. The company is launching a new line of greeting cards called Journeys. These cards are supposed to be designed with baby boomers in mind. Their slogan is: New cards with real words for real life.

Does this mean Hallmark has finally figured out that like isn’t hunky dory all the time and that we, as baby boomers, may want to express our sentiments about issues like divorce, depression, job loss, aging parents, etc with empowering messages of hope and encouragement? All they would have to do is read my book Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age and know that we go through many journeys as we age. Another thing--Has Hallmark finally realized that baby boomer women love to buy cards and will buy them for any and every occasion?

The Maxine Cards, introduced by Hallmark, do serve some purpose but I don't think the vast majority of baby boomer women want to be depicted with that image. Some of us as classy divas and should have cards representing OUR IMAGE.

I have been invited to visit the Hallmark Headquarters next month to take a sneak peak at the new card lineup and to offer feedback and input. Am I going? Absolutely! And I’m taking you with me. Well, not literally. But I will take your ideas if you want to share them.

Hallmark now joins Ann Taylor in making an effort to reach out and show us that they really do know us.

Why Black Women Don't Exercise

It’s a HAIR thing!

That’s right. Our hair keeps us from working out at a pace and level we should be in order to shed those unwanted pounds.

Let me break it down for you. Yesterday, I spent close to a $100 (including tip) getting my hair to look like a Baby Boomer Diva hairstyle should look. Now, if I turn around and exercise in the next 24 hours like I know I should, I will have wasted my money. The body perspiration will sweat the curls right out of my head and I will end up having to spend even more money to restore my hair back to its Beauty Salon Look. I need to keep my hairdo for at least a week. In the meantime, I’ll just cut back on my food intake---which means I’ll eat like a bird---until I decide it's OK to hit the gym once again. Blame it on menopause or whatever! but my body has just got to understand that sacrifices must be made for MY HAIR.

The number one reason African-American women DON’T EXERCISE on a consistent basis is because we don’t want to mess up our hair. If you don’t believe me, just ask my hairdresser.

Registration Underway for the “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now!” Girlfriends’ Retreat

It’s being dubbed as the most exciting weekend gathering of baby boomer women on the planet! Women from around the country are expected to converge on Daytona Beach, Florida March 28-30 2008 for the “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now!” Baby Boomer Girlfriends’ Weekend Retreat. The event, sponsored by BAM Enterprises and Fabulously40.com, is being hosted by the “Diva” of all baby boomers, Beverly Mahone.

“Mature Girls STILL wanna have fun”, says Mahone, “so that’s why this trail-blazing, fun-filled, weekend was created. We want to offer mature women a total empowerment experience because sometimes life can be pretty overwhelming.” Mahone adds that boomer women have grown a lot over the years and have taken on some major responsibilities including: careers, husbands, children---and some of them are even taking care of their own parents in their aging years.

The weekend will include interactive workshops, mini-spas, dance and karaoke contests and the most creative Over 40 Pa-jamming Party, Mahone says, anyone has ever witnessed. A local PBS Station will also be taping a Town Hall Meeting which Mahone will be hosting. The baby boomer author of Whatever! A Baby Boomer's Journey Into Middle Age says, "Every now and then we deserve to have some ME TIME. That's what this Girlfriends Retreat is all about. It's a 'Pamper Me...Spoil Me...Because I Deserve It!' weekend affair”.

For more information on the Girlfriends Retreat and to register, go to: http://www.enjoyyourmenopause.com