OLLI E-News (Weekly Newsletter)

• In accordance with a Mason July 7 Health and Safety notice, wearing masks when inside OLLI spaces is now optional (see this link).
• Note: The Reston-Loudoun Program Planning Meeting scheduled originally scheduled for Tuesday, July 19, has been postponed (see article below).
• The OLLI pizza party planned for later in July has been postponed. It will be re-scheduled for a later date to be announced (e.g., in an OLLI Mason Communicator).
• The next issue of OLLI E-News will be published Friday, July 22; regular deadline for submission of items is Tuesday, July 19, at 6:00.

Smart Music for Older Adults: Research Volunteer Opportunity!

By Emily Ihara, PhD, Department of Social Work Chair at Mason
 

Are you interested in how personalized music creates physiological reactions?

George Mason University is looking for adults ages 60 and above to participate in a research study called “Smart Music for Older Adults” (IRB #1904914) to explore the usage of wearable sensors in interventions using music. The aim of the research is to test wearable technology for a personalized music intervention for older adults. Participants will volunteer for about 60 minutes at a location with convenient parking, where they will listen to music while wearing a smartwatch (provided). Participants will get to listen to their favorite songs and then be interviewed by a member of the research team. The device will collect physiological measures such as heart rate and skin conductance and the research team will observe and record a video of reactions. After completion of the session, participants will be invited to participate in a 60-minute focus group to discuss their thoughts about wearable sensors. The total time to participate in this study will be no longer than 2 hours and 30 minutes.

After Visiting the Zoo

Of Giant Pandas there are no maybes.
They must have Giant Panda babies.
Yet somewhere west of Peking
(Yes, I know, it's now Beijing)
Some other pandas make their homes,
But they're never sent as Sino Loans,
To places like our D.C. Zoo,
To pleasure folk like me and you!

So where are the Regular Baby Pandas
Of the very non-Giant Variety?
While not colossal extravaganzas
We bet they'd be Huge in D.C. society…

                    Mike Mc Namara

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details.

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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Do I Really Need a Corn Kernel Stripper?
                                                  
Declutter, the magazine article shrieks
accosting seniors at least once a week;
give it away, get rid of it, the authors advise
don't leave your offspring a nasty surprise;
vow to clean up this week, month or year
excuses won't make your junk disappear
Let yourself know that enough is enough,
you simply don't need to be hoarding this stuff.
 
Okay, I get it, now I can see
that those articles are intended for me;
I'm ready to begin the job;
and prove to you that I'm no slob.
 
I first tackle my crowded kitchen,
three stuffed drawers that I've been itchin'
to organize; before a minute is up I mutter,
"What in heavens name is that...an avocado cutter?"
Three fancy gifted garlic presses
are the kinds of things that create messes,
a pineapple ringer, a honey dipper,
a melon baller, a kale and herb stripper,
turkey forks, a crooked egg slicer,
corn ear holders, a potato ricer
broken tea cozies, graters big and small,
wine bottle stoppers, maybe two dozen in all,
brushes for basting
spoons made for tasting
seven colorful tongs
a miniature dinner gong
barbecue skewers, both steel and bamboo
a cracked glass juicer held together with glue
decorative cutters for vegetable trays
relics from long-gone party days.
 
Two wasted hours have gone down the tubes
pawing through junk I no longer use
now piled so precariously close to the sink
I can't even pour me a much-needed drink
I must find a cardboard box I can fill
and store on a shelf labeled "DONATIONS GOODWILL."
                                                                – Sandy Myles

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details. Face coverings continue to be required at all events. 

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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A Bridge of Sighs Cannot Span
An Ocean of Despair
 
Jack Underhill

"…Looking at a dogwood does not make you
a blossom.  Nor can a bridge of sighs span an
ocean of despair. For that, you need oars." Devon Balwit
 
Over a million Americans
Have died of a mysterious virus
In the past two years—
more than died in the tragedy of
World War II.
 
Many elderly have been walled
Off from their children and grandchildren
Losing the loving touch of
Those they love.
 
Perhaps one in four has a friend
Or relative who was sick or has passed
And millions face depression.
 
It is not the young and vigorous
Who are gone, but the sick
And the old are most vulnerable.
The people of color in tough neighborhoods
Those America forgot 
And who have borne the brunt of poverty
And homelessness.
 
A bridge of sighs cannot span an ocean of despair.
Rather we must put our faith in a
Renewed commitment to become
The people that we could be.
 
We can attack poverty, loneliness, and inequality
And restore a sense of purpose as a nation
So that more, not just the few, can
Share the American dream.
 

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details. Face coverings continue to be required at all events. 

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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The Wordle Hurdle                                                           
 
So simple. So fun. So obsessive.
Is there anyone on the planet
Who has not discovered the joy,
Er, frustration, of Wordle? Designed
For introverts who tend toward obsessive/
Compulsive, its practice quickly becomes addictive.
 
Think of a five-letter word
Made up of frequently-occurring letters
In American English: I’ll try ‘trace,’
Which quickly deteriorates into only one
Correct letter, and that in the wrong square.
My chances of solving today’s in two steps
Fade quickly; I manage it in four.
 
Hardly bragging rights,
But stats leap to tell me
It’s my most frequent score.
                       jan bohall

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details. Face coverings continue to be required at all events. 

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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On Running Down to the Basement to Get the Pliers

Cans of paint all partly used, left-over tiles;
broken lamp shade, window fan, grout
from long ago, clock running very slow,
model airplane missing wing, soccer ball
collapsed, rhododendron fertilizer, must
remember. In the spring, on a bench the
pair of pliers that you came for, plus the
spackle, that you tried to find before.
Take them, thankful, turn and go, softly,
softly, close the door.
                                  -- Caroline McNeil

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details. Face coverings continue to be required at all events. 

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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SMTWTFS
 
Seven identical chambers
all in a line, left to right.
Through windows, watch soldiers,
one shielded in an amber sphere,
another in a large shiny oval, 
three smaller ones wear
white, yellow, orange.
All defensive specialists, 
protectors for another week.
 
                     Tony Rounds

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Audience members are not currently required to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result for most events except when required by the event organizer or artist. If proof of vaccination or a negative Covid-19 test result is required for a specific event, it will be indicated on the webpage with event details. Face coverings continue to be required at all events. 

Specific requirements are detailed and any future policy changes may be found here: https://cfa.gmu.edu/plan-your-visit/vaccination-policy.

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