Spirit of Life

By Vigdis S. Aas

How are you going to store your antique firearms? If you are looking to store your antique firearms, you want to be sure that they are stored somewhere safe, dry, cool, and where someone or some children are not going to find them.

Store your antique firearms in a location where they will be kept dry and cool. This is important because the finish on many types of guns can become pitted and rusty if you don’t care for them properly. In caring for your guns properly you don’t want to touch them too often, because that can leave excessive oils from your hands on the gun. Dry can cool is important so that the metal doesn’t rust, so the wood doesn’t rot, and so that the value of your gun continues to climb. The value of your antique firearm can grow as it becomes older while in your collection.

Keeping your antique firearms in a location that is not going to be easily found by others will be important. You don’t want your antique firearms to be touched, so that this will keep them in mint condition. In keeping your collection hidden or displayed under glass is going to keep them protected from people from touching them.

Flowering plants are one of the most popular ways to brighten the landscape of your home. Even in colder or dryer climates, something in the human soul calls for flowers to give a home beauty, grace and color.

Hydrangeas are regaining their popularity with gardeners, home landscapers and breeders alike. Many people remember hydrangeas from their childhood, growing alongside the front porch of their grandmother’s house. In those days, white was the predominant color available for success in Northern landscapes or gardens. Now, with the introduction of new Northern-hardy varieties in many colors, hydrangeas can be enjoyed in almost any location around the country.

In recent years, breeders have expanded the color range of hydrangeas greatly. However, many of the selections do not bloom well or at all in Northern climates. Winter injury and improper late-season pruning are the major reasons for this problem.

Most hydrangeas set their flower buds in the fall, leaving the buds susceptible to winter kill. Now new introductions produce their flower buds on the new growth of the plant in the spring, ensuring blooms every year even for those gardeners who live in harsh Northern climates. Pruning late in the fall or in early spring will remove the developed flower buds of most hydrangeas.

I often get letters, like the two below, from Baby Boomers who are caring for aging parents and trying to find health care that meets the unique needs of older people. Finding the right kind of care can seem daunting, but a little information and some key resources can help tremendously.

Q: My 81-year-old mother recently fell and was rushed to the emergency room. The doctor who saw her suggested that she start seeing a geriatrician. What is a geriatrician and why should she see one?

A: A geriatrician is a physician with special training and expertise in caring for older adults, especially those with complex health problems. Like children, older adults have unique health care needs. As we age, our bodies change in many ways that affect our health. Among other things, we’re more likely to develop chronic health problems such as heart disease, diabetes and arthritis, and to need multiple medications (all with potential side effects). About 80 percent of adults 65 or older have at least one chronic health condition and 50 percent have at least two. As we grow older it’s also harder for us to recover from illnesses.

Don’t throw your Christmas cards away! There are so many creative ways to use your Christmas cards, many of which you can do with your kids. We have brought together some ideas below.

Christmas jigsaw game:
Make a Christmas jigsaw game. Gather 10-20 cards and cut each one into 3 or 4 pieces, using straight lines. Shuffle them up and lay them out on a flat service such as a dining table or the floor – then put them back together again! Store the cards in a shoebox for next time. This is fun on a quiet family evening at the beginning of the season as it helps to get everybody into the Christmas spirit!

Christmas tree ornaments:
Make cinnamon stick ornaments for the Christmas tree. Wrap a small bundle of cinnamon sticks together with a pretty ribbon tied in a bow (leave a loop for hanging). Using a small dab of glue, attach a pretty shape cut from a Christmas card with pinking shears to the centre of the ribbon bow to finish the ornament off. These look pretty and smell delicious too!

Creating the perfect home requires a lot of time and energy. There are so many things you need to take into account, especially if you are new at it. There are some very basic things to get you started.

1) The first thing to look at is the personalities that are in the house. If you are single then you only need to look at your own personality. For couples, the personalities are very often opposites. One may be outgoing and the other conservative. Be prepared to compromise when making decisions on design and color.

2) Browse through magazines and design books to get an idea of what you really like and what makes you comfortable. This really gives you the visual you need to think with when it will come to designing your own rooms. If you’ve never designed a room before, it can be intimidating staring at those blank white walls trying to figure out what you are going to do in there. Magazines can really help a great deal there by helping you choose an inspiration room as a guide.