Hearing
loss is one of those invisible chronic disabilities which can cause social
isolation and loneliness; significantly impacting your health and well-being. Unfortunately,
hearing loss won’t go away; you just have to learn how to best live with it.
With
my hearing loss, I often depend on my good buddy “closed captions”. When I
watch television or movies at home, especially when watching my favorite
British mysteries, it really adds to the enjoyment when I can use closed
captions to actually understand what is being said. It is amazing what a
difference it makes. (And even if your hearing is normal, closed captions can
also help decipher the strong English or Irish brogues - which no one I know
can understand.)
But
what about phone calls? How can you communicate with friends or family, or make
a doctor’s appointment or answer the persistent telemarketer calls when you
have hearing loss? I have my hearing aid connected to my smartphone so any
conversation goes directly to my hearing aid which improves the quality
considerably. But when I use a land line, I am often asking the caller to
repeat themselves or having to moving into a quieter room. It is frustrating
for both the caller and myself. And my hearing loss isn’t that severe.
But
hearing loss does not have to limit the quality of phone conversations. The
federally mandated Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) is a telephone
service that allows persons with hearing or speech disabilities to place and
receive local and/or long distance telephone calls. The TRS providers,
generally telephone companies, are compensated for the costs of providing TRS
from either state or federal funds. There is no cost to the TRS user.
One of
several forms of TRS is Captioned Telephone Service which is used by persons
with a hearing disability but with some limited hearing. It uses a special
telephone that has a text screen to display captions of what the other party to
the conversation is saying which makes it possible to communicate with friends,
family and businesses by phone.
Gary
Waddington who works for CaptionCall, one of several companies that provides
caption phones, will speak about “Telephone Options for the Hard of Hearing” at
the next Tuesday lecture on March 1st at 11:00. He will discuss the
benefits of different phone options for the hard of hearing; how you can
qualify for a free caption phone; the requirements for installing a caption
phone; and any other questions you may have.
Lucille
Torgerson will be leading a discussion of the book Keep Moving - and other Tips and Truths about Aging written by Dick
Van Dyke - who at the age of 90 should know a few things about “keeping fit as
a fiddle and younger than springtime”. The first meeting will be at 10:30 on
Wednesday, March 2nd and will continue through the month of March.
It should be a fascinating discussion and I’m sure food for many future
columns.
Although
spring doesn’t arrive until March 19th, it sure feels like it - with folks
getting out and enjoying the nicer weather and longer days. So starting March
1st, which means next week, the Center’s Tuesday Night music will start again
at 7:00 with Andre, KC and Tom performing. Everyone is welcome and donations
are always appreciated.
On
the Phil Silvers Show, the name of the master sergeant of the Fort Baxter motor
pool who was always devising get-rich-quick schemes was Sergeant Bilko. And
because of the popularity of the character, when the show was rebroadcast years
later it was renamed Sergeant Bilko. (This
week’s winner of a quilt raffle ticket is Bill Booth.)
During
one of those Center conversations reminiscing about songs we enjoyed when we
were younger, this song was mentioned. It featured the lyrics, “I love you a
bushel and a peck. A bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck”. It was
recorded by several artists in 1950, so for this week’s “Remember When”
question, who do you remember singing “A Bushel and a Peck”? Email your answer
to mcseniorcenter@gmail.com, leave a message at 541-296-4788 or mail it in with
a recording of the stage version of Guys
and Dolls.
Well,
it’s been another week trying to keep the lights on after the battery has run
down. Until we meet again, as my wife often reminds me, “working in the garden
means never saying you’re done”.
“There
comes a time in the affairs of man when he must take the bull by the tail and
face the situation.” WC Fields