North Shore Living
October 2024 Newsletter
Jean Marie Modl
October has been a month of music and movement at North Shore Living, the care center. BINGO and POKENO games give our week structure and routine, but it is the live music and movement that residents really look forward to each day. Friday Happy Hours are hosted by the talented Tom Novotny and each month the Portage Band treats us to a dance. Gary singing “Seminole Wind” and Joe’s drumming on “Wipe Out” were some of my favorite moments this month. All six Portage musicians are first class and the dance is a very special event.
The new gardens have given us beautiful pumpkins small and large that add color and charm to our Halloween decorations this month. We are looking forward to a Halloween party and Halloween BINGO next week.
Those same garden boxes now hide a spring surprise of daffodil and tulip bulbs, flowers waiting to greet us after a long winter nap. The deer will certainly enjoy the bright red tulips but they don’t like daffodils so much.
We have introduced two regular morning activities that have been fun for all of us. They are Sensory Play and Morning Stretches. Sensory Play challenges one of the five senses: seeing, hearing, touching, tasting, or smelling.
Iris says, “I love smells. I like to smell good.” “Smells are special. You walk into a building or someone’s home and the smell tells you that you are right where you think you are.”
We have been exploring and enjoying the scents of aromatherapy oils and lotions. Smell memory is stored in the oldest parts of our brain and smells often trigger strong life memories.
Daily Morning Stretches with colorful Styrofoam noodles have felt very good. Each of us does what we can and we encourage our neighbors in the group to do what they can too. These are chair exercises that stretch and flex different parts of the body from head to toe. As Emily says, “What looks like nothing feels like something.” It is all good. We even do outdoor sessions on warm sunny fall days.
Nadine’s family, Mary and Mark, have sustained a fine tradition of Saturday afternoon Dominoes. Mary tells me that the Saturday afternoon game began when Delores Saethre was staying with us. Delores realized that Dominoes was a game that anyone could play and have some fun. Delores shared her Dominoes with everyone and now Mary and Mark do the same. Mary also surprised us during Happy Hour one day with a fresh homemade apple pie, still warm from the oven. This was a special treat for everyone.
We enjoyed a special OCTOBERFEST Happy Hour with Tom Novotny. Refreshments included bratwurst, sour kraut, cheese, Rye bread, and dark German beer. A good time was had by all.
ELECTION PREPARATION
We have been looking at sample ballots to prepare for the election. The ballot is very crowded this time around. Media has focused on two presidential candidates so you may be surprised to discover many more presidential choices on your ballot. There are additional federal, state, county, city, and hospital district contests to consider. There is also a constitutional amendment question, three questions from Independent School District 166 and a whole lot of judges looking for your vote.
Your vote matters. Cook County is a small community and one vote can absolutely make a difference. When I ran for District 2 Commissioner, I won the contest by exactly one vote. People enjoyed telling me that their vote was the winning vote, but I always knew that it was mine. Your vote can be the winning vote this time.