Posts by Brigid Cahalan

It’s official: Spring is here! As I peer into its etymology, I see the English word "spring" comes from the Old English "springan," which means “to leap, burst forth, fly up.” I have indeed been seeing New Yorkers bursting forth from their abodes in short sleeves and sandals, ready to enjoy the (even) warmer weather. Maybe the leaping and flying up will come later. 

Three of NYPL’s branches will be hosting 50+ Fitness Fairs to share spaces and ways for New Yorkers to not only leap, but walk, hike, canoe, swim, lift weights, kayak, exercise, and enjoy nature right here in the Big Apple. St. Agnes 

If you haven't experienced, or perhaps even heard about, ReelAbilities, this may be the year to discover this unique festival, which is a film festival, but also so much more.

I'd like to share an important message on behalf of Go Direct®, a campaign of the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Bank from guest blogger Michelle Kloempken, campaign manager for Go Direct®.

With electronic payments, you can count on your money despite severe weather.

Perhaps you have heard of real-time captioning, or CART (Communication Access Realtime Transcription), as it is often called. This is the provision of captions to accompany a presentation or performance in real time. The captions are generally projected onto a screen, where some or all of the audience can read them. CART can potentially enhance experience for several groups of people:

• those who became deaf after becoming proficient in English (or another language), i.e., the post-lingually deaf;
• those with mild to moderate hearing loss, who want to follow along with what they can hear, using the 

To commemorate National Family Caregivers Month, I asked bioethicist, educator and author Viki Kind to submit a blog post. She chose an excerpt on the topic of "care-grieving" from her book, The Caregiver's Path to Compassionate Decision Making: Making Choices for Those Who Can't. Also see Viki's website, Kind Ethics.

You have no doubt heard that the world is getting older. The U.S. Census Bureau reports that by 2025, nearly 60 percent of the U.S. population will be 55 or older. And the age wave spans the globe.

Lions International, working with other organizations that fight blindness, commemorated the first World Sight Day in 1998. Since then, it has been observed throughout the world on the second Thursday of each year; the World Health Organization and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness are the chief coordinating agencies at present. Communities and organizations have initiated activities to support the main goal: to focus global attention on blindness, visual impairment and rehabilitation of those with visual impairments. This year, the New York Public Library is working with partner agencies to join in this important work of raising awareness of 

I had heard a bit about Sharon Anyimi; but I didn't know much. I knew she visited Baychester Library in Co-Op City — a lot — and was always reading books with the help of the Closed-Captioned Television system (CCTV), also known as the video magnifier, located in the Library. I knew she was a "people person" with a friendly word for all. I decided to wend my way to the northeast Bronx and meet this intriguing library user for myself.

Something big has started in the Big Apple!

On July 1, 2011, the organization Coming of Age: NYC officially launched. Part of a national initiative and spearheaded by PSS (Presbyterian Senior Services), it brings together several leading innovative and diverse nonprofits to provide New Yorkers 50 years old and better with opportunities to connect and contribute to their communities.

Next Chapter.

NYPL is celebrating the Americans with Disabilities Act's 20th anniversary throughout 2010. One way we are getting the word out is via the Barrier-Free Library Facebook page. If you "FB," we invite you to take a look. But, though the current movie, The Social Network, tells us that more than 500 million people are users of Facebook, we realize there are many who opt out of that particular social network. So if you are one of those who don't subscribe to "the feed"—as some affectionately call it—we present to you here some B-FL FB highlights.

Choices...

I would choose to have only 70 degree days throughout the summer, and a light breeze wafting through the air, plus a New York City to live in just as it is—but with affordable rents in midtown. Wouldn’t you? Unfortunately, these aren't choices I can make. But there is a world of choices that we can make to make our lives better, and to make an informed choice we should hear from the experts first.

Draw from your experience: six NYPL branches will offer creative aging programs this fall. The programs consist of a minimum of eight 90-minute classes and each will end with a culminating celebration.

July 26, 1990: President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) on the South Lawn of the White House. Described as "the world's first comprehensive declaration of equality for people with disabilities," this legislation broke new ground, building upon earlier legislation such as the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

The New York Public Library acknowledges the 20th anniversary of this landmark law by hosting several events in July 2010.

Are you hearing the same mixed messages about the state of the economy that I am? Though some aspects seem to be getting better, other indications are not so bright... Whatever our age or stage in life, now more than ever we need to learn about personal finance.

Tom Deignan, writer of the weekly Sidewalks column in the Irish Voice and author of Irish Americans, spoke at the Mid-Manhattan, West New Brighton, and Riverdale libraries last month. The occasion was Immigrant Heritage Week, celebrated yearly in New York City and a great time to remember and honor our immigrant forebears. He has quite an encyclopedic knowledge of the topic of Irish America, and this time chose to present 20 of the books that he considers required reading for Irish Americans.

Forty years of Earth Days... and each year we are encouraged to do something green. How are you doing with that? I've made a few changes—am making fewer copies, reusing paper, recycling lots of stuff. And today I shall eschew plastic bottles: it's just that superb NYC tap water for me. 

April is the cruellest month.
—T.S. Eliot, opening of The Wasteland.
 
What do you associate with April? April showers? April in Paris?
 

To celebrate Women’s History Month last year, I wrote about some women from the past who made history by doing amazing things in later life. This year I’d like to take a look at some superwomen over 50 who are making history right now.
 
First, let’s look at some of the women who have won the Purpose Prize, a prize awarded to several individuals over 60 each year for making extraordinary contributions in their encore careers.  Note: these are just a few of a cadre of dozens of wonderful women, as well as magnificent men who have won the Prize!