Star Holiday Guide

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As the year winds down and the city's holiday lights go up, it's easy to count my blessings. Turkey dinners come and go, as have old friendships. If I stopped to count birthday parties for seniors in their 90s versus funerals I've attended, then it's a wonderful year. There are 12 birthday parties in a calendar year. For every year, you can snub the grim reaper as a new medical breakthrough comes on the market.

I listened to one old-timer sitting in a power chair complain about the cost of medicine and his unhappiness with his HMO provider. He spoke of the provider offering so many variations of the same medical plan. He was concerned about the different costs for each group, even the deductible owed at the front desk at the time of treatment. He groaned about medical facilities replacing medical doctors with practical nurses to interface and evaluate patients, and more than a few coordinating their prognosis with someone else whom he never gets to see.

The Veterans Administration, as well as Kaiser Permanente, has undertaken this type of program. In most cases, I would think that this is good as each medical situation lends itself to a second set of eyes.

Still, when people are in pain, there is no logic that can reach out to them. One has to wonder if health providers are training personnel to branch off in another direction to reduce expenditures or to control their own costs.

Learn to clog

Haven't you always wanted to learn how to clog dance? Well, now you can for a fee of just $6 per class. The program begins Jan. 3 at Old Meadows Center Marview Drive, Thousand Oaks. It is an enjoyable exercise for all ages. No partners or special shoes are required. For more on this, call 497-2119.

Newsletters now available

The Moorpark Active Adult Center is soliciting the names and addresses of seniors who would like to receive its monthly newsletter by e-mail. If you are online, be sure to provide your e-mail address, and it will save a lot of postage.

Retired teacher waxes poetic

Inella M. Hoggan of Simi Valley retired from teaching a few years back but remains active with various projects. Hoggan goes out of her way to work with individuals who have disabilities. A gifted speaker, trained by Toastmasters, Hoggan uses an economy of words to express her message. She dedicates both her time and effort to making a difference in peoples' lives.

I asked her recently if I could place her poem in the senior column.

"Christmas"... "Once again it's Christmas, and as we think of what that means, the world prepares to usher in, the joys the season brings. Our homes reflect the beauty as we decorate with pride, the boxes that were stored away, are once again inside. We trim a tree, and love to see our treasures once again, that we have collected through the years, from family and our friends. The lovely tunes of Christmas, ringing in our ears. They may be old but ever new, enjoyed throughout the years. Our hearts are feeling mellow, as we think of what to give, remembering he who gave so much, who died that we might live." — Inella Hoggan

— Star columnist David Nankivell may be reached by e-mail at calendar@VenturaCountyStar.com.