Tony's Blog

CNN reports: The January 12 earthquake killed at least 150,000 people. Some estimates go as high as 200,000. Some 194,000 people were injured. The United Nations said Tuesday that a million Haitians are in urgent need of temporary shelter before the rainy season begins in May.

How can you help? How about a dontaion to Hope for Haiti Now?

From its website: 100 percent of all donations raised from the public will go directly to relief organizations on the ground in Haiti. No administrative costs or other program expenses are charged by "Hope for Haiti Now."

To donate, click here.

Baby boomers love southern California, and the majority of boomers are married and working.

A U.S. Census Bureau report reveals a lot of interesting boomer details, including education level, and the five states boomers like most. Take a look at USA Today's breakdown of the data.

"We're committed to helping re-train baby boomers to find jobs in an economy that is shedding traditional manufacturing jobs," said Pastor Howard B.M. Fauntroy, III.

Pastor Fauntroy heads the one thousand member First Baptist Instututional Church in Detroit, a city that's seen it's share of economic hardship. A downsizing Big Three, decreasing property values, and a increase in unemployment and home foreclosures place the city at the bull's eye of the recession.

This month, the church is offering free computer skills classes to baby boomers, aged 45 to 63, teaching the basic skills necessary for new economy jobs in health care, entrepreneurship, government, non-profit and emerging technologies.

Boomers interested in signing up for classes can contact the church at (313) 838-0166 or by email at melfaun@yahoo.com.

An increasing amount of baby boomers are teaming up with their dogs and heading off to the races. The sport is called Flyball, a relay-type race where two teams of four dogs compete by running a 51 foot course, jumping hurdles along the way. At the end of the first leg of the course, the dogs trigger a "flyball" box. That releases a ball, which the dogs then carry back in their mouths, jumping the hurdles all over again. The first team of four dogs to cross the finish line wins.

Linda Sell, a 51-year-old Michigan baby boomer who participates in Flyball with her dogs Dylan, Rory and Wylee, said for boomers whose children have moved out of the house "dogs can become surrogate children." Ms. Sell also said, "Flyball helps boomers connect with other boomers, share an activity, travel and make friendships."

From the North American Flyball Association's website:
Flyball got its start in the late 1960's and early 1970's, when a group of dog trainers in Southern California created scent discrimination hurdle racing, then put a guy at the end to throw tennis balls to the dogs when they finished the jump line. It didn't take long for the group to decide to build some sort of tennis ball-launching apparatus, and the first flyball box was born. Herbert Wagner is credited with developing the first flyball box, and apparently he did a flyball demo on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson that got a lot of people’s attention. Subsequently, the new dog sport for dog enthusiasts was introduced in the Toronto-Detroit area by several dog training clubs. After a few small tournaments were held in conjunction with dog shows, the first ever flyball tournament was held in 1983.

For information on Flyball tournaments and clubs in your area, click here.

I remember Sr. Claire sternly reciting that mantra when I was in 3rd grade at St. Philip Neri in the Bronx. "Walk, don't run," she'd say formidably, as twenty little 8-year-olds scurried up and down the hall to the bathroom or cafeteria.

Well, maybe Sr. Claire was ahead of her time. In "BoomerWalk!: Why Baby Boomers Should Replace Running and Jogging with Racewalking," (2009) Brent Bohlen gives the country's 76 million baby boomers a highly aerobic but low impact option to running and jogging.

From Amazon.com's editorial review: "Racewalking, a technique that can be learned quickly but that may be perfected for a lifetime, is the ideal joint-friendly exercise for fitness and vigor into old age. The sport even offers competition for those who want it. BoomerWalk identifies the benefits of racewalking, describes the fundamentals of technique and includes detailed photos of baby boomer athletes exhibiting proper form. Profiles of 14 racewalkers with ages ranging from middle 50s to early 90s illustrate the life-long benefits of the sport."

The book sells for $15.95 on amazon.com.