Opinion

 

Recent studies have raised our awareness that sitting for long periods can be hazardous to our health. At the same time, more and more leisure and work activities involve sitting. Some experts recommend converting our desks to sit-to-stand workstations as a means to a healthier future. But for financial or other reasons, not all of us can make this change. Are we doomed? Perhaps not.

When I chose to retire a few years back, many of my friends smiled skeptically and told me it wouldn’t last long. I shrugged off those doubters; after all, there were plenty of things to keep me busy. But you know, I really couldn’t stay away. I tried relief work, filling in for colleagues who wanted a day off. And, of course, I kept writing this column and doing some radio work here and there.

Something I get asked a lot is “How did you start writing a newspaper column?” Or, “Do you ever run out of stuff to write about?”

Q: “We have been trying to buy a house for more than a year and all we can find are short sales. We have made offers on two, which have both failed. Our agent doesn’t want to show us any more short sales, but in our price range that’s all we seem to find. How can we make an offer and ultimately purchase a home successfully?”

Two women put themselves in a precarious position at 2 a.m.

Among other common lies, we have the silent lie – the deception which one conveys by simply keeping still and concealing the truth. Many obstinate truth-mongers indulge in this dissipation, imagining that if they speak no lie, they lie not at all.”