Paul - I Wanna Hold Your Hand

Well, the last minute plans are in place for the Paul McCartney concert tomorrow. There are colleagues from work heading down today and making a full weekend of it but...in this household the plan is to leave by 11 a.m. tomorrow at the latest as the gate opens at 3 p.m. enjoy the concert to the fullest, crash at daughter # 2s then head back Sunday morning, perhaps taking in the Luneburg Craft Show. The plan B is that if mister doesn't arrive back from the wharf by 10:30 a.m. to get ready I call the friend conducting the fitness class who says she can be ready to go by 11 and we'll be off. And yes, he has agreed to these terms. So we shall see...

I think he realized I was serious when I told him about the following New England Journal of Medicine online posting and he just rolled his eyes:

Marital Status at Midlife May Signal Later Dementia Risk
Living with a partner at midlife is associated with a lower risk for dementia in later life, according to a BMJ study.

Researchers examined a cohort of some 1500 Finns at midlife — at average age 50 — and then again about 20 years later. Baseline measurements included the participants' marital status: married or cohabiting; separated or divorced; single; and widowed. Marital status was determined again at follow-up.

Participants with the greatest risk for dementia were carriers of the apolipoprotein E e4 allele who were widowed or divorced both at midlife and again at follow-up. Also at risk were those living without a partner at midlife.

The weather forecast is for sun so we won't need the rain gear used for the Rolling Stones or The Eagles concerts at least. My niece sent a FaceBook message saying I was too old to be going to all these concerts but she's missing the point that the entertainers are older than me! I'll be sure to update you by Sunday on the details.

We spent a nice evening visiting friends down from the city and staying at the family cottage on a local lake. Hadn't been there for years and it certainly had been developed. Reviewed photos of weddings and grandbaby of another visiting couple, the trip to England of the hosts and shared our Norway cruise album so we all traveled vicariously. Just think - last year this date we were flying to Iceland to begin our Grand Princess adventure and my premiere as cruise ship speaker. The only regret of the evening was that the grandfather had brought their New Zealand trip photos on a flashstick saying "everyone travels with a laptop now" and so we didn't get to see those as a cottage is just that - a cottage. Well, the shore captain's other regret was that we didn't get home until almost 11 p.m. and he had to get up at 4:30 a.m. to unload a boat.

And speaking of travel, if the workweek wasn't enough just to torture me 'my agent' sent along this message as I was having trouble wading through the latest H1N1 updates, statistics and various other :

Splendour of the Seas
7 nights

Sept. 19 - Sept. 26 Greek Isles
Oct. 17 - Oct. 24 Greek Isles
Venice, Italy 5:00 PM
Split, Croatia 7:00 AM 3:00 PM Tendered
Corfu, Greece 7:00 AM 3:00 PM Docked
Piraeus (Athens), Greece 12:00 PM 8:00 PM Docked
Mykonos, Greece 7:00 AM 6:00 PM Docked
Katakolon, Greece 8:00 AM 6:00 PM Docked
Cruising
Venice, Italy 6:45 AM

Oct. 24 - Oct. 31 Greek Isles & Turkey
Nov. 7 - Nov. 14 Greek Isles & Turkey
Venice, Italy 5:00 PM
Dubrovnik, Croatia 10:00 AM 6:00 PM Docked
Cruising
Kusadasi (Ephesus), Turkey 8:00 AM 6:00 PM Docked
Santorini, Greece 7:00 AM 5:00 PM Tendered
Corfu, Greece 12:30 PM 8:00 PM Docked
Cruising
Venice, Italy 6:45 AM

Ah, one of these years, I'll be concerned about how many Air Miles I have not whether I'll be giving three sets of flu shots to staff (and lest you think this is a minor issue let me clarify - I can't keep up with one set annually).

Well, actually I can't even keep up with my reading as I had to negotiate with the librarian to give me an August 26th return date on the book I requested and was picking up today (The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski) as I'd already found one (How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman M.D.) when at the district facility on Wednesday.

And although both sets of summer neighbours have arrived (the first 10 days ago) I have yet to connect for a visit. Need to straighten out my priorities here I think.

And finally so you won't be "so last year" and will know the latest terms here is an article about the new words being entered into the dictionary:

SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts -
Do you use a sock puppet to secretly keep track of your frenemies?

Plan to spend your staycation watching vlogs and webisodes? Or perhaps you plan to signal a flash mob for a quick bite of shawarma.

If you're not entirely certain what all that means, turn to the latest edition of the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, which has added about 100 new words that largely reflect changing trends in American society.

John Morse, president and publisher of the Springfield-based dictionary publisher, said many of this year's new words are tied to changes in technology, increasing environmental awareness and aging baby boomers' concerns about their health and have become part of the general lexicon.

"These are not new words in the language, by any means," Morse said. "(But) when words like 'neuroprotective' and 'cardioprotective' show up in the Collegiate, it's because we've made the judgment that these are not just words used by specialists. ... These really are words now likely to show up in The New York Times, in The Wall Street Journal."

There are words such as locavore (one who eats foods grown locally), frenemy (someone who acts like a friend but is really an enemy), waterboarding (an interrogation technique use to induce the sensation of drowning), vlogs (a blog that contains video material) and webisode (a TV show that can be viewed at a Web site).

There's also flash mob (a group of people summoned electronically to a designated spot at a specified time to perform an indicated action before dispersing) and green-collar (involving actions for protecting the natural environment).

Some words that just now made the cut have been around for generations. The term "sock puppet" - a false online identity used for deceptive purposes - was tracked to 1959 but has taken on new popular use with people using fake IDs on social networking sites.

Many words have cross-cultural roots, including shawarma (a sandwich especially of sliced lamb or chicken, vegetables, and often tahini wrapped in pita bread) and reggaeton (music of Puerto Rican origin that combines rap and Caribbean rhythms).

Once words like these become so common that they regularly pop up in conversations and published articles, Morse said they pass muster for being included in the dictionary.

Some words, such as "staycation," have become so popular the dictionary could not ignore them, Morse said. Staycation refers to staying home for vacation and has gained popularity as the economy worsens.

But Morse said some words face years in limbo as wordsmiths wait to see if they are just fads.

Dave Wilton, author of "Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends," said it's difficult to draw conclusions about trends in society with just a handful of new words.

"It's also an editorial decision and reflects what the (dictionary) editors deemed important that year," Wilton said. "Most of these words have been around for a while but for some reason they grabbed the attention of editors this time."

Researchers often keep track of words over many years. One to watch: prepone.

The word is commonly used in India among English-speaking Indians and refers to the act of arranging for an event to take place earlier than originally planned - the opposite of postpone.

"Prepone didn't make it this time," Morse said. "But we know about it." - On the Net: Dictionary: http://www.Merriam-Webster.com