Five books to help make life a little easier as you age:

I feel great about my hands: and other unexpected joys of aging by edited by Shari Graydon

AARP guide to revitalizing your home: beautiful living for the second half of life: reimagine, redesign, remodel by Rosemary Bakker

The social animal: the hidden sources of love, character, and achievement by David Brooks

Canton Seniors Book Discussion group will meet on Wednesday, September 28 from 2:00-3:00 PM in Canton Public Library's Group Study Room A. This month's reading selection is:

Water for Elephants: a novel by Sara Gruen — Surprising, poignant, and funny, Water for Elephants is that rare novel with a story so engrossing, one is reluctant to put it down; with characters so engaging, they continue to live long after the last page has been turned; with a world built of wonder, a world so real, one starts to breathe its air.

Copies of Water for Elephants will be available to pick up beginning Wednesday, August 24.

Canton resident Roger Myers, CEO and President of Presbyterian Villages of Michigan, will share critical information for seniors and their caregivers as they transition to new stages in their lives. Join him at 2:00-3:00PM on May 20 to learn about the best options available, and to benefit from his expertise on this timely topic. No registration is required.

Thousands of Medicare beneficiaries will receive an invitation in May to be part of a special study looking at the impact of age-related changes on functional ability. The National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) will be seeking some 9,000 people aged 65 and older to participate in this long-term study, funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health. NHATS will examine how the daily lives of older adults change as they age. Participants will be randomly chosen from across the country.

Do you love to paint, sculpt, write, carve, dance, bead, play an instrument, sing, embroider, metalwork, or anything in between?

The Institute of Gerontology (IOG) at Wayne State University wants to showcase the creativity of Michigan’s older adults (55 or older) at the Twelfth Annual Art of Aging Successfully to be held on March 24, 2011. For an entry form click here or for more information contact: Donna MacDonald — Institute of Gerontology — Wayne State University — 87 East Ferry, Detroit, MI 48202. Phone: (313) 577-2297 or Email: ba8841@wayne.edu

[Logo: Wayne State University/Institute of Gerontology. 2010]

Canton Supervisor Phil LaJoy is hosting a Senior Summit on Monday, September 13, at  Summit on the Park, from 9:00AM-2:00PM. Supervisor Phil LaJoy began this event when he was serving as a State Representative, and is now continuing it for Canton seniors.

The Senior Summit will feature a wide array of informational booths and presentations geared toward today’s senior. Also included are door prizes, a continental breakfast, lunch, bingo and a shredding truck. The event is free, however registration is required. To register, please call Canton Towhship offices at (734) 394-5185.

The Administration on Aging (AoA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently published A Profile of Older Americans: 2009. The annual Profile of Older Americans was originally developed and researched by Donald G. Fowles, AoA. Saadia Greenberg, AoA, developed the 2009 edition Just a few highlights from this report:

• The older population (65+) numbered 38.9 million in 2008, an increase of 4.5 million or 13.0% since 1998
• The number of Americans aged 45-64 – who will reach 65 over the next two decades – increased by 31% during this decade
• Over one in every eight, or 12.8%, of the population is an older American
• Persons reaching age 65 have an average life expectancy of an additional 18.6 years (19.8 years for females and 17.1 years for males)

A recently released study conducted by the Pew Research Center revealed getting old isn't as bad as we think it is, nor is it all it's cracked up to be... Perhaps not surprising is the "... sizable gap between the expectations that young and middle-aged adults have about old age and the actual experiences reported by older Americans themselves."

What's your real age?  Everyone knows our lifestyle has a tremendous impact on our health and well-being.  Did you know the wrong choices can actually age you prematurely?   Michael F. Roizen, M.D. developed the Real Age test to learn the effects your diet , activities, and heredity have on you.