RAF411: AARP - Is It Worth It?

Have you heard the hype about plant-based diets? I'm not sure when the word vegetarian went out of style. But now it's plant-based, so I guess I'd better get used to it. There are a number of reasons people go to a plant-based diet. But I think what's on all our minds is the health benefits. Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/412 Photo by Polina Tankilevitch: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-red-pepper-beside-pickles-3872406/  

Well, I recently got an email from my employer about a discount membership to AARP, the American Association of Retired Persons. It's actually just AARP now. About a third of their members are not actually retired. We get employee discounts on a lot of things, and I get these emails on a regular basis. By the way, I've also been getting AARP invitations in the mail for years, probably since I turned 50. Although there is no minimum age for membership, they are "Dedicated to people over 50." Well I was offered a 43% discount, along with a free trunk organizer and a $10 Starbucks gift card. Wow! Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/411 Photo by cottonbro studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-couple-with-happy-faces-7224933/  

We have spent hundreds of episodes on exercise, healthy food and dieting, various medical issues, and longevity. These are parts of my goal: long, healthy, happy,and  active. But I'm not sure we've ever done an episode about the happy part. If we have, I'm sure I can count them on the fingers of one hand. But that's what we're doing this week. Read the full post: http://RunningAFEVER.com/410  

Well, this is my triumphant return to Hobbs State Park in Arkansas. It's an Arkansas state park. I've just been to the visitor's center, which has changed quite a bit, I think, since the last time I was there. The only thing I remember about the last time is that I made a YouTube video during my last visit. It was probably six or seven years ago. I don't know the episode number, but I'm guessing it's in the 100 to 150 range. So check that out if you like. The last time I was here, the only thing I remember about the visitor's center is them having skins of dead animals stretched out and you had to guess, there was a game of guessing which skin belonged to which animal. So that was interesting. But this time, there are quite a lot of big museum-style displays. With various animals and plants, and some implements of things from the past, like the railroad, and native Americans and farming, I guess you'd say. There's whatever the thing you strap oxen to to pull something.  Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/409  

Well, gotta be careful here because this is the entrance, the trail head said Benefield Trails, which I assume they are talking about as the north and south loop of the trail. And it said Bear Hollow trail as well. I gotta watch for the signs. Speaking of which, it took me quite a while to find this place. I thought it should be about the same distance from the Greenfield trail as the Greenfield trail is from my cabin. It turns out it was, and I wound up going way down the mountain before I turned around. There are not many places to turn around, as you can imagine. And there's a sign going down toward the picnic area on the right side, which is what I was driving on, that tells you where it is. But the glare was so much at that point from the sun on my windshield (which I need to clean on the inside) that I couldn't see it. And then, coming back the other way, the same sign was all they had; it was on the left side. And I missed it the first time around. Anyway, there was an overlook. I just happened to slow down at the overlook and saw the sign that said Benefield Trail, which is on the other side of the highway. So these trails, the Benefield trails, cross the highway four times, and I'm pretty sure there won't be any crosswalks or lights or anything. Not that you can really go super fast, but if you go fast enough to hit somebody... Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/408  

Now you can see we are on the Turkey Springs trail at Mt. Magazine State Park in Arkansas. .3 miles. Level of difficulty not specified. So we'll see how it goes. This is supposed to be an old wagon road, as described. It does look a little wider than the Greenfield trail we did yesterday. And folks, it is cold out here. You can't tell, we've got the sun shining there. It is cold. Now, down in Paris, which is the nearest town, still about 20 miles away or something, it is 51 degrees. Up here on Mt. Magazine -- 37 degrees today. Not the coldest weather I've been walking in, but it's pretty cold. I don't know what the wind chill is, but the real feel down in Paris is 40 degrees, so I know it's colder up here, certainly, because of the wind.   http://RunningAFEVER.com/407  

It is about 7:30 in the morning here on November 19, 2024. It's 51 degrees, really lovely. A clear day, you can see the sun over there in case you want to get blinded. And we're on the Greenfield trail at Mt. Magazine, which is very wet. I'm starting my second full day here. They wouldn't let me check in the first night until 4 pm. And by that time, the place was covered in fog. You could not see very much in front of you. It was kind of like the last time I was here. Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/406  

There is a windstorm outside. I wasn't planning to go out today because rain was forecast. It rained last night. It was raining when I came in, and it rained a lot harder during the night. And this windstorm developed. It's very windy out there. I've got some video I'll show you of some trees and how they move in the wind. It's actually a lot worse than what it looks like. The wind was literally howling all night long. I got up this morning, and it was still going strong. Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/405  

The world is fascinated with long life. Perhaps because we wonder what we would do, individually, if we had an abundance of time, the world's most valuable resource. It's fun to think about it. And so the world is fascinated by Jeanne Calment, the human with the longest documented lifespan, 122 years, 164 days. In Episode 170 I gave an overview of her life and some details about her healthy and unhealthy habits in a 30-minute show. Now I will provide a broader review of her life with more detail. Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/404  

Jeanne Calment, if you don't already know, is the person who lived the longest according to documented evidence. She lived to be 122. Some of you may be intrigued by the title of this episode. Jeanne Calment died on  August 4, 1997. What is there to update? As it turns out, quite a lot. My first episode on Jeanne was published on July 26, 2019. I  recorded it on an early morning walk, as I often do for the show. So it wasn't completely about Jeanne, and it was 28 minutes long. Not long ago, I noticed that that episode was by far the most popular video on my YouTube channel, which you can find at http://YouTube.com/@RunningAFEVER Read the full post at http://RunningAFEVER.com/403