It’s an ever-challenging battle to keep up – especially if you’re older.
To some of my younger friends (and some relatives) who make it ever so clear that I am not quite with it, and remind me that things have changed, I want to say, “I hope so – otherwise what have you been doing all these years?”
It wasn’t bad enough that some of the words I grew up with have evolved from one meaning to another, but we’ve taken perfectly good symbols that had a meaning all their own and given them a name and an entirely different meaning. The hash mark symbol # always meant a pound (if in a recipe) or “number” if preceding a street number, for example: One # of sugar or #2 Downing Street. Also in military jargon, hash marks were used to denote rank.
I have researched all this and the term that is used for putting a number sign to the left of a word that’s important is “hash tag” – not hash mark.
Did you know that symbol is also called “octothorpe” – a long way from the old number sign of my third-grade arithmetic class. I bet today’s third-graders already know this. I am always amazed at how intelligent today’s little kids are, but I do get a little uneasy when I see an 18- month-old child pretend-texting on one of those little hand-held machines. Give that child a box of crayons and some paper.
Speaking of “keeping up,” make sure you keep up with the new driving laws, new rules of the road, and to make sure you do, consider the AARP Smart Driver course, to be presented on Friday, July 17, from 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m., at the AARP State office, 53 Baxter Blvd., Portland.
Advance registration by July 13 is requested as class size is limited. To register, phone John Hammon, volunteer instructor, at 655-4943. The registration fee is $15 for AARP members, $20 for others.
This four-hour refresher course is for experienced drivers 50 years of age and older. Topics include safe driving strategies, defensive driving techniques, new traffic laws and rules of the road. The class helps drivers adjust to age-related changes in vision, hearing and reaction time. Drivers in Maine 55 years of age and older are entitled to discounts on their insurance premiums for three years after taking or re-taking this course.
Additional classes at this location in Portland will be presented on Aug. 14 and Sept. 25. More information, including dates and locations of other classes, can be found at www.DriverSafetyME.weebly.com.
Kay Soldier welcomes reader ideas for column topics of interest to seniors. She can be reached by email at kso48@aol.com, or write to 114 Tandberg Trail, Windham, ME 04062.
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