Magazine Posts

Adult children of aging parents are facing the harsh realities of long-term care, and the financial and emotional toll it takes on them. Many people don't realize how expensive caregiving and long term care can be, as they are forced to dip into their own savings or retirement funds to cover the costs. They emphasize the need for better resources and support for those facing this situation. They also urge people to plan ahead for the financial costs of caregiving, and to talk to their parents about their wishes for long-term care. More at KFF Health News ➜

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Where do comet tails come from? There are no obvious places on the nuclei of comets from which the jets that create comet tails emanate. In 2016, though, ESA's Rosetta spacecraft not only imaged a jet emerging from Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, but flew right through it. Featured is a telling picture showing a bright plume emerging from a small circular dip bounded on one side by a 10-meter high wall. Analyses of Rosetta data show that the jet was composed of both dust and water-ice. The rugged but otherwise unremarkable terrain indicates that something likely happened far under the porous surface to create the plume. This image was taken about two months before Rosetta's mission ended with a controlled impact onto Comet 67P's surface.

The sweetness
in your eyes,
helps me understand
and to realize,

the kindness of a smile,
a very pleasant surprise,
finding your inner beauty,
a Win a first prize.

For naught
the bell will toll,
as daylight falls,
and emotions boil.

Why do you worry so?
"It's just a life",
is what you said.
But "it's my wife",

and what you say
about the uncertainties now
are irresponsible to me
for I have made her a vow,

to love honor and obey,
in sickness and in health,
matters not about what.
Life is not about wealth.

A tormented mind
is what I see,
not for her but
the old fool me.

The fire drew dim,
when the embers cooled.
So true in life,
it pays to not be fooled.

As in life, we must,
stoke life's fires,
as a day draws out,
a small flame becomes a pyre.

Life's fires spring forth,
almost every day.
Put them out quickly,
to avoid a phased array.

There are times,
quite a few,
when I realize why,
I write like I do.

My interest in people,
knowing quite a few,
inspires me to write,
so it's what I do.

A vision of smiles
and eyes of blue
or brown are also
lovely too.

If I see you naught,
it's ok with me.
You promised
through thick and thin,
to stay by me.
I was dropped
like a hot potato.
Over a year has gone by,
without an explanation.
I won't cry about your
melodramatics.

What life will bring,
death will take away.
Matters not the strength present,
just a realization life will not stay.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Immersed in an eerie greenish light, this rugged little planet appears to be home to stunning water falls and an impossibly tall mountain. It's planet Earth of course. On the night of November 9 the nadir-centered 360 degree mosaic was captured by digital camera from the Kirkjufell mountain area of western Iceland. Curtains of shimmering Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights provide the pale greenish illumination. The intense auroral display was caused by solar activity that rocked Earth's magnetosphere in early November and produced strong geomagnetic storms. Kirkjufell mountain itself stands at the top of the stereographic projection's circular horizon. Northern hemisphere skygazers will recognize the familiar stars of the Big Dipper just above Kirkjufell's peak. At lower right the compact Pleiades star cluster and truly giant planet Jupiter also shine in this little planet's night sky.

Photo by Victor Lima