The Aging project
“Running Out of time”
Technical notes
These technical notes are for old people like myself not as well adapted to digits as their kids, or grandkids. You may have noticed, it’s a digital world out there and we analog people, those of us over say, 65 or 70 years, have had to adapt. “Running” is not a print book, at least not yet. This one is alive. I’ve published it as an Apple iBook (similar to an Amazon Kindle book). Turn up the volume when you “read” it. It’s free and best viewed on any size Apple iPad. However, it can also be enjoyed on your iPhone or any computer, Mac or PC.
Note: You will need to install the free Apple iBooks app to play this. If you own an Apple computer or iPad or iPhone you already have this app installed on your device! And if you don’t have it, not to worry, just download it.
Once you’ve installed iBooks on your device, click on the icon to open it. You’ll be in the Apple iBooks Bookstore. Search with the little magnifying glass icon for the title, “ Running Out Of Time.” or my name, “Jan Armor” in the library.
You can read the book in either vertical or horizontal format.
Pinch and open your fingers to enlarge the copy or pictures.
On an iPad, anytime you are in the book, tap (on the very top of any page to reveal the navigation bar. (Or just move your mouse to the top of the screen if you are using a computer.)
On an iPad, from left to right, notice three icons top left. The first is a left pointer to leave the book and go back to either the Apple bookstore or your own library of Apple books. The second icon is three horizontal lines. Tap on it to show the table of contents, all the pages in the iBook. They magically appear at the bottom of the screen. Tap or click on any one of the icons to go to a page. The third icon, two squares, one on top of the other, is for adding your own notes as you peruse the iBook.
There are three more icons on the right side of the navigation bar on an iPad. The first is a little sun icon to brighten or darken your screen. The magnifying glass is for searching for any word in the iBook. The final icon is to place a book mark as you read through the work. With a little practice you’ll find this interface works very well.
(The icons are slightly different if you are reading this iBook on an iPhone or a computer instead.)
I’ve embedded many short movies. Turn up the sound. Hit “escape” or X to return to the book after you’ve played them.
I’ve also posted the introductory movie, “Running Out Of Time,” on YouTube as a separate piece. https://youtu.be/XgiAvRlRQ2M
Finally, I’ve created a PDF version of the work if you don’t have an iPad or iPhone. Unfortunately, the embedded movies don’t work a with a PDF. http://www.armorphoto.com/aging1
I’d love to hear your comments on “Running Out Of Time.” Email me: janthephotoman@gmail.com or 401-441-5517.
Again, “Thank you, old” friends. You made this iBook possible.
Jan Armor
Samples from the book below…
We’re not ready to fully embrace aging as a final chapter in life.
Yve Hines, 86 years old, on transitions.
My "aging" began at age 83 as I phased out of a gratifying 50 year career as a New Hampshire real estate broker. A stage of life had come to an end. It was time to "move on"... I moved to Rhode Island, leaving friends, neighbors and relatives.I had not envisioned the daunting necessities of singly rebuilding my life in a new state: creating a new home, all medical support, banks, insurances, auto and voter registration, shopping, personal services, change of address, new phone number, new acquaintances and friends, etc......not easy when one is 84, and always having lived within 10 miles from where I was born.
I've had a good life with few regrets, a long loving marriage to a man who adored me, and very proud of my daughters, grandson, and step children. Here I am at 86........with little to do and all the time to do it.......leisurely read, paint, journal, gather and pass on family history and photos, adult education and exercise classes, assist those less mobile than I am........... ready to welcome whatever comes my way.
Marjorie Burston’s family history
“I volunteered to sit for your project because, aside from passport and drivers license photos, the only other photo I had of myself was when I was engaged at age 20.”
AS I GROW OLD…I don’t really consider myself old yet, but next year, when I turn 80, I’ll let myself use that as an excuse for all the things I forget. My most noticeable change has been how slow I have become. I used to start my day with a list of at least ten things to do but now if I get through four of them – and that includes laundry! – I feel as if I have accomplished something. Medical issues have interfered too, but some of them are my own fault, like falling off a stepladder and breaking bones just because I wasn’t being careful. The worst thing about aging, though, is losing friends. Several of my best friends died just last year and I still think of them all the time. And, finally, I am very aware of all the experiences I want to have before I die: places to go, stories to write, books to read, artistic endeavors that still reside in my head but haven’t been implemented yet, and how reluctant I am to admit that they may never happen.
One project I continue to work on is a little family history. My grandparents left England to establish a sheep station in Australia in 1880, and they sent my father to this country to go to university in 1912. He saved every letter his family members wrote him right up until he died in the 1970’s, and their contents reflect a very interesting cultural and social history of Brisbane’s development during those years. The Queensland state library wants to archive these handwritten letters (there are about a thousand of them!) and I’m hoping to take them to Australia later this year. So I am attempting to compile this information into a format that remaining family members might be interested in preserving. - Marjorie Burston
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly.
What is essential is invisible to the eye.”
(The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint- Exupéry)
Sandy teaches Voice.
Sandy & Pipen singing a duet together.
THOUGHTS ON AGING, Well now . . . we’re all aging so I guess we’re in good company! I’ve been told that at my birth my mother voiced two requests – that I would have curly hair and that I could sing. And I have sung – mightily – for 8 decades! What’s more, I’ve been fortunate in teaching others the joy of singing for sixty years or so. In working with my older singers, whether in choirs or private voice lessons, I’ve noticed that age doesn’t matter much. The mystery of the human voice, as it accompanies us throughout our journey, is such that we can take pleasure in creating the melody and telling the story. What’s more – at 15 or 50 or 85 – we can give the gift of song to others – erase the worries of their day – and lift their spirits. Even my dog Pippin loves to sing! His aging voice can carry the high notes – “somewhere over the rainbow – way up high.” Sandra Chabot Landay, January 5, 2019
Marylen, age 71, “Aging: The question is do we follow the words of Dylan Thomas, “Do not go gentle into that good night” or graciously accept it and its inevitable end. Aging is filled with choices, challenges and a cacophony of emotions. There is no clear path or magical answer. Just a day by day decision on we are going to live that day.
"Aging is inevitable, growing old is avoidable. Expressed differently, one is never too young to be old or ever die, but one is never so aged as to become old. This is because aging is physical, while being old is mental and spiritual. In my experience one does not grow old if five force fields stay active in daily consciousness: love, health, play, work, and caring for the future." ~ Richard Falk
83 is a prime number
Mary Keane, 83 years old. Her daughter says she’s a prime number.
Avis & Anita
Ken sliney, gourmet chef and accomplished photographer,
Helping others is a key in helping me to not think I’m old. I feel like there is a purpose to my life. This means a lot to me in my life. Friends and loved ones will keep you young in spite of yourself and knowing you may have made a difference to someone is a good feeling. Ken Sliney
the clock is alway ticking
“The Patriots have been writing this wonderful (winning) football story for nearly two decades but for how much longer? Can we agree that it’s now in its final act. This year, next year, but sometime in the near future, it’s coming… Time is the enemy no-one beats, the opponent that never loses, the opponent that just now lies and waits. And the opponent that knows the clock is alway ticking.” Bill Reynolds, Providence Journal sports writer, 12/15/2018