Old and Smart: Women and the Adventure of Aging »

Betty Nickerson, now in her midseventies, knows that when it comes to aging, you just can't trust anyone under 60. In Old and Smart, her recipe for aging freely and joyfully, she erases forever the stereotype of the "little old lady" and replaces it with the truth - older women are dynamic, experienced, wise Age Mates, "pioneers who are free to create our own image, establish our own rules, decide what we wish to do, and do it." She speaks frankly about health, children, money, grief, spirituality, memory, fitness, the care and treatment of doctors, the adventure of sex, and much, much more - all with warmth, intelligence and plenty of well-placed chuckles.

Preface 9

Chapter 1 Don't Believe Anyone Under Sixty 19

Chapter 2 Someday I'll Find You 33

Chapter 3 Our Life 38

Our Alphabet of Time 65

Chapter 4 People with the Most Birthdays Live Longest 67

Chapter 5 The Way We Are 73

Affirmations of Maturity 88

Chapter 6 Getting Clear 89

Chapter 7 I'm Just a Housewife 99

Chapter 8 The Healing Mind 111

Chapter 9 The Care and Treatment of Doctors 137

Chapter 10 Good Medicine 158

Chapter 11 Walk to the Fountain of Youth 178

Chapter 12 Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread 184

Chapter 13 The Memory of 195

Chapter 14 The Adventure of Sex 206

Chapter 15 Loose Threads 227

Chapter 16 Ways and Means 249

100 Things To Do that Don't Cost Any Money 270

Chapter 17 Bridging Troubled Waters 272

Chapter 18 Go Softly Into That Bright Light 289

Chapter 19 Follow Your Bliss 305

Acknowledgments 315

Sources of Interest 317

Index 323