By Ursula Maxwell-Lewis

It was quite a celebration for England’s Queen Elizabeth II, who turned 83 on April 21.

News clips showed about 70 horses were turned loose in her honour (instead of putting flamingos in her castle yard).

The country and many parts of the world took the time to honour their much loved and respected monarch. She continues to be a living icon in an era of political uncertainty.

Join in the celebration of her life by attending a High Tea on Saturday, June 9 at the Langley Seniors Centre, located at 20605 51B Avenue. Shirley McWilliam, formerly of the Chocolate Cottage, will be your hostess for the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

Tickets are now on sale and there are two settings from which to choose – Noon and 2 PM.

For more information call the seniors centre at 604.530.3020.

The first week in June also marks Seniors Week. Check with your local seniors centre to see what activities are planned in your community. Make sure to get out and enjoy the fun.

***

The May long weekend is usually recognized as the start of the summer season and lots of people hit the road to go camping (if the weather cooperates) and participate in many other activities.

High on the list of things to do that weekend is the annual Cloverdale Rodeo and Country Fair.

The world’s top cowboys and cowgirls will compete in a unique invitational rodeo format that ensures the sport’s premier athletes are showcased throughout the five performances, two on the Saturday and Sunday, and the Monday afternoon finals.

But the weekend is much more than the rodeo with the parade, carnival, musical entertainment, kids zone, and agricultural fair. This year will be the first annual Cloverdale Cowboy Cook Off, the World Freestyle Round-up for top pro and amateur freestyle skateboards, a classic car show, lumberjack show and Monster Truck rides. Tickets are on sale now.

***

April was volunteer appreciation month and some people are curious about what you do to volunteer. For those of you who like to make your opinion known in surveys, there is a useful one being done now on volunteer activity. They are collecting data at www.canadian-universities.net/volunteer.

***

On Sunday, May 27 you can run, jog, walk for water.

Abbotsford’s 5th annual premier running event is now a qualifying race for the famed Boston Marathon, but it is still a family friendly five km outing as well. The Run for Water now accommodates participants of all ages and abilities with great post race activities.

The fund-raising event helps tackle poverty and improve health in places like southern Ethiopia. One in six people do not have access to safe drinking water and water is one of the most significant global concerns today. For details about the event and how to donate, check www.runforwater.ca.

Creative Living

by Roxanne Griese

Re-purposing household items… Oh what to do with those old placemats, drapery panels, paper towel holders, cheese and salt shakers? They were a must have years ago; do not discard them just yet. I may have a plan to repurpose old items, giving them a refreshing new function.

Going through my collection of placemats yielded a variety of unused and incomplete sets. Placemats tend to be durable and easy to clean, that is why I started using them as cupboard and drawer liners in bathrooms, the kitchen and laundry room. They are so easy, just lay matching mats evenly spaced in your cabinets, I used two for the large under sink cabinets; it adds a touch of the unexpected. Not to mention, the easy installation, no more difficult shelf liners.

When changing your kitchen decor, keep items like free standing paper towel holders; they will hold up to 3 rolls of toilet paper. Kept under a bathroom vanity it keeps extra rolls stacked neatly.

Cheese shakers or sugar dispensers add charm to a bathroom. Fill the shakers with bath salts, bubble bath, shampoo and conditioner. Grouping the shakers together on the bathtub or counter adds character and originality.

Unused drapery panels make a excellent decorative alternative for showers curtains, move the shower rod closer to the ceiling for a more dramatic effect. Remember to use a shower liner.

Quick Tips: For smaller cabinets, trim vinyl placemats with a ruler and scissors. Cloth placemats can be trimmed and hemmed; a tremendous time saver is iron on hem tape.

“Cheese shakers or sugar

dispensers add charm to a

bathroom. Fill the shakers

with bath salts, bubble bath

shampoo and conditioner.”

Roxanne Griese is an Artist; Design and organizing are her passions, to see more articles and artwork visit, www.artbyroxanne.ca

by Keith Richardson

“Spring has sprung, the grass has riz, we wonder where them MacBooks is!” Writing in mid-April, still no sign of the “new MacBookPro” we’ve been dreaming of. By now, it may be available. Retailers have been reporting difficulty reordering existing models.

Seen the new iPad? While it’s attractive and quick, we applaud you if you decided to save $100 and purchase the iPad2. Whether you bought a ‘Pad from Apple, or an Android tab from Asus, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, or Acer, you’ve joined the ranks of those  shunning “computers” for “tablets.” If you chose an Android, is it all that you’d hoped for? Let us know. For reviews of the “top 5 Android tablets,” check out CNET’s March 19th review: “best-5-android-tablets”.

April saw aggravated bruxism among some Apple users. A handful (us too) had temporary difficulty with iCloud email, although it likely had to do with having ancient passwords that no longer fit Apple’s current parameters. The problem was fixed with a little help from a courteous and supportive Apple techspert in Orlando, Apple Discussions online, and a little intuition.

More serious was the revelation of serious malware (associated with Java programming language) that a Russian source claimed “infected as many as 600,000 Macs globally” (an estimate many have dubbed “dubious”). We don’t know anyone touched by it. Regardless, Apple not only plugged the vulnerability with two Java security updates for Macs running OS 10.6.8 or 10.7.3, but then supplied a third that removed the infection from afflicted machines and made it much more difficult for other evil geniuses to devalue OS X. If you’re a Mac owner and haven’t already read about this, check out any of your favourite Mac sites or try reedcorner.net/news.php/about-the-flashback-malware/ . For a table of Apple security updates over the past 15 months go to support.apple.com/kb/HT1222 .

In an April 16 opinion piece titled “Lessons for IT, Apple in Flashback brouhaha,” Ryan Faas falls all over himself trying both to braise and praise Apple and Mac users. While “Apple didn’t handle the initial situation well….Ultimately, the company dealt with the problem in a way that protected the most non-technical of users and did so at no cost to them….Whether you like Apple or not, the move shows commitment to its users. Sure, it could have issued an initial patch, scheduled a follow-up release later on, and never looked back, but it didn’t.” Faas writes frequently in Computerworld about Apple, its products, and their place in the world.

For those interested in the question of Macs and security, we heartily endorse Thomas Reed’s “Reed Corner Design” site (reedcorner.net). Google “Mac Malware Guide” to see a comprehensive list of the 25 malware (trojan) threats Apple Macs have faced in recent years, of which only 2 rated higher than “low” and are now protected against by Apple’s recent software updates. 14 items on his list have a threat level of “None.” Speaking of updates from the “mothership,” always accept them: they’re free and released for our benefit!

Wikipedia has a decent introduction to malware: “malicious software designed to disrupt computer operation, gather sensitive information, or gain unauthorized access to computer systems.While it is sometimes software, it can also appear in the form of script or code. Malware is a general term used to describe any kind of software or code specifically designed to exploit a computer, or the data it contains, without consent. The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software.

Malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, spyware, adware, most rootkits, and other malicious programs. In law, malware is sometimes known as a computer contaminant, for instance in the legal codes of several U.S. states, including California and West Virginia.

Malware is not the same as defective software, which is software that has a legitimate purpose but contains harmful bugs that were not noticed before release. Sometimes, malware is disguised as genuine software, and may come from an official company website. An example would be software used for useful purposes that also includes tracking software to gather marketing statistics for advertising.

Therefore, some security programs may find “potentially unwanted programs” or “PUP”. Though a computer virus is malware that can reproduce itself, the term is sometimes used erroneously to refer to the entire category. An example of a computer virus which is not a malware, but is benevolent is Fred Cohen’s compression virus.”  The remainder of this comprehensive Wiki article is similarly informative.

For a list of 1000 examples of malware for PCs, google “McAfee Current Malware.” At the bottom of the list of the newest 20, click View All. The good news: nearly all of them represent a “minimal threat,” and McAfee shows a much lower malware detection rate for Canada than the US.

For more info on computer security, take a look at other websites run by Symantec, F-Secure, Sophos, Kaspersky, and others.

by Keith Richardson

“Spring has sprung, the grass has riz, we wonder where them MacBooks is!” Writing in mid-April, still no sign of the “new MacBookPro” we’ve been dreaming of. By now, it may be available. Retailers have been reporting difficulty reordering existing models.

Seen the new iPad? While it’s attractive and quick, we applaud you if you decided to save $100 and purchase the iPad2. Whether you bought a ‘Pad from Apple, or an Android tab from Asus, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, or Acer, you’ve joined the ranks of those  shunning “computers” for “tablets.” If you chose an Android, is it all that you’d hoped for? Let us know. For reviews of the “top 5 Android tablets,” check out CNET’s March 19th review: “best-5-android-tablets”.

April saw aggravated bruxism among some Apple users. A handful (us too) had temporary difficulty with iCloud email, although it likely had to do with having ancient passwords that no longer fit Apple’s current parameters. The problem was fixed with a little help from a courteous and supportive Apple techspert in Orlando, Apple Discussions online, and a little intuition.

More serious was the revelation of serious malware (associated with Java programming language) that a Russian source claimed “infected as many as 600,000 Macs globally” (an estimate many have dubbed “dubious”). We don’t know anyone touched by it. Regardless, Apple not only plugged the vulnerability with two Java security updates for Macs running OS 10.6.8 or 10.7.3, but then supplied a third that removed the infection from afflicted machines and made it much more difficult for other evil geniuses to devalue OS X. If you’re a Mac owner and haven’t already read about this, check out any of your favourite Mac sites or try reedcorner.net/news.php/about-the-flashback-malware/ . For a table of Apple security updates over the past 15 months go to support.apple.com/kb/HT1222 .

In an April 16 opinion piece titled “Lessons for IT, Apple in Flashback brouhaha,” Ryan Faas falls all over himself trying both to braise and praise Apple and Mac users. While “Apple didn’t handle the initial situation well….Ultimately, the company dealt with the problem in a way that protected the most non-technical of users and did so at no cost to them….Whether you like Apple or not, the move shows commitment to its users. Sure, it could have issued an initial patch, scheduled a follow-up release later on, and never looked back, but it didn’t.” Faas writes frequently in Computerworld about Apple, its products, and their place in the world.

For those interested in the question of Macs and security, we heartily endorse Thomas Reed’s “Reed Corner Design” site (reedcorner.net). Google “Mac Malware Guide” to see a comprehensive list of the 25 malware (trojan) threats Apple Macs have faced in recent years, of which only 2 rated higher than “low” and are now protected against by Apple’s recent software updates. 14 items on his list have a threat level of “None.” Speaking of updates from the “mothership,” always accept them: they’re free and released for our benefit!

Wikipedia has a decent introduction to malware: “malicious software designed to disrupt computer operation, gather sensitive information, or gain unauthorized access to computer systems.While it is sometimes software, it can also appear in the form of script or code. Malware is a general term used to describe any kind of software or code specifically designed to exploit a computer, or the data it contains, without consent. The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software.

Malware includes computer viruses, worms, trojan horses, spyware, adware, most rootkits, and other malicious programs. In law, malware is sometimes known as a computer contaminant, for instance in the legal codes of several U.S. states, including California and West Virginia.

Malware is not the same as defective software, which is software that has a legitimate purpose but contains harmful bugs that were not noticed before release. Sometimes, malware is disguised as genuine software, and may come from an official company website. An example would be software used for useful purposes that also includes tracking software to gather marketing statistics for advertising.

Therefore, some security programs may find “potentially unwanted programs” or “PUP”. Though a computer virus is malware that can reproduce itself, the term is sometimes used erroneously to refer to the entire category. An example of a computer virus which is not a malware, but is benevolent is Fred Cohen’s compression virus.”  The remainder of this comprehensive Wiki article is similarly informative.

For a list of 1000 examples of malware for PCs, google “McAfee Current Malware.” At the bottom of the list of the newest 20, click View All. The good news: nearly all of them represent a “minimal threat,” and McAfee shows a much lower malware detection rate for Canada than the US.

For more info on computer security, take a look at other websites run by Symantec, F-Secure, Sophos, Kaspersky, and others.

Vintage Sewing Machine Table

By Ursula Maxwell-Lewis

Melanie Houlden became Surrey’s Chief Librarian in January this year.

An exciting new chapter of this single mom’s career, the challenges clearly inspire her.

Working her way through college, volunteering at local libraries, tackling part-time positions within the system, she has earned her distinguished byline.

Over coffee at Surrey City Centre Library she tells me: “We want to make sure this is a real place for people to come together to learn new things – not just in this library, but in all Surrey’s libraries. We’ve moved away from a role of passively dispensing books.”

Indicating the growing Surrey library system’s role as a hub of social activities, arts, culture and literary workshops, she reflects on the critical role played in integrating new Canadians into our society.

“We particularly pride ourselves in shepherding parents and children into Canadians norms. It’s a role we’re happy to embrace,” she says as a young South Asian mom wheels by with a two-year-old. “Helping prepare little one ones for school is especially important,” she says.

The Gordon Smith art commissioned for the library entrance and coffee area, she points out, introduces the public to work that might only be available in expensive restaurants, galleries or offices. “It’s a philosophy encouraged citywide,” she points out.

“Technology? It’s a struggle for everyone. Who knows what it will look like in 5 or 10 years,” she says. In her opinion, Surrey is a leader in offering research, homework and e-book capabilities for all ages. “School support programs for kids are key,” she says. With a daughter of her own, she understands the challenges local and immigrant parents face. Libraries are now offering broader, and more comprehensive support than ever. Surrey’s new chief librarian takes that challenge very seriously.

The full interview with Melanie Houlden is at  www.youtube.com/user/YouTravel1

Starting with the Community Resource Directories For Seniors, with Al and Mary-Lou (deceased) Bishoff, and Wally Coombs in production, this changed to The Advancing Years newspaper which lasted for a 1 year term and then was sold to Joel and Darlene Rickard of Kelowna. From there the Newspaper became The Seniors Choice with Wally Coombs doing the production. After approximately 2 years The Choice was taken over by Wally and then it became known as Today’s Senior. This continued for 11 years when at that time Sharon Robinson, of Surrey, purchased the paper with Wally as Publisher and Editor.

Mildred McDonald was an original columnist starting with The Advancing Years and continued on  through the years with the changes of name and owners, until February of 2012 when she retired at 95 years of age with Today’s Senior. Another original columnist was Weir Muir (deceased) who continued until his death in 2011.

During this time period the main facture who kept the newspaper going was our main salesperson, Phyllis Langston. She was, and is, a top salesperson with many connections from past sales positions. This is the main reason Today’s Senior has become so successful.