Dear Doctors: I am a 46-year-old woman, and I recently moved to be closer to my family. I have a new doctor who surprised me by talking about grip strength. She said it’s an important measure of health. I have never heard of this. Can you explain?
30 YEARS AGO
CLINTON DAILY NEWS EDITORIAL
E arly in the premiere episode of Norman Lear's sitcom 'Sunday Dinner,' the beautiful environmentalist T.T. Fagori raised her eyes to heaven and, with a sigh, entered a spiritual minefield.
It was once said, 'Christian, remember your dignity.' Pope Leo I, or Pope Leo the Great, as he's also known, ruled in the mid-fifth century, but his words have plenty to teach us in our current moment. Every Christmas Day, Catholics read his sermon, in which he implores: 'Dearly beloved, today our Savior is born; let us rejoice. Sadness should have no place on the birthday of life. The fear of death has been swallowed up; life brings us joy with the promise of eternal happiness.'
DEAR HARRIETTE: I sent the wrong text to a gym buddy, and now I am sure that she thinks I like her more than I do. I met a really nice girl at the gym, and although we have not gone on a formal date, we have grabbed a bite to eat together after working out. We flirt a lot.
ASK THE DOCTORS
Two things are true: One, former President Donald Trump’s polling – nationally, in key swing states, and in the first-voting state of Iowa – has never been better. And two, Jack Smith, the special counsel appointed by the Biden Justice Department to prosecute Trump, is taking self-described “extraordinary” measures in a rush to put Trump on trial before the 2024 presidential election. The two things are not unrelated. And nothing could more effectively illustrate the contrast between Trump’s rising political fortunes and the administration’s effort to imprison him before the election.
• It’s believed something like 5 billion pounds of unwanted holiday gifts – sweaters, gift baskets, candy, decor and more – end up in landfills every year. That means a lot of “perfect” gifts ended up being wastes of resources and money. For gift-giving, think less materialistic and more experiential. A night out for dinner with friends, paid access to a news outlet or a subscription to a digital music service are all great gifts to give ... with no waste!
DEAR HARRIETTE: My teenage granddaughter, who is a junior in high school, and I are going through a period of disagreement. It seems like we can’t see eye to eye on anything lately.