Cantissimo Senior Living Blog

If you enjoy doing crossword puzzles but find yourself becoming frustrated because you can't solve them, this article is for you. Crossword puzzles have been simple entertainment for many years. With more time at home, pulling out the old crossword puzzle book, newspaper, or even playing online is a great idea. So, if you are ready to improve your crossword puzzle success, keep reading!

     1. Focus on Short Words Early 

Often, getting the short two and three-letter words out of the way allows you to concentrate on what is left. Once you fill in these words, you may find that the theme is easier to identify. This will help you ultimately solve the puzzle, especially if there are several two and three-letter words. If you have a puzzle that doesn't have many of these small words, you will need to focus on the clues you can solve to help get some spaces covered on the puzzle.

In our recent blog, 5 Ideas to Safely Celebrate the Holidays During COVID-19, we mentioned that playing games on a Zoom call is a fun way to safely stay in contact and have fun with family and friends. While there are endless games that can be played over Zoom, here is a list of ten games and instructions on how to play each game:

     1. Charades

To begin playing charades over Zoom, split the participants into two teams. Each player can write down ten phrases on pieces of paper (person, place, thing, movie, book, TV show, etc.), fold up the papers, and put them in a bowl. When a player's turn is up, they can choose a phrase and act it out on camera for their team members to guess within a time limit. If their team correctly guesses the phrase, their team earns a point, but if they cannot guess the phrase in time, the other team gets the point. At the end, the team accumulating the most points wins!

     2. Pictionary

Like charades, split the Zoom participants into two groups and have each player prepare ten phrases on pieces of paper, fold them, put them into a bowl, and mix them up.

There's nothing better than sitting back and listening to your favorite music. Even the most mundane tasks become fun with the right playlist playing through your headphones or speakers. Nowadays, there are many ways to enjoy your favorite songs (and find new ones). The best listening option, in many ways, is streaming music. With music streaming services, you can search for songs, create playlists, and find new music based on your musical tastes. With premium accounts, you can stream music anywhere, any time, even when you're not connected to the internet. There may be many streaming options out there, but not all of them are worth the effort of making an account.

Listed below are six music streaming services you'll be glad you tried:

If you're over the age of 50, single, and ready to mingle, get ready to meet your soulmate! The old ways of finding love are out the window. While the traditional way to meet singles was to go out to social events, speed dating, or mixers, modern dating has transitioned to the internet. Especially during pandemics like COVID-19, it can be challenging to safely go out and meet new people. Nowadays, singles find love by browsing the millions of people using dating websites available worldwide.

However, this presents a challenge to seniors. Many dating online dating services can be gimmicky and designed to appeal to students and much younger individuals. Fortunately, several dating websites have realized this issue and provided a solution - excellent dating websites that connect singles over 50:

Free Websites

We understand that spending your hard-earned money on a dating website can be quite daunting. Some people just don't feel comfortable with it! That's completely fine because we've got you covered. Find your true love without spending a dime. Below we've listed the best free dating sites that are geared towards seniors.

Spending time with your grandchildren is so lovely. Unfortunately, it can be challenging to keep them occupied and attentive, and all too often, you hear that they are bored. This is especially challenging during the winter season when they may not be able to do many of their favorite outdoor activities. If you are looking for ideas to spend quality time together over the coming cold months, don't worry! This article outlines ten fantastic ideas that will not only keep them occupied but help you build cherished memories together too.

Whether you live with your grandchildren or are visiting via Zoom or other virtual meeting tools, there are many fun and engaging things that can be done with your grandchildren. These activities can be teaching experiences in many ways. Even the youngest grandchild will do well listening to your voice as you tell stories or read to them. To help get you started, here are some of my favorite activities to do with grandchildren, even if we are not in the same room:

Have you found yourself stuck in your writing? Perhaps your pen was flying across the page, and then it seems as if, suddenly, the creativity has run dry? This experience is commonly known as writer's block. It may be discouraging and even frustrating, but you are not alone. Writer's block is a normal sensation. To help get past this roadblock in your writing, consider the following tips!

     10. Freewrite

Freewriting can be extremely helpful to plow through writer's block. The idea is to set a time limit (we recommend starting with 5 or 10 minutes) and just write. It does not have to be on the topic you were writing about before or even make much sense. Just get words and sentences on paper. This has been known to help inspire new ideas or get past those that were holding you back. Some of the most significant issues with writer's block are self-criticism and doubt, which prevent you from putting pen to paper in fear of anything you write being unworthy of saving. Sometimes, it helps to see it on paper, progress, and you can always go back and edit later.

If you are age 50 or older, Joseph Coughlin, founder and director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology AgeLab, thinks you are misunderstood.

In his 2017 book, "The Longevity Economy: Inside the World's Fastest-Growing, Most Misunderstood Market," Coughlin contends consumer marketing companies and society, in general, underestimate the potential of the older generation.

He says this underestimation is exemplified in the false narrative that older adults are a less important demographic than groups under 50. This attitude particularly pervades marketers who spend 500% more on millennials than all other age categories combined.

Coughlin's message to companies overlooking older adults is: Do so at your own peril.

Finally, you are retired. Now you have all the time to accomplish anything you desire without worrying about official duties. But did you plan for this? Have you prepared a bucket list of things to do? And then what's next after you accomplish everything on your to-do list?

Do you want to enjoy the coming years to the fullest? Too many fall prey to a retirement trap of repeating the same routine, failing to experience new things, and ultimately suffering from boredom. If you are among those who want to lead an exciting life after retiring, then you are in the right place! However, sometimes things don't go as you may have planned. You might be faced with financial setbacks or any other reasons that spoil your plans. And it's at this point where boredom creeps in.

Many become frustrated and even depressed for not being able to accomplish their goals. Regardless of the situation you are in, it is important to note that boredom presents a serious health risk.

In recent blogs, we have reviewed social media and how to get started with popular networks. Although social media has been continuously rising in popularity for the past sixteen years, web forums were an early way to communicate online, and they continue to be widely used today.

Web forums are sections of a website that allows users to post messages to an online discussion board. Most web forums can be viewed by anyone anonymously without having to create an account, making it easy to find help online through advice from real people. Although web forums are most commonly used online by random users, they are also becoming a more common mode of communication for work and school as private web forums rise in popularity.