I want you to meet my new best friend! Okay, I love this book AND I love Juju. I first met Juju Hook over the summer and we fell into a very long phone conversation talking about the “brand” of the middle-aged woman. Pretty bleak, no? Juju and I are both midlife…
Terrified and Naked to “OMG, Yes!” If you’ve been listening to my podcast for a while, you may think that I have tackled the self-doubt monster. Yes, I have tackled it, but I can still be found rolling around in the dust with the beast, pulling its hair, getting knocked…
Do you ever wonder if perhaps you were born with a natural talent which you have yet to discover? That if only you had been handed a tennis racket, violin, microphone, paintbrush, unicycle, basketball, or tap shoes as a 4-year-old, your life would be very different now. I remember as a…
Dear CNN, I think we both know it’s over. After 37 years together, I’m leaving you. This shouldn’t come as a complete surprise. You must have noticed that I’ve been avoiding you and, on those rare times when we are together, you must have detected the look of disgust and…
Cher Snares 2017 Billboard Icon Award I remember watching the Sonny and Cher TV show on CBS in 1971. I was 8 years old and in absolute awe of Cher. I would sit cross-legged in front of the television admiring the way she would toss her long silky black hair over…
Give yourself the best Mother’s Day gift of all! Honestly, you can have a good relationship with your mother, really, I’m not pulling your leg. No matter how awful she is. If she’s living or not, nobody can push your buttons like good ol’ Mom. Funny thing is, we may repeat…
One of the few “gifts” that comes from dying as the result of a terminal illness, rather than a sudden and unexpected death, is the perspective of clarity that it brings to your everyday choices. Knowing that your time on this earth is limited, I imagine that everyone would be far…
As appeared in the 12/17/2016 issues of Northern Express 2017: THE YEAR OF THE WOMAN BY MARY KEYES ROGERS | DEC. 17, 2016 Year of the woman? Yes, I know that our nation’s first female presidential candidate lost to the misogynist. I know how dark things look right now for…
November 30, 2016 Dear listeners, readers, followers: I have always been an open book type of person. So, here goes: As The Experience 50 Podcast has grown from about 30 friends and family listening to over 30,000 across the globe, I have learned a great many things. I need to confess something…
I want to take up a little bit of internet space to thank my listeners/readers for their support of my Experience 50 projects. “Thank You!” This really is a passion project for me and it all makes sense when I get feedback like the email below. …and here are some current…
While we continue to fine tune our trivia, test your TV Memories!
The following was originally published in Northern Express on April 2, 2016 As of March 22, 2016, a total of 1,647 candidates had filed a Statement of Presidential Candidacy with the Federal Election Commission. I’d like to meet them. Think back to past election seasons, as a nation we would…
I admit I’d rather have a group of close friends over to my house for drinks, dinner and a party game than go out. My friends are a competitive bunch and we have played lots and lots of games. Our longtime favorite is the electronic Catch Phrase.
I really do love my sponsors*, especially when their product gets us out of an embarrassing situation. Here is a shameless plug for my favorite last minute Christmas, Mother’s Day, best friend’s birthday gift: Monthly Clubs, a family owned business that loves indulgence! This isn’t your father’s fruit of the…
Unless you waited until age 45 to have kids, (in which, case may I say, “what were you thinking???”), I am guessing that the holiday season has become a bit less hectic and crazed than in years past. No school concerts, no must have (but impossible to find) gifts from the toy…
I love this shirt. I get so tired of hearing “such and such” makes you appear so old. Like knitting. Screw you, I like to knit. I do a lot of things that younger people just shake their heads at. I really don’t care. It cracks my teenage daughter up that…
I’ve now spent over 12 hours listening to Rick Springfield read his memoir, Late, Late at Night. I am an audio loving multitasker, and I love audio books, especially when read by the author. Even more so when I am going to be on the road a lot, which I…
Join the Experiment! What we hope to find under the Christmas tree at our age is a whole lot different than when we were 25 or 30. Some of us become far more practical (a fancy foreign vacuum cleaner would be fine) whereas some may consider that reasonable grounds for divorce….
A round-up of tips, tricks and observations in midlife… #1 Agism? Yes, I was caught by surprise. Do you feel threatened by agism? I don’t, but I work for myself. I’ve heard from many listeners who feel victimized by agism, particularly in the workplace. They are being replaced by younger,…
Mary’s Friday Five September 25, 2015 A round-up of tips, tricks and observations in midlife… #1 A Sign of our Age It seems a week doesn’t go by without hearing of a friend’s family member passing away. In Episode 4 Suddenly Everything Changes, Liz spoke of how much it meant…
Mary’s Friday Five September 18, 2015 Mary’s roundup of the week’s episodes, recommendations and random thoughts… Mary’s roundup of the week’s episodes, recommendations and random thoughts…Not So Deep Thoughts I’m pondering the analogy between the midlife chapter and autumn. Trees losing their leaves, us losing our hair and other…
I spent the latter part of my 40s ranting at myself. Now in my 50s, I am so relieved that I can enjoy my time. I’m done ranting, now I am actually DOING things that make every day better than yesterday. You can too. That’s my bottom line. I’m doing…