Monthly Archives: February 2017

BrooklineCAN and Goddard House are sponsoring an evening with authors Rosalind C. Barnett and Caryl Rivers on Thursday, April 6, 6:00 to 7:45 pm at Goddard House, 165 Chestnut Street.  They will discuss their book The Age of Longevity:  Re-Imagining Tomorrow for Our New Long Lives.   Dr. Barnett is a senior scientist at the Women’s Studies Research Center at Brandeis University and Caryl Rivers is a professor of journalism at Boston University—both are nationally-known writers.  Light refreshments will be served.  Free of charge; RSVP to Michaela Barrows by calling (617)731-8500 ext.130 or mbarrows@goddardhouse.org.

The Brookline Recreation Department offers 3 classes at the Kirrane Aquatics Center that are appealing to seniors.
Aqua Jogging is a vigorous, non-impact deep water jogging class. You’ll love the benefits that you see from this quick-paced jogging class set to music, without the side effects of knee or joint pain. Monday & Friday 5:30-6:30 pm
Forever Fit is a gentle low-impact class that increases flexibility, improves muscle tone and gets you in great overall shape while being easy and lot of fun. Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 12:00-1:00 pm.
Water Boot Camp challenges you with a vigorous water workout in the fast-paced but low-impact class helping you improve muscle tone and endurance. Tuesday & Thursday 5:00-6:00 pm.
New sessions start the week of March 6th.  There is a 35% discount for seniors.
For more information contact Brookline Recreation at 617-730-2069.

Lovers of live theater, particularly British theater, should check the schedule at the not-for-profit Coolidge Corner Theatre for presentations from London’s prestigious National Theatre. These are filmed performances, captured in high-definition, of actual live productions. Upcoming shows include Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler on March 9 and Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night on April 6. Coming in August is a new staging of Tony Kushner’s multi-award winning two-part play, Angels in America. There is a senior discount on tickets. Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard Street, Brookline MA 02446. Recording 617–734–2500. Office 617–734–2501, http://www.coolidge.org/programs/nt-live

The Age-Friendly City committee is seeking volunteers to video record its shows. The committee is particularly interested in volunteers who will help to record segments of shows in community settings. Experience is welcome but not necessary. The Brookline Interactive Group (BIG) will provide free training and will lend equipment. Technical advances in video equipment make it possible for volunteers with modest training to make high quality video recordings.   If you are interested or want more information, contact Shirley Selhub (selhub@rcn.com), the producer of Age-Friendly TV.  The shows are broadcast on Brookline public access television and can be viewed on the BrooklineCAN website, http://www.brooklinecan.org/#TV

BrooklineCAN is looking for seniors who are making creative use of extra space in their homes. We would like to know about your experiences. On June 1, BrooklineCAN is offering an educational program on creative use by seniors of extra space in their homes. We want to provide illustrations of what Brookline seniors are doing. To share your experience, contact Frank Caro (frank.g.caro@gmail.com).  The program will be offered on Thursday, June 1 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm at the Senior Center.

These books help us imagine life in Boston in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

One Boy’s Boston: 1887-1901, a memoir by famous historian Samuel Eliot Morison, details his boyhood growing up on a  Beacon Hill that teemed with trolleys and horses.

Boston Girl. by Anita Diamant is a novel about family ties and values, friendship and feminism told through the eyes of a young Jewish woman growing up in Boston in the early twentieth century.

A City So Grand: The Rise of an American Metropolis 1850-1900 by Stephen Puleo tells in dramatic narrative the many breathtaking changes in Boston during that period: the abolitionist movement, the construction of the Back Bay, the development of the subway, the Irish immigration and so much more.

Soloist Abigail Karr will appear with the Brookline Symphony Orchestra when it plays the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Opus 64 on March 18 at 8:00 pm at All Saints Parish, 1773 Beacon Street.  Also featured will be Nicolai’s Overture to The Merry Wives of Windsor and Schumann’s Symphony No 1.  Tickets:  $15 general admission, $10 for students and seniors, free for children 12 and under.  See  http://www.brooklinesymphony.org/  for more about the orchestra and the last concert of the season in May.

It’s still winter and dreams of a milder climate may bring back recollections of visits to Italy or the dreams of visiting.  Have you wanted to develop and practice your Italian speaking skills you picked up through travel or maybe from classes you have previously taken?  The Coolidge Corner Library has the program for you.  Every Wednesday at 12:30 pm a group for beginning and intermediate Italian speakers is offered.  Intermediate and advanced Italian speakers can attend classes on Fridays at 12 noon.  There is no registration necessary and the classes are free.  Drop in and see if this is something for you.