Innholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2019 i Zoomer Magazine

WE ARE NOT GOING to be doing personal attacks. We’re not going to be playing the politics of division and fear,” Justin Trudeau told senior editor Peter Muggeridge and me when we quizzed him last year on the approach he would take to his re-election campaign. As we go to press, that campaign is in full swing (see our coverage in “The Zoomer Primary,” pg. 34), and this issue will be on newsstands when you go to the ballot box. Whatever Canadians decide, with the older demographic – meaning us – being the deciding factor, it will be interesting to see if the Prime Minister will indeed be able to walk the path of Sunny Ways 2.0. These are incredibly polarizing times, with an overwhelming amount of unsettling information…

In our last issue, where we set the stage for the 2019 federal election, Zoomer magazine and everythingzoomer.com joined forces to present the Zoomer Primary. Hosted at zoomervote.ca, we encouraged you to vote in our pre-election poll, follow late-breaking campaign developments, tracking the critical hot-button issues as they relate to the CARP Faces platform, and share your opinion on the parties and leaders on social media. The Zoomer Primary quickly became a rousing success, a testament to the high degree of political engagement we’ve come to expect from our audience. At press time, more than 6,000 of you had voted in our pre-election poll, and thousands more had read our online campaign coverage and chimed in with a spirited (to put it mildly) debate on our Facebook page (see…

AT A RECENT EVENT, I found myself riveted by the “tablescape” spread out before me. Part art installation, part sensory and wholly mesmerizing, it was design at the most inviting level. “Think about shapes and colour schemes you want to do,” I am told. This is not decor we’re talking about, however, as there was more to this table than just flatware and dishes. This is how you plate, according to chef Sean MacDonald, who has just opened Est, a tasting menu-based restaurant in east-end Toronto’s up-and-coming Riverside (neighbours include the hip Broadview Hotel and chef Lynn Crawford’s perennial favourite, Ruby Watchco). “Colour is a big factor in plating,” he adds. “Plate in a way that draws your eyes to different aspects and doesn’t leave your eye stuck in…

Table-top dressing isn’t just about gleaming crystal and polished silverware. Take it one step further and consider how you look – from the waist up – sitting across the table from the other guests at a candle-lit supper. A few choice statement pieces made to add a little shine, including that iPhone case and clutch purse that occupy prime space on the table, will be sure to make you sparkle like the conversation – and the bubbly.…

MANY WOMEN WHO are lucky enough to live good, long lives will spend more than a third of those lives (roughly) dealing with all that happens to them physically and emotionally during the child-bearing years and another third (roughly) coping with what happens when those years are over. Certainly, there are women who barely notice perimenopause and menopause – maybe they toss the blankets off in the middle of the night once in a while or find their skin’s a little drier than it once was. But nothing serious. For the rest – and that’s a good quarter of women – in the years leading up to and through menopause and beyond, some of these symptoms may ring a bell: hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, sleep problems, depression,…

IN A CEMETERY just outside the Dutch town of Holten, I heard a story about Leena Van Dam, the Dutch widow of a Finnish man who, when she noticed a Finnish name on a headstone there one winter, asked whether she could put a candle on it for Christmas Eve, as Finns do. It took some wrestling with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission apparently who, even when they relented, insisted she would have to put a candle on every grave at her own expense. Being Dutch, she did exactly that, beginning in 1991. Since then, it’s become a tradition across the country, with middle-school students each being assigned a soldier, and placing their candle every Dec. 24, each one a torch thrown, held high. Some schools have the students…

ROBBIE ROBERTSON watched his life flash before his eyes. Literally. In September, the documentary Once Were Brothers, about the legendary Canuck rocker’s childhood and rise to stardom with The Band, opened the Toronto International Film Festival – a first for a Canadian doc – mere blocks from where a teenage Robbie honed his musical craft in clubs on Yonge Street. “I’m just going in there and trying to make some kind of a noise that really excites me” “It’s kind of full circle isn’t it?” the 76-year-old laughs. “Everybody used to say, ‘That’s not going to happen, but it’s nice that you dream.’ And I was like, ‘I don’t understand why you can’t imagine this because I can’t stop imagining it.’” And now, at an age when many contemporaries…

“I hope we’ll be talking about something that is happening in the present and not just talking about what happened in the past” Helen Mirren is heading for the airport and, as her car navigates Los Angeles traffic, our phone connection becomes dicey. The 74-year-old actress and I are, appropriately enough, talking tech, with Mirren musing, “I am rather happy that I knew the world before technology. The constant learning process of technology can be sort of exhausting. It seems like every week you have to learn something new about how to pull up WhatsApp or something.” We laugh but, a moment later, the phone cuts out. I begin to lament. My conversation with the great Dame Helen Mirren – the sole claimant to both the American Triple Crown…

There was a time when a well-rolled Cuban cigar signalled a satisfying end to a sumptuous dinner party. But today’s dinner guests are more prone to roll something else for a relaxing puff. Which means the chicest table tops are seeing that a gentleman’s evening accoutrements now include a few well-chosen cannabis accessories. Classic standbys like watches and cufflinks should stay on tap as a finishing focal point, as you may be spotted passing the butter.…

THE STATISTICS are truly sobering: 564,000 Canadians currently live with a form of dementia – Alzheimer’s being the most common – and in 15 years, that number is expected to reach 940,000. Getting older remains the strongest risk factor; after 65, a person’s risk of developing dementia doubles roughly every five years. But recent breakthroughs offer optimism. DIAGNOSIS Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a test to detect changes in the brain that can lead to Alzheimer’s. Using it, they were able to accurately predict later onset of the disease 94 per cent of the time. It works by measuring amyloid levels in the blood. Some people overproduce this protein, which results in plaque, or clusters, in the brain that strangle neurons, impairing…

(AND DOWN) Brad Pitt, 55, describes a “new masculinity” as “a man who owns his own flaws and is aware of them and open about it. And vulnerable, with real feelings” in an interview with The Sunday Times In other words, bye-bye Fight Club movie sequel, hello Talk About Our Feelings Club movie. White House staff may want to take note Trevor Mallard, 65, New Zealand’s Speaker of the House, calms an upset baby by cradling and bottle-feeding him in parliament. Some folks are over the hill while others are lucky enough to be under the waves For the third year in a row, a Second World War vet, 96, marked his birthday by setting the record as the world’s oldest active scuba diver. A new approach to studying…

ARE YOU STILL WORKING?” I am getting that question more often these days. First, I get annoyed: “What do they mean: ‘still’?” Then I rush to the mirror to check for new wrinkles. Then I realize it’s not me; it’s them. I have a lot of older friends, like Barbara. We have been playing tennis together for more than a decade. When she told me she had a big birthday, I assumed it was 60 or 65. She was a teacher and most teachers I know retire in their 50s. Barbara started her career late, so she had to work longer to be eligible for her pension. Still, I was shocked when she told me it was her 70th. Barbara looks a good 10 years younger. Sometimes the decision…

A hand-cut crystal wine bottle coaster. Why not? This holiday season, the delight is in the details. From an elegant backgammon board to an Old Fashioned served in the right glass – even if you choose just one thing, think luxe materials and thoughtful touches. Speaking of, complement your cocktail menu with a no-alcohol option that’s more than just an afterthought. Try Seedlip non-alcoholic spirits, distilled in the English countryside with the care of a fine liquor. À votre santé!…

As the dust settles after all the soirées, boost your body’s natural detoxification with some self-care swag and these healthful tips. Eat Bitter-tasting foods like kale and cabbage stimulate the liver, the body’s primary detoxifier, and can help curb sugar cravings. Rest The more uninterrupted sleep we get, the more time our liver has to do its job. Hydrate Herbal teas such as fennel, mint, dandelion and green are nutrient-packed diuretics that help flush toxins. Cleanse Purify the body’s largest organ – the skin – with a regimen that includes regular exfoliation. Exercise Work up a sweat; it helps rid the body of impurities as well as toxins stored in the fatty tissue burned off by aerobic activity. Happy New Year!…

“Food and wine have a tremendous power to bring people together” SARAH & MURRAY BANCROFT THEN: A JOURNALIST AND A CUISINE CONSULTANT NOW: ORGANIC WINEMAKERS THE SHIFT Sarah: “The online magazine, www.vitadaily.ca, I co-founded in 2004 was acquired by a larger media group in 2013. I was hired by the new company but, two years in, giving my notice was the most liberating feeling ever. At 44, I knew I needed to go back to being an entrepreneur. That winter, Murray and I bid on a foreclosed llama farm in the Okanagan region and converted it into a pinot noir vineyard. A food stylist and culinary consultant and, before that, a chef, for Murray the move from food to wine was like moving to the apartment next door. Still,…