Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - Solitude vs Loneliness - Knowing The Difference

Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - Permission to Start Over with Special Guest Dennis Young

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565947/fan_mail/new] What happens when you finally run out of excuses? In Episode 5 of Life's Funny…Until It's Not™, Deb gets honest about the dreams she's started — and stopped — over the years. The antique shop, she collected pieces for and then gave away. The network she almost shut down for good. And the moment she stopped hiding behind circumstances and asked herself the harder question: why do I keep stopping? In Food For Thought, meet Dennis Young — Delaware artist, retired psychiatrist, and owner of Mo'zArt Gallery in Historic Old New Castle. At 70 years old, Dennis opened an art gallery after 30 years away from painting. Named 2024's Best in Delaware by Delaware Today, Dennis has one rule for anyone who walks into his gallery and says, "I can't": Don't ever say that again. In What I'm Learning, Deb talks about routines — the ones she keeps, the ones she doesn't, and why "not quitting" might be the only goal that actually matters. This episode is for anyone who has been circling something. Waiting for the right time. Telling themselves it's too late. It isn't.

Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - Solitude vs Loneliness - Knowing The Difference

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565947/fan_mail/new] Life's Funny…Until It's Not™ There's a parking lot I need to tell you about. Last Friday, I drove to my local senior center — membership in hand, good intentions loaded — pulled in, saw the lot was full, and drove right back out. Didn't park. Didn't go in. Didn't even turn off the engine. And I'm the one who hosts this podcast. In this episode of Life's Funny…Until It's Not™, I get honest about the year that pulled me inside — the caregiving, the grief, the calendar that went from impossibly full to very, very quiet — and what happened when I tried to find my way back. (Spoiler: I joined every Facebook group I could find at midnight. The women in those groups are not playing.) We talk about what loneliness actually is — and it's not what most of us think. We dig into what the research says about loneliness and health in the 55+ community, including one study result that genuinely surprised me. And we talk about the difference between solitude and loneliness, because they are not the same thing, even though we treat them like they are. In Food for Thought, we look at what the experts actually say about why loneliness is a health issue — not just a feelings issue — and three practical strategies that researchers say actually work. And in What I'm Learning, I sat back down at my keyboard after a long time away. What happened next is the whole episode in one moment. If you've ever felt like the world kept moving while you were busy surviving — this one is for you. 🎙️ Life's Funny…Until It's Not™ is produced by the R2RB Network — Where Independent Voices Build Legacy. Listen: Buzzsprout | R2RB.com Connect: deb.lamotta@r2rb.com [deb.lamotta@r2rb.com]

Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - SWIPE RIGHT OR WALK AWAY - DATING LATER IN LIFE

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565947/fan_mail/new] We’re going to talk about something that a lot of us are navigating — or at least thinking about — which is dating later in life. Because let me tell you, swiping right is not the same as passing notes in homeroom. Not even close. Then we’re heading into Food for Thought, where I’m going to share something that made me stop when I saw it. Something that has everything to do with what it feels like to be told you’re past your prime — and then proving everyone wrong. And we’ll wrap up with What I’m Learning — my ongoing adventure in being a total beginner. This week? It’s personal. It’s got keys. And it’s proof that you’re never too old to try something that terrifies you just a little. Three segments, one big idea: we are not done. We are just getting started on the chapter that might actually be the best one yet. Because life is funny… until it’s not. And when it’s not? That’s when the real stories begin.

Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - Adjusting the Cooking Time

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565947/fan_mail/new] Adjusting the Cooking Time What starts as a disagreement about salmon becomes something much bigger. In this episode of Life’s Funny…Until It’s Not™, I share a simple kitchen moment with my 87-year-old mother — one that didn’t seem significant at the time. Sometimes life isn’t about getting the recipe right. It’s about adjusting the cooking time. This episode reflects on aging, dignity, picking your battles, and the small, ordinary moments that quietly define a lifetime.

Life's Funny...Until It's Not™ - Or When you Decide To Retire

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2565947/fan_mail/new]  This is the space where we talk honestly about life as it really is — the good, the hard, the unexpected — and how we keep moving forward anyway. Today’s episode is broken into three parts. Each one stands on its own, but together they tell a bigger story. So whether you’re listening straight through or catching just one segment, you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. Let’s start here. Life’s Funny… Until It’s Not™ — or as I’ve been thinking about it lately, when you decide to retire. Because no one really prepares you for what happens after the schedule slows down, the titles fall away, and you’re left asking, now what? This is where that conversation begins. This brings me to Food for Thought. This is the part of the show where I share something to sit with — not advice, not answers — just a perspective worth considering as we move through this season of life. And now for What I’m Learning. This is where I share what I’m reading, thinking about, or stumbling through — because staying curious is one of the ways we keep ourselves engaged at this stage of life.