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    Erica Smith

    Erica Smith

    Contributor

  • How To Land Your Next Job

    For decades, George McAfee, a sales and business development expert in the tech industry, simply dialed a buddy when he was ready for a new job. McAfee found himself making presentations, doing research, and giving talks to executives about everything from Asian distribution channels to structuring salaries -- all as part of the interview processes for four different jobs. For McAfee, the free labor paid off.

  • Is Racquel Welch A Fan Of Marijuana?

    Is Raquel Welch a fan of smoking marijuana? The 71-year-old actress talks to Craig Ferguson about working with David Caruso on the set of "CSI: Miami" while giving her thoughts on "recreational" activities that may or may not be illegal.

  • Will Boomers Be Able To Sell Homes?

    As home-owning baby boomers age, they’ll eventually be leaving their homes. Baby boomers will be vacating more homes than they occupy as they move into nursing homes, move in with their children, or pass away over the next two decades.

  • Dan Aykroyd Remembers John Belushi

    March 5 marked the 30th anniversary of John Belushi's death. From his sketches as an original cast member on "Saturday Night Live" to his portrayal of Bluto in "Animal House," Belushi left behind a legacy of laughter. In this CNN interview, fellow SNL alumnus and "The Blues Brothers" collaborator Dan Aykroyd reflects on the first time to two comedians met.

  • How To Organize Your Finances In Time For Tax Day

    While the bemoaning of impending Tax Day has never grown old, the organizational system of your financial records probably has. If you're housing boxes of old tax returns and bank records, strewn in attics or staking a monopoly on coveted shelf space, your filing system may need more than a dusting when it comes to spring cleaning. Rick Rodgers, financial planner and author of "The New Three-Legged Stool: A Tax Efficient Approach To Retirement Planning," recommends capitalizing on the current tax season to launch yourself into an organizational method worthy of the 21st century, before April 17.

  • WATCH: Julianne Moore Reveals Makeup Tricks For Palin Transformation

    Julianne Moore is the latest actress to literally step into Sarah Palin's shoes, as she plays the former VP candidate in the HBO film "Game Change," premiering March 10. In the above clip, Moore discusses her experience making the film and how she mastered Palin's accent in record time.

  • Caregiving From Coast To Coast

    Sherri Snelling, our caregiving contributor, recently spoke to Joan Lunden about her role as a Sandwich Generation and long-distance caregiver for her mother. Sherri met Joan on the set of a special program Joan hosted, “Taking Care with Joan Lunden,” where Joan interviewed Sherri as an expert on caring for an older loved one at home. Sherri turned the tables on Joan and interviewed her for this story.

  • Are Cholesterol-Lowering Statins Actually Safe?

    While millions of individuals take statins such as Lipitor and Lescol to lower their cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart attack, they may simultaneously be raising their risk for memory loss and other medical problems. This week, the FDA acknowledged a link between the cholesterol-lowering drugs and negative side effects, especially for women and individuals over 65 years of age. NBC chief medical editor Dr. Nancy Snyderman joined Today's Matt Lauer to discuss the downsides of statins such as memory loss, diabetes and pain, that are often overlooked by the 30 million Americans who use them.

  • 7 Tips For Caregivers To Answer The Toughest Questions

    Whether looking after ill and aging loved ones, caregivers are often faced with difficult questions such as "What happens next?" and "Will I recover?". In order to guide individuals through these intimidating moments, Walter St. John Ed.D wrote "Solace", a new book of practical tactics and tips that provide caregivers with much-needed advice and insight to better navigate the difficult and role of caregiver. “The subject of chronic illness and the losses that often lead up to it make most people deeply uncomfortable,” says St. John.

  • How To Turn An Obligation Into A Vacation

    As the winter months begin to thaw, the travel season will be upon us. Post 50s may find themselves pulled in multiple travel directions with reunions, college graduations, weddings and other obligation trips filling up their travel calendars and invading their savings. Forty-one percent of U.S. travelers spend the majority of their vacation budgets on obligation trips, according to survey data recently released by Hotwire.com.

  • How Long Will You Live? Take This Test

    The audience and co-hosts of "The Revolution" took a life expectancy quiz based on a variety of factors, including family history, smoking habits, automobile use and occupation. Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today.

  • The Problem With Taking An Aspirin A Day

    Talking a low daily dose of aspirin has long been a recommendation for heart health, and many of us pop a Tylenol or an Advil to knock out a headache, muscle ache, arthritis pain, or menstrual cramps. Because of the accessibility of over-the-counter (OTC) medications like aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen, many may think nothing of grabbing a pill to ease what ails us, or, in the case of aspirin, to actually improve our long-term health and reduce our risk for disease. Some studies suggest that taking these medications over the long run -- even in low doses -- may be associated with more health risks than benefits.

  • Looming Medicare Cuts Leave Doctors 'Disgruntled' And 'Devastated'

    The good news for the nation's doctors — and the millions of Medicare patients they care for — is that assuming everything goes as planned, the 27.4 percent cut in reimbursements that would have taken effect March 1 won't.

  • Which Generation Is Smartest About Credit?

    Not all credit scores are created equal. New research from Experian provides a glimpse into how different generations handle debt and finances. The disparity between the various demographics suggests that the phrase “generation gap” may not be solely reserved to describe the hordes of Twitterers who were oblivious to the existence of one Paul McCartney, or the snail-like text messaging speed of parents that baffle Gen Y’ers.

  • What's Behind The Medicare Increase In Obama's Budget?

    The Obama administration proposed a sharp increase in spending at the agency that runs Medicare and Medicaid - and the reason why might surprise you. Monday's budget calls for spending $4.82 billion on administrative costs at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for fiscal 2013, a 25.9% increase in the previous year's estimated budget of $3.83 billion.

  • Grandparent-Grandchild Getaways A Popular Trend

    Pat Johnson knew she and her husband, Paul, were lucky. The sights, sounds, cultures and exposure to different lifestyles shaped them as a couple - and later, when their children arrived, as a family. "We love to travel, and I just wanted them to have it early on in their lives," Pat Johnson said of traveling opportunities for her grandchildren.

  • Making A Play For Older Voters (And Moviegoers)

    Eleven years ago, editors at the AARP magazine entered Hollywood's awards fray with the Movies for Grownups Awards. The idea was to give AARP a bigger presence in the film capital while working to change the image of aging, one of the organization's principal goals. As recently as 2007, AARP the Magazine was thrilled to get a dog to walk its red carpet.

  • Spring Break For Post 50s?

    Bermuda's first-ever "College Week Reunion," runs March 15-18 and includes hotel stay and three-day special event passes. "The College Week Reunion will be a great way for folks who may have visited Bermuda during the heyday of their youth to come back and enjoy the island as an adult," Wayne Furbert, Minister of Business Development and Tourism, stated in a press release.

  • Social Security: Florida Retirees Eye Fixes From GOP Candidates

    It's an urgent issue seemingly on the minds of many in this retiree mecca, if not the entire state of Florida — how to fix Social Security. Jim Minucci, 76, backs Mitt Romney and his idea to gradually raise the age of eligibility for younger workers. "If we continue to spend and take money from Social Security, I think in the long run it's going to be hurting," Minucci said as he walked through a town square here to meet his wife for lunch.

  • No Layoffs - Ever!

    When Wegmans Food Markets has to eliminate a position, they make sure they find the displaced employee another job that they will be passionate about within the company. When their Britton Rd. store in Rochester, N.Y. closed last summer, they offered all of the store's employees a job at another location in the same city. Within two weeks, all 250 employees from the Britton Rd. store knew exactly what they were going to be doing.