Around Town: Stay sharp with exercise, reading, cup of Joe

Take advantage of summer’s extra leisure time to improve your memory with these brain tricks, thanks to Health Magazine:

Take up a sport that keeps you cool, too. A recent study from Columbia University Medical Center links blood glucose levels that rise as we age to memory lapses. Get in the swim and hit the pool to help your body regulate blood sugar by swimming laps or enjoying water aerobics.

Grab a book. New research from the Mayo Clinic shows that reading decreases your risk of developing mild memory loss by 30 percent to 50 percent, so don’t forget to toss a great book in your tote bag.

Order the iced coffee. Chill with three cups of java (with caffeine) a day and you could lower your risk of developing dementia by up to 70 percent, according to a study from the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Local magician and Sahuarita resident Rodney Housley and his wife and magician’s assistant Kimberlee (photo) were named Arizona’s Stage Magicians of the Year on June 8 at a competition staged at the Gaslight Theatre in Tucson. The winning act was the masterpiece of Rodney’s artistic talents as well as his ability to astonish and leave the audience in a state of wonder. In the first three minutes, Rodney appeared on stage with elongated paint brushes. He magically transformed a white balloon into white dove. He then made the dove cage vanish and changed Kimberlee’s costume from a simple black dress to a bright pink one.

The last three minutes of the act were just as exciting as Rodney sat Kimberlee in a chair and made her reappear painted on the previously white canvas that was on stage the entire time. Just when you thought the act was over Rodney made his wife reappear for their final bows.

Rodney has been working hard to improve his performances, building his own illusions, practicing, performing and even a little dancing. The duo enlisted the help of a local dancer, Michelle Brady, to help them choreograph their steps so that they moved fluently across stage and they did, thanks to her expertise and style.

Rodney and Kimberlee will be performing locally on July 9 at 6 p.m. at the Community Performing Arts Center, 1250 W. Continental Rd. Tickets are $12 and available at CPAC.

Rodney is also appearing at he Quail Creek Robson Resort Community Restaurant on June 24 for an up-close and personal magic show featuring his magic tricks.

Visit his Web site at www.rodneyhousley.com for more magical sneak peaks.

Arizona Highways TV will feature a story on the late Hal Empie, a well-known Arizona artist and once a cartoonist for Arizona Highways Magazine back in the 1930s. A few months ago a television crew visited the Hal Empie Gallery in Tubac to film and to speak with Ann Groves, Empie’s daughter, who now oversees the gallery and her own Tubac shop called The Artist’s Daughter. The program will air at 3:30 p.m. today on KGUN Channel 9 in Tucson. (It may be moved before or after that time because of the NBA.) Reruns will be off and on for the next year. If you miss it on TV, visit: arizonahighwaystv.com

For more information about Hal Empie, visit: www.halempiestudio-gallery.com or www.theartistsdaughter.com.

Area residents Chuck and Kathie Grendys celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary by renewing their vows at Our Lady of the Valley Catholic Church on May 30. The Rev. Francisco R. Maldonado conducted the service, which was attended by more than 200 well-wishers, including their three children, sons, Charles Grendys III and Wm. Lloyd Grendys and daughter Charlene Jackson and her husband Brian.

Son Charles III married his wife Yvonne 21 years ago on that same date.

The Grendyses were married at St. Mary’s of the Angels Catholic Church near Chicago. They moved to Green Valley in 1998 and have five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

rford@gvnews.com | 547-9740