Something s up in America and

Catherine Pacheco knows all

about it: More Americans are

entering their Golden Years. but they

refuse to act like old people! They are

abandoning their sheltered, humdrum

lives for zestful, energetic alternatives.

Retirement is no longer synonymous

with poor health and boredom, and

Breaking Patterns tells how to make it

a time of adventure, new friendships,

and a new outlook on life.

Pacheco believes that by breaking

patterns -- refusing to withdraw into

an inactive Ill;e-style -- people can

improve their lives in terms of health,

sex. finances, fricnds, and relation-

ships. Catherine and her husband

Tom personify this attitude. For

ahnost a decade, they have lived

aboard a 38-foot boat,traveling,

working, and meeting other pattern-

breakers who are making the most of

their lives. This life-style meant selling

a liletime s accumulation of posses-

sions, moving away from long-time

friends, and overcoming fears and

doubts about their ability to make

their new life work. In return, they

have experienced a vitality and excite-

ment that they never dreamed could

be a part of their lives after retirement.

But the most amazing thing

Catherine Pacheco has learned from

her new life is that she and her hus- band are not unique -- everywhere

they go, on land and on sea, they come

across other ageless pattern-breakers

who live each day to its fullest. Using

a variety of examples, Breaking Pat-

terns addresses topics ranging from

finances to negative peer prcssure.

Whether the pattern-breakers stay in

their hometown or travel the world;

whether they pick up a new hobby or

a new profession, all have one thing

in common: They refuse to blithely

surrender the advantages of youth

because they know that age does not

have to determine their activities.