Courtesy of Michael Kinloch <\/p>\n
Jeralean Talley and godson Tyler Kinloch pictured with one of the seven catfish she caught at the Trout Farm in Dexter, Mich., on June 16, 2012. <\/p>\n
Be nice, worship God and eat pigs feet: Thats how Jeralean Talley of Inkster, Michigan says she lived to celebrate her 114th birthday today and be crowned the oldest person in the United States. Using census records, the Gerontology Research Group verified her titleafter the previous oldest American, Elsie Thompson,died at 113 in March. Talley is still a youngster, relatively speaking, compared to the worlds oldest person, Jiroemon Kimura, who is 116 and lives in Japan. <\/p>\n
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In a phone conversation on the eve of her 114th birthday, Talley told TIME, I feel okay. These days, the supercentenarian lives with her daughter Thelma Holloway, 75, and says she passesthe time by watching The Ellen DeGeneres ShowandWheel of Fortuneas well as listening to baseball on the radio though she doesnt have a favorite team. She can stay up as late as midnight and feasts on her favorite foods: potato salad, honey buns, McDonalds chicken nuggets and Wendys chili. <\/p>\n
Holloway says her mother stayed active over the years by sewing dresses, making quilts and playing the slot machines at casinos. She also bowled until she was about 104 and her legs got too weak but not before scoring 200 in one game. Now Talley, who sits all day, tries to work out by waving her arms in the air and kicking her feet.Twice a year, she goes fishing for catfish and trout with her friend Michael Kinloch, 54, an engineer she met at church in 1990. She literally throws her line in, and Ill run over and try to pull in the fish, he says. We do that routine until she gets tired of it, and then well head home. <\/p>\n
Jeralean Talley (center), her daughter Thelma Holloway (back), fishing buddy Michael Kinloch (right) and his son and Talleys godson Tyler Kinloch (left), at the supercentenarians 113th birthday celebration last May 2012. <\/p>\n
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Jeralean Kurtz was born in rural Montrose, Georgia on May 23, 1899, on a large farm where she spent long hours picking cotton and peanuts and digging sweet potatoes out of the ground until sunset. In 1935, she moved to Michigan, and a year later, she married Alfred Talley. They lived in Inkster and were wed for 52 years before he died onOctober 17, 1988, at the age of 95. She boasts three grandchildren, 10 great-grandchildren, four great-great-grandchildren, and is the godmother to Kinlochs 19-year-old son Tyler.When she met Tyler for the first time as a newborn, sheput a $5 bill in his tiny fist. God told me that when your child is born, I should give him $5, she said, according to Kinloch. <\/p>\n
Talley always says, do unto others as you desire them to do unto you, and insists thats the secret to living a long life. Also, eating plenty of pork. Every Christmas, she bakes Kinloch a Hogs Head Cheese which doesnt have cheese, but is basically pigs ears and feet in a jelly stock. I personally feel like its one of those things that kind of keeps her going, he says. He may have a point. Last month, a 105-year-old woman in Texas claimed that bacon was her secret to longevity. Talley is also known for her sweet tooth and has made friends walnut pie with walnuts from the walnut tree in her backyard. <\/p>\n
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Read more: Courtesy of Michael Kinloch Jeralean Talley and godson Tyler Kinloch pictured with one of the seven catfish she caught at the Trout Farm in Dexter, Mich., on June 16, 2012. Be nice, worship God and eat pigs feet: Thats how Jeralean Talley of Inkster, Michigan says she lived to celebrate her 114th birthday today and be crowned the oldest person in the United States. Continue reading
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