The Importance of Nesting

For those of you who have not ever seen me, I’m letting you know that I am relatively short. Maybe, at 5’ 5”, I could be considered “average” in height, but most days I feel short. I cannot reach the top shelf in most grocery stores. I cannot reach the top shelf in my own closet without use of a stepstool. I can barely reach the top cupboards in my kitchen even on tiptoe.

Tres Kitties

Some of you already know that my family has grown by three. Last week we adopted three new kitties from our local humane society. We would have taken the entire lot home, but alas, three was all we could comfortably be responsible for. It’s so tough when you visit animal shelters because you want to rescue everything there. But the reality is, three cats in one confirmed space is the perfect amount of cats. Plus there is the added costs of properly caring for them, which greatly hinders one’s decision when adopting.

Calypso and Mozart – Photo by P. Rickrode (2022)

Monument of the Millennium

I hope I haven’t lost you. We were cruising and I left you hanging at Costa Rica. Never fear, we’re back on track. The next day of our 15-day cruise was spent navigating the uber impressive Panama Canal, designated as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World and a Monument of the Millennium by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Good Medicine

“Laughter is the best medicine.” Or so the old adage goes. But is it really true? According to my research, medical experts say “yes,” laughter is indeed great medicine for many things. Laughter is a particularly great form of stress relief, and that’s no joke.

The Great Wind Up

I don’t know about you, but traveling is always a bit stressful for me. Not so much, the actual going and doing, but the pre-travel hoopla and the returning home re-set. Stressful is probably not the exact word to describe how I feel but certainly a sense of anxiety surrounds the whole about-to-leave-home event. Probably because I’m the planner in my traveling group. Plans don’t just happen people. They develop. And that takes time.

Welcome To the Jungle

If you’ve been following my blog, you know that I’ve been sporadically sharing photos and stories from our cruise last year to the Panama Canal. Our first stop was Jamaica, then Curacao, followed by Aruba. Today, we’re continuing on from the ABC islands headed for Costa Rica. Finally reached the jungle I’ve been expecting. We spent the day at the 3,400-acre mountain reserve known as Veragua Rainforest, which is 100% rain forest and about 30 minutes away from Puerto Limon. Lots to see and do on this exciting excursion.

Binge Watching Nonsense

A while back I blogged about not being able to find anything to watch on TV despite paying $600 a month for streaming services and having over 10,000 channels at our disposal. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but you get the drift. Finding a new movie or series sometimes takes some trial and error. Unless you’re looking for a little something to watch just for the fun of it.

Let’s Explore the A B C’s – Part II

Last week we explored Curacao. Today we’re arriving at Aruba and will dive into some of the highlights of our shore excursion across this desert island. As I said last week, the ABC islands are much more arid and deserty than I believed them to be. Aruba is quite flat and there are only a few places with sandy beaches for spring break enthusiasts. Most of the island is pretty desolate. Not tropical. At all.

Let’s Explore the A B C’s – Part I

A few weeks ago I blogged about our trip to Jamaica. That was the first port stop on our Panama Canal Cruise. Today we’re moving on to our second stop. Our itinerary called for us to visit Bonaire next, followed by Aruba. But, because covid numbers were surging in Bonaire, they re-routed us to Curacao instead. No worries for us, we had never been to any of the A B C islands so we were eager to see what all the fuss was about.

A Little Bit of This and A Little Bit of That

Summer is winding down in a lot of places and folks are gearing up for Fall. Pumpkins, Halloween decorations and even some Christmas décor is popping up all around. It’s still way too hot for me to think about Fall sweaters and hot spiced beverages but the folks in retail don’t really pay attention to the weather.