 I normally travel for my birthday. Barcelona, France, the Yucatan, the Med, Switzerland, you get the idea. This year I stayed home and celebrated with my family and friends. We ate, laughed and had a nice week of fun. I couldn't ask for more, especially after the year we've had.  So it was a great week of fun and relaxing, but staying home was also a necessity since we are barred from traveling. :( BUT it didn’t stop me from planning 2021’s birthday adventure. The problems was where to even begin?  I love Rome, (well most of Italy for that matter), the people, the food, the sites! It's always amazing, but I wanted to knock something else off the old travel bucket list…So in doing some digging I found August is a GREAT time to go to Greece!  Honestly, as an American I know almost nothing about Greek island culture. So after doing some research I think it will be ideal for my next birthday escape. Did you know, according to Visit Greece: "Greek sovereign land includes 6,000 islands and islets scattered in the Aegean and Ionian Seas, of which only 227 islands are inhabited?!" OMG! So many islands to see!  I know we want to explore temples and spend lazy afternoons in museums…but what else is a “must see” and where should we begin?  Reading online and then bugging my European friends I learned that in most cities, bigger villages and tourist spots, English is spoken, lodging is inexpensive and it would be safe for me to travel alone or with family members. (Well, after the pandemic is over anyway.)
Greece depends on tourism and we should all do our part, lol! Most people were surprised I never visited and actually I am too. It has been on the list for a long time, but there are soooo many placed I wish to visit, somehow I skipped over it. I will keep you in the loop with the Greece trip. I'm watching airfare currently and looking at villas to rent, sourcing the best vegan food options and trying to decide on a central island to make as "home base" for exploring. I think I forgot how much I loved travel planning... (shakes fist at damn pandemic!) What's on your travel bucket list? And when do you think it will be "safe" to travel again? Speak soon~  Hi gang, Can you believe it's already Thursday? This week seems to have just flown by! Today's my birthday so it's going to be a busy one. I had company this week and we stayed up late watching the annual meteor shower, eating and laughing! I haven't posted much this month because well, we were too busy enjoying life. Here are a few highlights of Augusts adventures (so far) and some of my birthday goodies:  So much Vegan goodness! We feasted!  Crappy Iphone Moon Picture...from one late night meteor watching.  Early gift to myself! You can never has too much storage and for TWO TB this was a STEAL! Read more about it here:   Even the desert greened up nicely!  Was surprised with these lovely birthday flowers :D   Love them!  And any excuse to make vegan cookies...  And more... (These are oatmeal chocolate chip) I have about a 100 more pictures (a lot of food, lol) but it's time to go do the next "thing" - I promise to post again really soon. The External hard drive is an affiliate link, but I really wanted to share that good price with you. My Mac Book Pro is FULL and that was a life saver...
Okay I'm off to brunch, speak soon!  "□□□□ □□□□□□□□ □̀ □□□□□" □□□□□ □□□□□ It all starts in Paris...Meet me there?
 Let's welcome in a new, fresh month. Hello! Can you believe it's August already? On the one hand this has been the longest year EVER! And on the other, summer just slipped by us. IDK... So much has happened this week, and I've only just now had a bit of a breather to catch up and blog. If you are not part of my community here, then welcome! I'm glad you are here! Leave me a comment and let's get to know each other - On this site I blog about life, review books and products, post a few easy, vegan recipes and share my passion for art and traveling. This is actually a travel blog, but with all that has happened this year my travel has been VERY limited. But we can still plan for future adventures and dream boldly! What's on your current travel bucket list? I'm ready to see some new places and revisit some old favorites...  Like London and  Cliffs of Moher, Ireland  Vienna, Austria  Seljalandsfoss, Iceland And while we are dreaming and planning these new adventures we can make art every day. I invite you this month to try different types of art projects. Think outside the box and expand your techniques, open yourself up to creating.   Try something new like paper crafts or calligraphy. This is a month to step outside the box and open our hearts to love and new experiences. This is a month to dream boldly.  Have a wonderful August!  Happy Sunday! It's going to be a busy day around here and I'm rushing to get things done before we have to go out. The heat is miserable this week, so we plan everything for early morning or late evening. But so far I've been really great at procrastinating this morning. I've knocked out two cups of coffee and not much else...So before I buckle down and get something done today, here's a quick book review:  This novel has been on my list for years, and thanks to 2020 forcing me to slow down, I finally had time to read it! It was the first novel to win the Hugo, Nebula, and Philip K. Dick Awards, and is considered a science fiction masterpiece. Written in 1984, Mr. Gibson's Neuromancer came together at a time when the personal computer was just beginning to make its way in private homes, and many people were dismissing its staying power as a "fad". This book builds a complex, future reality that is far away from 1984 and uncomfortably close to 2020. Quick Book Review - Sunday Edition: Neuromancer by William Gibson
 Books two and three in the trilogy. While Gibson did not invent cyberpunk, but wrote several important contributions previous to this novel - including short stories “Johnny Mnemonic” and “The Gernsback Continuum.” But Neuromancer cemented cyberpunk as a damaged, dystopian society dominated by global computer networks, crime and personal enhancements.  It's a page turner!  If you are looking for a great read, go grab a copy today! This review contains affiliate links, but I never post about anything I don't love.
Have a great Sunday! Speak soon~ 
Happy Tuesday!
I hope you have some wonderful plans for today. We are in for a super hot day with temps 104'F / 40C #YIKES! I used to like warm days...they were perfect for laying by the pool or on the beach - a thrilling science fiction novel in one hand and ice cold beer in the other. #GoodTimes But sun worshipping isn't "my thing" anymore. The older I get, the more I care about my skin and more importantly the damage the sun has already done. As someone who laid out in an attempt to tan my pale nordic body I woke up one day and thought, "Maybe it's too late?!" Meaning too much damage had been done. But you know I'm not one to just roll over and accept 'fate' - So now I'm on a mission to both protect my skin from any further damage and also turn back the clock. I'm currently doing some personal research on all things skincare. There have been so many scientific advances in the field of cosmetics and skincare lately that it can be very overwhelming...Where do you even start? 
(A small sample of my current collection.) I'm also searching Amazon for other highly rated/recommended products.
These are some of the best sellers on Amazon and over the course of the next few months I will be trying vegan products out and reviewing for you.
My current (body) sunscreen is Banana Boat Dry Balance Broad Spectrum Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 50. Gone are the days of greasy, oily sunscreen! This lotion drys to a nice matte finish and leaves your skin feeling silky smooth. I apply this before gardening, hiking or driving. You will need to reapply every two hours, but it is really working so far. (I've been using since about the 3rd of May.) 
Looks and feels more like "normal" lotion, not heavy or greasy.
This post does continue affiliate links, and I may receive a small commission of any sales. I only promote the products I use/feel are good values for you. By clicking the link it doesn't change the price of the product, but it does helps to support the cost of the blog. (So thank you!)
Also thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my posts. I have a few new book reviews that should be out this week and some new vegan recipes, so do stop in again. Speak soon!  I Hope you're having a fabulous weekend and happy 4th of July if you are in America. It's another gorgeous day here in central New Mexico. There's a lot going on this weekend, but mostly people are having small, safe get-togethers as the pandemic rages on in 'Merca. I was up early to finish a work projects (minutes before the deadline, lol) and now the long weekend is mine! I plan on cooking up some new vegan treats, going swimming and watching the fireworks from my patio tonight. Not very exciting I know but considering everything thats happening.... We also had planned on going for a hike this weekend, but temps are soaring so that will probably not happen. High heat and me don't mix well...so instead it will be drinks on the patio for the win!  Be back soon with book reviews and more recipes-  Hello and welcome to July! It's going to be a good month, I think. The parks are finally open here, so I went out early today for a run. It was AMAZING to be out and moving again. I have been running/walking around the neighborhood, but its great to be back on the park trails. The days are longer as we head deeper into Summer and I'm so ready! It's also warmer now, but we have the air con on and plenty of fruit, so bring on July adventures!  The weather has been great overall. June was warm with scattered showers blowing in to cool things off and I think July is predicted to be more of the same. In America July is a month of pool parties, BBQ's and road trips. I have done most of that already in June, but am looking forward to more downtime to visit and catch up with friends. (We still wear masks and social distance, but its great to be able to move around some and not be trapped inside.) - I have a couple of small road trips planned and hopefully time to just explore around here, weather permitting.  I can't wait to see what July brings...  This is Part 3 of the Roswell Trip  Hi Travel Family, My last day in Roswell was tempered with cooler weather and a bit of shopping. We visited the Alien Invasion and ate impossible burgers from Burger King. Read part 1 and 2 and also overview of Roswell here from an older post. Most of the shops are on Main Street and easy to find. Call before you visit though, as not everything is open. Also most people have masks on and are social distancing. New Mexico is taking things seriously, so be prepared before you visit.  Even these guys are staying 6 feet apart.  We did a bit of shopping at the Alien Invasion. Its is a funky T-shirt shop. It has well made T-shirts (not your 2 for $20 set) and alien giftware. You can get something for everyone on your list here and spend as much or as little as you like (See pictures below). They also encourage pictures, so if you want some instagram snaps stop inside.     It's across the street from the UFO Museum.   Inside the shop...                From there we walked around a bit...    Love the street lamps...   We didn't go into the soap shop, I couldn't handle the smell.  See ya next time! |
Author Welcome to my (I used to travel) blog, my healthy Vegan lifestyle blog and my life! It's a lot, but it's my passions and I just love to write about it. Here I share tips, stories and photos from my adventures and life. This is the place where people can find daily inspiration to travel and motivation to live healthier lives and laugh a bit too! 
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