Creative Meanderings – My ramblings and wanderings through life

A Week in Sardinia

Oct 112024

This was a trip planned sometime back in April, I think. Despite our frequent travels and desire to stay put for a bit, we/I enjoyed our week in Sardinia – still on the island as I type this post, actually.

Some people put it on our radar last year when they relayed stories of their visit saying that it was lovely. So, when we were discussing with our friends about a joint trip, we all quickly agreed to organize our week away here.

After some research and discussion, we decided to do a few days in the south in Cagliari – the capital of the island/region of Sardegna (Sardinia) and a few days in the north near Olbia where many visit for the beaches. We stayed in Airbnbs whilst together to be able to enjoy shared space and have the option of eating in or being able to enjoy leisure mornings.

While I am, personally, more of a fan of hotels and kitchenette options since cleaning up and such is not part of my usual holiday activities, it was actually rather nice to have our own spaces and shared spaces – though I still would choose hotels. 😅

M and I took the ferry over with the car so that we would have freedom to explore around the island. It meant a bit longer travel time for us, but it was a good choice for convenience as I’m not a fan of wasting time waiting for public transport or spending money constantly for taxis. It also meant that we have had an extra day on either side to relax together. So, on the way, we stayed in Livorno since our departure was early in the morning. Tonight, we are further northwest near Porto Cervo so that we can relax in a spa resort hotel along the beachfront before our overnight ferry back to Rome.

As for my impressions of the island, well, not so much for me. I’m sure that in the peak summer months it is more lively, but there isn’t a lot to see. The bike tour we did in Cagliari was fun and interesting, but the guide was very skilled at making the town seem more interesting that it really is. There were some tidbits of culture and history to absorb, but overall, I felt it was a grimy and old place to visit.

In terms of the north, well, the beaches are nice and the water is a pretty blue, but again, not overly engaging. We walked around Olbia center, which was cute and had more of a vibe to it than the south. Still, I haven’t been convinced that I would ever need to come back.

What made the trip was our time drinking, eating a lot of pizza and pasta, and chatting away the days and nights. 🥰🥰

Here are some pics (in reverse order):

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Personal Writing Retreats Are Back!

Going Mental, Writing No Responses »

Oct 042024

For some reason, I stopped going away on my own mini writing retreats. Perhaps, it is because we have been traveling so much. Perhaps, I thought that it was too much of a personal luxury. Perhaps, I just forgot that they had a purpose beyond just the writing focus.

After having just gone on one last week, despite the busyness of our lives between events and trips, I am recommitted to reinstating them regularly into my schedule. I have already tentatively planned them every six weeks or so for the next year. Even my todo list has been scheduled for when to plan the next retreat.

I recognize this is a major luxury to be able to afford such a thing in both time and money. Still, I plan to make the most of it because I can.

Let me share the benefits.

We lead busy lives, by our own making, but nevertheless it is busy. M has a combination of personality and work that is at a high energy level, which can be overpowering and encompassing of everyone or everything around. This includes me. I’m sure that I have written on this before, but like Will Smith wrote in his autobiography, it’s get on the M train or move out of the way!

Being on the M train is fun and worthwhile, but every now and then I need to get off and walk alongside at my own pace in my own way and in my own direction. Sometimes, I feel lost in the chaos so that I feel unseen and without meaning. Therefore, taking time away for myself and for my writing is beyond refreshing – it’s rejuvenating. My own energy cup refills and I reconnect with myself so that I can return to the fast lane feeling whole again.

On top of that, I get a lot of writing done. It resets my creative brain so that I can let the words flow that get stored up, or blocked, during the thinking process when I don’t have enough time to sort through all that is going on. So, I am able to produce and release in a productive way.

This past mini writing retreat was combined with a couple of town, visits as I am trying to check out for myself some of the major towns in the Umbria region, as I write my third Umbria on a Whim book. Although I am not necessarily writing how I feel about the towns, I can get a sense of what they are like and what they might have to offer allowing me to write notes to include in the text. So, I headed to Narni and, by chance, a second visit to Terni.

These towns are just an hour away from home. I stayed in an agriturismo (agriculture tourist) hotel, which was average, but quiet and nicely located for what I wanted.

I got writing done and, as I said, my cup is refilled.

~T 🔥🐉♋️

A Little Party Never Killed Nobody

Going Mental No Responses »

Sep 302024

It was indeed a roaring 1920’s soiree at our house on the 26th. While I don’t remember much towards the latter half of the event, the pictures tell the tale of a grand time had by myself and all who joined.

Just about a month ago, when we felt that we were getting close to having the pool area completed, M decided he wanted to have a big bash. We connected with a party planner, and away she went with the ideas. With nearly daily messages and plans put into place, the event is now the talk of many both locally and abroad.

Why Gatsby? Why not, we say! Truth be told, one of our local friends had mentioned she wanted to celebrate her 60th with a Gatsby style party, but when we offered to throw a bash for her, she humbly refused thinking it too much for us to do. So, when the party idea came up and we were looking for easy themes that people might jump on board to embrace with costumes and the decorations, it was a fairly simple decision.

People did not disappoint! Even I, who has not always been the greatest of fans for costumes, made a big effort to meet the request. So, without further ado, here are some highlights in photos of an amazing event. Now, just to recover…!

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Munich Oktoberfest 2024

Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Sep 252024

For many years, I have been interested in Oktoberfest in Munich. I’ve been to other beer festivals in various locations, but there’s something special about going to the OG place to experience it. It was definitely a fun time, even though I don’t drink beer much.

We had two beer tents in our tour package: Lowenbrau and Marstall. We definitely had more fun at Lowenbrau on the first day, plus it was day drinking rather than the evening. The music and bands were good. Next time, we would like to be downstairs where the action is! However, it was really fun to watch everyone drinking, dancing and making merry!

Anyway, it’s a little bit busy around here with lots to catch up on, but for now, I’ll sign off here.

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Five-Day Online “Silent” Meditation Retreat

Going Mental No Responses »

Sep 162024

For a while, I have been contemplating how to make more use of my time and to do things that feel more purposeful with my life. As someone who does not truly believe in charity for the sake of altruism, nor do I fully support doing something for nothing (related to altruism), it has been a challenge to grow in my spirit of compassion and dana (generosity and donation).

About a month ago, I was having one of my existential crises moments feeling a lack of purposefulness in my daily life. It’s not that I feel I don’t have a purpose, it’s that I don’t know how to action my purpose in a fulfilling way whilst also maintaining the freedom and flexibility of the lifestyle I cherish in totality. So, after having a bit of a lament and probably taking out my sense of ‘lack’ on M, I sat with myself when he was away.

One solution that arose was to embark on a two-year Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certificate Program.

So, I applied. I was accepted and began the process of ensuring I am ready for the February 2025 start.

Part of the pre-requisites is to participate in a silent meditation retreat. Since we have a number of travel plans before the end of the year, it was a challenge to consider an in-person retreat where I’d have to travel. So, thanks to the power of technology and the influence of the pandemic, opportunities have arisen so that these kinds of retreats can be done online.

I chose to do one that was on the US West Coast timezone as it was the least likely to disrupt my daily life given that I have an engaged partner and pups to ensure get attention throughout the day. Hence, the silent in quotations.

The past five days were the days, or I should say, nights.

Overall, I would say it was a meaningful experience. I did a lot of meditating, which was a treat. Insights and awakenings inside me occurred so that I felt a shift in my psyche and I narrowed down my life purpose statement more clearly.

I am the shining light of wisdom that guides others to find their own lights so they can shine for others.

If you’re not a life purpose statement kind of person, I realize this may sound a bit strange. Basically, I am called to be a “teacher” of sorts. Everything I’ve done in my professional life has been to become able to teach or train. This is really no different.

I am also motivated to support the betterment of the human capacity in individuals whether through health (diet and nutrition), yoga (physical), or meditation (mental) for an overall balanced sense of well-being. Therefore, using my own light and wisdom from my life, I can help to guide and support others so that they can shine for themselves and others. It reminds of me of the scene in The Lord of the Rings when they light the beacons.

This remains one of my favorite scenes of all time as it gives me such hope for humanity. This is also what I want to contribute to creating in us as individuals.

I also believe that much can be achieved through meditation, which is a very much misunderstood “activity” by the mainstream. So, if I can help to dispel the myths while making it more accessible to everyone, I feel that I am doing my part in my way. This combines my ability and skills of teaching with my desire to elevate the human capacity within individuals to further elevate society.

Perhaps it seems lofty or idealistic, but this is my greatest dream in life. It’s not one I often share or verbalize because it’s such a core value that I have been hesitant, out of fear, that one might try to blow out the flame. However, I now understand that I need to let the light shine and like the beacons burn bright for all the world to see as we encourage others to light their own.

So, I’m looking for further retreats – admittedly more bougie ones than the stereotypical granola, monk-ish style – and look forward to building up my practice so that I can truly fulfill my purpose. More as this develops to come.

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Fighting Motion Sickness

Going Mental No Responses »

Sep 092024

For as long as I can remember, as an adult at least, I have easily gotten motion sickness whether in a car or on a boat. There are occasions when it hasn’t hit me much, but most of the time if I look down in a car or experience any kind of movement that is not stable, I start to get sick.

Usually, my physical response is to start yawning until eventually I fall asleep. It seems that my body/brain is rather adept at shutting me down to reset or escape the source of a problem.

The typical recommendation to watch the horizon while on a boat or try to get cool air work to some small degree, but not enough to remedy the oncoming discomfort. So, when it came to prepare for our Croatia and Adriatic Sea vacation, I wanted to do something to ensure that I could enjoy it as much as possible.

Since others may suffer in a similar way, I thought I’d share some of the things I did, and that worked, to avoid major motion sickness.

Puma Method

First, I read somewhere online about the Puma Method. This is a series of exercises that you do to basically make yourself dizzy and help train your brain to adjust to the motions to avoid sickness. It says it takes about two weeks to fully benefit, but I did it for four days and noticed results in the car straightaway. This was a major result as M’s driving often leaves me feeling nauseous.

You do have to pay for the video and PDF tracking sheet, but I would say it’s definitely worth it if you’re a sensitive sufferer like me. I will be continuing to do these exercises regularly as being car sick is a constant that I’d like to be free of.

Eye Exercises

A friend helped me out before we went with some herbal, natural remedies and these preventative eye excercises.

Start by thinking of your eyes as a perfect circle, a clock where every second, every minute and every hour counts.
Bring your focus to 12 o ‘clock, then using your eyes as a pencil, draw a line down to 6 o ‘clock. If the line wavers use your finger to guide your eyes. Do five repetitions, center your eyes, then close them.
Open your eyes directly at 3 o’ clock, then straight to nine o’clock and draw a line from three to nine. If the line is wavy or shaky, just work the line slowly until it feels smooth. Do five repetitions, center, then close eyes.
Open eyes and draw a line between 11 and five, then five and 11 again. Five reps. Center then close.
Draw a line between one and seven again, five reps. then center and close.
If there is a weak pattern just work through that line until it becomes a perfectly straight line.
Now, imagining your eyes as a perfect circle, start at 12 o’clock and go clockwise making every second, every minute and every hour count (a good life lesson in general.)
After five circles, center, then close your eyes.
Lastly, starting at 12 o clock go counterclockwise, five reps. When you end at 12, center and close your eyes.
Rub your hands together to create a good heat then cup your hands over your eyes and allow the heat to be absorbed.

I’m not sure how much they worked, but they definitely didn’t hurt anything.

Pressure Point Bands

These were amazingly helpful and almost instantaneous in smoothing out my stomach or dizziness on the ferry, the boat and in the car. Don’t wait until symptoms arise, just wear them. I did wear them on both wrists, then wore just one the day after we returned to land as I still felt I was moving on a boat…. I also wore just one on the ferry ride the following day, but then didn’t need them after that. I now keep one set in each of our cars.

Vagus Nerve Reset and Ear Pressure Points

My friend mentioned above also taught me how to reset my vagus nerve, which is super helpful for other aspects of our health and balance. She further showed me how to find the pressure points in my ear, which helped with any dizzy spells.

Vagus nerve reset – the easiest way to do this is to hum. Hum normally, then hum putting lower lip above upper lip, then move lower lip back and forth from normal to above upper lip, then hum normally again.
Ear pressure points – push firmly into ear canal just before the finger goes into the opening of your ear, move it around until saliva begins to increase in your mouth, repeat on the other side. Do the same for the upper inner lobe of your ear on both sides.

Other Helpful Aids

Homeopathic nausea pills (work well for a quick fix)
Ear patches (heard they work well though you have to wean yourself off of them, but didn’t use any)
Travel gum (made my tongue numb, so didn’t try again, but can distract!)
Ginger chews (everyone recommends, but couldn’t find them in our pharmacy)

So, perhaps this will help you, reader, if you suffer from motion sickness. It made all the difference for an enjoyable holiday on the water. I think the highest recommendation is for the pressure point bands as our friend on the boat also had some which seemed to work great for her as well!

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Croatia and the Adriatic

General, Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Sep 062024

As promised, here’s a post about our trip to Croatia and time bobbing on a boat in the Adriatic Sea.

For some years now, Croatia has been a highly recommended destination for travel thanks to the Game of Thrones being filmed there and its latest entry into the European Union. Its clear waters and fairly untainted coast line is also a popular draw for the yacht and sail boat lovers.

Since M often muses about wanting to sail the Atlantic Ocean or spend life on a boat, we have gone back and forth about a sailing holiday. Unfortunately, I have a very low tolerance for motion causing me to get ill rather quickly when getting jostled about whether in a car or on water. However, things like a fast roller coaster or a speedboat do not seem to affect me at all, so we compromised on a motor boat (yacht) for our water-based vacation.

Because we boarded the boat from Split, I decided it was a great chance to do a little bit of sightseeing if we added a day to either end of the trip.

Also, because it is easy enough to get a car ferry and driving is more convenient in some ways, we embraced a road trip!

So, from our home we drove about six hours to the southern side of Italy on the Adriatic Sea side where we caught the ferry from Bari to Dubrovnik. We stayed the night in Dubrovnik closer to the ferry port since it was a late arrival and we were tired from the long drive.

Knowing that we were coming back, we decided to get up early and head toward Split with some planned stops along the coast. So, we took the slightly longer coastal road stopping in Ston and Makarska Riviera, where we had lunch, to see a bit of the lesser known towns. Both were unique in their views, but equally interesting.

Finally, we arrived in Split where we had a hotel in the old town near the Diocletian’s Palace. It was an interesting old town area that bordered the harbor. There was a reasonable amount of activity along the shore as we people watched and took in the scene. Plus, we had to have a little Game of Thrones fun!

Then, it was a week of glorious weather on the water. Each day, we would anchor in a bay to relax and swim. Then, we would head towards a different coastal town on one of the 1200 plus islands for dinner and where we’d spend the night. It was indeed a luxurious way to spend the week.

Our friends joined us for five of the seven days, which added to the fun. There were only a couple of bumpy water moments, but we moved to calmer locations and I was well prepared with different methods of addressing these situations.

We returned back to Split, then drove the quicker highway route back to Dubrovnik, where we wandered around the fortified old town, saw the GoT stairs and then relaxed before our early ferry return ride and long drive home.

All in all, it was a lovely time. We relaxed, got sun, laughed a lot, and explored a tiny bit of a new country that wasn’t on our radar until recently. We agreed that we would likely do another boat trip, since I seem to have developed some sea legs, but we think we might try the Greek islands or somewhere different next time.

If you want to know more about the preparations I took for avoiding seasickness or where we stayed, etc., just let me know!

~T 🔥🐉♋️

September!

Going Mental No Responses »

Sep 022024

I know I’m due to write an update from our trip to Croatia, but I’m still catching up from it having just returned late-ish last night. So, will aim to get it posted for Friday.

In the meantime, can you believe it’s already September?

Funnily enough, M had said when we got back in February from Australia that we didn’t have much travel planned for the rest of the year. At the time, he was right. However, we are now on a pretty solid every two weeks or so travel schedule. At least we are home for about three weeks this month, so that’s nice.

Perhaps because we do travel so much, I struggle with a little bit of return home from travel blues. Part of it is because apart from our house, pets, and each other, I have little else that excites me to being in this location. Generally, I enjoy seeing the people we meet up with when that occurs, but even after nearly three years, I don’t feel that most are friends.

I feel as if I’m a fairly low-maintenance friend. In many of my friendships, I feel as if I am the one who initiates interaction and engagement. This has been the case most of my life. Some might say it is an adoptee-thing, while others might just attribute it to my nature of being quietly thoughtful of others. Whatever it is, I have become less enthusiastic playing that role as I get older. I want friendships that are mutually initiated and engaged.

The fact is that I do not need to hang out all of the time nor necessarily be in contact constantly. But, I do appreciate consistency in effort and agreement to get together. I don’t want to feel as if I am always the one reaching out to make plans or forcing presence on others.

So…I feel as if I am still trying to find my tribe. I suppose it’s just the nature of my chosen and preferred lifestyle. Perhaps, it is my age. Maybe, it’s just me.

In any case, September is here and cooler weather is on its way. That alone makes me very happy!

~T 🔥🐉♋️

We’re on a boat!

Going Mental, Meanderings Abroad No Responses »

Aug 262024

This might be the only post until next week as we are currently on vacation on a boat in the Adriatic Sea off the coast of Croatia.

We drove from our house to Bari on the east coast of Italy, which is about six hours away, caught an 8-hr ferry to Dubrovnik and stayed one night there. We didn’t see anything as we will visit again on the way back and wanted to do a leisurely drive up the coast toward Split.

Mostly taking the coast road, we broke up the four-hour trip with stops in Ston and the Makarska Riviera.

Eventually, we arrived in Split, which is a cute old town. Our hotel was nicely located near the Diocletian Palace square.

We explored the marina and old town for a day, then headed off for the main event of our holiday – the yacht. We are on the boat for a week with friends joining us this evening (after two days with just us).

So far, we have been swimming in the bays, relaxing and soaking up the sun during the day. Then, we either dock or moor in the evenings with dinner somewhere on shore. Just so days in and I’m loving it!

Thankfully, I prepared for the potential sea sickness and am using pressure point bands and did some training beforehand. I’ll write more on that in another post when we are back. In any event, I feel alright even after one bumpy ride last night. So, fingers crossed 🤞🏽, it remains this way for the rest of the week.

More when we return! Until then, stay tuned. 😁

~T 🔥🐉♋️

Changing Life Seasons

Going Mental No Responses »

Aug 192024

It’s a cool 24 degrees (C) / 76F today and I’m loving it. It’ll return back up to the low 30s/high 80s tomorrow onwards, but the little reprieve from the heat is definitely doing this lady some good.

While I may sometimes casually wish for more traditional ways of life, especially when it comes to social normals, there are some aspects of the modern age that I feel are better. One of the improvements on a social level is the more open discussion and sharing about what happens to women as we age. For far too long the female gender has allowed the males to define, label, and treat us as crazy, all-in-the-head, weaker sex. Well, the tables are finally starting to turn, but it’s by no means balanced yet.

When I was younger, I learned about sex from being abused by adult male figures or from films or from books. By the time I reached the age for sex education at school, I was already informed. So, when I was the first amongst most in my age group to become sexually active, it shouldn’t have been much of a surprise. Not that it was right, but it was the way it was. My parents did their best to broach the subject with me, but it wasn’t necessarily a comfortable conversation with my friends let alone with adults.

Also, when my body matured and I needed feminine products, there wasn’t much of a discussion – it just became part of the shopping list. Later, when I lived abroad, I learned to navigate birth control and other matters on my own since check ups and doctors differed by the country. Still, very few of my female friends and I discussed our cycles or body issues.

These days, my peers and I are hitting the menopause phase of life and so there is a lot of confusion, questions, and bewilderment. Thankfully, more ladies who are already in this phase or out of it are starting to share about their experiences, learnings, and advice to help us out!

One of the common pieces of advice I have received is “just do HRT, it will make everything better”! While I’m definitely for making everything better, I’m not a fan of synthetic drugs unless absolutely necessary. Fortunately, I have people around who are like-minded and have given me some more natural options and literature to read up on what might be best.

My first place to start is through a book called It Must be My Hormones by Marion Gluck and Vicki Edgson. The combination of medical information, nutritional awareness, and the case studies is very helpful so far.

Based on this information and advice from someone, I’ve got a recommendation for a clinic that focuses on bio-identical hormone therapy in Rome. My next step will be to make an appointment there for next steps, so stay tuned as I update here on that when it happens.

In the meantime, I have become more and more aware of how little we know and understand in our youth about how poorly we treat our bodies with no concern about the longevity of them. Since we cannot see inside our bodies and never learn about how to use blood tests to regularly monitor our health, we abuse them without a thought. By the time we experience pain or discomfort, the damage is mostly done with either a significant amount of effort required to repair or an acceptance of the decline as the only solution.

I’ve been pretty lucky to have a healthy body inside and out most of my life. Although I do know a good amount about nutrition and health, I definitely have not always been fully aware of my body. These days, I have some aches and pains. My spine has been called old already at just 48 years old. This is despite doing yoga and eating relatively well. Some things you cannot do anything about.

Of course, I am getting physio for different parts of my back, posture, and such. I am eating even better – or trying. I take my vitamins that are organically/naturally sourced. I drink kombucha brewed at home. I have lions mane coffee with collagen and mushroom elixir. I have green juice filled with tons of vitamins and minerals.

Plus, I do yoga stretches, walk on the treadmill at least 20 minutes each day, and stay active-ish.

Seems like everything should be grand and yet, I still am not 100%. More like 95%, which is still good, but I notice that 5%.

This brings me back to the beginning. Heat is no longer my friend. Thankfully, I think my vitamins have helped curb my hot flushes a bit, the heat triggers an overheated devil in me. I’m definitely happiest these days with partially cloudy skies and a cool breeze. Now, I just need to find the perfect place to live in that kind of climate! 😅😅

~ T 🔥🐉♋️

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