While many countries, including developed ones, have recently begun to apply new lockdowns and restrictions to deal with a second or even third wave of infection, life in Vietnam is back to normal with the country going almost 80 days without a single local case. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/oct/20/vietnam-covid-economic-growth-public-health-coronavirus
It’s not that hard!
Before I even knew what it was called I long wanted to support a woman in giving birth. Last week my dream came true!
It was a wonderful experience! A birth doula is a trained companion who is not a healthcare professional and who supports a woman through pregnancy, child birth and the postpartum period. Doulas can also provide support through other significant health-related experiences, such as miscarriage, induced abortion or stillbirth, or non-reproductive experiences such as dying.
My dear sister friend blessed me with the opportunity to perform doula duties for her throughout her pregnancy. She gave me permission to share these photos. I couldn’t have asked for a better mother for my first doula experience!
For the past 6 months we studied and prepared for the birth. We read lots of articles and books, watched YouTube videos and most importantly, took a course in hypnobirthing. I was there for the actual birth and am also providing support to the new mommy and baby.
I am really excited to be starting a formal course of study to become a certified doula. I look forward to being of service. Just call me Granny Doula!
As I walked along the beach this morning in Da Nang, Vietnam I was reflecting on how grateful I am for our time here. We planned on a month but it’s almost a year, thanks to Covid.
I’m grateful for sheltering in a place that took the virus seriously, where everyone wears masks and respects social distancing rules when in effect.
I’m grateful that I am here with my beloved, Kathy, and that we both remained physically healthy and mentally well.
I’m grateful for time with family. While we may not be related by blood I have truly found family here.
I’m grateful for the opportunity to do something I always wanted to do: support another woman in birthing a baby. I’m a doula y’all! Look for a blog soon about this experience.
I’m grateful for some amazing sunrises, wonderful adventures and beautiful sights to see. As our time here is winding down (we leave in early December, details soon) I wanted to express my gratitude to Da Nang for helping me to #findbeautyeveryday
Thank you for allowing me to share my gratefulness. I’d love to hear what you are grateful for.
I used to have a LOT of joint pain, especially in my knees. Some days I could barely walk. Then I discovered tumeric and how it helps with inflammation, arthritis and joint pain. I started experimenting with different ways of talking it.
There are lots of ways to take this miracle spice, including capsules or packaged teas. I like making this drink from scratch, it’s a lot more affordable. Also, I believe using fresh ingredients are more potent. My recipe has fresh ginger, another very healthy root.
For the past 3 years I’ve been drinking this 7 item tumeric drink daily and have been almost completely joint pain free. I call it my morning miracle drink. It’s a lovely way to break my fast and start my day.
I make a base drink weekly of 4 ingredients. This recipe makes enough for a week’s worth of morning miracle base. I store it in the fridge and pour out a cupful every morning.
Morning Miracle Base:
1/2 cup of tumeric root (chopped)
1/2 cup of ginger root (chopped)
2-3 cinnamon sticks
1/8 cup of black peppercorns or 2 heaping table spoons of ground black pepper (black pepper is said to make the tumeric more effective)
Add 4 cups of water
Bring to a boil these 4 ingredients and then simmer for 30 minutes
I add these ingredients daily to the base drink:
The juice of one lemon or 2 limes
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (also very beneficial to your health)
You can drink Miracle Morning hot or cold. I prefer it room temperature.
There are lots of different recipes for tumeric tea. Let me know if you have a favorite.
We had all kinds of plans for this, our fifth year of full time/home free travel. We were going to visit India, Sri Lanka and travel through Thailand.
Welp! The universe had other plans. We came to Da Nang, Vietnam, planning on a 1 month stay. We’ve now been here for almost 10 months!
We are very grateful to have sheltered in such a safe, affordable and beautiful country. We’ve undergone two very strict lockdowns but have also had the opportunity to explore this beautiful city.
Most of all I think this has been a time of reflection and focus on what’s really important.
I’ve learned to take nothing for granted and that plans, expectations and situations can change in a moment.
I’ve learned to let small stuff go. I’ve gotten much better at accepting people as they are.
I’ve really come to appreciate the value of a spiritual routine, of grounding myself with morning quiet time and practicing regular meditation and prayer. I’ve also learned how important regular exercise is to my spirit.
I’ve recommitted myself to finding beauty every day and sharing it with the world.
How about you? What lessons have you learned in 2020? We’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to share in the comments section.
If I had to define our third year of home free travel, it would be with one word: COMMUNITY!
While we love the RV life, especially our stays in Mexico, the one thing we were really lacking was connection to others. We didn’t really find it until our second visit to southeast Asia, to Thailand.
Thanks to the efforts of folks like Keidra King and Binkey Tolfree we found Facebook groups in Chiang Mai for expats of color. We attended dinners and other events. We made good friends. Chiang Mai Thailand really became home for us because of the community we found. We have community here in Da Nang Vietnam too because of those initial Chiang Mai connections.
We took classes, went on field trips and I even acted in a play! I hope you will enjoy these pictures of some of our happiest community memories.
I’m so grateful for the community we have found. Especially during the pandemic community has gotten us though!
In 2016 after a year in Asia we returned to the United States. We wanted to participate in what we thought was the election of our first woman president. Welp.. that was a huge disappointment but what wasn’t was our purchase of Winnie.
Winnie is an older Minnie Winnebago Class C RV. She’s 30 feet long with a full kitchen and a queen size bed. She’s got a bathroom with a shower. We bought her from a lovely gentleman in Mobile, Alabama. Once we got her road ready we set out on lots of adventures.
We learned a lot about RV life. It was great seeing how helpful and friendly most RVers are. We traveled all throughout the states and some of Mexico and Canada.
We got a dog, Kahlo, who we adore and who was a true RV star.
RV life allowed us to see so many beautiful places. We got membership to RV parks, stayed on public lands, in Walmart parking lots, national parks and in front of friend’s houses.
Kathy and I look forward to returning to RV life sometime soon. It really is a wonderful way to see North America! If you have any questions or want to share your RV experiences please do so here.
It’s been 5 years since Kathy and I left Los Angeles for a life of home free travel. We set out from Seattle, Washington for a 30 day cruise to Southeast Asia.
The cruise was a great opportunity for relaxing and celebrating our retirement. There were lot of great stops and activities aboard the ship. Since cruising won’t be in our near future, I’m grateful we got to do this one!
Disembarking in Singapore everything changed! No longer were we catered to, fed and under the care of the Holland America Cruise Line. We had to make our own travel arrangements, shop for food and plan activities and accomodations. We were excited to do so. Our first year we explored Southeast Asia by visiting many of our dream destinations and staying at each for one to three months. The pictures below are some of my favorites of that first year, in no particular order.
After a bit more than a year in Southeast Asia we decided to return home to celebrate the election of our first female president. While that didn’t happen (SMDH) we did fulfill another dream and purchase our RV. My next blog will be about our year of travel in Winnie.
At dawn today I participated in the opening ceremonies of BLU via zoom. I was able to represent the far east with an altar dedicated to our ancestors, family, friends and community. It was an amazing experience, connecting with my sisters in the U.S. all the way from Da Nang Vietnam!
Later in the morning I had a good time laughing with the fabulous Jazzie Mas at her virtual comedy show, also on Zoom.
Then at noon today the Brothas and Sistahs of Da Nang group got together for a virtual brunch. It was wonderful to see everyone (we haven’t seen each other since lockdown began July 26).
I’ve played games at Zoom meetings and been to Zoom birthday parties. I use my free Zoom account to connect one on one with friends and family. Zoom is a real blessing for those of us in recovery. There are 12 Step Meetings for every fellowship!
This pandemic is awful. I never want to forget all who are suffering. For me, Zoom is one thing I am grateful for. It’s made these difficult times a little easier.
If you have any questions about using Zoom or connecting with any of the groups I mentioned email me at boltraveling@gmail.com
I’d love to hear about your Zoom experiences!
BOLT: Black Old Lesbians Traveling 