Carpe Diem

Making a Trip to the Museum Fun

How to Make A Trip to the Museum Fun

This blog post was inspired as a response to a recent episode of the Happier Podcast by Gretchen Rubin.

As is often the case, Gretchen and her sister, Elizabeth Craft, provide happiness hacks.. their own and those from their large base of followers.. on everything under the sun. In this episode, they talked about different ways to look around a museum that might make it more fun or enjoyable than usual.

And, as always, they encourage listeners to write in with their own ideas.

Gamify!

My family loves games. While my kids were growing up, I made games out of everything. This was especially effective at getting chores done. Note: A “Beat the Clock” strategy is highly effective at getting chores done quickly, though can lead to some breakage and poor quality.

A “scavenger hunt” strategy is often something done at museums to make museum-viewing more fun for kids. And even for adults! If one isn’t offered at the museum, then with a little research, you can create your own.

The scavenger hunt doesn’t necessarily need to be researched ahead of time. Instead of having a list of what to look for, you can ask everyone to find their favorite piece in each room. Taking a “scavenger hunt” daily walk looking for things that brought me joy was something I did regularly during the pandemic. I discovered so many treasures this way!

My Unique Game at Museums: Guess Favorites!

And this brings me to my own unique idea at making museums more fun. I ask everyone to secretly pick out their favorite piece in each room and also guess what the others will pick.

We then ask each person what their favorite piece is and why. Sometimes people like the colorful pieces or a certain style of art. Sometimes it’s the composition or something unique about the piece.

As we go through each room, we discover more about the taste of the people we’re with. We also discover more about our own taste. What draws us to a certain piece of art? What feelings do we have when we view different pieces?

This “game” is not one where we keep careful track of how many correct guesses we have. (Well, maybe Scotty does. He can be competitive that way!)

It’s not about winning the most points, though. It’s about observing, discovering, and embracing what brings us joy. At the same time, we are learning what brings our companions joy.. deepening our understanding of them.

And sometimes what we learn is that they’d rather stay home and play a “real game” instead of going to an Art Museum.

Note: As adults, my kids still will play these “games” with me that originated in their childhood. They pretend that they’re doing it for my sake, but I can tell they love it. Well, except the one about picking up dog poop. I could not convince them that it was just like an Easter Egg hunt.

Freelance Writing in Retirement

Freelance Writing is a good way to get some supplemental income in retirement.

Amber Petty Will Teach You How to Get Freelance Writing Gigs

Benefits of Freelance Writing in Retirement

In my last blog post, Blogging in Retirement, I wrote:

If you have expertise in a niche domain you might be able to make money by writing or blogging on an established site.

What does being “retired” really mean? I view it as a time when we no longer have to “work” in order to earn living expenses. Yet, surprisingly, there’s a lot about work that I miss!

I think when we’re in the midst of work stress (office politics, long days, boring tasks, pressure to perform) we fantasize about how wonderful retirement will be. And it is! Most of the time.

But if you’re like me, you want challenge! You don’t want all that expertise and knowledge you’ve gained over the years to go to waste!

Writing about your expertise in retirement has multiple benefits:

You can get a little income (always fun to have a ‘splurge’ fund!)
You can share your knowledge, providing guidance to others.
You can continue to learn what’s new in your field of expertise, which will help you stay relevant in your field.
You can foster connections with others who share your passions, interests, and skills.
You can improve your writing skills.

Write What You Know!

I kind of fell into my freelance writing gigs because back in 2009, I blogged a lot about my field of work (Agile Software Development and Quality Assurance). Exciting, right? I’d gotten laid off from my highly paid QA Manager job. Uggh! This was a terrible time to be laid off! So many of us tech managers were unemployed and it was very difficult to land a new job!

However, a leads group suggested blogging about your expertise in order to increase your credibility and Web presence.

Actually, that blog landed me a job as a Site Editor for an ePublication, SearchSoftwareQuality.com. It turned out to be the lowest paying job I’ve ever had, yet provided the highest professional development of my entire career.

Not only was I able to learn from and network with the best thought-leaders in the industry, I learned more about freelance writing. I was a writer as well as the editor, so I was the one deciding on which articles to accept. And at the same time I was able to keep up with trending topics in Agile Software Development and QA.

Once I went back to a corporate management position, I was able to continue freelance writing as a side-gig.

Getting Started with Freelance Writing – Amber Petty

I was lucky to find the right contacts years ago and know who to go to when I’m up for a “work-related” writing challenge. But it’s much more fun to write creatively! (That’s why I love blogging!) Could I actually get paid for writing about an interest rather than my career expertise?

Curious about how someone new might approach freelance writing, I attended Amber Petty’s free workshop, Write Your Pitch in 30 Minutes. I’d heard about the Workshop from my good friend and fellow writer, Becky, who described Amber as the “BOMB-diggity!”

I was dazzled by Amber and her style! She’s a student of Improv (another one of my wannabe skills) and I just love her bold look and personality. Her writing style’s so entertaining that I even look forward to her marketing emails! (Now that’s a rare talent!)

I’ve been to a lot of these free webinars and I know they always end with an ask to join a longer class. Even though I feel very confident that I could do this on my own, I was tempted to join the 10-week class because I liked Amber so much.

The free workshop was informative and included a valuable spreadsheet with 250 leads of publications accepting pitches!

Amber’s generous heart shines through in the workshop and in the personal interactions she’s had with Becky. Her energy and authenticity are contagious.

So even though I’m holding off on the 10-week class, I’m keeping Amber on my radar. My sense of people (usually spot on) tells me Amber is someone to be trusted to provide high value. If you’re getting started with Freelance Writing, her site is a must.

Note: I don’t get any Affiliate Link credit for recommending Amber. I just agree with Becky… She’s the BOMB-diggity!

February Learning: Blogging in Retirement

2023 Project: Focused Learning in Retirement

My 2023 Project is to do some focused learning each month. In January, my focus was about Finding Purpose in Retirement, and in February it has been about Blogging in Retirement. In March, it’s going to be about Financials in Retirement.

I’m using the “in retirement” addendum because I’m learning that learning in retirement is a lot different than learning in school or at work. It really requires self-discipline. No one is holding me accountable except myself. I’m the only one who really cares if I complete these learning goals. There are no grades or certifications, accolades, or recognition. (That is, unless I choose to take a class or program that gives those things. )

However, part of my process is to hold myself accountable by writing a blog post about what I learned, so.. that’s what I’m doing now!

Making Money Blogging in Retirement

I’m a very experienced blogger. I love technology and have been interested in blogging and social media platforms and tools since they’ve been in existence. I’ve been blogging personally and professionally since 2005. Here are a few of the personal blogs I’ve created:

My Carpe Diem Life: My personal blog about love and relationships

Happier at Work: Part of a passion project to bring more happiness to the workplace

Who Gives a Twit: A Blog about Social Media

Carpe Diem Coaching: This is a free WordPress.com blog that I actively used in 2009 and 2010 for career networking and growth

These blogs were all created for free and were very easy to maintain. You don’t need to be a techie to create or write a blog.

However, it is very difficult to make money from blogging when you’re just doing it as a hobby using free blogging software. You can put ads on your site, but the payout is so small and the market has gotten so competitive that, unless you have a very big following, you’re not going to make much money this way.

That being said, if you have expertise in a niche domain you might be able to make money by writing or blogging on an established site.

I’m a freelance writer for TechBeacon and write articles about Agile technologies for them, which is an excellent way to make some extra cash and still keep current.

Other Ways to Make Money Blogging

Besides ads or freelance writing for established profitable businesses, many entrepreneurs make money with their blogs with Affiliate links or by using their blogs as a marketing platform to sell other products or services that they provide.

Since I have a background in coaching, training and writing, I’ve thought this blog might be a good opportunity for me to build a big network and that some day it might set me up to market a book, course, or do some freelance coaching.

The thing is, the market is saturated with people trying to gain attention with their eBooks, newsletters, Webinars, and other offerings. It’s very difficult to be competitive unless you dedicate time and resources to really gaining followers. Most entrepreneurs that are successful with this have virtual assistants and high-priced offerings.

Can Older Women Make Money Blogging offers up an optimistic point of view and I don’t want to be discouraging. However, I’ve realized for myself, that I don’t want to invest the time and money it would take to be competitive.

Blogging as a Hobby in Retirement

Even though I’d like to put CarpeDiemDay on the map, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’d like the time I spend on this blog to be much more of a hobby than a job. In retirement, I’m very conscious about wanting to limit my screen-time.

On the first page of Carpediemday.com I have links to wonderful Websites and blogs that promote the messages I believe in. There’s no need for me to try and reinvent the wheel.

Blogging might be a good way to network and find others with common interests. This was especially true for me with professional networking. In retirement, not so much. Though it’s still a good avenue for making virtual connections, maybe because there are so many social media networks available to us now, I think there are better ways to make friends and connections.

For me, the real benefit of blogging in retirement is that it gives me some purpose. I like the accountability of writing something at least once a week. If I can post something of value, all the better.

What I Learned about Blogging

This month I learned a lot more about WordPress and Plug-ins such as Yoast. I learned techniques to improve SEO (Search Engine Optimization) so that I might increase traffic to my site.

I was reminded I need to target an audience. (This is another reason I’m using the “in Retirement” suffix more.)

I also learned more about the many tools available to create newsletters, create a brand, and monitor traffic.

Conclusions

After being the recipient of “Carpe Diem Day” as a 60th birthday present 3 years ago, I had felt self-imposed pressure to get a lot of followers on this site.

I still would like this site to act as my legacy. (Stella has agreed to maintain it after I die.)

I still would like to blog weekly, following some of the blogging practices that I learned about this month around readability, SEO, and adding value to a targeted audience.

However, I would like its primary purpose to promote others and the other sites who are spreading messages about living life to the fullest. Yay!

Carpe Diem Day Superhero: Carpe Dee O’M

Carpe Diem Day Superhero

Carpe Diem Day is coming up this week and in that spirit, I’d like to honor Carpe “Dee O’M” (aka Dee O’Malley) as this year’s honored recipient of the much acclaimed Carpe Diem Day Superhero Award!

The last time I picked a Carpe Diem Award Winner it was Carpe “Lee M.”! Lee donated her late husband’s book collection to a Rehab and Nursing Center.

The original Carpe Diem Day was inspired by Craig Dunham, who lost his life to ALS in 2010. His initials, CD, along with his “live life fully” attitude are what prompted me to pick “Carpe Diem” as my mantra.

What do each of these three Carpe Diem inspirations have in common besides living life fully?

Resilience!

Yes, each of these three Carpe Diem Superheroes have earned admiration from me, not just because of living life fully, but because they do so (or did so), despite challenge, grief, and hardships.

Dee, at age 88, was told she only had a couple of months left to live and was put on hospice care. That was almost 2 years ago! I wrote a blog post about her then titled:

The Ultimate Adventure Awaits

Dee is not afraid of dying. In fact, she is very much looking forward to, what she calls, the “ultimate adventure.” Dee is also very dynamic, witty, happy, and full of good humor. She looks and acts much younger than her 90 years!

Despite physical ailments, she never complains! She has had falls and broken bones and so many problems that I’m sure doctors are scratching their heads trying to figure out what the super-power is that keeps her alive.

Dee’s Superpowers: Optimism, humor, fearlessness

Could it be that Dee’s longevity is due to her optimism, humor, and lack of fear? According to studies, the less we fear aging and death, the longer we will live healthy, happy lives.

Certainly, that’s not a universal truth as we all know. Many happy, optimistic people, such as Craig, still die young.

And we all die, no matter how optimistic we are. It will be hard for me to accept Dee’s death, even though I know it’s inevitable. Just because she’s accepted it (and even is looking forward to it!) doesn’t mean those of us who love her are in any rush for her to die. Every minute that she’s on this earth is a better minute for those of us who love her.

My Fairy Godmother

Dee, my mother’s best friend, has always referred to herself as my “Fairy Godmother.” She has been close enough to our family that I think of her as a beloved Aunt. I’ve always admired her spunky confidence and fearless attitude. She’s been my “fairy godmother” in life and will continue to be so after she dies.

Now, in this final chapter of her life, she’s still guiding me with her humor and grace. Though I doubt I will be able to show the same good humor when my time comes, I’ll remember that she’ll be wherever I’m going and show me how to live the afterlife to the fullest!

(Of course, given her uncanny super-power, she may out-live me and I’ll just have to hang out with all those other dead people until she joins us.)

February 15, 2024 Update: Another year, and Dee, at age 91, is as witty and vibrant as ever.

3 Blogs and Resources for Single Retirees

Happily single with my granddaughter
princess

Singles are celebrating, too!

Happy Singles Awareness Day! Single retirees: Are we ready to celebrate? Keep reading for resources for single retirees.

Yes, this is the season of Galentine’s Day (Feb.13), Palentine’s Day (also Feb.13), Valentines Day (Feb.14) and Single’s Awareness Day (Feb.15). (And if that’s not enough for you, don’t forget about C arpe Diem Day(Feb.26.)

I spent many of my post-divorce years looking for love. I even wrote a whole book about it, The Laptop Dancer Diaries! In fact, I’ve been blogging since 2005 on my personal blog about relationships and the ups and downs of the single life.

Now, retired and in my early 60’s, I realize I really like being single! Sure, there are great things about being in a relationship, too, so I’m not saying one way is better than the other.

Usually when you search for resources for “singles” you get a bunch of dating sites. This is somewhat irritating to me because it does feel like society views that all singles want to find a partner. However, here are 3 websites with blogs and resources for singles that don’t have to do with finding a partner:

Sites with Resources for Single Retirees

Bella DePaulo – Dr. DePaulo is a writer, speaker, and professor who specializes in the practice and study of the single life. I’ve read some of her work and she is making a difference in changing stereotypical viewpoints about singles.
Living Single in Retirement – This Website has a lot of articles and resources, specifically for older women who may be looking for travel companions or single friends in a similar time of life.
Solo Traveler – This site has some good resources for solo travelers of any age. Since traveling is one of thing many retirees love to do, this site is another great resource for single retirees.

Celebrate love by sending cards

Celebrate love with DIY Cards. This screenshot was taken at the AARP free class: Make Your Own Valentine’s Day Cards and Envelopes, Hawaii 1/31/23

It’s February! That means it’s Carpe Diem Seizin’ – or for you language purists, Carpe Diem Season (I love a good pun!) There are so many February holidays that celebrate love.

We all know about Valentine’s Day, but peek into one of those sites that list all the many, many holidays you never heard of and you’ll find that February also has little-known special days that celebrate love.

Of course, you can celebrate love by sending a card on any of these thousands of holidays, but I’d like to highlight a few of my favorites:

Carpe Diem Day (Feb.26)

Celebrate Love during Carpe Diem Seizin' — Celebrate Love during Carpe Diem Seizin’

That’s right people, Carpe Diem Day is coming up on February 26th, but of course every day is a good day to celebrate! (Note that this Website carpediemday.com, was created in honor of CarpeDiemDay!)

I love that Walmart has an option to create your own custom cards with photos! This was such an easy and affordable option! For those of us that have difficulties getting our traditional holiday cards out on time, this is an opportunity to write back to those who sent us holiday cards! I love including photos with memories of the times I spent with the person I’m sending the cards to.

Random Acts of Kindness Day (Feb.17)

February 17th is Random Acts of Kindness Day.

Celebrate love with kindness

Not only does kindness spread happiness to all those around us, but it improves our health and longevity!

Letter to an Elder Day (Feb.26)

I love that Letter to an Elder Day is on February 26th! That’s the same day as Carpe Diem Day! This is a NEW special day. But what’s even more cool is that I’ve volunteered for the organization that created this day: Love for our Elders.

As I blogged about before,

To find out more about sending cards check out: https://loveforourelders.org/letters.
Another nonprofit that is sending cards and letters to those in need is http://www.moreloveletters.com/

Every Day is a Good Day to Celebrate Love

Whether with a card, eCard, text, phone call, smile, song, picture, hug, kiss, or whatever else you can think of, seize this day and show your love.

January Learning: Finding Purpose in Retirement

Watching a sunrise or sunset will inspire awe and might help us with finding purpose in retirement.

Finding purpose in retirement was one of my January goals.

I’m a bit obsessed with self-help literature. My self-appointed retirement “job” is to be as healthy and happy as possible. All the positive psychology literature says that “purpose” is very important.. kind of a pre-requisite to happiness and health! In fact, I keep reading articles about how having purpose is instrumental in longevity. It’s come up over and over again as one of the most important factors for health and happiness.

Anyway, I admit, my purpose has been kind of sketchy lately. If I split life into 5 different 20-year segments, I’d say my purpose was/is/will be:

Years 0-20: School / Learning
Years 21-40: Good Mother / Job / Good Wife
Years 41-60: Good Mother / Job / Look for new Husband
Years 60-80: Play?!?
Years 80-100: TBD

Yes, I’ve been doing a LOT of playing in these retirement years when no one is dependent on me. We’re down to the final 40 years of life and I didn’t do nearly enough playing in the first 60. (Maybe that’s why I never found that new husband…)

But I digress…

Besides “playing,” I do find purpose during these retirement years in accomplishing goals. It helps me to have a Yearly Project, such as my 2022 Year of Microadventures.

My 2023 project is focused on Learning. I plan to take a class each month and be very focused and engaged, finding opportunities to apply what I’m learning to my life. My topic for January was Purpose.

Coursera Course for finding purpose

I started by taking this Coursera Class: Finding Purpose and Meaning in Life.

Finding Purpose in Retirement through Coursera Class: Finding Purpose and Meaning in Life

Unlike the usual way I take Coursera classes (which is to listen to a couple of videos and then never finish the whole course because I get distracted by tons of other things) I stayed focused! I was super-intentional about doing the readings, listening to the videos, doing the exercises, and even participating in the forums. I was very purposeful about taking this course on purpose. (Yup, pun intended.)

Books for finding purpose in retirement

I also read 3 excellent Self-Help Books that addressed purpose:

Finding Purpose in Retirement from reading “The Power of Meaning”

Stella loaned me this book and it’s probably the first self-help book that I read cover to cover. (I’m always so motivated in January to meet my goals!)

The book split Meaning into Four Pillars: Belonging, Purpose, Storytelling, and Transcendence. I had a lot of “ah ha” moments and very deep reflections about the meaning of life. Way too much for this blog post that I’m trying to write fast since it’s the last day of January.

Finding Purpose in Retirement by reading The Book of Joy, the book chosen for the One Book, One Boulder Program

Wow! This is an amazing book! I saw that the Boulder Library was looking for people to lead a Book Circle with their One Book One Boulder Program, so I signed up! I’ll be blogging more about this so stay tuned!

Finding Purpose in Retirement by reading, “Los Cuatro Acuerdos” – The Four Agreements in Spanish!

The third self-help book I’m re-reading (but this time in Spanish!) is Los Cuatro Acuerdos (The Four Agreements) by Don Miguel Ruiz. This is a classic! I’m reading it with my friend, Cathy, so we’re having both a Spanish-practice session as well as being reminded of these Four Agreements:

Be impeccable with your word
Don’t take anything personally
Don’t make assumptions
Always do your best

Spirituality

One common thread in a lot of the literature about purpose is belief in something greater than ourselves. I’m a Christian, but admittedly, I haven’t spent much time in church since Covid began.

I started a new Sunday morning tradition to get up to see the sunrise, take a long walk along the beach, and then go to a church service.

The Awe of a Sunrise — Finding purpose in Retirement: The Feeling of Awe from watching the sun rise

It’s funny that the first morning I did this, I listened to a random podcast in my queue and it was Dacher Keltner talking about the Power of Awe! He even mentioned a sunrise!

Finding Purpose in Retirement: The Harvey Memorial Community Church

Walking distance from Leffis Key in Bradenton Beach where I watch the sunrise is this little community church that I attended last Sunday. The congregation was welcoming (I was the only new member!) and the Reverend was an excellent (very funny!) speaker.

Summary

This blog post has already gotten long so I won’t try to recapture all that I learned about finding purpose and meaning in this short summary. I will tell you, though, that many times when I reflected on the wise words of these teachers, authors, and speakers, I was moved to tears.

Life, and the meaning we bring, is such a mystery. It’s easy to think none of what we do matters.. we all die..

But what we do now, while we’re alive, will matter to the other people who are alive now. And what we do now will influence others, who will in turn influence future generations.

I guess what it all boils down to is love. I started the year thinking my purpose was “to be as happy and healthy as possible” but I’m going to update it to this: My purpose is to love.

2023 Tuesdays with BB & Yvy #1: Robinson Preserve

Yvy (pronounced “Evie”) and BB at Robinson Preserve

Last year I blogged at least once a week about my Microadventures. This year I’ve been going with “Healthy Aging” as my loosey-goosey theme. I’ve also thought about blogging each week about someone I admire. I can do a twofer with this post by blogging about Becky and how she contributes to my brain health!

Healthy Aging

One thing that’s super-important for healthy aging and brain health is having good friends. Having new experiences is also great for the brain, so new experiences with good friends is like a double-dose of brain food!

During my snowbird months while I’m in Bradenton, FL, I’ve wanted to get into a routine. My best and very wise friend in the area is Becky Burns. We are both busy with our various projects, but I asked Becky if we could have a weekly get-together while I was in Florida. I love weekly rituals and rather than comparing calendars every week, it’s so much easier to just have a regular day/time blocked off so I can look forward to “BB Time!”

We agreed that Tuesday mornings worked well for both of us and Becky suggested that each week we could do different “microadventures” such as walks, paddle-boarding, cafes, beach, etc. Perfect!

A New Experience: Robinson Preserve and Sage Biscuit Cafe

I asked Becky to pick our first outing. The next morning I got an email titled, “2023 Tuesdays with BB & Yvie #1: Robinson Preserve.” I love the title of the email, both because it caters to my systematic titling of activities and uses my self-suggested nickname! (Though, I like spelling it Yvy, even more to really confuse people!)

Our scenic walk through Robinson Preserve was followed by a healthy brunch at Sage Biscuit Cafe. CarpeDeeLicious!

Robinson Preserve is a 600+-acre coastal preserve located in northwestern Bradenton.

Plenty of scenic hiking for Jack, Becky, and I to enjoy.

Delicious healthy brunch at Sage Biscuit Cafe in Bradenton

Someone I admire: Rebecca Burns!

Becky is a wonderful blog-post topic for a variety of reasons:

She’s always interesting, fun, creative, witty, and willing to try new things.
She doesn’t mind being the topic of blog posts!
She’s one of the few people who reads my blog and often sends me a supportive comment, even when I know I’m being lazy about the writing.

In the Spring of 2020, we were Covid Lockdown partners at her home and she was my co-host on Season 2 of my Carpe Diem Connections Podcast.

In fact, I’ve blogged about Becky quite a bit, as an example of beauty and birthday-celebrator, as a supreme listener and animal-lover, as a guest on my podcast talking about self-acceptance, and on countless other posts as a fellow-adventurer.

I’m so grateful to know this wise and wonderful friend and I bet my brain is 10x healthier than it used to be, thanks to our friendship!

iFly Indoor Skydiving: I Can Fly!

Tony and I give indoor skydiving a try at iFly Orlando.

iFly Indoor Skydive in Orlando — Adventure at iFly Indoor Skydiving

Another flying adventure

Even though my year of Microadventures is over, the adventures continue!

Knowing I’d be in Florida for the winter, Tony invited me to join him in Orlando for yet another flying adventure! (I’d also had an unexpected hang-gliding adventure in November).

Wow! Another opportunity to fly? I only wish I’d had my SuperCarpeDiemWoman cape! (Well, actually, we had to wear a special flight suit so… nevermind about the cape. At least I had my butterfly pants and Carpe Diem shirt for the pre-flight picture.)

iFly Indoor Skydiving was yet another activity that I didn’t even know existed!

“Cousin” Tony is friend, family, and most importantly, a VIP Carpe Diem Adventurer!

What’s it like to have an iFly Indoor Skydiving Adventure?

Tony, an experienced iFlyer, had bought us each three flights with one of them being a high flight, where the instructor brought us up high in the wind tunnel and spun us around.

We didn’t have our phones or cameras when we were all suited up and flying, so no pictures of me flying, but here’s a YouTube video of what it’s like:

Yeah, that’s exactly what it was like! OK, we weren’t doing any fancy flips, but our instructor, Ryan, did tell me I did “very well.” And for the record, he didn’t say that to everyone. I was a proud graduate of the First Flight of iFly Flying School.

My Certificate of Completion of my first iFly flight

iFly Indoor Skydiving is for every age!

I thought this might be a fun thing to do with Diego and Reneya and asked what age range could fly.

“The youngest is 3 and we’ve had a few people who are over 100,” answered Ryan.

Ages 3 to over 100! One of the women in our group was celebrating her 70th birthday. I love an activity that spans all generations! Maybe I’ll take Mom, too!

If you’re looking for something fun and exciting to do, fly it out!

Adventures in Water Drinking

Water Drinking is not usually considered fun, but it’s time to change that!

It’s a new year and I’ve really been struggling with figuring out my 2023 “theme.” The year of Microadventures was so successful and I wanted to figure out something equally fun that I could blog about each week.

I had a lot of different ideas that sort of fizzled.. a year of learning, a year of helping, a year of new people, a year of healthy habits. My friend, Michael Bolé shared an article about a woman who did a new thing every day! Oh! That’s appealing!

I’m nixing any of the “every day” ideas, though. I’m already pressured enough not to break my Duolingo streak (I’m on Day 1403, thank you very much!)

Healthy Habit For Week1: Drink More Water

The “healthy habit” I was focusing on for Week 1 was “Drink More Water.” So trite and boring. Been there, done that. Certainly water-drinking is about as opposite of a “new thing” as you can get. We literally do it every day and it doesn’t even taste that good! Which I guess is why it’s so hard to drink as much as we’re always told to drink. And don’t get me started at how inconvenient it is to have to pee so much!

Making Water Drinking Fun: Hydration Bars

But that new-thing-every-day article got me thinking: How can I have an “adventure” with water drinking – do something I’ve never done before.. I’d remembered hearing something about “hydration bars” and I excitedly googled “Hydration Bar near me” and several local-area options came up!

“That’s it!” I thought. “I will have an adventure at a Hydration Bar this week!” I pictured myself in a new-age spa doing something really edgy and trendy, yet healthy… a healthy version of a Hookah Bar experience. (This idea excited me. I once wanted to try a Hookah Bar experience… but then I learned it involved smoking.)

Anyway, I checked into Hydration Bars and found out that these aren’t really “bars.” They are IV treatments that start at about $150!

This idea quickly lost its appeal. I’ve had an IV and it’s not at all exciting. Also, I’m really cheap. I don’t even like to pay for the fancy waters in the grocery store.

And just because they call it a “Cocktail” does not make it a fun drink! Those are cockamamie tales! “Crocktales!” That will be my new word for these “Hydration IV Treatments” that you get at “Hydration Bars.” (Not to be confused with Mocktails, which really are quite lovely non-alcoholic drinks you can now get at some real bars.)

I googled “Why do people go to hydration bars when they can just drink water?” thinking I must be missing something. The AARP article, The Truth Behind Trendy IV Vitamin Water Therapy confirmed my assumptions that basically, this would be a ridiculous over-priced “adventure.” (Come to think of it, that’s true of many “adventures” but I’ll save that rant for another day).

Cheaper Ways to Make Water Drinking More Fun

I decided to “be me” and do something cheap, yet pretty and different to liven up my water-drinking experience: Making infused water.

The result was not nearly as pretty as the pictures in the article.. are the strawberries supposed to float? Of course, the “Squeeze the Day” quote on the water bottle makes it fun even if this doesn’t look like the magazine or taste much different from water.

I also splurged on a “fancy water” from the grocery story! ($2.49 is much better than a $239 Kate Crocktale!)

This was surprisingly delicious. It was sweet. I’m guessing that whatever sugar (or fake sugar) they put in this drink to make it so tasty negates any of the health benefits from drinking it. Oh well. It still was a new experience.

Finally, to round out this exciting water-drinking adventure, I bought a new water filter pitcher. This will not only keep my water clean, but helps me monitor that I’m drinking my daily quota. (Logging was not working for me.)

As for me 2023 theme? I’ve decided on “Healthy Aging.” .. on the cheap!