Laughter, Love, and Lessons from a Global Hike
Plus: A New Radio Station, Kitchen Gadget, and Tech Tool
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Beautiful Walk in the Forest
On a beautiful Sunday morning in Batumi, 30 global citizens gathered for an amazing day of conversation, laughter, and hiking. Our friend, and resident excursion planner, Jordan, from Jordan, rented a bus for us and arranged a trip to Mtirala National Park. Final destination: Tsablnari Waterfall.
Now, the long-term Batumi expats who have gone on hikes with Jordan before, were very good at making sure he explained the difficulty level of this hike. Some funny backstories go along with this line of questioning, but I will just say he described this one right on. It was not for beginners.
Originally, we thought we would hike up a little and then head back around the lake area. But as we kept walking, we decided as long as we took our time, we could make it. And, as you can see in the picture above…WE MADE IT!!!
With about 1250 feet in elevation gain, there was much huffing and puffing and short stops all along the way. And at times, we thought about stopping. But I really wanted to finish! This was a big deal for me.
Many who know me probably don’t know this about me, but I struggle internally with self-doubt. The smiles I show nearly all the time are genuine. But when life gets stressful I cower. I just want to hide and bury my head. The freakouts are real.
Every step facing whatever is happening is a win. Just like every step up the hills and over the rocks was movement forward, overcoming the fear of what might be or ultimately of failure takes inner grit. I have not always had that inner grit. It is a fight…a fight I want to win.
I hope you want to win at whatever your inner struggles are, too.
Fight!
Because when you make it to the top, you get so much more than just a sense of accomplishment.
You get… beauty…laughter…and love.
And that, my friends, is the BEST!!!
This Week’s Recommendations
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🎧 What Jeff is listening to:
Life with John Mayer on Pandora ~ John has a new radio station on SiriusXM. Their internet service doesn’t work in Europe, and we wouldn’t pay for it anyway. As a free alternative, Jeff created this Pandora station by adding the most recently played songs from xmplaylist.
👩🍳What Deana Uses in the Kitchen
Tupperware Slim Line 2 quart Pitcher with Strainer
News Flash! I’m hard at work on an ebook! The working title is “The Nomad Home.” I think this is a great topic.
Nomadic living doesn’t mean leaving your home behind. It means taking home with you wherever you go. It forces you to adopt a minimalist mindset when you pack your suitcases. You can take anything, but you can’t take everything. What to choose?
We spend very little on beverages: Coffee, almond milk, and the occasional water with gas (sparkling water.) That gets boring eventually. We get immediate variety by throwing some oranges or lemons, or cucumbers, or berries… you name it, in the bottom of this, put the strainer cap on and leave in the refrigerator to marinate. The results are refreshing, healthy and FRUGAL.
🛜 Internet Safety
Last year we bought some auto parts in Albuquerque, New Mexico with our Capital One card. Just a couple problems with that. First, we don’t own a car. Second, we weren’t in Albuquerque. We were on the island of Cyprus. Somehow, our card information had made it to the interwebs. Capital One quickly reversed the transaction, blocked the card, and sent us a new one.
A VPN is an essential tool to keeping calamities like this from occurring. We use Surfshark. Super-easy to set up, and affordable. $15 per month. But currently $49 for a year. We highly recommend it for whenever you are away from your home internet.