The GypsyNesters | Boomer Travel. Food. Laughter. Breaking the Empty Nest Rules!

Time 2020-09-28 02:03:21

Web Name: The GypsyNesters | Boomer Travel. Food. Laughter. Breaking the Empty Nest Rules!

WebSite: http://gypsynester.com

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The GypsyNesters Boomer Travel. Food. Laughter. Breaking the Empty Nest Rules!One of our top priorities when becoming gypsy as opposed to empty nesters was to use our new found freedom to see family and friends that we hadn t been able to visit in years.While finishing up our childrearing years on a Caribbean island a thousand miles from the mainland we were understandably limited in our opportunities to drop in on folks.Now that we are unfettered, we have had the opportunity to reunite with quite a few of our old friends. In every case I’ve noticed CONTINUE READING One of our top priorities when becoming gypsy as opposed to empty nesters was to use our new found freedom to see family and friends that we hadn t been able to visit in years.While finishing up our child-rearing years on a Caribbean island a thousand miles from the mainland we were understandably limited in our opportunities to drop in on folks.Now that we are unfettered, we have had the opportunity to reunite with quite a few of our old friends. In every case I ve noticed that we picked up right where we left off. It was like ten days had past since our last visit, not ten years.Is this a function of getting a little older? I think that s a big part of it. After putting a few decades behind us we have learned not to manufacture troubles. We could look for a reason to be pissy, get all Why haven t you kept in touch better? or we can be thrilled to see an old chum. Fortunately, everyone chose the latter.One of these friends, whom I hadn t seen in over a decade, really opened my eyes. Our last encounter was under less-than-stellar circumstances and I was a little anxious about seeing him again.Driving the point home a little harder was the fact that we were seeing each other for the first time in years at the funeral of a mutual friend who had shared in some of the tribulations.My fear melted away as soon as he reached out to greet me. It turned out that neither of us harbored any hard feelings and after a while he said David, when we get to this age it s just not worth worrying about crap like that. He was so right. We had years of friendship to look back on so why dwell on the rough patches?All of our shared experiences, good and bad, bind friendships together. Now we can recall and retell these events, embellishing them into tall tales, at our reunions. These invariably end in guffaws of crazy laughter. Remember that time we ? My musician friends and I predictably return to war stories from our years on the road. There is nearly a battlefield type camaraderie that touring days, weeks and months on end trapped together on a bus develops.The band and crew become the entire known world in a crazy us against them roadshow. The names we would give these tours said it all. Humor is definitely your buddy deep in the throes of a mud and dust, death march to Bataan or bring your helmet tour.At times the laughing jags would take the stage with us. I recall one night when it was a little hard to sing while doubled over, crying and drooling uncontrollably over something our lunatic keyboard player had whispered in my ear right before the second verse.We literally ended up on our knees and couldn t even play anymore. I always liked giving the audience their money s worth.For Veronica and her friends, the conversation tends to gravitate to zany antics involving kids and times they scared the living crap out of us.Sure, NOW we can laugh about when one of our little ones destroyed her tibia in an accident at Veronica s best friend s house while we were attending a pre-cell-phone wedding since she is perfectly ambulatory 20 years later but at the time, not so much.The kind of fear we all felt when dealing with a crisis like that and the relief after it subsided really cements a friendship. On the bright side, we got to watch a four-year-old crab scoot around on her butt in a radiation-green hip-to-toe cast for weeks. THAT s entertainment.Much more than our hairlines, waistlines or an offspring s ability to walk has changed over years. Our friends children have grown in our absence all of them looking nothing like the mental picture we had of them as ten-year-olds with missing front teeth. Most of them are adults now. Weird how that happens.An added bonus to these renewed relationships is that technology has made it a whole lot easier to stay in touch. Now we can have much more contact than we ever did before the rise of social media.Facebook is no doubt the king of old-friend-finding-and-keeping-in-touch-with, but Twitter, texting and email are all members of the royal court. With their help we can keep tabs on the antics of friends and family online with just a few clicks a day.Speaking of family, in the best of worlds we should be able to put past grievances behind us but, for no apparent reason, no one seems to hold a grudge like kin.Even though our new found freedom has granted us opportunities to visit family members we hadn t seen in years, some of the get-togethers were still a bit strained.How can kids who nearly killed each other on a regular basis back in childhood carry resentment over completely non-lethal misunderstandings as adults?I don t have an answer but I do have a suggestion When we get to this age it s just not worth worrying about crap like that.David, GypsyNester.com It’s been a while since we actually felt like we lived anywhere.I realize that sounds like a strange statement, but it’s true. From the time we left St. Croix a dozen years ago until just this past year we have been essentially nomads. But now we bought a boat, moved on to it and made it our new home CONTINUE READING   It’s been a while since we actually felt like we lived anywhere.I realize that sounds like a strange statement, but it’s true. From the time we left St. Croix a dozen years ago until just this past year we have been essentially nomads.We spent the first half of that time bouncing around North America in a series of three motorhomes. It wasn’t our original plan, in fact we used to say “the plan is no plans” back then. But when the first RV kept running long after we assumed it would die, we just kept going.As we chronicled in our book, GOING GYPSY: One Couple s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All, we were only looking to take a break after raising three kids by taking what we called a victory lap. It was only meant to last a year or so but fate had different plans.Instead, we began writing about our adventures, which led to us traveling all around the world and passing our stories along via this website, social media, the aforementioned book, and any number of other outlets along the way.Meanwhile, we had to “live” somewhere. (Yes, those are meant to be air quotes.)At first we bought rental properties in Michigan, where our son went to college. Even though we spent very little time there, we used it as an address for all of those official functions that need one, like having a driver’s license, a bank account, voting, and paying taxes.By the time he graduated and moved to Alaska, we were being asked to write about overseas trips quite a bit and, since both of our daughters lived in New York City, we bought a condo outside the city in Poughkeepsie. Once again, we were almost never there, but at least we had an address.A couple of years ago some family matters in California came up that made living on the opposite coast inconvenient, so we packed up what little we had and headed west. A few months later our apartment burned to the ground while we were in Cuba.Since we travel incredibly light, that left us with literally the clothes on our backs along with what little we had in our carry-on bags.This lack of possessions pushed us into a decision about our living situation that we had been contemplating ever since St. Croix. We bought a boat. But unlike the boats we had back in Nashville, and the US Virgin Islands, this was set up to live aboard.So that’s what we did, moved on to it and made it our new home.At the same time we had decided to slow down our travel schedule, partly because it was becoming a bit too hectic, but mostly so we could spend the necessary time involved with getting a forty-five year old boat back up to ship shape.The view from our deck.With that task nearly complete, (but as any boat owner knows it is never really finished) we are about ready to embark on some seafaring adventures.As with living on a Caribbean island, boat life may look like an endless vacation but real life is always with us. Bills still must be paid and family obligations don’t just go away.So we will start slow, exploring the California coast and the Channel Islands just off of it, then move further out, perhaps to Mexico or north to the Pacific Northwest and Canada. We’ll just have to see how it goes.As we do, we will certainly be sharing our tales of the high seas.David and Veronica, GypsyNester.comTell us what you think of this idea. Are we crazy? Could you live on a boat? We just learned that there is another Mona Lisa. That’s right; Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece in the Louvre is not alone. In fact, the other one, the Isleworth Mona Lisa, has been known about for years but is recently getting some well-deserved attention, so when we heard about it, naturally we had to investigate CONTINUE READING   The Mona Lisa“You learn something new every day.”My mother liked to say that, and while it may not always be true as we get older, back then it certainly rang true. Well I’m happy to say it is true again today.We just learned that there is another Mona Lisa. That’s right; Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece in the Louvre is not alone.In fact, the other one, the Isleworth Mona Lisa, has been known about for years but is recently getting some well-deserved attention, so when we heard about it, naturally we had to investigate.The Isleworth Mona LisaWhile we can hardly claim to be experts, we can share what we discovered.The work is an oil on canvas from the early sixteenth-century and depicts a younger rendition of the same woman, Lisa del Giocondo, as the more famous painting hanging in the Louvre. Yet even though it is over five hundred years old, it was not very well known to the public until 1913.That is when an English art enthusiast named Hugh Blaker acquired it from a mansion in Somerset and was convinced that there were two versions of Da Vinci’s portrait, and that the Isleworth version was actually the first one.This would definitely be huge news, but proving these things can be tricky.One problem is that Da Vinci, for all of his acclaim as an artist, didn’t produce many paintings. So there is not a lot to compare the Isleworth Mona Lisa to. Then again, we can make the comparison to the famous work in the Louvre, and several experts having done just that concluded that this is an original work by Leonardo da Vinci.Even scientists have weighed in on the mystery. Over thirty years ago research physicist John Asmus from the University of California ran a number of tests and determined that the same artist painted at least the face in both works.Later, professors Salvatore Lorusso and Andrea Natali of the Università di Bologna did extensive analysis and also arrived at the conclusion that this was Da Vinci’s work.But perhaps some of the most compelling arguments come not from science or art experts, but from history.For centuries it has been known that Raphael made a sketch of the Mona Lisa in 1504 after seeing it in Leonardo s studio. The sketch’s background includes two Greek columns, which are not found in the Louvre s Mona Lisa but are present in the Isleworth version.In 2017 even the Louvre Museum got in on the debate when they published a story by Vincent Delieuvin that speculates how Raphael must have based his work on a Mona Lisa other than the one in the Louvre.Still, even in the face of all of this evidence, many in the art world are unconvinced. Many point to the fact that the Isleworth painting is on canvass and Da Vinci generally worked on wood. However, there are several examples of the master using canvas as a medium.So in 2012 the Mona Lisa Foundation of Zurich officially unveiled the painting and began displaying it in various public settings. They also presented their research and opinions as to the painting s authenticity, which they feel strongly points to the Isleworth Mona Lisa being the work of Leonardo da Vinci.Now, as we said at the beginning, we don’t claim to be experts, but everything we have seen leads us to the same conclusion.And just goes to show that we still can learn something new… at least some days.David Veronica, GypsyNester.comWe are happy to present this collaborative post to offer valuable information to our readers.Mount Rushmore is one of the easier monuments to visit while keeping our social distance. So, in this time of political bickering, why not visit some presidents that we can almost all agree were great?We thought we were on a quest to see Mount Rushmore but found much more.The area is filled with an interesting, if a bit unsavory, history. We rapidly discovered that an extraordinary work of art can have an unseemly creator.The creation of one of America s greatest works of art was not without controversy.In 1923, after removing all of the Native Americans and most of the gold from the Black Hills, historian Doane Robinson thought that an enormous something should be done to promote tourism.Robinson asked noted sculptor and Klansman (as in KKK), Gutzon Borglum, to carve a tribute to America s first 150 years into the side of a mountain.Gutzon happened to be available, due to a falling out with his Klan buddies regarding the depiction the heroes of the Confederacyduring his Stone Mountain project in Georgia.Borglum came to the Black Hills to scout out an acceptable site for his masterpiece and selected the 5,725 foot high Mount Rushmore, named for New York industrialist Charles E. Rushmore who had mining interests in the hills.Politics, bigotry and secret society memberships aside, ol Gutzon sure could carve rock on a grand scale.In 1925 Congress authorized funds for the project and in 1927 Borglum and four hundred workers began chipping away with everything from dynamite to tiny hand tools on the four sixty foot faces.In 1933 the National Park Service took control of the monument and by 1934 the first face, Washington s, was finished and dedicated. Jefferson followed in 1936 and Lincoln in 1937.There was some talk in congress of adding Susan B. Anthony s likeness to the monument but with limited funds, Roosevelt s face was the final one, dedicated in 1939.Work came to a halt with Gutzon Borglum s death and the beginning of World War II in 1941.Find out more about the spectacular sites near Mount Rushmore! Click here!The end of work did not bring an end to the disputes. In 1971 members of the Sioux Nations occupied the monument, hung a drape over the faces and renamed it Mount Crazy Horse.Despite the controversies, this is a great work of art celebrating great presidents.The main entrance to the monument leads up The Avenue of Flags to the museum and Grand View Terrace.The path is lined with tributes to every state and territory in the union, marking the date of their admission. As we proceeded under the flags, gazing up at the mountain, the grandeur of the sculpture really hit us. Photographs simply do not do it justice.The view from the Terrace truly is Grand (well named guys!) and the museum offers a fascinating look at the construction methods and history of the monument.Deciding we needed a closer look, we headed up the Presidential Trail that proceeds to the base of the faces. Well worth the climb, standing among the piles of fallen rock, cast-off from the carving, we were rewarded with views right up the nostrils of America s greatest leaders.David Veronica, GypsyNester.comFind out more about the spectacular sites near Mount Rushmore! Click here! With the new normal of social distancing and staying home as much as possible, we are always on the lookout for new and interesting things to occupy our time. If you are like us, you have binge watched your brains out and are thinking that there just has to be something better to do.While we don’t have anything against a little mindless entertainment now and then, we certainly feel that feeding our minds rather than snacking through eight seasons of Game of Thrones might be a good idea. You know, stuffing our brains instead of our faces.Maybe we could use some of this time to gain some real knowledge. We have certainly considered going back to college from time to time, but that hardly seems practical these days. Well, I believe we may have found an alternative that is not only practical, its practically perfect, One Day University.For those of us who aren’t really looking for a degree program, but more of a program to expand our understanding of the world around us, this may be exactly what the doctor, or professor, ordered.ODU offers daily live streaming lectures from faculty at over 100 of America’s top universities, including many Ivy League schools. And don’t worry if you miss the live event, they can also be watched later on demand.In fact, there is an extensive video library available at any time with categories covering Art, Music, Film, History Politics, Psychology Lifestyle, and Science.The lectures range all across the spectrum of subjects. History is covered all the way from the ancients to timely investigations into today’s most news worthy events. There are stimulating examinations into where we are and how we got here, along with in depth discussions of many of the milestone events and significant heroes through time.In the first lecture we chose, Our Broken Two-Party System: Gridlock, Dysfunction, and Incivility, Robert Watson, a professor of American History from Lynn University, covered our uniquely American system from its very beginnings up to the forthcoming election.As unsettled as things seem, perhaps we can take some solace in the facts he delivered showing that the fractured politics we see these days is nothing new. We have experienced similar circumstances, sometimes arguably even worse, many times before.After that, we decided that maybe something more calming and uplifting would be better.  So we browsed through the Arts library and we found Beethoven and The Beatles: Hearing the Connection. In this we discovered Michael Alec Rose from Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music taking a deep dive into the similarities between Hey Jude and Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.Wow! This was not only incredibly informative, but also extremely entertaining and humorous.Speaking of humor, that tickling of our funny bones led us to the Psychology Lifestyle section where we found The Psychology of Humor, along with a ton of other insights that can help us to better understand ourselves such as The Science of Pleasure: Why We Like What Like, and  Positive Psychology: The Science of Happiness.Obviously we love to travel, so the title A Grand Tour of Italy jumped out at us as well and the next thing we knew we were off on a virtual Italian vacation.By this time we had definitely descended into a whole new category of binge watching. Maybe we should call it mind blowing educational expansion watching.Veronica wasn’t ready to dive into the science section, but I couldn’t seem to stop. My long dormant inner physics geek was enthusiastically awakened by NYU professor Matthew Stanley’s lecture on Unexplained Science: What Scientists Still Don’t Understand.  After that my brain needed a break.So that gives us a chance to pass along this free one-month trial offer that One Day University has been kind enough to let us give to our readers. Just follow this link, click on SIGN UP NOW, then enter GYPSYNESTER in the Coupon Code box and off you go for a free month of all these live and on demand lectures. After that, just $7.95 per month keeps you enrolled. As any of us who have put kids through college can tell you- that’s a pretty remarkable deal!I know we sound pretty excited about this, but really, this is the same kind of learning about our world that makes us love traveling so much. So these days, while gallivanting around the globe is not an option, this is without a doubt the best alternative that we have found.Now… what are we going to learn about next?David Veronica, GypsyNester.comWe are happy to present this collaborative post to offer valuable information to our readers.

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