New Guest Post……

Candace Sigmon is back again with more in her series; this time is:

Freedom and Paychecks: How to Become a Digital Nomad

In a world where technology transcends borders, the digital nomad lifestyle offers a unique blend of work and exploration. This lifestyle is not just about traveling; it’s about redefining how and where we work. As more professionals seek flexibility and freedom, the digital nomad movement is gaining momentum, offering a chance to experience diverse cultures while maintaining a career. This guide delves into the essentials of becoming a successful digital nomad, from enhancing your skills through online learning to adopting sustainable practices that respect the environment.

Maintain Sustainable Practices

As you transition into a digital nomad lifestyle, knowing how your choices impact the environment is essential. The idea of ecological footprints helps illustrate the effects of travel and consumption on the planet’s resources. Frequent air travel, a staple for many digital nomads, is a major contributor to carbon emissions, accelerating climate change. Consider adopting sustainable habits like selecting eco-friendly accommodations and reducing waste to lessen your impact.

Bridge the Gap in Healthcare Access

Healthcare is a crucial consideration when living a nomadic lifestyle. Telemedicine is reshaping how you access healthcare by leveraging telecommunications and information technology to deliver medical services remotely. This approach includes video consultations, remote monitoring, and the electronic sharing of medical records, significantly enhancing healthcare accessibility, especially in areas with limited medical facilities. By breaking down geographical barriers, telemedicine ensures you receive timely and appropriate healthcare services, which is essential for promoting health equity and reducing disparities.

Boost Your Career with Online Learning

One of the first steps to becoming a digital nomad is enhancing your skills through online learning. An online degree can be a transformative step in your career, especially if you aim for a location-independent lifestyle. These programs offer the flexibility to balance work and study, allowing you to maintain your current job while acquiring new skills. Information technology courses support innovation, and you can gain expertise in high-demand areas like cybersecurity and IT management. This knowledge is crucial in today’s digital landscape, positioning you for leadership roles and career advancement.

Stay Fit and Healthy as a Digital Nomad

Maintaining health and fitness is essential for a fulfilling and productive digital nomad lifestyle. Regular exercise keeps you physically fit, enhances your mood, and boosts energy levels, which can significantly increase your productivity. Incorporating various exercises, such as cardiovascular workouts, strength training, and flexibility exercises, offers comprehensive health benefits. You can easily integrate these activities into your routine by using bodyweight exercises, portable fitness equipment, or local activities like hiking and cycling. Maintaining a balanced diet rich in protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats is crucial to support your active lifestyle.

Build a Collaborative Remote Team

Creating a successful remote team is key to thriving as a digital nomad. It’s essential to foster an environment where feedback and communication are prioritized. By utilizing practical communication tools, you can ensure that team members have seamless interactions, promoting unity. Encouraging a culture where individuals feel safe to share ideas without fear of judgment can significantly enhance collaboration and trust. Leaders play a crucial role by actively seeking input and involving team members in decision-making, which helps the team adapt to changes collectively.

Embrace Responsible Tourism for a Sustainable Future

Engaging in responsible tourism is essential to respecting your destination’s local customs, traditions, and natural environments when you travel. Opting to buy locally made products instead of mass-produced items not only supports small businesses but also helps preserve the area’s unique cultural heritage. This conscious choice reduces your environmental footprint and promotes a more equitable tourism model, benefiting you and the host community. Additionally, practicing responsible waste management, such as carrying your trash until you find a proper disposal method, is essential to maintaining the pristine beauty of natural landscapes.

Leverage Local Networks for Digital Nomad Success

To excel as a digital nomad, engaging with local resources and communities that can support your personal and professional development is essential. Joining vibrant digital nomad communities like Remote Year or WiFi Tribe can offer camaraderie and guidance, helping you navigate the unique challenges of a location-independent lifestyle. Additionally, attending local meetups and utilizing coworking spaces can alleviate remote work’s isolation, fostering meaningful connections with like-minded individuals. Online platforms such as NomadList and Reddit Digital Nomads Forum provide a wealth of information and opportunities to connect with fellow nomads, ensuring you have access to a global network of support.

The digital nomad lifestyle is a transformative journey offering many experiences and opportunities. By focusing on skill development, sustainable living, and community engagement, you can create a fulfilling and balanced life on the move. This lifestyle is not just about working from different locations; it’s about embracing a new lifestyle that values flexibility, cultural exchange, and personal growth. As you embark on this path, remember that the world is your office, and every destination is a chance to learn and grow.”

Note from Charlie: While digital nomad may not be a fit for many of our readers, you may know someone who is, or could be interested.

A quick closing from Candace as well. “Dive into the captivating worlds of Charlie Hudson’s novels, where each story promises thrilling adventures and unexpected twists. Explore more at Charlie Hudson’s official site and discover your next favorite read!

No Green Beer……

I have never bothered to find out where the idea of green beer for Saint Patrick’s Day came from. Dying a river green is one thing, but beer? I realize the coloring probably doesn’t affect the taste and I don’t care.

Anyway, since we are corned beef and cabbage people, we tend to rotate between Shepard’s Pie, lamb chops, and Irish Stew. This year it was Shepard’s Pie and we did still have two Guinness left. I don’t drink that, but Hubby does. I wasn’t able to find Harp for him to be able to make an authentic black and tan and for me to drink the Harp. Oh well, I didn’t have time to go to different places to look. He did get a bottle of Jaimeson’s Black the other day instead of Bushmills and since it was a Monday, we went straight to sipping the whiskey rather than making Irish Coffee. Not only was it a Monday, we also had out monthly HCA meeting which is why I didn’t have time to do something like make Irish soda bread or look for other things. It was all good even if minimal.

The kids had their fifteenth anniversary back in Sept and I had intended to send them for a trip to Ireland. With the purchase of the dance studio though and the fact they are going to have to move to a new location (very close by), that meant no big trips for a while. Ah well, Ireland will still be there. Daughter-in-law can pinpoint her heritage and if I can remember on one of my trips to Louisiana, I’ll ask my favorite aunt if she knows ours. That may, however, be on my father’s side as is the Scottish. Lots mixed among those and no, I don’t plan to do a test. I’m happy with the family stories.

And There Goes Ten Years….

I’m waiting for today’s Facebook posts where son and daughter-in-law express astonishment that granddaughter is 10 today (yes, she was born on a Friday the 13th). I won’t dwell on this, but she is a little pistol and we shall see what the next few years bring. From early on, she has a love of putting things together and her ability to create from Legos is slightly amazing. She has an artsy side too and because of being literally raised in the dance studio, she is now into four types of dance. Hard to know which directions she will ultimately take.

Anyway, switching gears to the opposite end of the spectrum, a dear friend called Tuesday to catch up as we hadn’t talked for quite some time. Her 72d was yesterday and she is dealing with the stubborn insistence of her father that despite an almost revolving door of hospital and rehab stays, he’s convinced he can go home and live independently. Another situation of a guy who has always been active and vibrant and over this past decade, minor things have become not so minor. We covered the usual ground of limited options and the hope everything can be handled in the best way. She has long had my book, “Room at the End”, and was hoping, as we all do, that the hard choices wouldn’t have to be made.

Another dear friend, recently turned 80, is dealing with some unexpected health downturns, but those really should be somewhat temporary although potentially taking the next 8-10 months for resolution. Not surprisingly, how to handle that is proving tricky and our circle is standing by to see what we can do to help.

So here’s to the coming ten years that will no doubt zip by faster than we are prepared for.

 

 

About That Piece of Luck…..

One of the cable shows we watch occasionally is, “A Fishing Story”. I don’t recall the exact background of the host, but in having a couple of different careers, to include time as a Marine, he fondly speaks of learning to fish from his great-grandmother. He said for him, almost everyone has a “fishing story”. Most of the episodes we’ve seen are about other veterans, but we happened to have it on this morning and the guest was a member of REO Speedwagon, a band the host has always enjoyed. In the second segment of the show, he asked how the move into the famous band occurred. The guy and a friend had been in a college band together and they went separate ways; the guy on the show playing bars, small events, and such. His friend did get into the big band and one day called. “You’re moving to California,” he said, “You’re in REO Speedwagon now.”

The simple fact is if your last name is Sinatra and you want to sing or Coppola and you want to be in the movie business, you do still need talent, but you don’t have to fight for entrance into the industry. For everyone else, somewhere along the way, an incredible element of luck is involved. The director or producer that sees something with an actor in a minor role, the teen who reads a little known book and says to his best-selling author father,  “Hey Dad, this book is really terrific, you should read it”, or however the right moment in time strikes. For most in the arts though, actually making a living will be extremely difficult and the more likely scenario is either a lifetime of a passionate avocation or a cobbled together two-or three part time jobs/multiple careers. Wait staff who get the extras work, the musician who does the bar circuit, the author who does content writing while working away at the book/play/screenplay. Many who begin with great dreams eventually come to understand this and manage to adjust their definition of success and enjoy their craft of choosing. If not, it can be bitter disappointment.

Ooops, It’s March……..

Even with February being a short month, this one seemed to zip past faster than usual. That, of course, is also why once again I had a long gap between posts. Lots of competing tasks, deadlines, and so forth. At this point I am sounding a bit like the proverbial broken record, and as often happens there were fun events mixed with tasks.

Saturday was the annual Seafood Festival which is the major fundraiser for the Rotary Club. It was moved to Homestead maybe six years ago – something like that – and has grown into a life of its own. This year, we went around 5:30 on Saturday and despite some clouds, those cleared to make for nice sunset colors. Making a choice between the vendors as always difficult and at times, the decision has been based on the least long line. Not an issues this go-round which was nice, And since we can only eat so much at one sitting, one of us will go to one vendor and the other to another one. The food does tend to be expensive. Aside from the fact seafood is expensive, the vendor fees are high and so they have to recover those costs. Anyway, I picked up lobster rolls and made my way to the tent to find plenty of tables open. Hubby joined me shortly with a shrimp sampler basket. Fried shrimp, coconut shrimp, tempura, cajun-spiced and regular. It all made for a great combination paired with cold beer. The only drawback was the band on stage was the one least to my liking. They are all loud and good; but my preference is rock or C&W.

The coming week is extra jammed, too, and then there is a chance I will have a little bit of a break, although we do have the second major event for Homestead Center for the Arts mid-may.

 

 

 

 

 

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DogTag Diaries…..

Okay, most of you who follow the blog may have already seen this through Facebook. For those who might not and even who have, a little more background.

I joined Womens Military Alliance a few years ago and of course am a charter member of Women in Military Service of America Foundation (WIMSA). Other organizations and networks are then linked into those. Right around the holidays Captains Kim and Dakota contacted me about doing an episode for their podcast, Dogtag Diaries. I had never done a podcast although I have done a number of radio interviews. The difference in this case was length and it wasn’t broadcast live.  We set up a date and Captain Kim was the interviewer. I didn’t realize we were going so far back into my growing up background and it certainly stirred a lot of memories. The session is 40 minutes long and my suggestion is to have a favorite beverage on hand while listening. Many of the things I discuss have been the subject of my blog posts at different times. The interview also reminded my of subjects I recently posted about because I hadn’t thought of those for a long time. There is a lot of laughing involved in looking back, too. Here’s the link https://dogtagdiaries.captivate.fm/

On the everyday note, I would like to say things are settling down a bit, but we have the Carnival of the Arts on March 8th and dues to another of those convergences and some decisions I have made about new activities we are going to try, I have once again taken on extra tasks I had not intended. This is the old risk/reward aspect of taking a risk that we will get a larger turnout for the event. A larger turnout is the goal and will be the reward. Whether it will work or not is what we shall see.

 

 

Valentine’s Day In….

I think going out for the romantic Valentine’s Day is important early in a relationship. By a coincidence of timing, Hubby and I met on a Feb 13th (yes, a Friday as some of you recall from previous posts), which meant our “first anniversary” together was basically on Valentine’s Day. We went to a lovely restaurant and he gave me a pretty little butterfly pendant. As time progresses though, staying in to avoid the crowds makes more sense for us and that’s what we did last evening. Yes, I know Valentine’s Day was Friday, but it was easier for us to do special meal last night.

When we do this, we usually start with a first course – often seafood – and champagne. This time it was lobster bisque. We hadn’t been to Sprouts in ages and shopped there to get the bisque from a family company in New Hampshire, lovely Angus strip steaks, and asparagus. Although Sprouts is good for certain things, they don’t have much in the way of bakery. I planned to go by Publix on Saturday for dessert. As it turns out, as much as I wanted that luscious looking small chocolate cake and really thought about the small heart-shaped white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, I passed on both of them. I am still trying to loose the two pounds gained from the holidays and knew it was better not to have leftovers. I got a package of six chocolate covered strawberries and the small frozen apple pie so the aroma of pie baking would kick off the evening. Oh, we did have a nice Cabernet Sauvignon with the steak.

Everything was excellent and while it might not be romantic sounding, NASCAR season beginning with Daytona did top the day off for Hubby. He made it home from work as the Xfinity race had plenty of exciting laps left.

 

The Kindle Version of “Remorse”….

Okay, some of you already know I decided to use a different publisher for “Shades of Remorse”. At the time I did so, it was primarily because of a marketing package they were including. The trailer they developed is nice, although I’m not sure I’m seeing any effect from it. https://youtu.be/wXUthErPzh0

The essence of my displeasure is the delays in publication. The interior design took longer than I am accustomed to, plus there were some alleged software glitches that caused further delay. Then physical production of the book – which does look nice – took me past the holiday market I wanted. Then the Kindle version took another absurd amount of time and was only made available Monday. That put start-to-finish time from when I sent the file in from Sept 6th to February 10th. They were pleasant enough people to deal with and the cover came back quickly which is part of why I didn’t anticipate these other delays. In truth, over the years I have used seven other publishers. The one I really liked suffered the common situation of successful small businesses. They were acquired by a very large business with the usual line of, “You can operate much as you always have; just as part of us.” Right, that lasted for about two years, then they were completely absorbed by the large entity.

Anyway, the e-book is out and I will have to see if maybe the publisher also did the format for Barnes and Nobles. That doesn’t usually happen and I don’t really expect it as Kindle definitely has the major market share. Ah well, another lesson learned.

Better Living Through Chemistry…..

It is a known expression and with some of the recent headlines about Big Pharma, lifestyles, etc., this is not about politics, but more about life choices.

Those who follow the blog know I often talk about being overweight and finding foods that are carb friendly. I am not diabetic, although my sister and nephew are. The lower carb issue is for basic weight. In essence I have been a yo-yo dieter since age seventeen which means a lot of years. Back in the day it was a constant struggle with 5 pounds and that amount steadily increased as I aged. Being in the Army was tough because that was an unrelenting thing and yes, after I retired, I slipped up until the struggle was with an extra 10 pounds. Then, for reasons that aren’t important, I really went out of control about 18 years ago. I came back down some, but still need to lose another 30 pounds.

What does that have to do with the above subject? High blood pressure does run on my paternal side and my doctor put me on medication years ago. She added a second one and later a statin for cholesterol. We have these constant one-way discussions about how if I would lose the weight and cut out more foods that I like, we could reduce the meds. Yes, I know that, and yes, I do still work at it. I have an exercise program of six days a week and I have given up greatly on a number of foods I enjoy. The simple fact is I don’t want to go to the kind of diet that I know will work. I did enough of that. Will I someday say, “Yeah, okay, I’ll  do it again”? Maybe. I certainly won’t do so because of lecturing. On the other hand, I am not big on lots of medications, but these are a conscious trade-off for me.

And Two Weeks Gone…

Okay, having now realized the long gap between posts, it’s the usual story, plus a little. I had hoped this year after the holidays, things might be a little slower and I might have resolved a couple of issues that demand so much of my time. Apparently not.

I did have good reason to think this; I merely miscalculated being able to accomplish tasks that are linked to resolution of the issues. Since these tasks are out of my control, that means – news flash! – I have to wait on other people. Sigh! In other words, I may or may not get my resolutions so will try again next week to set things into motion. One item has been resolved, but that was an extra “pop up” anyway. Another I thought was resolved has come a little unraveled and might perhaps be back under control after a meeting next week. Ah well, this is why I have a category in my topics of, “When Real Life Interferes”.

I do have an author presentation this evening which is the first one in a long time. I  enjoy these and I am going to contact the nearest County library branch to see about maybe doing one there. While libraries won’t carry my physical books, I will see if the local folks have a choice about e-books. If controlled at County level, I don’t think I’ll have much of a chance, but I won’t know if I don’t ask.

Anyway, the topic this evening is, “Mechanics of Murder”. I’ve discussed this in previous posts about how to decide which victims will be killed off and how. I may have mentioned when I began “Shades of Remorse”, I hadn’t planned a large body count. Turns out I had to kill off six more than the original two. This is the kind of thing that can happen as they story develops. However, only one of the extras was sort of a good guy.