Travel

April 28, 2017 In Florida, Food, Food Porn, Funny signs, Travel

no undies, no eaties

I’m away from home base and having what I consider a most incredibly gluttonous amazing perfect day; porch, sun, palm trees close enough to touch, laptop, book, work, and quiet. For a girl like me who doesn’t allow herself nearly as much “me” time she needs, yet does a great job teaching others how to take it, and take it often, I’m in heaven right now.

Let me just go ahead and call myself out here again. Just trying to keep all of us on our toes, baby:)

I’m visiting someone who’s stuck at work longer than he cares to be today, but that stuck is a good thing in this case because it means I get the best of all worlds…a me fiesta, coupled with good bits of fun company at lunch and later tonight. (Win, win!) I just got scooped up for lunch and we went to one of those fascinating dive joints that I’m always on the search for. You know, the place that’s just the perfect amount of grimy and always filled to the max with locals, and blue collar friendly everyone?

Did I mention I ordered the small veggie “round” sandwich? Mmmm…

My favorite part of our visit was the sign on the door as we walked in:

Oh travel, new spots, and good food, you are my besties!

How are you taking care of yourself today?

#AlwaysLookingUp #EverydayAdventure #LifeUnstuck

*(You know what would be extra special and awesome? If you scrolled to the bottom page of this website and subscribed to my blog posts, so you can get them in your email inbox, that’s what. You know what else would be awesome? Ice cream for dinner. You can have it all! YAHTZEE! Treats left and right. Fantastic.)*

February 24, 2017 In Be active, Colorado, Florida, Freedom, grow, Inspiration, Links, Live the life you want to live, People, Photos, play, Today Is The Day, Travel, Uncategorized, Virginia

get a life! (outside.)

Bright and early this morning and just after writing this last night, I heard something VERY disturbing as I was grabbing a coffee. The TV was on in this public place with me paying no attention until my ears caught a designer on a home show who was being interviewed; “The average American spends 23 hours a day inside…”

Twenty three hours out of twenty four a day, INSIDE?!

What are we doing to ourselves, people?!

This fact is almost as disturbing as a couple others I’ve learned, such as the average American home built in 2016 was something close to 4,000 square feet, and there are an average of 300,000 items in American homes.

I’m about to cry over here.

Holy mother lode guys and gals, these facts and figures are so NOT cool. Are you in Target right now? The mall? Hiding at home with all the windows closed? Please take your hands off the cart, hanger, or remote, and walk outside for a minute. Do me a favor and think of why you are in Target, at the mall, or on your couch. Do you actually need what you’re shopping for? Do you have any bills you could pay where your money could be more effectively used rather than that “I can never seem to get out of Target for less than $200” that I hear all the time? Are you just bored?

Please put me out of business! Remember we declared together (by that I mean I’m pretending like you all agreed) that 2017 is THE YEAR OF LESS CRAP? How about now we add that this year can be the year of more fresh air? The year of more adventure out of four walls with your bestie exploring a new neighborhood, more time to kick the ball around at the park with your kid, extra hours losing yourself on a road trip alone, more fun gettin’ frisky under a tree at the top of a mountain with your shmoopster….oh the possibilities!

Here’s a teeny sampling of my past few months:

I don’t know about you, but this girl sure isn’t staying inside for a minute longer than she ever has to.

Consumerism and isolation are forceful breeding grounds for fear, hate, obesity, misery and all those other things that sound just awful, sad, and not fun.

Life is WAY TOO SHORT to be awful, sad, and not fun…don’tcha think? Yahoo! The bell just rang for recess! It’s time for all of us to go play. Get up, open the doors, walk outside, hug a tree, a person, or both, and find a little more health and happiness on this crazy ride.

#LessStuffMoreFreedomHappyLife #MoveIt #TheGreatOutdoors

January 26, 2017 In BLR-Mobile, Florida, Freedom, Travel

i spy a glow in the sky

This was my road trip turning into night tonight, from one of my favorite places, my car.

Thoughts from a long afternoon drive:

1.) When someone asks, say yes, then go.

2.) Never be limited by your city limits…or anything else.

What drives you?

#LessStuffMoreAdventureHappyLife #TodayIsTheDay #OneLifeJustDoIt

January 8, 2017 In De-lish, Food Porn, Freedom, Live the life you want to live, Photos, Travel

go

When you get there, open your eyes:

…and feast:

Life is short. Do what you want while you can.

Today is the day, what are you waiting for?

#LessStuffMoreTravelHappyLife #Spain #LifeOnTheBlueLollipopRoad

December 31, 2016 In Food, Food Porn, Freedom, Inspiration, Links, People, Photos, Today Is The Day, Travel

what road will you choose for 2017?

I think I’ll take this one:

…this one:

…and lots of others like these, because:

We wake up each day and have one of two CHOICES:

1.) Ignore the clock.

2.) Honor the clock.

None of us can beat Father Time, not even those of us with good looks, charm, buckets of money, or who are strong as an ox. While this mighty beast of a timekeeper has full control, holding his finger on the button that decides whether we are here or gone, the one thing he cannot control is what we do with the minutes we’re gifted.

Don’t wait. There’s never the perfect or right time for anything in this crazy life. The time is now. Make a toast to honor yourself in this new year, and continue to toast to every day.

As Humphrey Hops says…

“You’re right Skinny Pete, it’s time that I do it. What am I waiting for? I better hop to it!”

#HopToIt #LessWaitingMoreDoingHappyLife #RespectTheClock

December 20, 2016 In Photos, Travel

check please!

It sure makes me happy when things like this pop into the email inbox on my phone:

Adventure is here.

How do you holiday?

#DoStuffDontBuyStuff #LessStuffMoreTravelHappyLife #NumberEighteen

December 4, 2016 In Travel

adventure is brewing

Step outside:

Where do you go?

#LessStuffMoreAdventureHappyLife #Travel #DoStuffDontBuyStuff

September 28, 2016 In Freedom, Inspiration, North Carolina, Photos, Today Is The Day, Travel

and then she went away

…because there are sunsets to find:

…and moments to have.

Where do you find peace and happiness?

#ShineBright #FindFreedom #NeverStopExploring

May 9, 2016 In Be active, BLR Memorial Travel Scholarship Fund, BLR Play It Forward 2016, Blue Lollipop Road Memorial Scholarship, Do good, Inspiration, Links, Strong Mojo, Today Is The Day, Travel, Vermont

get your give on

Hello, Monday!

Today is May 9th. This means exactly 2 months until our 5th Annual BLR Play It Forward Event & BLR Memorial Travel Scholarship award, July 9 2016 weekend. (FIVE years!)

We’ve been doing good on our Remember, Celebrate, Live promise since 2012 and couldn’t be more proud. We love playing forward to give back.

Inspired by us? Well thank you…but we wouldn’t be able to do it without YOU! So how do you get involved?

1.) If you’re MAU Women’s Soccer Alumni, you can register here for just a $35 donation to play in the game, Saturday July 9th at Willow Park in Bennington, VT. 100% of registration fees go to the scholarship fund.

2.) Get an event shirt for yourself or your kiddos here. Shirts come in blue and pink, youth and adult sizes. Just 20 buckaroos donation! 100% of that loot goes straight to the scholarship fund.

3.) Rally your friends, family, neighbors, former teachers, coaches, strangers on the street, or anyone else you like, to come join/hang out/socialize for our Friday night (July 8th) open Welcome Back Party, and Saturday day and night (July 9th) Alumni game, scholarship announcement, and Celebration Cocktails.

4.) Sponsor! We’d love any sponsorships, and promise if you do, we will give shout-outs and love on all print & social media, along with on the BLR website here and more. (We’d especially like to to find a jersey & t-shirt sponsor this year to cover that huge cost. Please call 804.339.6514 or Diane(@)BlueLollipopRoad.com if you’d like to sponsor.)

5.) Donate! 100% of all donations go straight to the Blue Lollipop Road Memorial Travel Scholarship Fund. This fund supports deserving high school students to travel and do community service work. (Wha?! Yep, students doing good while getting a chance to see outside their everyday world. Exposure! Service! Character building! Building a badass next generation! Super awesomeness:)

If you’re a regular reader or BLR follower, you obviously know this Blue Lollipop Road is my life, my passion, my everything, and Play It Forward is by far the work I’m most proud of. I can’t do it alone, so I present a challenge to you readers who I know and strangers I don’t:

Donate $5 now!

I figure $5 for 5 years of playing forward so we can give back is not too much to ask. Everyone can afford 5 big ones. Won’t you support what we are doing? Click here to donate through PayPal, it is secure, easy, (and dare I say, fun?), or send a check made payable to:
Blue Lollipop Road Memorial Scholarship Fund
PO Box 34661
Charlotte, NC 28234

…or

…simply pass this post on! My Christmas wish is that some one, some where, some day, who’s big time, will notice what we are doing and say “Hey! You are spectacular BLR Play It Forward! Here’s some ginormous media and/or a million bucks for your scholarship fund! What you’re doing with your event & scholarship fund is like…totally awesome!”

(Hey- it could happen. It WILL happen.)

So won’t you send some love and spread the love? Oh how important it is, to…

Remember where you came from.

Celebrate the memories and time you have have together.

Live like today is the day.