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If This Suitcase Could Talk …

Posted on October 30, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 222, Staying at Home Friday, Oct. 30, 2020; Fort Smith, Arkansas After weeks of anxiety and angst on my part, my suitcase and I reunited after 218 days apart. I left it aboard the ms Amsterdam on March 22 in Fremantle, Australia, to return to Dallas via Sydney, just

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Between Cruises, World Cruise 2020
28 comments

Make New Friends, But Keep the Old

Posted on September 24, 2020September 25, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 186, Staying at Home Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico If places have theme songs, then mine for Santa Fe could be that Girl Scout favorite: “Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.” I came here knowing one person. I’ll

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Between Cruises
9 comments

Painting Out of My Comfort Zone

Posted on September 12, 2020September 13, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 174, Staying at Home Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico This week it wasn’t smoke but snow that drove me inside for my morning coffee routine. I awoke Tuesday to discover a light snowfall clinging to the shrubs, sage bushes and trees in the arroyo. I ventured

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Between Cruises
12 comments

The Painted Desert and Other Adventures

Posted on September 7, 2020September 16, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 169, Staying at Home Monday, Sept. 7, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico When I pictured myself in Santa Fe, I envisioned following in the footsteps of Georgia O’Keeffe. I would hike into the southwest desert landscape, set up my easel, sit on my stool and spend my days painting.

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Between Cruises
10 comments

Smoke Getting In My Eyes

Posted on September 2, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 160, Staying at Home Saturday, August 29, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico After almost two months of leisurely mornings on the patio, watching the sunrise creep across the arroyo, I’ve retreated indoors. When I open the slider door, a whiff of smoky air greets me. If I stay long,

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Between Cruises
10 comments

Life in the Slow Lane

Posted on August 21, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 145, Staying at Home Friday, August 14, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico “Can you believe we get to live here?” My next-door neighbor was driving us to meet her friend for wine and tapas and stopped to exclaim as she crested a hill near our condos in Santa Fe.

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Between Cruises
8 comments

Quarantine, and the Living is Easy

Posted on August 3, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 134, Staying at Home Monday, August 3, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico Why come to Santa Fe for a pandemic summer? No Opera, no Indian Market. The museums are all closed – even the outdoor botanical garden (which doesn’t make much sense to me). Galleries and retail shops around

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Between Cruises
12 comments

Suddenly Saying Goodbye to the Amsterdam

Posted on July 26, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 126, Staying at Home Sunday, July 26, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico When we abruptly left the ship last March, I don’t think any of us imagined that we would never again sail on Holland America’s MS Amsterdam. Sure, it would be a while before we would cruise again,

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Between Cruises
10 comments

Oh, The Places My Luggage Will Go!

Posted on July 25, 2020July 25, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 125, Staying at Home Saturday, July 25, 2020; Santa Fe, New Mexico Shanghai! South Africa! Hong Kong! Jakarta! South Korea! Vietnam! Manila! Even if I can’t have travel adventures during this pandemic, at least my luggage has gotten out and about. I must say I am a bit jealous.

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Between Cruises
19 comments

Hot Springs: BBQ, Bathhouses and Gardens

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Jo Johnston

Day 79, Staying at Home Wednesday, June 10, 2020; Hot Springs, Arkansas (I recently decamped to Santa Fe for a few months, where I’m still in quarantine. Before I start writing about this new adventure I’m finishing up posts about my weeks in Arkansas.) The great thing about being in

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Between Cruises
10 comments

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I’m a writer in love with the sea, sailing, travel and sketching.

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