As some may know, I now commute from the Jersey Shore to Manhattan every week day for work. Afternoons are easy, though yes, I do have playlists for that. Usually getting home takes an hour to an hour in the half. Traffic in the morning is rough. Lately it’s been a two hour bus ride. This playlist gets me through every morning. I sleep to it, or relax to it depending on how restless I am. I was very creative by naming it Bon Iver, who happened to be the first artist I added to the list. A few other artists you will find are Of Monsters and Men, Ben Howard and Lord Huron just to name a few. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do! Happy Thursday 🙂

Going into my 8th winter (I say winter because anything less than 70 degrees is classified as such) and I may finally, fingers crossed, be appreciating it and able to enjoy it. Things to love about the season changing:

Boots

Sweaters 

Layers

Apple cider

Hot tea

Holiday themed movies 

Fireplaces

Lots of red wine

Positive thinking is the key to fighting seasonal depression once and for all! Here’s to hoping that having a career without a four month long busy season, living in a town where I can get in a car instead of walking in the cold, and possessing a condo with central heat instead of an apartment with a radiator will help me appreciate the seasons for what they are worth. 🙂 

– Blogged while commuting –

If you like Taylor Swift, but prefer Bruce Springsteen, this album, out yesterday, is for you! Well done Ryan Adams!

Amongst all of the craziness of the past 6 months, Mike and I managed to find the time to squeeze in a much deserved vacation. For anyone who knows me, traveling is a passion of mine, and planning where to go and where to stay is one of the best parts about it. I pride myself on being pretty technologically advanced, however, when it comes to planning trips, I always go to the bookstore and buy a travel guide for the destination of choice. I love bookmarking the pages with my top choices of hotels, restaurants and activities. 

Mike does not yet have a passport, and considering our demanding work schedule, there was no time to apply for one. I knew I wanted to go to the Caribbean and I quickly decided that San Juan was the perfect place for us. Turns out we are both pretty adventurous and active when we vacation, and El Fajardo ended up being ideal. We went to the bioluminescent bay, jet skied, kayaked, and paddle boarded. We even snuck in to a Penn Mutual retreat party, and met some cool people in the process! Not to mention, the local restaurants right outside of the hotel have food that is toooo diiie for. I still dream about the mofongo. Our choice hotel was El Conquistador and it was everything we wanted plus more…outside of the fact that my bookstore bought travel guide assured me that there was a casino in the hotel, and there wasn’t (dare I say it might be time for me to stop this particular trip planning tradition of mine?), everything went off without a hitch. Needless to say we can’t wait for our next trip!