All posts by She Seeks Serene

My Journey of Reimagining Life, Love and Education

Newly Renovated Resorts: Desert Hot Springs’ “Two Bunch Palms” – Carbon Neutral Rejuvenation

From a Design Milk online article:

Two Bunch Palms Mineral WatersTwo Bunch Palms mineral springs flow up from Miracle Hill, a 600 year old source bubbling from under the surface and flowing hot directly into the resort’s pool. Ecological considerations also extend to the hotel using its very own solar field array, earning Two Bunch Palms the status of being the first carbon-neutral resort in America.

Studio MAI, the firm responsible for designing the popular Venice restaurant mainstay, Gjelina, remained cognizant and careful to retain the resort’s storied “quirkiness and authenticity” while adding enough colors, textures, and modern motifs in acknowledgement of the new generation descending into the region drawn by the desert’s charms. The resulting makeover feels fresh without cloyingly contemporary, retaining a textural charm that has mostly abandoned nearby Palm Springs.

To read more click the following link: https://design-milk.com/mineral-springs-modernity-bubbles-anew-at-the-two-bunch-palms/

Top RV Campsites: North Rim Campground In Grand Canyon National Park

From a Fodor’s online article:

Grand_Canyon_North_Rim_Campground_Registration_Office_0097One of America’s most iconic national parks, it’s no surprise to learn that the Grand Canyon is often crowded. Most visitors, though, stick to the park’s South Rim, leaving the less populated North Rim open to campers in search of wildlife and a little tranquility. The North Rim Campground is a whopping 8,200 feet in elevation bordering the Transept Canyon, an offshoot of the main canyon, of which some sites have fantastic views. The 90-site campground, open May through October (reservations only), is located a mile south of the Grand Canyon Lodge and visitor center.

North Rim Campground Grand Canyon National Park

To read more click on the following link: https://www.fodors.com/world/north-america/usa/arizona/grand-canyon-national-park

Retirement Videos: Panel Discusses Topic “Is Retirement Extinct?”

The increase in longevity is disrupting the 20th-century retirement model. Our longer lifespans, though a blessing in many respects, has been a shock to the collective system. While Social Security and Medicare provide cushions, too few people have adequate savings and investment to support lifelong needs. The shift away from pensions and defined benefit plans has exacerbated insecurity. People need to work and earn longer to survive and thrive in a world of rapid change. As we come to grips with the opportunities and challenges of longer lives, what will 21st-century retirement look like? What policies and practices should be implemented to enhance wealth, health, and engagement for a better future?

Technology Trends: Dish Network Founder To Create “Low Cost” Wireless Carrier Out Of T-Mobile / Sprint Merger

From a Wall Street Journal article by Drew FitzGerald:

T-Mobile Sprint Dish Wireless NetworksMr. Ergen also argues wireless pricing is broken. He says U.S. carriers have many customers paying for unlimited data plans they don’t need, much as cable companies long forced subscribers to pay for big bundles of TV channels.

“This is deja vu all over again for us,” said Mr. Ergen. In wireless, he sees an opportunity for Dish to woo customers that use less data with lower monthly prices and those that are heavy data users with plans that don’t slow their connections.

Charlie Ergen has long tried to muscle his way into the U.S. wireless business. When his rivals had no other choice, the billionaire behind Dish Network Corp. finally got his way.
John Legere, the chief executive of T-Mobile US Inc., called Mr. Ergen in late May after it became clear T-Mobile’s proposed takeover of Sprint Corp. was in trouble.

Top Travel Experiences: Remote Lakeside Camping In The Adirondack Park Reached By Floatplanes

From a New York Times article by Zach Montague:

The Adirondack Park In Upstate New York MapAway from Lake Placid, Lake George and other more crowded regional hubs, are several smaller hamlets that provide access to a handful of exceptionally remote lakeside campgrounds reachable only by pontooned floatplanes. With round-trip charters typically priced at $150 or less per person, some of the most secluded frontiers of the Adirondack Park are accessible even to travelers on a limited budget. Over the years, this little-utilized route into sequestered backwoods sites has become a prized secret among my close friends and family, and since my maiden trip with my father six years ago, I have been back every year with a rotating cast of companions.

An Adirondack Wilderness All Your Own New York Times July 2019
A floatplane arrives at the isolated Pine Lake camping site in the Adirondacks. Credit Tony Cenicola/The New York Times

To read more click on following link: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/22/travel/an-adirondack-wilderness-all-your-own.html

Boomers Health Tips: C-Reactive Protein (CRP) Blood Tests Can Help Predict Heart Disease

From a Harvard Medical School “Harvard Heart Letter”:

Understanding Inflamation Harvard HealthChronic inflammation often begins with a similar cellular response but morphs into a lingering state that persists far longer. Toxins such as cigarette smoke or an excess of fat cells (especially around the belly area) can also trigger inflammation. So can the fatty plaque inside arteries, which causes inflammatory cells to cover and wall off the plaque from the flowing blood. But the plaque may rupture, mingle with blood, and form a clot. These clots are responsible for the majority of heart attacks and most strokes.

A buildup of cholesterol-rich plaque inside arteries — known as atherosclerosis — is the root cause of most heart attacks and strokes. Researchers have long recognized that chronic inflammation sparks this artery-damaging process (see “Understanding inflammation”). Now, they’re zeroing in on better ways to tackle that aspect of the problem.

Addressing inflammation is vital. Even when people take steps to lower their risks for heart disease, such as reducing their cholesterol and blood pressure, they may still face life-threatening cardiovascular events.

Click on following link to read more: https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/new-insights-about-inflammation

Top Political Podcasts: Shields & Brooks Discuss The Latest News In Washington (July 26, 2019)

From PBS Newshour:

Shields & Brooks PBS Newshour July 26 2019Syndicated columnist Mark Shields and New York Times columnist David Brooks join Judy Woodruff to discuss the week’s political news, including the aftermath of Robert Mueller’s congressional testimony, the current legislative landscape around election security, changing dynamics within the 2020 presidential race and the fiscal significance of the bipartisan budget deal.

Top Hikes In West Virginia: Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Has 20 Miles Of Scenic Trails

From a NPS.gov online article:

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park Hiking trailsHarpers Ferry National Historical Park (NHP) is considered one of the best walking parks in America. The views are sublime, the history compelling, the restored town a work of historical art. The variety of trails coupled with nationally significant history and the scenery of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Potomac and Shenandoah river valleys adds up to a unique hiking experience. Harpers Ferry NHP encompasses almost 4,000 acres in West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia, and several units of the national park system intersect here. As the mid-point of the 2,178-mile Appalachian National Scenic Trail (AT), Harpers Ferry is home to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC), the headquarters for the AT. Visitors can also walk along the 184.5-mile-long towpath of Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park by crossing the footbridge over the Potomac River. The Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail overlays the C&O Canal and continues north all the way to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

https://www.nps.gov/hafe/planyourvisit/hikes.htm

Books Worth Reading: “The Ice At The End Of The World” By Jon Gertner

From a NY Time by Jon Gertner:

The Ice At The End of the World Jon GertnerMore than a million years ago, snow fell on Greenland in the summer. Temperatures were low enough that it stuck, and the ice pack accumulated over the millenniums, eventually stacking higher than 10,000 feet and covering over 700,000 square miles. This frozen desert supported no life. Temperatures regularly ran dozens of degrees below zero, especially during the many months the sun declined to appear. As one 18th-century visitor recorded, the ice sheet was a frigid, deadly place that had “no use to mankind.”

Of course, if there’s a place so miserable that most humans avoid it, there will be a hardy minority spurred by the challenge. These courageous, often exhibitionist explorers, questing after knowledge as much as fame, are the subject of Jon Gertner’s fascinating and encyclopedic book, “The Ice at the End of the World.” 

To read more click on following link: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/03/books/review/the-ice-at-the-end-of-the-world-jon-gertner.html