Much of my next two months will be focused on travel.  Tomorrow we leave on our around the world adventure.  Will include plane and ship.  Interspersed will be Tulips through the Netherlands, Mediterranean from Barcelona to Istanbul to Athens, and the Queen Mary II from Southampton to New York City. Today, I look ahead at what will follow, our half-way global journey in the Fall of this year.  Some of our friends might want join us, so following a couple of news item, some details to help you plan. So first, guess what?  In case you missed it,  Vladimir Putin won another six years as dictator of Russia , matching the record of Josef Stalin.  Got 87% of the votes, with a 74% turnout.  26% protested by not showing up?  Well, in  2020 the turnout for Biden vs Trump was 66% .  Hawaii is historically about the worst, under 60%.  Putin's buddy, The  Donald, on Saturday predicted that American democracy will end if he does not be...

 I yesterday posted on how COVID is changing.  To conclude,  Time  magazine reported on  The New Vaccines to Get in 2024 : This week the CDC provided their new guidelines on everything from COVID-19 to the flu to chickenpox. There is a new updated COVID vaccine targeting the Omicron variant XVV.15, which protects against evolving strains like the  JN.1 variant . This version is now responsible for more than half on U.S. cases. JN.1 is more infectious or severe than other SARS-CoV-2 variants. Anti-vaccine sentiment is on the rise in the country. Much of this resistance comes from Republicans. In fact,  two years ago it was revealed that Donald Trump, through his policies when president, killed more than 400,000 Americans!!! However, attitudes today reflect a broader avoidance, as only 20% of U.S. adults got the previous latest booster. Vaccinated individuals are four times likelier to AVOID LONG COVID! The good common sense today is to still wear masks ...

It wasn't in the title, but yesterday was sleep, Part 1 .  That lots of sleep was probably why there was minimal weight gain on a 21-day cruise was a revelation.  Then to do the research showing the role that sleep can play in your regular home life was a pleasant discovery.   If you've kept up with this blog site, my various articles on sleep surely must have already educated you to the  benefits of good sleep : Boosts immune system. Strengthens your heart. Puts you in a better mood. Increases your productivity. Improves memory. Conversely, less than 5 hours of sleep/night negatively affects the above, and literally can endanger your life.  For example, the  AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety  reports that you're twice as likely to get in a car accident if you "only" get 6-7 hours of sleep, versus 8 hours.  Also too, low sleep reduces your attempts at exercise, which, like sleep and good nutrients, is good for your body. People complain that ...

              From  Worldometer  (new  COVID-19 deaths yesterday):            DAY    USA    WORLD      Brazil      India      South Africa June     9     1093     4732         1185        246       82 July    22      1205     7128         1293      1120     572 Aug    12      1504     6556        1242        835     130 Sept     9      1208      6222       1136       1168       82 Oct     21      1225      6849    ...