Cruising – Travel

Last year, when I found myself with extra money to spend, I decided to treat myself to a vacation.  I took myself on a dream vacation to Alaska on Princess Cruises.  Cruising was both exciting and relaxing.  Planning for the cruise was just as much fun as going on the voyage.  First, I booked the cruise with the help of a cruise vacation planner.  Lea was extremely knowledgeable and helped me select a cabin location on the ship, plus she helped me select shore excursions.  When you go on a cruise, the ship docks in ports along the way.  There are numerous things to do at each port, so if you want, you can book tours, go on guided walks, shopping trips, visit museums, etc. (for an extra fee).  You can book in advance, or book your shore excursions right onboard the ship. 

Planning:  I recommend using YouTube for help on what to pack.  I watched many videos to see what cruise experts suggest you bring with you.  Everything from clothing to other items like Dramamine and Tums, tea lights, sippy cups and towel clips.  Videos can also help you to decide where to cruise and who to cruise with.  Plus, watching videos gets you excited! Start by determining how many days you would like to cruise.  Next pick the time of year you want to go.  You might have a special occasion like a birthday or an anniversary to celebrate.  Then select what part of the world you want to see.  Caribbean, Asia or Europe for example.  Cruising is one of the most affordable ways to see the world.  For $150 per day (on some cruise lines) all transportation, food, entertainment and accommodations are included.  Extras include excursions, drinks, specialty dining, WI-FI, taxes and tips.  Be sure to calculate these extra fees as they can significantly change the price of your voyage.  The ships are enormous floating hotels, some with the capacity to have over 3,500 passengers plus the crew.  Use YouTube to take a virtual tour of the cruise ship you will be travelling on.  It will give you a good idea of what to expect when you board. 

Cruisecritic.com is a website that will help you select a cruise line. They also have tips for first-time cruisers, deals and comparisons between cruise lines.

What’s For Dinner? – Rachael Ray

Rachael Ray, creator and star of “30 Minute Meals” hosts a new daytime talk show “Rachael” in which she chats with celebs, investigates interesting topics and prepares a “square meal” all in a 60 minute format.  Actor/comedian Ted Danson visited with Rachael today looking handsome as ever as they discussed his recent projects and happy family life and marriage to actress Mary Steenburgen.  Seems they have both been busy making us laugh and with work protecting our oceans as part of  Oceana.org.  Check out Racheal’s website for more information  about the show and for today’s recipe for Pork Chops with “Blue” Butter and Sage, Sauteed Pears and Red Onions and Mashed Sweet Potatoes.  Yum yum!!!

Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning

Official Trailer This is the eighth Mission Impossible movie Tom Cruise has made. I have seen them all. Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning is by far the most ambitious. As per usual, the special effects are amazing and Tom’s stunts are over the top. Frankly. however. the nearly three hour long film had trouble holding my interest. While visually stunning, without the stunts, the storyline didn’t feel as strong as earlier Mission Impossibles. The question is, does Tom Cruise have a future in other genres and is it time for one of our best actors to branch out. In his early career his performances in classics like Risky Business, The Firm, Born on the Fourth of July, A Few Good Men and Rain Man cemented him as a Hollywood Legend. His later works, Collateral, Vanilla Sky, War of the Worlds, The Last Samurai, Interview with the Vampire, Jerry Maguire and Eyes Wide Shut further proved his talent. I love the man and would love to see him act again. The stunts are fun, but this fan feels like the Mission Impossible franchise has run its course. So, the question is: Will Ethan Hunt be back? I think it’s about time for Ethan to ride off into the sunset.

Adam David Wins The Voice

Adam David won The Voice Season 27 on May 20, 2025, representing Team Michael Bublé. His victory marks Bublé’s second consecutive win as a coach.

David, a 34-year-old singer from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, secured his win with standout performances, including “Hard Fought Hallelujah” by Brandon Lake and Joe Cocker’s “You Are So Beautiful”. His finale duet with Bublé, “The Weight” by The Band, was a fan favorite. His win comes with a recording contract and a $100,000 cash prize.

Jamal Roberts Wins American Idol

Season 23 of American Idol concluded on Sunday, May 18, 2025 crowning Jamal Roberts as the winner. He is a 27-year-old PE teacher from Meridian, Mississippi, and his victory makes him the first Black male winner since Ruben Studdard won in Season 2. Roberts secured his win with a powerful performance of “Her Heart” by Anthony Hamilton, following standout performances, including covers of Jelly Roll’s “Liar” and The Temptations’ “Just My Imagination”.

His win comes with a $250,000 cash prize and a recording contract with Hollywood Records/19 Recordings. He’s also a father of three daughters, with his youngest born just two weeks before the finale.

Sports: Timberwolves Beat Warriors 4 to 1

The Minnesota Timberwolves dominated in the 5-game series against the Golden State Warriors, winning four out of five games.  Without Steph Curry, who left Game 1 with a hamstring pull and has been unable to play since, in Game 5 the Timberwolves defeated the Warriors 121-110 on Wednesday, April 14, 2025, effectively ending the Warriors season.  The Timberwolves lead the entire game with a 15 point lead by Halftime.  Led by Julius Randle and Mike Conley the Timberwolves continued their lead for the remainder of the game with Anthony Edwards scoring 22 points and a career high of 12 assists.  Now, the Timberwolves will go on to play either the Denver Nuggets or the Oklahoma City Thunder, TBD. 

Fashion Show: Met Gala 2025

Kim Kardashian

Anne Hathaway

Kendall Jenner

Diana Ross

Rihanna

Regé-Jean Page

Demi Moore

Zendaya

Lewis Hamilton

Gina Alice Redlinger

Henry Golding

The stars came out in their best creative designer wear for the 2025 Met Gala. Held annually on the first Monday in May to benefit the  Metropolitan Museum of Art‘s Costume Institute, tickets were $75,000 per person. The event is known as “fashion’s biggest night” and has become an international phenomena. Chaired by Vogue editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, the theme of this year’s gala was Superfine: Tailoring Black Style or Black dandyism. Co-chaired by four men (Pharrell Williams, ASAP Rocky, Lewis Hamilton and Colman Domingo), this year’s fashions focused on menswear. All black designers were featured as style made it way on the blue carpet.

Once inside, the guests were entertained by superstars Usher and Stevie Wonder. After the gala, parties commenced and went throughout the night. Last year the Met Gala raised $1.4 Billion for the Costume Institute located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York’s Upper East Side.

New Black Soap Opera: Beyond the Gates

Set in a fictious Washington D.C. gated community, Beyond the Gates highlights the Dupree family.  Known as black royalty, the Duprees are a wealthy, multi-generational family.  CBS first aired Beyond the Gates on February 24, 2025 as part of their daytime lineup.  The main characters are matriarch Anita Dupree (Tamara Tunie), her husband Vernon Dupree (Clifton Davis), and their children Nicole Dupree Richardson (Daphnée Duplaix) and Danielle “Dani” Dupree (Karla Mosley).  Co-produced by the NAACP and Procter & Gamble Studios, Beyond the Gates is the first daytime drama to promote a predominately black cast. 

Filled with juicy scenarios and plot twists, Beyond the Gates sizzles with current issues and themes.  Not sure whether it would appeal to your interests.  See a clip and decide for yourself. 

Movie: Sinners

Official Trailer

Written, directed and co-produced by Ryan Coogler, an African American filmmaker known for blockbusters Black Panther, Creed, Black Panther:  Wakanda Forever and Fruitvale Station, Sinners will make you jump out of your seat.  Set in 1930s Mississippi, Coogler, brings us an evil vampire story where Michael B. Jordan plays a dual role as twin brothers Smoke and Stack.  The two brothers open a juke joint for the black community that is over taken by vampires on opening night.  These vampires are the scariest vampires I have ever seen on the screen.  Jordan leads the predominately black cast as they battle the growing army of vampires to see who will make it till dawn.  Another key aspect of the film is the music.  The blues is the backdrop for a culture rich in history.  A horror thriller to the very end (be sure to watch the movie beyond the closing credits) Sinners promises to scare you and entertain you.  A must see for even those new to the genre.  Two thumbs up!

Fashion: Super Model Gigi Hadid

Want to know what it takes to be a Super Model?  Ask Super Model Gigi Hadid.  In 2016, she was named International Model of the Year by the British Fashion Council.  The 29-year-old California native began her career at two years old modeling for Baby Guess.  After signing with IMG Models in 2013, she made her debut in Fashion Week.  Gigi was featured on four international Vogue covers in March 2017 and has been on the cover of Vogue (United States, Paris, Italy, Britain, Japan, Spain, Australia, Brazil, the Netherlands, Germany, China), Schön!,Numéro, Allure, W Magazine and Teen Vogue, as well as The Wall Street Journal and Elle (Canada).  Since then, Gigi has been featured on the cover of Harper’s Bazaar, V Magazine, W Magazine and Vogue Czechoslovakia, Vogue Arabia, and Vogue Hong Kong.

Branching out, Gigi has started her own clothing line, Guest in Residence, which produces mostly 100 % cashmere sweaters, hats, scarfs and socks for men and women.  Featured on the Jimmy Fallon Show, Gigi displayed a sampling of the sweaters made to last a lifetime.  The flagship store is in New York with a second store set to open in Los Angeles.  Prices range from $55 to $895. 

Book of the Week: A People’s History of the United States

Synopsis:  “A People’s History of the United States is “Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, it is the only volume to tell America’s story from the point of view of—and in the words of—America’s women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, the working poor, and immigrant laborers. As Zinn shows, many of our country’s greatest battles—the fights for a fair wage, an eight-hour workday, child-labor laws, health and safety standards, universal suffrage, women’s rights, racial equality—were carried out at the grassroots level, against bloody resistance.”

As a lover of history, I was immediately attracted to this book.  Zinn tells the stories of the people beginning with Columbus and ending with the Clinton presidency and the election of 2000.  Detailed and interesting, it’s a book to keep on your bedside table for a nighttime delve into the past. 

Food: The Atkins Diet

Getting ready for summer might include the desire to lose a few pounds.  Enter The Atkins Diet to the rescue.  The Atkins Diet originally created by Dr. Robert Atkins, who was an American physician and cardiologist, promotes a diet low in carbohydrates and high in protein and fat. 

First published in 1972, Dr. Atkins book “Dr. Atkins Diet Revolution” became a huge success with celebrities and ultimately the general population.  “The diet became popular in the early 2000s, with Atkins’ book becoming one of the top 50 best-selling books in history, and as many as 1 in 11 North American adults claiming to be following it.”  I remember my dear Aunt Nene bringing home the book in the early 70’s.  We both went on it with mixed results.  The goal of the Atkins Diet is for the body to enter the state of ketosis, a state in which your body burns excess fat after eliminating sugars in your system.  You can even purchase Ketone strips to check your urine to see if your body has entered the state of ketosis. 

Hollywood actor and heartthrob Rob Lowe was so impressed with the diet, he became the spokesperson for Atkins.  Known for his youthful appearance, the 61-year-old claims to be on a low carb diet with amazing results.  I have been on the Atkins Diet for the past two months and have lost 15 pounds so far.  Eating foods like beef, chicken, fish, cauliflower, green beans, eggs, cheese, tomatoes, zucchini, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, broccoli, asparagus and onions make it an easy diet to follow.  I’m excited about the weight loss and anticipate that I will have a new physique by summer.  If you have a few pounds to loss, I would suggest trying the Atkins diet for yourself.