Hello, dear Readers!!

A little paraphrasing of the lyrics to “Seasons of Love” from the musical Rent and I cannot believe it has been a year since my last post (well, it’s been 363 days to be exact).

Some curious folks want to know where I’ve been and what I’ve been doing. For you, I wish I had some amazing excuse for the drought – like “I won the lottery and have been traveling the globe!”, or “I’ve been hanging with Elon and Richard in space.”, or even “I’ve been holed up in a Colorado cabin writing a follow-up to my best-selling novel!”.

Alas, none of those are true. Way back in 2017, I wrote a post about intentional living and that has been my primary focus since moving back to D.C. in late 2017 – doing what makes me happy and being very thoughtful about where I expend my energy. Since then, I’ve just been living my life in D.C. – playing #backyardtourist, enjoying friends and family, working at an amazing job, doing some localized (eastern seaboard) travel, and prioritizing health and happiness. That meant that some things didn’t make the cut, namely blogging due to the amount of time it takes to properly research, write, and prepare a post. All of this to state that I do enjoy blogging and sharing content and have made it a goal to post at least once a week for the remainder of 2019, still with the focus on coffee, travel, and getting the most out of life.

Since we are on the topic of living intentionally, let’s kick things off with my list of bloggers/YouTubers who focus on doing more with less. I have high standards and can’t abide by pointless posts, “hauls” of any sort, or videos that have 20 minutes of yak-flapping before 30 seconds of idiotic content, so there is none of that in any of my choices. Each person strikes me as genuine, focused on living their life, their way, without preaching about it. Just doing their thing and sharing the journey. All have a relaxed vibe and I thoroughly enjoy their content, style, and approach. I hope you do, too!

In no particular order…….

• ModernHistory.TV – Long before any movement called minimalism, there was the real thing, the Middle Ages – a simpler time when all that could kill you was almost anything like a scratch, or a rampaging boar, a cavity, or a flea-bitten rat.  As a huge history buff (especially between 1066 and 1648) I am a massive fan of Jason Kingsley, OBE. His series, Modern History, aims to investigate the reality of the past and features content centered on the lifestyle of the Middle Ages, with a heavy focus on the life, and accoutrement, of a knight. A bit of a stretch to include it in my Minimal/Intentional list, but this is my blog and I get to call the shots, so there!
• Matt D’Avella – Matt is a filmmaker, YouTuber, and podcaster that explores what is means to live a good life. This guy and his adorable partner, Natalie, are much younger than I am but I thoroughly enjoy the content he produces. He is not about clickbait or lengthy intros, just about thoughtful living and has a good sense of humor.
• A Small Wardrobe – This Australian blogger’s tag-line is ‘Minimalism of the wardrobe, home and mind’ and that sums up her straightforward approach. Her presentation is engaging and she prioritizes taking a thoughtful approach to living with content on wardrobe (obviously), lifestyle, and home.
• Vested Interests – With a calm and intelligent approach, this YouTuber presents on adapting small wardrobes for new situations & filling wardrobe gaps but she also provides great content on finances and the occasional home-focused videos.
• ManVanDogBlog – Joe Hayley is a retired NFL player and sums up his philosophy with a few simple words, “Live with less, experience more.” If that weren’t enough to love him, Dog really IS his co-pilot. 😁 I find his story and outlook so compelling. He is incredibly self-aware and thoughtful about what matters to him and how he can make a meaningful impact on those with whom he comes in contact.
• Alyssa Beltempo – Self-described as a slow fashion expert who will change the way you think about your closet, Alyssa is thoroughly engaging and so Canadian (in the best possible way). Originally working in finance, she now works as a stylist and writer (if I recall that video correctly). Her approach centers of slow fashion with a heavy focus on the principles of minimalism, using and loving what you already have and making smart shopping decisions so you can create a closet full of pieces that you actually love and wear.

As someone who takes regular digital detoxes, or as I call them eFree Weekends, I do enjoy some Internet and these are my destinations of choice. Until next time (which I promise will be in a week or less), thanks for stopping by (sticking with Java and Junket)!

MM