Personal Stories

As we start a new chapter in our lives, I look back on four years of living in California and all of the adventures we’ve had.

Another year has come and gone – and what a year it was! Here’s a look back at the 4th year of my 40 Before 40 goal challenge.

Well thank goodness that year is over, right? I mean, I’m not saying it was all bad. I know many of us had small and large joys and celebrations and successes (Mr. V and I got married in July!). But we also had a really crappy year for humankind, and have so much work left …

What. A. Year. When I sat down to start this year’s annual recap – something I do every year (here’s 2016, 2018, 2019) – I didn’t even know where to begin. I didn’t know if I wanted to begin. I can’t pretend that it wasn’t one of the most devastating years of my life – of our …

Every year on New Year’s Day, Mr. V and I make our way to the coast, and go for a walk. We spend that time discussing our personal and professional goals – and this year we’ve added marriage goals to the list since we’ll be tying the knot in July 2020. I love using January …

Twenty nineteen. What a year. What a long year. With political, social, and environmental issues at the forefront under a constant barrage of headlines and the 24/7 newscycle, it’s a little hard to look back on the year as a whole. But if we don’t look back – on society as a society and on ourselves …

It’s been one year since Tony Bourdain died, and my life is completely different. I wanted to share why that happened.

Curious what it takes to write a book for Lonely Planet? Learn about Dark Skies: A Practical Guide for Astrotourism, the book I wrote and how it came to be.

Curious about Mr. Valise, my #1 travel buddy and life partner? Here’s an introduction to Mr. V and our relationship history, for interested readers!