Author: Lajeune

Lajeune Hollis is a Connecticut resident, Media Sales Professional, Local News Junkie, Daughter, Sister, Proud Aunt and Colon Cancer Survivor

Friends are like jewels…

I learned about the importance of having and keeping good friends early on. I grew up in a big dual parent family (with five girls, 2 boys) and since I was the ‘baby girl,’ I considered myself the odd girl out because, in my mind, my 4 other sisters were all closer in age and therefore already had each other for playmates.

 

The Hollis kids
The Hollis kids – I’m the sixth from the left

 

Consequently, in my 6 year old mind,  my best bet was to make my own girlfriends who could ‘feel like sisters’ so I found myself becoming really good at cultivating  friendships that lasted.  As I became older I got better and better at it.  When it came to friendships with the opposite sex I found friendships with boys easier and less complicated. That is, until,  I was old enough to date.   Then things became more complicated as my boyfriend would look at me like: ‘who is he and what is he to you?’

 

Which brings me to present day.  I am so blessed to have in my life my partner James who is not only the love of my life but also my best friend, confidante,  travel buddy and partner in crime.

 

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Me and my partner James enjoying a romantic dinner

 

Another benefit to becoming older is that the gap between my sisters has somehow shrunk and we are now truly friends.

 

I am also blessed to have in my life what I consider my wide circle of friends:  family friends, friend friends,  church friends, client friends, gym friends, doggie friends, co-worker friends and social media friends.

 

Speaking of co-worker friends, I recently became very close to a co-worker friend named Jamie who I was initially introduced to by a mutual and former co-worker friend who asked me, upon her exit,  to look after Jamie since she was new and did not have any friends.  I immediately bristled at the idea of making friends with a friend of a friend as I always prided myself on choosing  my own friends but once I got over that feeling I began to like Jamie.   We both had a different idea of what the other person was like based upon preconceived notions but once we got past that we became fast friends.  I always feel as if I meet a person for a reason and  I quickly found what that reason was through my friendship with Jamie.   She is and was the inspiration behind my blog as she both trained me and helped get me started on WordPress plus she has her own enviable blog, jamieeverafter.

 

Me and Jamie at CT Convention Center Me and Jamie at the CT Convention Center last Fall

 

So in conclusion I have to say that friends are like jewels…precious, valuable, treasured…no 2 are alike.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

 

Chocolate on the Beach

It’s getting close to Memorial Day, the unofficial start of Summer, which means that me and my partner James will empty my car trunk of Winter gear and re-pack with the good stuff–Summer items like portable beach chairs, beach umbrellas, beach bags with sunblock, towels, beach blankets, etc.  We keep my car trunk filled up (not his as it is chock full of golf gear) like this all Summer long as you never know in New England when a beach day will appear.

 

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We both love the beach and look forward to laying out on our beach chairs with my cooler filled with ice cold water, adult beverages and snacks and sneak dips in the ocean when the heat gets to be too much.  We are truly ‘Chocolate on the Beach’  as we are blessed with skin tones that are ‘Hershey bar’ chocolate, especially in contrast to the bright sunlight of the beach.  For as long as I can remember I have been a fan of the beach.  I grew up in a small town on the shoreline of Connecticut where we had 5 beaches, so it was natural and a beautiful thing to spend as much time as possible at the beach.

 

Plus my late mother Jean loved the beach and made it a point every Summer to pick up her beach pass at the town hall in Groton, Connecticut.  So one of the ways me and my siblings honored her when she passed almost 6 years ago was to have the bench she so often sat on at Eastern Point, her favorite beach in Groton, Connecticut named after her.

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I think of her often but especially today as it is, after all, Mother’s Day…a day when I am reminded of her goodness.  I was one of seven children and although I came from a large family,  my mother had this special and unique way of making me feel as much love from her as if I were her only child.  And we all felt that powerful love.  I consider this one of the many gifts that God blessed her with and completely understand why she was nicknamed ‘Care Bear’  at her church, Walls Temple AME Zion in New London, CT.

Jean Anna Tinsley Hollis

So Happy Mother’s Day to all and a special Happy Mother’s Day to my mother Jean in Heaven.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL

 

 

My Mexican vacay

There are so many reasons why I recommend staying at the Luxury Gran Bahia Adults Only resort at Sian Ka’an Don Pablo Collection in Akumal, Mexico including the fact that dollar for dollar it’s a great value…

 

Coba beach

 

1) Nice Climate:  It’s mid to late April and its been at least 90 degrees Farenheit all week long with a cool ocean breeze in the evenings – nice!

 

2)Modern rooms: we stayed in the VIP room (villa) where you automatically receive Butler service and all of the amenities you could ask for including a private hot tub upstairs on our terrace but it’s a tad more expensive than the junior suite.

 

Loved our VIP room complete with butler service

 

3) By staying at the Sian Ka’an Gran Bahia Luxury Adults Only resort and paying a little more we gained access to their 4 other  sister  resorts:  Coba, Hacienda, Akumal,  and Tulum.  The other resorts are not necessarily Adults Only but they all have their own beaches, pools, swim-up bars, snack bars, activities, restaurants, and  lots of daily and nightly entertainment.  We  thoroughly enjoyed being able to trolley back and forth between the sister resorts to accommodate our daily needs and nightly desires.

 

4) I’ve always wanted to try Kundalini Yoga so I found it intriguing that our primary resort, Sian Ka’an, had an outdoor spa and yoga center called the Tao Wellness Center just a short trolley ride away.  I must admit I’m not a fan of working out while I am away on vacation so I only went there one time.  There were just 5 people in the class I attended and it lasted a little over an hour.  It’s not beginner’s yoga and the instructor had a heavy Spanish accent so I found it a little hard to follow.  However it was an awesome experience and I’m glad I went.

 

 

5) The all-inclusive at this resort includes daily breakfasts, lunches and dinners at the International Buffet which all of the resorts have. If you have a taste for something different at night then you should make your a la carte dinner reservations as soon as you check in as they get booked up quickly.  These a la carte restaurants are part of the All-inclusive but not everyone takes advantage of them.  We made 3 a la carte dinner reservations total:  a Japanese restaurant, a seafood restaurant, and a Brazilian restaurant.  Every restaurant was fabulous but our favorite hands down was the Brazilian restaurant which constantly fed us (at our will) various rottiserie meats (turkey, chicken, pork, flank steak and beef) which were all hot, juicy and delicious.  We did not order the wine off the menu which was extra as the house wines were fine and included.

 

This is from the daily international lunch buffet. Delish!

 

6) Tours:  these are an extra charge and depending on what you decide to do, well worth the money.  I’m a tomboy by nature so we both settled on the Dune Buggy excursion. This was a 4 hour tour and we shared a dune buggy (or buggie) as they call it.  They picked us up for the 2pm tour from our lobby and transported us to Coba Beach’s Diving Center at Coba Beach.  Our tour guide who rode his dune buggy in front of us explained that we would ride for 30 minutes and then stop to visit an ice museum as well as 3 Cenotes (caves).  After that we would stop to take a cool dip in a man made lake and then head back.   There were just 4 of us total.  We wore helmets, our own sunglasses and a face mask as there was dust for days!  Thank God the cool dip came at the end of our tour because by then we were hot, sticky and downright dirty (smile).

 

So again I would truly recommend staying at a Gran Bahia property.  Just be sure that you negotiate the ground transportation to and from the airport up front(we missed that one and it was a mini nightmare?).   Also be sure to hook up all of your mobile devices (cell phones first) as the free WiFi is for one mobile device at a time.  And lastly,  don’t drink the water!  LOL!

 

Sincerely,

 

TVFL

 

 

 

Pit Bull or Poodle?

So I’m a member of the Edge Fitness Clubs in Hamden, CT and I attend the Early Bird classes 5 days a week Monday through Friday starting at 530am or 6am.  I do team training  there which is called Edge Strong.  I take classes called Edge Exclusive, Edge Strong and Edge Burn just to name a few.  These classes are good for me because they keep me focused and disciplined and the group atmosphere helps to keep me motivated.  Plus I’ve made lots of “gym friends” at the Edge and even socialize with a few of them after hours.

 

Brian, my personal trainer and one of the Edge Strong instructors, is drill seargent- like in nature and is constantly barking at us during class:  “are you a Pit Bull or a Poodle?” to which I promptly reply: Dachshund!

 

Crimson, my fav female doxie!

 

The reason why I shout back “Dachshund” is because up until 4 years ago I had two “doxies” in my life: Coby and Crimson Hollis and I miss them both soooooooo much…They were energetic, loveable and fun plus they were both smart as a whip so I enjoyed lots of good times with them.

 

I adopted Coby and Crimson from the same breeder in Canterbury, CT.  I adopted Coby (the black and tan male) when he was just 3 months old and had him until the ripe old age of 17 (in people years) and then, in 2012, he died of kidney failure.  Crimson (the red female)  was a breeder dog who wasn’t producing many pups so they “fixed” her to sell her off.  Plus she had social interaction issues since in her world adults coming to visit were coming for the sole purpose of taking away her puppies so I was able to get her at a lower price.  She was already  4 1/2 years of age when I adopted her and lived a happy and “normal” pet life to the age of 9 before she was hit (1 month after Coby passed!) by a hit and run driver on a busy street.

 

So Brian, I’m neither Pit Bull nor Poodle, I’m more like my two late doxies were: energetic, loveable and fun!

 

Sincerely,

 

TVFL

 

 

Brazilian bikini wax for my Mexico vacay!

One of the things on my bucket list was to get a Brazilian bikini wax. Why I waited to do this at age 53 is anybody’s guess (smile). At any rate I’m going to an adults only luxury all-inclusive resort in Mexico next week where I will be sporting my brand new string bikini so there’s no time like the present…

 

My friend and advertising client Debbie recommended I go see Jessica at Esthetique in Hamden, CT.  I did not know what to expect so I went on a site called beauty.com for helpful tips which armed me with useful information but there is nothing like actually getting it done. The whole procedure from stripping from the waist down to wiping the tears out of my eyes took all of 25 minutes. Jessica was the ultimate professional and even tried to distract me by keeping the conversation light and all but the pain was excruciating.

 

I will say that the next day I felt like I could walk again so I would highly recommend it, especially if you are traveling to a tropical destination and/or need to get it done for a major event.   Just don’t wait until you are in your 50’s…

 

Sincerely,

 

 

TVFL