<\/p>\n
Still determined to drop a word or 12 on my most recent travel adventure (Bogot\u00e1\u00a0and Cartagena, Colombia) sometime within this century. But meanwhile\u2026<\/p>\n
![\"Cartagena\"](\"http:\/\/www.travelnlass.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Cartagena-Circle.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\nIt seems I\u2019ve likewise neglected to add to the \u201cWOW Worthy<\/a><\/strong><\/em>\u201d corner of TL that I initially launched waaay<\/em> back in 2013 (categorized right up there \u2191 under the TL pull-down \u201cPotluck\u201d menu). I did manage to add (albeit sporadically) more than a dozen \u201cWOW\u201d posts over the next 5 years, but alas somehow stopped doing so in 2018. Still\u2026 imho that little corner of TL holds a \u201cworthy\u201d collection of delightful digital treats (the last, a most interesting \u201cYour Life \u2013 in 6 Words<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u201d site).<\/p>\n I still occasionally unearth an arguably WOW Worthy gem every now and then whilst diving down (yet another) digital rabbit hole, though I never seem to get around to adding it here. But lately I\u2019ve been thinking\u2026<\/p>\n Given the seemingly ever more glum direction of the entire Planet (e.g. already knee-deep in global warming, worrisome AI-ugh, and especially the current NACHO whims of a seriously narcissistic billionaire, etc.) \u2013 better now than ever for all of us to seek out life\u2019s POSITIVES in earnest, no?<\/p>\n And to that end, recently I made room in my perpetually overloaded email box (crammed much like yours, yes?) for a new weekly newsletter that showcases an assortment of positive\/fun\/uplifting websites \u2013 thanks to none other than the brilliant folks at the New York Times.<\/p>\n Curated by Melissa Kirsch, it\u2019s dubbed simply \u201cThe Good List<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u201c, and I must say \u2013 after just a handful of weekly issues \u2013 it\u2019s now solidly become one of the (preciously limited) digital subscriptions that I honestly look forward to.<\/p>\n Each Wednesday, \u201cThe Good List\u201d lands in my Gmail box with but a handful of carefully chosen sites \u201c\u2026designed to bring joy and meaning to your day.\u201d Not sentimental, Pollyanna sappy websites mind you. But rather \u2013 a most refreshing minimalist collection of eclectic digital corners that (curiously) seldom\/never seem to end up in my \u201cGoogle News\u201d tabs (neither \u201cWorld\u201d nor most certainly not tucked under the \u201cU.S.\u201d news tab \u2013 sigh\u2026)<\/p>\n In short, kind of the antithesis of the steady stream of deadly Hantavirus updates, Indonesian volcanic eruptions, the latest flagrantly biased decision dropped by the (otherwise, all-my-life nearly piously respected) SCOTUS, and of course \u2013 less we forget \u2013 the leader of my native land\u2019s latest bicker with \u2013 the POPE of all people(!) Indeed, no matter the media outlet (both liberal and conservative news sources be they venerated or somewhat lesser renowned \u2013 e.g. the NYT, the BBC, Al Jazeera, Reuters or the likes of that silliness reliably spewed forth at Fox). Every blessed one seems hell-bent on serving up a 24\/7 menu of steady cafeteria-style negative slop.<\/p>\n That said, not every entry (of the half dozen or so collection) on the weekly \u201cGood List\u201d necessarily tickles my personal toes of course. But so far (i.e. 8 issues to date) I always discover at least 1 or 2 truly remarkable digital treats that make me momentarily smile and brighten my Wednesday.<\/p>\n How would you like to see your name depicted in NASA\u2019s land satellite images<\/a><\/strong><\/em>?<\/p>\n A satellite view of \u201cDYANNE\u201d spelled out in NASA\u2019s geographical database \u2013 kewl! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n<\/div>\n #####<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Or\u2026 tune in to see a live-stream of a pair of wild Bald Eagles caring for their little eaglet<\/a><\/strong><\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n #####<\/p>\n Participants answered two simple questions: What made you happy in the last 24 hours? and What about in the past 3 months? The answers are fascinating, and you can even filter the map for single vs. partnered, age group, gender, U.S. vs. non-U.S. (like me), etc.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n #####<\/p>\n A bit of NYC Subway music perhaps? No less than 800+ trains each w\/ a tone attached, as they move in real time:\u00a0 Train Jazz<\/a><\/strong><\/em>.<\/p>\n #####<\/p>\n An utterly amazing assortment of both literary and visual techno wizardry at the \u201cHTML Review<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u201d site (#you\u2019rewelcome).<\/p>\n #####<\/p>\n An interactive (live-stream) FISH DOORBELL<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, anyone? Simply tune in whenever you have a moment \u2013 and tap the underwater \u201cdoorbell\u201d to help a stray fish struggling to swim upstream to spawn in a manually operated lock in The Netherlands . Note: only March \u2013 May and generally takes ~ 6 min. to see a fish. But still\u2026 beats reading the latest (generally non-productive) update in the Nancy Guthrie investigation, no?<\/p>\n #####<\/p>\n A presently ongoing (as of this morning, still not found) HUNT FOR BURIED TREASURE<\/a><\/em><\/strong>! Alas hidden in San Francisco, so no way am I about to fly off this mountain-top in Ecuador to personally take part in the frenetic scramble up hill \u2018n Frisco dale (not to mention, sadly a bit too dodderin even if I was still living nearishby in Seattle). But still\u2026<\/p>\n Trust that it\u2019s been awfully fun to tune into the minute-by-minute shenanigans of the many amateur detectives on Reddit<\/a><\/em><\/strong> each morning who are all feverishly trying to solve the (deliberately ambiguous\/confounding of course) poetic clues in hopes of being the first to (literally) \u201cunearth\u201d the $10,000 treasure (10k $1 coin) \u201cdoubloons\u201d.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\nJust to highlight a few:<\/span><\/h3>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>Or how \u2019bout digitally meandering around the \u201cHappy Map<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\u201d \u2013 an interactive experiment in \u201cMapping Happiness\u201d. In 2017, more than 10,000 people shared their \u201chappy moments\u201d \u2013 both small moments (e.g. sipping a latte or relishing the first bite into a custard filled Dunkin\u2019 Donut), along with major euphoric events (like nabbing that promotion or quitting your job and starting your own business). So too, the pleasure of moments you don\u2019t control (like receiving a gift from a friend, or a sudden hug from your 11-going-on-30 year-old pre-teen son).<\/p>\n<\/a>Or\u2026 my (admittedly excessive and peculiar lifelong preoccupation) personal fave to-date:<\/p>\n