Oh, it’s Friday already? Better celebrate. Here’s a great jam from Branko, a Portuguese DJ and producer, plus a little help from Mr. Carmack, the beatmaker from Soulection, and Nonku Phiri, a fairly entrancing singer from Johannesburg. If you can sneak a video watch into your day, please do– painted, color-blocked pantsula dancers surround Nonku, contorting and bouncing through a series of Johannesburg backdrops. It’s all close to surreal and very enticing. And you know they’ve got something to bounce to, right? This song bumps.
Have you heard of this new thing called “forest bathing”? It’s where you go outside, to a wooded area, and just be there with nature, only you’re guided by a kind of woo-woo woods shaman who encourages you and your group to exclaim amaaaahhzing things about your surroundings as you discover that they are, well, there. Forest Bathing clubs are gaining steam around the country (and even Canada!), and, like a fitness class, a meeting can cost in the $30 ballpark, since you’ll need help guiding your attention through the wonders of the forest. (“A tree! Isn’t it wondrous.” (yes.)) For such leaders, one San Francisco club has just begun a “Nature Accelerator program: three days of intensive forest bathing for those keen to “discover the medicine you have to offer to this world.”” Which I think is like a forest version of yoga teacher training, minus rules and rigor.
In its favor, this practice is supposed to lower blood pressure and cortisol levels and improve your mood. Which I think you can also accomplish on your own for free, but you tell me.
Big news, you can now glamp in a real (new) covered wagon in Yosemite! A perfect spot for you to sleep semi-outdoors without facing any of the creepy-crawlies the desert might have to offer, this is also a tremendous way to romanticize** history; the pioneers on the Oregon trail totally had air conditioning, right? Microwaves? King-sized beds, at the very least.
**Heads up to finicky campers, you do have to exit the wagon to use the bathroom. I know, yuck.
Now that we’re approximately three days into “fall,” I know you’re planning your escape plan. May I direct your attention to a sweet New Year’s Eve trip that the Bolt Collective is planning in Oaxaca. They’re heading to the coastal town of Mazunte, which I’m told is not overrun by tourists, and setting up a cluster of treehouse villas for the crew. Nightlife and nature nearby both supposed to be great.
If you want to go, apply to be a member of Bolt, which organizes fun people to go on trips that leverage group travel for cost efficiency. That’s what gets you 5 nights in Mexico (including some dinners and activities like yoga and paddle boarding) for $1150. A number of Lorem readers are already members.
Sound good? Learn more here.
