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C’mon Get Happy! Meet Me in Charleston!

Change is an unavoidable part of being a woman “of a certain age.” I’m not taking about THE Change – that’s another subject altogether.

I actually prefer the word transition. Change seems too vague, too out of our control, and sometimes too overwhelming.

Our transitions are what define us; how we handle life’s crazy twists and turns – and how we choose to come out on the other end.

I’ll be speaking in Charleston, South Carolina on October 3rd with two fascinating women, Sharon Becker and Jennet Robinson Alterman about grabbing life’s changes by the collar, showing them who’s boss, and turning our transitions into happiness… SEE MORE ABOUT THIS WONDERFUL EVENT >>

Veronica James will be speaking at Charleston Harbor Resort in Charleston, South Carolina

Change is an unavoidable part of being a woman “of a certain age.” I’m not taking about THE Change – that’s another subject altogether.

I actually prefer the word transition. Change seems too vague, too out of our control, and sometimes too overwhelming.

Our transitions are what define us; how we handle life’s crazy twists and turns – and how we choose to come out on the other end.

I’ll be speaking in Charleston, South Carolina on October 3rd with two fascinating women, Sharon Becker and Jennet Robinson Alterman about grabbing life’s changes by the collar, showing them who’s boss, and turning our transitions into happiness.

(If you want to get to the meat of the matter — the where, the when, and directions — click here for the nitty gritty!)

I’ll be addressing…

“Being Open to New Directions in Life
– consciously choosing intentional happiness instead of loss and sadness at life’s transitions.”

… a subject I’m extremely passionate about.

We’ve all been slapped by change.

Sometimes we’re ready for it, sometimes we see it coming like a freight train and choose to ignore it until it gets unwieldy, sometimes it hits us like a ton of bricks.

Even the good stuff can catch us off guard.

<– How my first empty nest holiday might have played out if I hadn’t headed out in a new direction!

I’ll be kicking off the day by sharing my story; how I — a fearful mess of nerves — embarked on a crazy (and a bit irresponsible) journey.

And how this adventure taught me that transitions open me to opportunities I never dreamed existed.

(Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you to become as crazy as I am!)

Let’s learn and grow together!

Sharon Becker will be speaking at Charleston Harbor Resort in Charleston, South Carolina

Once I’ve finished, there’s no way I’m leaving. I’m too excited about attending Sharon Becker‘s workshop.

“The Next Chapter Revised – A Path to Moving Forward”

Sharon, is a dynamo who has been counseling folks with life transitions for over thirty years, and will show us how to move forward in our futures with curiosity and creativity.

Sharon’s motto: “I am passionate about helping people experience life’s changes as opportunities to make new choices and move forward with resiliency, direction and purpose.”

Yeah, baby!

Jennet Robinison Alterman will be speaking at Charleston Harbor Resort in Charleston, South Carolina


Then there’s Jennet Robinson Alterman. I often find myself wondering how women who are as accomplished as Jennet find the energy to do all that they do.

Jennet’s workshop…

“How to Tame your Inner Wonder Woman – we all have the power to live a balanced life”

…will teach us just that.

Jennet says:
“As a group we will examine what stressors we face on a daily basis and then develop a filter through which to make smart choices and feel good about what we accomplish.

We all have the power to live a balanced life and in this workshop we will define just how to do that. We all need to get comfortable with the concept of power and the more women who learn to use their power, the more our world will be a better place overall.”

That’s a change I can get behind!

Are you ready to spend a day grabbing change by the collar and showing it who’s boss? Click here to join me at Charleston Harbor Resort on October 3rd!

Veronica, GypsyNester.com

See our full calendar of events

Press Release – Going Gypsy: One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All

Please send all media inquiries to [email protected]
For further information about Going Gypsy, click here

See David & Veronica’s media appearances here

For Immediate Release:

GOING GYPSY
One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All

By David and Veronica James

GOING GYPSY: One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All by David and Veronica James (Skyhorse/February 3, 2015/$16.95) turns the tables on the midlife crisis. Faced with the inevitable “now what?” moment as their last kid left home, David and Veronica came up with a radical choice: why be the ones left behind? Why choose to be afflicted with empty nest syndrome when they could sell that nest? Let someone else convert the extra bedroom into a craft room—David and Veronica were going to go out and discover themselves decades after their vows. Funny and irreverent, their chronicle of their first year of leaving home for good is told in alternating chapters, each in either David’s or Veronica’s distinctive voice.

In what David admits freely was a bit of a bait and switch, he sells Veronica, the ultimate homebody, on the idea of hitting the road with the notion of swapping the family home now too far from all three kids for real estate opportunities closer to the youngest one’s college. Once they were on the road, he thought the sense of adventure around the corner, down the back roads to the next town, would be too hard to resist; this kind of attitude was, after all, what had been part of their earliest years together, before kids. But could a homebody helicopter mom learn to let go of her heartstrings and house keys all at once?

They start purging a lifetime of possessions down to what would be essential to keep or carry. They find a used RV on eBay, and they hit the road. From face-to-face encounters with wild bison while on bicycles, to lessons learned in a Walmart parking lot, to a hilariously mistake-riddled side trip to Italy, they encounter all the sights David wanted to see and Veronica wished they could have lingered over while conquering fears, renewing bonds, and transforming relationships with children from parent-child to adult-to-adult. Both authors are gifted observers—of situations, landscapes, and those they encounter along the way—and the ten thousand miles they log in on the back roads fly by.

As the trip meant to last a few months stretched out longer and longer and the bargain-priced used RV showed no signs of breaking down, the Jameses realized they had found more than just a bridgeway adventure; they had created a new life. Creating a website initially to find out who else was on the road with them, they found a growing and receptive tribe of kindred spirits also looking to outlive the notion of empty nest syndrome. Now confirmed travelers, they write about their travels on their website, GypsyNester.com, which has received over 30 million hits, and have become signature contributors on the Huffington Post’s Post50 and Travel verticals.

Filled with insights and photos from along the way (“The World’s Largest Rocking Chair” and more) and enlivened by banter between two people who have figured out how to make their differences work, GOING GYPSY is a joyous celebration of family, letting go, and finding yourself anew.

About the Authors
David James was born in Wichita, Kansas, and grew up on the prairie and in the mountains of Colorado. He made his way in the music business as a performer, recording artist, songwriter, and radio personality in Nashville, Tennessee, and St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. After parenting and sending three kids out into the big wide world, he currently lives with his bride of thirty years, Veronica, in a state of perpetual motion. The couple writes about their travels since becoming empty nesters on their popular website, GypsyNester.com.

Veronica James was born and raised in Southern California and was like, totally, a Valley Girl. Against any sane person’s better judgment, she ran off with a musician at age eighteen. After procreating, she became Earth Mama, then Helicopter Mom, hovering over every detail of her children’s lives. Veronica has held approximately thirty-three different jobs including writer. She is never bored.

GOING GYPSY
One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All
By David and Veronica James
Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.
Publication date: February 3, 2015
Price: $16.95, paperback, with 100 color photos
ISBN: 978-1-62914-735-2
Also available as an ebook and an audiobook

Please send all media inquiries to [email protected]
For further information about Going Gypsy, click here

See David & Veronica’s media appearances here

Media Inquiries

Please send all media inquiries to [email protected] Download our interactive media kit
Media information for Going Gypsy: One Couple’s Adventure from Empty Nest to No Nest at All View media appearances by The GypsyNesters

Who We Are

The GypsyNesters

Upon sending our youngest out into the big, wide world, we set out to break the empty nest rules by selling everything and hitting the road. To become more than empty nesters, to be gypsies, GypsyNesters!

Along the way we rediscovered the couple who fell in love years ago.

We’ve been full-time travelers since 2008!

What We Talk About

Going Gypsy
Baby Boomer Travel
Empty Nest LifestyleFear Conquering
Quirky Travel
Regional Food		 The Parent/Adult Child Relationship
How it feels to get older
Helicopter Parenting
Boomerang Kids

What we DON’T talk about: politics, religion, sex, hate.

 

What We Are Available For

Download our interactive media kit to see who we’ve worked with

Feedback from Conor O’Shea of Road Scholar regarding a South American adventure we covered for them:

“You really brought the program to life for all of our readers. I’ve worked with this particular program for over a year but you and David made me feel like I was actually taking it for the first time. The entries were so illuminating, informative and entertaining- we couldn’t have asked for more! The videos and photos complemented your blog posts so well and you utilized your social platforms like pros. Whenever anyone asks about the program now, I know exactly where to send them.

I cannot impress enough how wonderful you two have been throughout this project. You’re exceptionally kind, warm, adventurous and hard-working people.”

More testimonials – we’re feelin’ the love!

Why We Do It

When we began to think about our lives after raising kids, one of the first things we did was Google “empty nesters.” We wanted to see if anyone else was looking at this time of our lives the same way that we were. With a feeling of “isn’t it great that the kids have moved out and we’ll have life to ourselves again?” To be untethered and free. To wander the globe. To be GypsyNesters instead of empty-nesters.

Just about everything we could find was lamenting how terrible it is that the kids aren’t around anymore. Even worse, the biggest item on the first page we clicked into was an enormous ad for an Alzheimer’s patch.

We immediately saw the need for a different viewpoint.

Read our philosophy here

Why Baby Boomers?

– There are more than 70 million Baby Boomers in The U.S. and over half of them have adult children and would qualify as “empty nesters.”

– Boomers hold 70% of disposable income in the US,

purchase 80% of luxury travel, close to 100% own computers, and 71% go online every day. Source: Forbes.com

– The 2010 Del Webb Baby Boomer Survey found that 26% of Boomers say they will feel like newlyweds when their kids are gone and even more, 34%, say they will feel closer to their spouse without the children around. Over half, 57% feel an increased freedom to be themselves.

Where and How We Connect

The GypsyNesters have 70,000 followers and subscribers on social media and more than 3.3 million views on YouTube.

GypsyNester.com had over 33 million hits and 1.4 unique visitors in the past year alone.

Alexa.com notes that: Based on internet averages, GypsyNester.com appeals more to women who have no children living at home, both high- and low-income, highly educated people browsing from home. Click here for our Alexa score

Huffington Post: We are signature contributors on the Post50 and Travel verticals on Huffington Post.

The GypsyNesters are active on:
Twitter – Facebook – YouTube – Google+ – Pinterest – Instagram – GoodReads

Download our interactive media kit for more info

To view media appearances by The GypsyNesters, click here.


Please send all media inquiries to [email protected]

Single & Over 50? Why the Heck Would You Live Alone? I’d be too…

I’m not gonna lie and pretend that I haven’t thought about what I would do if David kicked the bucket – we participate in way too many crazy, fear-conquering shenanigans so, yes, the notion has passed through my head.

I know I wouldn’t want to live alone if I were to become suddenly single.

I’d be lonely, wouldn’t be able to afford to travel as I’d want need to, and I’d certainly not want to do a reverse boomerang and move in with… CONTINUE READING >>

We were intrigued the first time we heard about Roommates4Boomers – what a great idea!, we thought. After delving deeper, we decided to interview the woman behind it and were offered the chance to make a teeny-tiny amount of money if folks decide to use the service by clicking links on this post. Just so you know. Oh, and as always, all opinions are our own.

Roommates4Boomers helps find roommates for women over 50

We talk a lot about empty nest couples’ issues on our site, because that’s what we live and know.

But we are aware that there are a bunch of you out there that are not part of a couple.

How do I know that? Because we often get comments on our site and Facebook page asking us how a person can have a flourishing life while single and “of a certain age.”

It’s hard for us to answer those questions — not having that life experience ourselves — and usually end up asking our wonderful community to pitch in their thoughts/ride to our rescue.

Roommates4Boomers helps find roommates for women over 50

So when I found out about Roommates4Boomers in this article in Midlife Blvd, I was intrigued.

Could this be a good resource we could share with our single, female friends?

I’m not gonna lie and pretend that I haven’t thought about what would happen if David kicked the bucket.

I often think about it during those panic moments when I do arguably stupid stuff to purposely overcome my many fears. It would truly suck if David were squished like a bug as we jumped out of an airplane, ziplined over a 300-foot waterfall or fed ravenous crocodiles. My life would change in a horrible, drastic way.

OR David could finally tire of my semi-crazy, rapidly aging and spreading butt and want to trade me in for a newer model. Though I look at that future as a far less likely scenario than the bug squish, I’ve seen it happen to much better women than I.

Roommates4Boomers helps find roommates for women over 50

Following those thoughts to their ultimate conclusion, I know I wouldn’t want to live alone if I were to become suddenly single.

I have friends that are single and happily unfettered — and that’s fantastic — I just know I wouldn’t be.

I’d be lonely, wouldn’t be able to afford to travel as I’d want need to, and I’d certainly not want to do a reverse boomerang and move in with The Spawn (that’s the last thing they’d need after losing their dad in a spectacular insect-like fashion). I would also want the safety that comes with someone else being around.

Here are some interesting knowledge-bits I found on the Roommates4Boomers site:

· One in three Boomer women are single.

· Research shows that living alone as you age can lead to isolation and loneliness, as well as mental and physical decline.

· Research shows that men who have wives, live longer; women who have active female friendships, live longer.

· Sharing a home is a great way for Boomer women to keep socially connected, financially secure, safe, healthy and happy.

· Boomer women are turning to shared housing for positive reasons – for companionship, mutual support, independence, and fun.

Roommates4Boomers helps find roommates for women over 50

That last one caught me off guard – because in my innermost thoughts about being without David, the overriding emotions are dark and sad.

To get more insight on that stat, I got founder, Karen Venable, on the horn.

Karen told me when she found herself single after her twenty-five year marriage ended, she moved in with a girlfriend who was also newly divorced. It turned out to be a wonderful experience.

After a few years she felt ready to start dating again, and is now happily married to a man that she met through an online dating site.

Karen now shares the best of both of these experiences — the benefits of finding that perfect roommate by using algorithms similar to a dating site — through Roomates4Boomers.

“Life at our age can be a lot of fun,” says Karen, “I wanted to help people be joyful and have adventure.”

Roommates4Boomers helps find roommates for women over 50

Karen gave me permission to poke around the site a bit and I found it really easy to use. Members can choose to share space in their own homes or search for someone who has space to share.

I did notice that some areas of the country had a lot more matches (for the fake, single me) than others, however.

Karen explained to me that as the site has been growing (it launched in 2014), geographic pockets have sprung up organically. So in order to get more coverage, and therefore more good connections for everyone, members may create profiles and peruse potential roommates for free. It doesn’t cost one cent until you want to reach out to a potential roommate!

I can confidently tell you that if I were single, I’d give Roomates4Boomers a shot.

At least until I was forced to give Match.com a try like Karen, and you don’t want to know what would happen to GypsyNester.com if I started to online date (ohhhhh how the snark would fly).

Let’s hope that never happens.

Veronica, GypsyNester.com

We were intrigued the first time we heard about Roommates4Boomers – what a great idea!, we thought. After delving deeper, we decided to interview the woman behind it and were offered the chance to make a teeny-tiny amount of money if folks decide to use the service by clicking links on this post. Just so you know. Oh, and as always, all opinions are our own.

YOUR TURN: Isn’t this a great idea? Would you try a service like this or do you live alone and prefer it that way? What are the pros and cons of having roommates at our age?