Summer Days – A Photo Journal, Part 2 – Summer Sunsets

Posted on August 1, 2014 by Sheryl Checkman

Sunset at Punta Mita, Mexico

Nothing says summer better than watching the sun go down over the water, whether it is on vacation in a tropical locale or in my own backyard in NYC. In part 2 of my Summer Days photo journal, here are some of the spectacular sunsets that I have been enjoying this summer! Look for Part 3 featuring food and drink…

Sunset in Punta Mita on Mexico’s Riviera Nayarit taken at the Four Seasons Resort.

The sun going down at Grace Bay, Providenciales in the Turks & Caicos

The sun about to disappear below the horizon in a tropical paradise.

Sunset and palm trees in the Turks & Caicos

The afterglow of the sunset as seen through a palm tree in the Turks& Caicos

The sun going down over New York Harbor next to the Statue of Liberty.

Lady Liberty holds the sun atop her torch in New York Harbor as seen from a tall ship.

Summer Days – A Photo Journal, Part 1: Beaches

Posted on July 30, 2014 by Sheryl Checkman

For me summer is that time of year that I love the most. Flip flops and sundresses, dining al fresco and basking in the sun by the shore. Lazy days, warm evenings and magical sunsets…bliss! For the next few posts, I am going to keep it simple and share with you some of my photos that reflect what summer means to me. First up: beaches! I was lucky enough to start my summer off with two trips to the tropics, first a business trip (yes I said business) to Punta Mita on Mexico’s Riviera Nayarit, and then a scuba trip to the Turks and Caicos! Follow that with New York’s beautiful Long Beach and I’ve been to some pretty special beaches so far this summer! Three very different beaches, each with their own personality!

Beach at the Four Seasons Resort, Punta Mita, Mexico

Grace Bay, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos

Long Beach, New York

Next up…Summer Sunsets!

Dreaming of Vacation

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Sheryl Checkman

Summer camp in the pool

It is that time of year again – summer! June 21, the summer solstice arrived on June 21 heralding the beginning of summer. Ever since I was a little girl, summer has always been my favorite season. Growing up in the Bronx, my family used to spend the summers at a bungalow colony. My mom and brother and I spent the entire summer up there, with my dad coming up on weekends after work. Days filled with camp and swimming rolled one into the next. I had nothing more pressing to think about other than getting up and enjoying the day. It was pure bliss! After we stopped going to the country as a family, I went to sleep away camp (from age 10-17). Each July I left to spend 8 glorious weeks in the country at camp, again with no stress other than the annual color war competitions. Those were the days! Every day was filled with activity – from softball games with rival camps to trips to the Orange County Fair, tennis and archery, campfires and cookouts, movies under the stars and a camaraderie that would launch lifetime friendships.

Summer was easy then. At least for me. I didn’t realize at the time that the reason we stopped going to the bungalow colony was because it was no longer affordable for my parents. Times were tough back then. Times are tough now. With the economy being what it is I think twice about spending money on vacations. But give them up? I don’t think I can. Right now I am struggling with whether or not to join my friends down in the Turks and Caicos to go on my annual scuba diving vacation. I am stressing out over whether or not to book my flight and whether once I make the decision and book it whether I’ll find out that that is the week that a potential client will want me to come in and present the big proposal that I have submitted. When did vacations become stressful? What happened to those easy summer days?

I talk a lot about balance. My Life is Balance t-shirts (also available on Etsy) are a testament to that. Recreation is a necessary part of life. It balances out all the stress of everything else. I haven’t been away in a year. This is unusual for me. I used to try to take at least two vacations a year to refresh and renew my energy and creativity. I am feel pretty unbalanced at the moment. I think a vacation scuba diving will sort that out.