The Wonders of Solo Travel

Recharging My Batteries


So, I know my husband and my closest friends won't believe this, but I get grumpy when my batteries are depleted. ;)


Okay, so maybe my husband and my closest friends know all too well the wrath of Grumpy Patti with Depleted Batteries.


After a glorious mid-July trip to Mackinac Island with my BFF, where we spent time biking, eating, drinking, dancing and making merry in the Pink Pony and Horn's Bar with some of the finest sailors on the Great Lakes, I left the island as a solo traveler.


I needed a few days away from familiar people and places, so I headed down the coast of Lake Michigan on a solo adventure. For three glorious days, I popped into thrift stores, I ate ice cream on the daily, and I watched storms roll across Lake Michigan headed straight for my dinner seat in a restaurant high atop the Hampton Inn in Manistee.


(BTW: unpaid plug for this WONDERFUL Hampton Inn...omg...it sits right on the lake, has a beach bar complete with swing seats, and a fifth floor restaurant with views of the beach, the lake and the harbor entrance...). And Manistee is AMAZING.


But I digress.


Three days in the car with a lot of windshield time and I didn't turn the radio on for one single minute.


Three glorious days of silence.


I could almost feel the batteries refuel with each lick on an ice cream cone.


I texted a friend each night to report my safety and where my body could be found in case I was never heard from again. ;)


(Yes, I love my husband, but I needed a break from him, too!)


Three glorious days of not discussing "What are we doing for dinner tonight?" ;)


The only thing that disturbed my peace was a 6 a.m. fire alarm at a hotel. Luckily, it was a false alarm, but it is always fun to see that some people (I am not some people!) actually run out of their hotel rooms wearing, well, barely anything, at 6 a.m.


LOL and shaking my darned head.


The only thing I forgot to grab on my way out the door of my hotel room (this ain't my first rodeo with a hotel fire, so I threw on jeans, a sweatshirt, flip flops and a baseball cap because no one wants to see my 6 a.m. hair) was the room key (oops!), but the desk clerk calmly and efficiently resolved that problem while surrounded by big tall men in police and firefighting uniforms, laden with guns and axes.


Not gonna lie. I felt a little sad when I decided to turn the pony east and head for home. Those Lake Michigan beach towns are popular for a reason.


But those last three hours spent in the silence of the car, headed back to the Port City, topped off the batteries as I headed back to the warm familiarity of my own cozy beach town and a welcome discussion regarding what's for dinner?


Til next time, Solo Travel, til next time.


Peace and Fair Winds,

Patti Samar

Editor/Publisher/Chief Creative Officer

www.BlueWaterWoman.com

www.TheWriteCompany.net

 

Read the

Summer Issue

of Blue Water Woman!


I'm so pleased to share with you the Summer 2025 issue of Blue Water Woman magazine.

This issue features:


Jeanette Roberts, D.V.M., a veterinarian who specializes in in-home euthanasia for our furry family members;


Pastor Julia DiFiore of the United Church of Christ in St. Clair; and


Keshia Evans, who works in the Planning Department for the City of Port Huron and serves as a volunteer for many youth organizations in the community.

Read the

May/June Issue

of ThumbCoast Senior!


I'm so pleased to share with you the May/June 2025 issue of ThumbCoast Senior magazine.


This issue features:

Andrew Kercher, a local historian who generously shared with us the inside of his closet and his infamous historic wardrobe;


Lake Huron Woods Expansion, a story outlining the 90 new senior living accommodations in Fort Gratiot; and


Don't Be a Mean Girl, a personal essay.

Read the

Spring Issue

of Blue Water Woman!


I'm so pleased to share with you the Spring 2025 issue of Blue Water Woman magazine.

This issue features the 2025 Blue Water Woman of the Year Award Recipients:


Thelma Castillo, former CEO of the Blue Water Area Chamber of Commerce;


Kathryn Baker of Blue Water Developmental Housing and Sanborn Gratiot Memorial Home;


Mary Williams, chair of the Port Huron Southside Neighborhood Improvement Authority;


Valorie Hudgens of The Arc of St. Clair County;


Shannon Schwabe of the Small Business Development Center; and


Georgette Assi, community volunteer and owner of Port Huron Lanes.

Celebrating 25 Years of The Write Company: An Advertising Agency


So...Happy Quarter Century to my business...


When I started my advertising agency, The Write Company, back in 2000, it never in a million years occurred to me that 25 years later, I'd still be banging away on a computer, helping businesses in the Blue Water Area (and beyond!) with their marketing and advertising needs.


(Check out our PORTFOLIO!)


Most especially, I never dreamed I'd eventually publish two successful regional magazines (Blue Water Woman and ThumbCoast Senior), as well.


But thanks to the many really awesome (and a few super difficult! Ha!) clients and advertisers out there, here I am, banging away on the keyboard, clicking away on my mouse, gettin' it done for all of you.


I put together a little mini publication/portfolio with some of my favorite projects from the past 25 years. Because technology has changed so much, there are not too many projects from the early years because, well, "Pagemaker" files just do not open up in the Adobe Creative Suite these days. ;)


What is it that I do for my clients? Oh, soooo many things. All the marketing and creativey and designy and writey things. I help you figure out where to best spend your advertising dollars and I create the ads that help get you the attention you are looking for.


I get to photograph your staff and your events. Heck, I even get to plan a LOT of really super cool corporate events that range in size from serving 25 to 2,500 and beyond. I've imagined and dreamed up large community events like a New Year's Eve anchor drop from the top of the McMorran Tower and small, intimate parties. I'm your go-to corporate event planner.


I've also managed many aspects of other community events. I've helped wrangle statewide media coverage for a snack competition (who doesn't love snacks???) and I've helped write and design compelling, heartstring-tugging fundraising materials for numerous nonprofits.


I've also had the honor of presenting awards to 70 of the best women in our community through the auspices of my own magazine's annual awards program.


And in ways both big and small, it has all, always, felt like such an honor and a privilege. I have never taken your business for granted. Not ever. Not once.


So happy quarter century to The Write Company/Blue Water Publishing, LLC. It's been an honor and a privilege to serve as your outsourced marketing department.


I look forward to continuing to work with so many of you (except those pesky pain in the behind clients...not them). ;)


Sincerely,

Patti Samar

Chief Creative Officer

Blue Water Publishing, LLC


VIEW OUR PORTFOLIO

An Open and Inclusive Company


Blue Water Publishing, LLC, including our advertising agency, The Write Company, and our two regional magazines, Blue Water Woman and ThumbCoast Senior, are all proudly open and inclusive LGBTQIA+ friendly businesses that promote diversity, equity and inclusion of all kinds, ranging from race to gender identity.


We are also proudly a member of the Port Huron Branch of the NAACP.

 511 La Salle Blvd.

Port Huron, MI 48060

Phone 810.300.2176

www.TheWriteCompany.net

www.BlueWaterWoman.com

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