Is *dystopian-esque* even a word? I don’t think so but that’s the best term I could think of to describe how this feels. 

<center> ![](https://i.imgur.com/rrqxKsx.jpg) </center>

The Canadian wildfires that are raging to the north of us are making the air so thick with smoke that it’s impossible to walk more than a few blocks outside without feeling as though you’re going to cough up a lung. Normally I love the smell of a campfire but not being able to escape the smoke is something different entirely. 

<center> ![](https://i.imgur.com/dkhfGDm.jpg) </center>

According to the air quality forecast this pollution should be moving out by tomorrow morning and I hope they’re right. This is the worst air quality I can remember in my lifetime and I grew up in the 1970’s when there was leaded gasoline and almost no pollution control on vehicles. 

<center> ![](https://i.imgur.com/iTGzf9U.jpg) </center>

As a species, we’d better get our act together when it comes to managing our environment. [This article](https://www.livescience.com/amp/collapse-human-society-limits-to-growth.html) paints a pretty grim picture of our future, saying human society (as we know it) is set to collapse by 2040. We’re quickly running out of chances. I’m sad to say that the world I dreamed up in my first novel [Alarm Clock Dawn](https://www.amazon.com/Alarm-Clock-Dawn-Vance-Walton/dp/150851335X) seems to be becoming a reality. I sincerely hope I’m wrong. 

## On A Brighter Note ##
We’re set to take our first real non family related road trip of the post-Covid lockdown era this coming weekend. This trip will be a practice run for a few exciting international trips coming up in the next year. After nearly eighteen months of being grounded our travel skills are a bit rusty so Raymi and I are trying to get back up to speed. 

One of our greatest challenges is making sure we get proper nutrition when we’re on the road. We had an epiphany while watching one of our favorite YouTube channels, Kara and Nate the other day. 
https://youtu.be/lQDU4J_Xb3c

They sponsor a product called Athletic Greens. It’s a whole food based powder you mix into water and drink once a day that contains pretty much all of the nutrition you need. The only problem with it is it costs over $100 for a 30 day supply. I found a very similar product that seems super solid nutritionally and it’s less than half that price from a brand called Garden of Life. 

<center> ![](https://i.imgur.com/Zy1cEkc.jpg) </center>

Maybe we can opt for the better stuff if we become celebrity influencers on YouTube. 😊 Not only am I going to use this powder while traveling, I plan on replacing my daily multivitamin with it and see how much better I feel. 

This is going to go a long way to alleviate one of the nagging stresses of traveling. It became apparent on our four day road trip to Sedona, Arizona last year that good/healthy food options were very limited once you get outside of larger cities. I had a fast food sandwich in Liberal, Kansas that was so dehydrated that I swear it was a food prop they dusted off and bagged up. It’s all part of the adventure I guess and ended up being a good story to tell. 



All for now. 
 
With Gratitude,
 
Eric Vance Walton
 

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<center> [![alt text](https://i.imgur.com/HxpLgqSl.jpg)](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095HXB8WQ) </center>

Poetry should move us, it should change us, it should glitch our brains, shift our moods to another frequency. Poetry should evoke feelings of melancholy, whimsy, it should remind us what it feels like to be in love, or cause us to think about something in a completely different way. I view poetry, and all art really, as a temporary and fragile bridge between our world and a more pure and refined one. This is a world we could bring into creation if enough of us believed in it. This book is ephemera, destined to end up forgotten, lingering on some dusty shelf or tucked away in a dark attic. Yet the words, they will live on in memory. I hope these words become a part of you, bubble up into your memory when you least expect them to and make you feel a little more alive. 

[Pick up a copy of Ephemera today on Amazon.](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B095HXB8WQ)  



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<center> [![alt text](https://i.imgur.com/b5U8dqm.jpg?1)](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08PJPWK2W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) </center>

Most of us have experienced a moment of perfect peace at least once in our lives. In these moments we lose ourselves and feel connected to everything. I call these mindful moments. Words can’t describe how complete they make us feel. 

These moments are usually fragile, evaporating in seconds. What if there was a way to train your mind to experience more of them? It’s deceptively easy and requires nothing more than a subtle shift in mindset. My new book, [Mindful Moments](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08PJPWK2W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1), will teach you to be much more content despite the chaos and imperfect circumstances continuing to unfold around you. Upgrade your life experience today for only $15.99 on Amazon.com. 



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# <center> Let’s Keep In Touch </center> #

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