Tara Gentile and her posse of Great Minds have twisted my head up today. Being a working artist is a continuous rubber banding between being true to love and brushing off the fairy dust to face life’s sharp corners and heavy footfalls. Walmart is real. And even if don’t want to accept it, the status…
A Portrait of Modern American Feminism
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A Guest Post by Karin Kuczynski-Holmgren It’s a small cottage on the water in Bridgeport, Conn., a peaceful setting despite the overgrown parking lot and chainlink fence that surrounds it. Just beyond the rows of parked Hondas and Priuses, the harbor twinkles with reflected factory lights. This vegetarian restaurant is called Bloodroot, run by a…
In Our Own Ways
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TiVo and I watched “Glee” this morning at 5:15 a.m. Red rubber unitards and sex riots at 6 a.m. is enough to puncture anyone’s psyche. I am listening to something a lot less harmonic than Britney Spears while I drive these days. I am listening to Jim Fay’s contributions to the social parenting handbook and…
DIY: ‘Between Desire and Reality’
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Ok, so I know it’s Thursday — one day late for We Scout Wednesday— but isn’t that status quo on any DIY project? Scoutie Girl asked us: why do you DIY, then answered herself better than I could ever put it. “DIY fills the void between desire and reality. If God can create an Eve…
Lullaby for a Head Injury
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Mr. Blue, you did it right But soon comes Mr. Night, creepin’ over Now his hand is on your shoulder Never mind, I’ll remember you this… I’ll remember you this way… — Mr. Blue Sky by Electric Light Orchestra After the sound of the skull cracking, and after the soft sound of my flesh finding…
Vampire Power and the Money We Lose
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When I started dating my hubby, I owned the following electronics: A cheap, 3-disc changer stereo that was roughly the size of a large breadbox A CD walkman that ran on AA batteries (rechargeable) A Sony Dream Machine clock radio A laptop A small point-and-shoot film camera A cordless phone One cellphone and one charger…
When Nude Isn’t Naked
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A Guest Post by Contributor Lisa Hill, American expatriate living in Switzerland. I walk through the room, topless, anticipating… He waits for me there, ready. I climb onto the table and my doctor begins the examination. Nudity. Nakedness. Not always the seductive, titillating state we Americans have infused it with. Sometimes, it’s just being without…
On Loving Things
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Thanks Tara! It’s Another We Scout Wednesday great topic. I have talked often here about how we should all de-stuff ourselves. Get rid of everything and just stop the consumption train. It’s no secret how I feel about that. I am the anti-packrat. At my house, if you leave your sh*t on the counter too…
You Have to Be Taught
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A Guest Post by Contributor Ellen Hardy, written 9 years ago this week. “Careful the things you say, children will listen…” – Stephen Sondheim from Into the Woods At this terrible and troubling time in our nation’s history, a great fear of mine is that through our anger we will become like our enemy. Our…
Whispers in My Ear
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Or, Distinguishing Random Life from Serendipity People keep giving me things to read that are telling to SHUT DOWN. Books about Machu Picchu. Books about moving to the country in Vermont. It always seems so hard to distinguish between what is the universe whispering in my ear and what is just an act of random…
Shhh! I’m reading!
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Found: Beautiful Writing Ooh, so yesterday’s post was so amazing because the replies came in with such wonderful responses and referrals. I haven’t gotten to look at ALL of them yet of course, but I am LURVE with this one “Today’s Letters”, referred to me by mac and cheese buddy, Stacy. I am a sucker…
I Need You Now… More Than Words Can Say
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I’ve mentioned before that I am making some changes to my blog, and that they will be happening over the course of time. Key to the success of my space, though, is making it a bit less MINE and a bit more YOURS. We like to think of ourselves as islands — There’s ME and…
An (Fantasy) Island of My Own
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Today I was talking to some friends whom I haven’t seen much of over the summer. I shared with them a bit of the details of the roller coaster of our last few weeks. You know, just your average roller coaster of life. When I finished rolling out the 4-11, the friend circle was just…
Disney Princesses Have Ruined the Color Pink
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Being politically motivated and standing up for my beliefs had an interesting side effect of making it difficult to choose a straw for my iced tea this morning. At my favorite locally owned coffeehouse, I purchased organic tea in a recyclable cup. Being the artful sort, I paused as I reached toward the cup of…
Striving for Balance
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A Guest Post by ‘Shiny Bits’ blogger, Paul Merrill I love quirky products. It’s fun to cruise our local Whole Foods Market on a Saturday and taste samples from a variety of sometimes local small companies. Occasionally I take the plunge and buy one of their toothpastes or boxes of cereal. But for the most…
