A band name usually evokes something about the nature of the music it produces; in the case of Idiot Grins, one can imagine a set of songs that makes listeners grin like idiots at the sheer pleasure of listening to them. Although it’s not certain that this is what Oakland, California-based Idiot Grins had in… Read More Music Review: Idiot Grins – ‘Big Man’
Alternative Rock band Mleo, hailing from Los Angeles, released in the summer of 2014 an album called Sunken City. The 11-track offering put together by Audrey Reed (vocals), Victor San Pedro (guitar), Nick De La O (bass), and Elias Vasquez (drums) contains hints of funk, hip hop, indie rock, indie pop, jazz, punk rock, and… Read More Music Review: Mleo – ‘Sunken City’
Nashville, Tennessee-based singer and songwriter Jas Patrick released last month a six-track EP titled Inky Ovine. All but one song clocks in at a little over the five-minute mark. The entire thing can be filed under Americana and blues-imbibed rock, but that would mean ignoring the way Patrick experiments with various sounds and textures throughout… Read More Music Review: Jas Patrick – ‘Inky Ovine’
Happy Sunday! This blogger uses Sundays to plan and prepare for the upcoming week. I have been asked so many times about the resources that help me plan a full week that I decided to launch the “Planning the Week” feature with three concomitant components: a recommended book to make your commute easier; a healthy… Read More Book Recommendation: ‘Honeymoon Hotel’, by Hester Browne
Name: Khadija Blog Reviewed: Kitchen JS Her favourite post: http://www.kitchenjs.com/2015/06/21/banana-oats-muffins-no-flour-no-sugar/ Blogging for almost a year now, Khadija explains how “Kitchen JS is a place where [she] share[s] easy everyday meals and favorite classics made healthy and simplified.” This niche blog is clean and minimalist—just grey on white—and easy to navigate thanks to a simple yet… Read More Blog Review: ‘Kitchen JS’ by Khadija
Back in June, I announced the arrival of a new member of the family. I had intended to start blogging again in mid-July, but I am enjoying motherhood so much and want to make sure not to miss out on any of these precious moments with our bundle of (mostly) joy. So while I fully… Read More And Then There Were Three: Taking a Longer Break From Blogging
The premise is simple: you can’t change your friends, but you can change the way you deal with them. A toxic friendship can be dealt with once you understand what is going on and your contribution to it. Once you figure out your part in starting and sustaining it, you will be able to take… Read More Book Review: Toxic Friends by Susan Shapiro Barash
The world has the potential to be amazing, but apart from glimmerings of awesomeness here and there, the overwhelming conditions are pretty terrible (sorry, Mother Earth). One of the reasons behind such a terrible state of affairs is the pervasive effects of both individualism and consumerism, which has led us away from what human nature… Read More Book Review: The We Generation: Raising Social Responsible Kids by Michael Ungar
A friend of mine who is from a specific part of the world decided recently to organize a get together only for people from that area, kind of like a missing-home get together. I thought it was a great idea, until another friend of mine, from another part of the world, pointed out that it… Read More Perceiving Disunity: Just as Dangerous as Disunity Itself?
Just a couple of weeks ago, Bahá’í communities around the world elected their national administrative bodies in a unique electoral process. One of its aspects is, as I personally understand it, that each elector has to make the effort to get to know all the members of one’s community. I also understand that to build… Read More How to Make the Time to Nurture Deep Friendships while Having the Time to get to Know All Community Members: Some Thoughts