Here at Iris Online we understand that unique twenty-first century addiction to incessant webpage checking. So we offer this refreshing alternative to your friend’s angry blog: the Fresh List. Here’s what’s fresh this week.
TasteSpotting
It's that time of the year where the thought, sight, and smell of food just makes your mouth water puddles of drool! It must be the body adjusting for the large consumption it will soon endure during the holiday season. Well, Iris has found a site that will allow your body to do plenty of adjusting! TasteSpotting is seriously like food window shopping and if you're like me, I don't know what gets better than that. The greatest feature about the site is that it is anyone on the Internet can contribute to the "visual potluck" as the creators so accurately label it. It can be a recipe from a blog post to a video to a news article to a product in a store! The main idea is that it is represented by an image and let me tell you, I've never stumbled on a TasteSpotting image that didn't instantly make me hungry (as the "three peas-in-a-pod" cupcake featured here does right now)! Once a submission is made, it gets filtered through editors that make sure it is appropriate and format it to fit right into the fantastic food frenzy. So if you are on the prowl for oh-so-delectable recipes to have for the holidays or just want to try and challenge yourself to make it through a couple TasteSpotting pages without getting hungry, here's your gateway. Enjoy!
"Amelia"
As the color-changing autumn leaves are crinkling at my toes and the crisp fall air is wafting at my nose, the refreshing sense of freedom is undeniable! Autumn is hands down my favorite season. The transformation of my surroundings makes me feel light as a feather in flight, soaring high and piercing through a blanket of soft, cottony clouds. Clearly then, this Mira Nair film coming to theaters October 23 is a must see for me. Hilary Swank not only plays the role but captures the aura of legendary aviator Amelia Earhart. As a visionary and dreamer, the character of Amelia is sure to uplift the spirit of the audience on her everlasting journey into history. This film of love, courage, suspense, and adventure seemingly aims to inspire women to fearlessly fly after their aspirations... or at least that’s what I got from the preview! As Amelia expresses, “there’s more to life than being a passenger.” How could you not get up off the couch and head to the theaters for a thrilling weekend take-off?
Microsoft OneNote: OneStop!
The back-to-school shopping season has always sparked rockets of excitement within me…even now that I’m almost done with my initial college years. It’s not even the new fall wardrobe or the new room outfit. It’s the SUPPLIES! Come on…you can’t deny that supply shopping makes you feel like a little kid again. There are the new ballpoint pens that glide oh-so-smoothly across the page or the post-it stickys that come in all colors of the rainbow. When it comes to notebooks and binders though, I never know what size or how many to purchase. Should I get a small binder for every class or a large one with a single section devoted to a each class? Should I buy spiral notebooks to take notes in or write on detached sheets of loose leaf paper? The answer to these questions is also the answer to all my organizational prayers! It’s called Microsoft OneNote (for all you PC people). And it’s magical. I discovered the program my first year and still can’t believe that everyone on this planet doesn’t know about it. OneNote is basically a word processor, binder, and notebook all packed into one brilliant invention. The program gives you various templates for work and personal use. I just dedicate one “notebook” to every school year or organization I’m involved in. Within these notebooks, I create “pages and subpages” to take class/meeting notes, quickly create study guides for tests, and basically organize my life! If you haven’t checked out this program yet, go download the free 60-day trial!
Teavana: Heaven of Teas
The comforting autumn leaves sprinkling to the ground and changing waves of warm-cool air around me oddly spike my appetite for foods that wouldn’t necessarily be classified as “healthy”. Maybe it’s the Halloween and Thanksgiving seasons creeping up that embed the binge mentality into our brains. But hey, we totally have the privilege to indulge ourselves towards the end of the year right? That’s what New Years resolutions are for! Although this is what your brain might be persuasively telling you, your body would surely disagree. I’m here to put forth a compromise and say not to fear, tea is here! Tea has always been a refreshing, low-calorie caffeine boost (and an effective cold-curer, I might add). But there seems to be a constant struggle to search for the best flavors, method of drinking tea, etc. Teavana is a discovery I made that ended my own tea exploration. It is, to put it simply… candy in liquid form (that’s good for you!) From green to oolong to rooibos, Teavana offers over ten different tea types. They all incorporate natural ingredients (i.e. there were real flower petals and dried fruits in the last rooibos purchase I made!) Each kind is fantastic in its own way but blending them makes the experience even better. This allows everyone to concoct their own, personalized tea potions. Teavana also carries other tea products and gift sets that is perfect for the upcoming holiday season!
CBS Primetime Drama, "The Good Wife "
As the new fall season of television is rapidly being unraveled in the final weeks of September, my summer clothes are being traded for comfy blankets to snuggle under for the anticipated season premieres. But we all know that there is absolutely no time in our busy lives to wade both feet in the new television programs sprouting across all the networks. That is what we rely on critics and word-of-mouth for! I’m here to provide you with the latter. This CBS drama starring Emmy Award winner Julianna Margulies seems to be on the top of many television review lists. The story line revolves around a politician’s wife that has been uprooted into the turmoil of her husband’s very public sex and political corruption scandal (sound familiar?) Dealing with humiliation and betrayal throughout the media, life takes another turn for the worse when her husband ends up in jail. Now, she is left to grab hold of her own fate and bounce back to fill the breadwinner role in the family. Will she succeed among her 20-something colleagues? Or will she flop under pressure? This empowering story about resiliency and autonomy is sure to have all its viewers rooting for the unlikely heroine!
Smitten Kitchen: A Scrumptious Food Blog
It’s really no secret that we love food at Iris. We bombard you with recipes, blogs, and photos that suggest we never stop eating. (There is some truth to that inference.) I’ve been holding back the secret of “Smitten Kitchen” for a long time, but it is finally time to share its utter scrumptiousness with you. Deb, its author, is always on a quest to make something whimsical, fun, out of the ordinary, and indulgently tasty! She couples surprising recipes with beautifully-captured images that are making me drool onto my keyboard at this very moment. Examples of her culinary adventures have been homemade smores (right down to the marshmallows and graham crackers), more slaw variations than you’ve ever imagined possible, butternut squash and onion galette, the best matzo ball soup ever…convinced yet? I feel like I know Deb and I pretty much worship at the altar of her cooking, so come on over and check out Smitten Kitchen!
"Away We Go"
http://www.filminfocus.com/focusfeatures/film/away_we_go/
Though I’m saving my dimes up for the summer release of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” (at last!), I am genuinely intrigued by this Sam Mendes film, apparently coming soon to a theater near all of us. As if claiming “The Office’s” John Krasinski and “Saturday Night Live’s” Maya Rudolph as the film’s stars weren’t enough reason to tempt me to prematurely spend my summer-flick nest egg, Jeff Daniels, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Allison Janney also lend their talent. The story revolves around Krasinski and Rudolph, an expecting couple, setting off on an adventure across the U.S. to find a home to raise their future child. They are taken in by friends and family, but eventually realize that home is not a place to discover, it is what we make it. Sound cheesy? With tunes from Alexi Murdoch and a cool seventies design-feel, I think it will be charming, pretty, and substantive. (Or it could be that I’m really excited that Pam’s pregnant and need something to distract me until “The Office” returns.)
The Secret Currency of Love: The Unabashed Truth About Women, Money, and Relationships edited by Hilary Black
It’s hard not to have money on the brain in this day and age where the R-word (recession) seems to have long passed into the D-word (depression), and we are wishing our grandparents were still alive to give us pointers on clipping coupons and whipping up leftovers into nifty casseroles. But Hilary Black’s new essay collection, The Secret Currency of Love, presents honest stories of modern women’s relationships to money, written by influential authors like Julia Glass, Joni Evans, and Kathryn Harrison. These essays investigate the financial decisions women make—how they are intimately tied up in our current relationships and childhood experiences, and how they reveal much about our romances, status, power, and security. Perhaps shocking, or perhaps my hidden fantasy, many women, despite ambitious jobs, are still hoping to be financially rescued by marriage or have allowed paralyzing fears to prevent them from getting a grip on monetary reality. Authors deal with heavy philosophical questions like, do our financial decisions exact a cost on our souls?, but with intelligent, witty prose. In times like these, it seems wise to take the time to consider how our social makeup affects our financial notions.
Echobana Candles
It’s been gloomy here in central Virginia for approximately 411 days, and somehow, though I used to endure the interminable fog of San Francisco, I can take no more. I crave warmth and light and…candles. These are lovely, frosty, cracked and hand-poured candles from Echobana that make me believe in a world that isn’t suffocating from cloud cover. Echobana started with two friends pouring wax in a San Francisco garage (see, what did I tell you about the fog?), but they now have an internet empire and a very fine website, which displays their massive array of vibrant but natural colors. They’ll do special event labels, customized gift boxes, and their site even provide tips on how best to achieve maximum burn output. It’s nearly Mother’s Day, and even my mom’s impenetrable cheer seemed leaky last time we spoke, so why not send some candles her way, as well?
Random Web Infusion
April is nearly over, and frankly, I can think of no better way to send the month off than to engage in some random web surfing. So, what’s new(ish) in cyberville? First, thanks to Jezebel Magazine, we caught wind of a crazy singing duo, called Garfunkel and Oates—catch phrase, one is tall the other is from the future. Visit their website or YouTube to hear such classics as “Pregnant Women are Smug,” “Self Esteem,” and “Worst Song Medley.”
They have pretty much mastered every instrument you can think of (yes, ukulele) and contribute stirring readings from their favorite poet, Ashanti. I am pretty sure the blonde one was a minor character from “Gilmore Girls,” so watch closely.
Now onto another scrumptious time waster: Martha Stewart’s blog for her French bulldogs, “The Daily Wag.” Now, at first I thought, this is probably more entertaining conceptually, but when you click on the link, and Francesca and Sharkey (I could not make this up) come zooming and barking at you from opposite sides of the screen, 
you’ll be…well, startled.
Finally, somewhere you have a friend, like me, whose allergies have them housebound and morbidly depressed. Send them a note. They are in need of human contact. These are the most gorgeous specimens of letterpress note cards, are they not?
Earth Day 2009
Earth Day was April 22, so shall we take a minute to celebrate the place we earthlings call home? The EPA has finally confirmed what we have long suspected. No more must we ask the age old question, is it hot in here or is it just me? It’s not just you, folks. Indeed heating the earth up to be a giant greenhouse of swirling fossil fuels, while useful for ripening tomatoes in winter, turns out to be less desirable for us non-tomatoes. So what should we do to celebrate the EPA’s revelation and another successful year on Team Earth? You could make a nifty eggshell planter for your desk to bring the greens of spring into your humdrum office. Or you could treat yourself to an eco-gift from Martha’s Stewart’s Eco Gift Guide. I’m personally a fan of the jewelry that looks like a menacing bramble for an unsuspecting neck. Or you could just kick back with a box of Kleenex, like me, cursing the spring for bringing such a mixture of pain and pleasure, since with the dogwood blossoms come hideous, floating piles of oak tree pollen. Seriously, is my car under there? Sigh, we do love you planet Earth!
Bompas and Parr: Jello Architects
http://www.jellymongers.co.uk/about.html
Maybe it’s just the allergy meds talking, but a bit of whimsy is in order. What could be more fresh than featuring fantastic jello moulds from abroad? British duo Bompas and Parr recently got written up in the New York Times as the go-to gelatin designers of our times. Former architect Sam Bompas and former public relations associate Harry Parr indeed prove that it is never to late to shock your folks by changing careers from something perfectly respectable to something utterly mad (and delicious). Visit their website to feast your eyes upon “Victorian Breakfast” jellies, glow in the dark jelly (I’m afraid I won’t be sampling that one), a colony of pyramid jellies, jelly skylines, and jelly architectural wonders, like St. Paul’s Cathedral. The two Brits fashion their own tinned copper moulds of any conceivable shape and size, so start imaging your future jelly empire today. What are you waiting for? If there is one thing we’ve internalized from mass advertising, there is always room for jello.
"Grey Gardens"
http://www.hbo.com/films/greygardens/
Drew Barrymore was on the most recent cover of W Magazine, and I must admit, I’m always curious to know what she is up to, like a neighbor you grew up with. Currently, she is starring in an HBO original movie, “Grey Gardens.” According to the interview with Drew, she got so into character as “Little Edie” that even her best friend and business partner Nancy Juvonen had to address her wedding invitation to Edie rather than Drew. I’m hooked. The "Little Edie" who briefly held hostage Drew’s identity was daughter to “Big Edie” Bouvier Beale (played by Jessica Lange), and both were relatives of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy. In their later years, they lived in utter seclusion in a decaying 28-room mansion, which somewhat mirrored their disintegrating grasps on reality. Eccentric, yes, but also apparently a story about a mother and daughter’s odd devotion to one another. The movie follows the trajectory of their lives from rich and social to squalid and reclusive, culminating in the filming of the real life documentary shot in their mansion in 1973—the original “Grey Gardens.” HBO is generally quite awesome at targeting the fringes of humanity, and I am always on the lookout for art that features women, even the wacky ones.
Parties With Piñatas
A common complaint in my household is that we spend too much time working and not enough socializing. And if the economy is headed to the fiery depths in a hand basket, then I want to throw a party first! How about you? The website Confettisystem has the most gorgeous version of an accessory every party should have: a piñata! No, I’m not kidding. These ARE the most beautiful piñatas you’ve ever seen, and you WILL want one at your next party. The are beautiful diamond shaped or lantern shaped works of art that you can fill with whatever suits your party’s theme. Wedding shower? Fill it with cooking or BBQ implements. Birthday party? Fill it with small favors or candies. It will add beauty and bang to your next gathering.
Go Green Online!
Seeing as St. Patrick’s Day was this week, we at Iris are thinking a lot about going green, and not just in our wardrobes. Now that eco-friendliness has become tres-chic (why use plastic grocery bags when you can carry a cute tote instead?) you can find more and more tips and tricks online to help you reduce, reuse and recycle. National Geographic has a great site at www.thegreeenguide.com, where you can find information on everything from fair trade products to energy-saving appliances and even recipes for cooking up locally grown food. Another website, www.freecycle.org, offers a solution for getting rid of stuff that’s not useful to goodwill, but too good to throw away. Users can join their local freecycle community online for free to give and receive items. Donations are tax-deductible. If you have a pile of old books you’d like to exchange for some new reads, check out www.bookmooch.com and www.paperbackswap.com. At these trading sites, members earn points to “buy” titles every time they mail one of their own books to someone who requests it. Who knows, spring cleaning might actually be fun this year with these resources for green living and de-junking.
Frightened Rabbit
Frightened Rabbit, a Scottish indie-rock band, is quietly rocking it from across the Atlantic. Their second album, The Midnight Organ Flight (2008), was released last year following their debut album, Sing the Greys (2006), but unless you’ve gotten lucky scouring your local inde radio station, you may have yet to tune into their rhythmic, addictive sound. There is something both rustic and urban-polished about their tunes, and the absence of a bass results in a haunting, bottomless lilt. Brokenness and melancholia swell through this latest album, but these emotions seems fitting as we look to the first glimpses of spring in March. Frightened Rabbit has a myspace page featuring songs and information about tours and albums, so give them a listen. http://www.myspace.com/frightenedrabbit
La Tartine Gourmande
http://www.latartinegourmande.com/
On the gloomier days of late winter it’s important to take time to do the things that bring you joy. For me, there is nothing so comforting as baking! (I suspect I am not alone.) For those whose spirits can only be warmed by the scents of fruity clafoutis wafting from your oven or that of a delicious vegetable gratin, or maybe you are just craving a recipe to mimic your mother’s tapioca, visit French expatriate Béa’s online kitchen. She takes possibly the most stunning photographs of food I have ever encountered. Imagining eating these treats is almost as satisfying as eating them…one might almost be convinced! From delicious carrot cupcakes made of healthy flours, like amaranth and hazelnut, to dainty plum brioche puddings, Béa seems to specialize in making desserts almost as healthy as, well, non-desserts. And she has magnifique ideas for the gluten-challenged! Need more tempting? Tomato-leek blue cheese quiches, curried-coconut winter squash soup with red lentils, Buckwheat-hazelnut-applesauce chocolate cake, vanilla and cardamom flan. Seriously, I am quitting my day job to make each and every one of these.
Wordle.net
Need a Valentine’s Day gift that’s free, fast, highly personalized and super cute? Go to www.wordle.net to make a “word cloud”—a nifty piece of online art automatically generated from pieces of text. Just paste in your desired words—say, lyrics to your sweetie’s favorite song, or a Shakespearean sonnet—and voila, you get a colorful cloud that arranges and sizes the words based on the number of times they appear in your text. (Check out intern Erin Rickard’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” Valentine’s Day artwork!) You can change the color scheme, layout, and font, then print your creation to give to someone special or save it to the online gallery to share with the world. Sweet nothings never looked so good!
"Oh Happy Day"
http://jordanferney.blogspot.com/
I must admit something—I take the obsession with “reality” in this day and age a bit hard. I love fiction precisely because it is so not boring old me. So reading the mundane details of someone’s life whom I don’t know via the blogosphere can be a tad, well, last resort-ish when I am super bored at work and the iMac is my only companion. But every once in awhile, a blog comes along that features a person who is so interesting and fresh, she is literally living the fictional life of my super stylish, hipster alter ego (let’s call her Pepper—she is FIERCE). This blogger is Jordan Ferney and her site is “Oh Happy Day.” Jordan is married to a talented red-headed artist with a darling teetering toddler, and she illuminates “pretty things”: a whole lot of shiny parties (you will want to turn thirty every day), art projects, children’s books, and especially relevant for this week, original Valentine’s Day gift ideas. Check out her two-foot long Valentine’s cards or the teeny tiny ones complete with magnifying glass. She’s cool, her friends are cool, and San Francisco looms in the background as a big, beautiful, indie-artist Mecca. Enjoy.
The United States of Tara
http://www.sho.com/site/tara/home.do
I don’t even get Showtime, but as I’ve always been a little obsessed with Toni Collette, I had to track down this new TV show via the Internet. After all, it bizarrely teams the talents of Steven Spielberg and Juno's Diablo Cody. Upon watching Tara, my initial reaction was hmm, it seems a bit implausible that a woman dealing with Dissociative Identity Disorder (a.k.a. multiple personalities) could achieve such a normal domestic situation. (I mean, I think her family might be more normal than, say, mine.) But as soon as her alter egos began materializing, my disbelief slowly fizzled and amusement reigned. The premise is this: Tara, a mom trying to raise 2 teenage kids (one gay, one promiscuous) and keep a hard-working husband happy, morphs into one of three people—T (the whale-tale-bearing teen), Buck (the gun-toting redneck), or Alice (the Betty Crocker)—every time she experiences stress. When she’s not tormenting her kids as an “alter,” Tara paints nurseries for a living, or as she tells us, “I create opulent environments for women who have much money. And I’m good at it, too—I rule.” While it all sounds a little gimmicky, the show sports many quotable moments. My favorite from episode one? When Tara catches daughter Kate’s boyfriend roughing her up and berates, “Kate, I did not raise you to let boys who wear pigtails push you around!” and Kate’s loser boyfriend assures her, “They’re samurai knots!” Well, maybe you had to be there. Bottom line: You do kind of rule, Tara.
Decor8: a Blog by Holly Becker
Internet sage and Iris Assistant Editor Lauren Russo recommended this blog to me last fall, and I think it’s time to alert every Iris reader who has not yet tuned into it. Holly Becker, a writer, editor, and interior design consultant, packs her resplendent, tasteful design blog with ideas from where to find steals for your home to where to encounter striking new art. She scours decorating magazines (so we don’t have to break our banks purchasing Martha Stewart Living for $5 a pop) for cheerful Target coasters, Anthropologie craft classes, and new stuff from unknowns, like Chocolate Creative’s handmade pillows. Because Holly splits time between New Hampshire and Germany, she also understands the plights of those who are especially financially encumbered at the moment, but are say, sick of looking at their roommate’s heaping pile of unopened mail (get a mail sorter, people!—a cute one, preferably). If you are looking for inspiration for a tired workspace, room at home, or just need general life uplift, this blog will fill you with serenity, creativity, and happiness, despite the cobwebs in your wallet.
Things We’re Looking Forward to in 2009
Let’s admit it—January is rough. I’m trying to work off the extra holiday pounds (along with everyone else in the known universe—the gym is simply teeming with eager beavers!), adjust to working after a blissful vacation, remember how to cook after eating out a LOT. We all need a little something to look forward to further down the line. Here is a little list to whet our appetites for happier times.
Economic Revival: Hopefully this is not wishful thinking, but after gazing into the cavernous emptiness that is my fridge one too many times this week, I’m looking forward to a new plan for economic relief.
"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince": When Warner Brothers took away that November 2008 release date, they compounded millions of Americans’ pre-holiday seasonal depressions. But now, we have something jolly to anticipate in the summer! And we are sure to be served up plenty of Alan Rickman as Snape. Ahh, summer.
Amy Poehler Shows: We already love her webcast “Smart Girls at the Party”—I have added it to my pro-list of why having a pre-teen at some point might not scare the be-jeepers out of me. But we’re also looking forward to the mysterious upcoming NBC TV show in which she stars. Though cyberland seems inexplicably mute on the topic, we do know that it is being produced by Greg Daniels and Mike Schur of “The Office.” And how can Amy + the genius behind “The Office” go wrong?
The Year of the Flood by Margaret Atwood: This is by far the zaniest futuristic book I have ever heard of, but it is by the reliably talented Margaret Atwood. Just to give you a few tasty morsels, it involves liobams (these animals are reminiscent of Napoleon Dynamite’s ligers, but perhaps slightly more religiously symbolic—that’s right, lion/lamb combos). Here’s another: one of the main characters is a trapeze dancer. I know. Things apparently go awry when she has a rip in her biofilm. Don’t ask me what that means, but we all need to await this book breathlessly.
Korean Tart Frozen Yogurt: I’m hoping and praying that this is the year that tart fro-yo finally comes to us who dwell in the smaller cities of the U.S. Last year there were practically riots in Washington, D.C., as these shops popped up all over our nation’s capital. If perhaps you were distracted by the other thing transpiring in Washington, the election, then you may not yet be aware of such castles of delight as Pinkberry’s. But trust me, you have not experienced the icy goodness of dessert until you have tasted tart yogurt, piled high with mochi, cheescake, and raspberries.
A Fresh Take on Holiday
Gift-Giving
This Christmas we are all finding our pocket books a bit pinched. Instead of lamenting your lack of cash, explore your inventive side this Holiday Season by preparing something truly special for friends and loved ones. Here are ten ideas to unleash your inner artist, whether it's a Van Gogh, or as in my case, a third-grader whose skill level required her teacher to spray paint her macaroni Christmas tree.
10. Buy several packs of foil mini-loaf pans and fill them with your favorite holiday quick bread. Persimmon bread is always a hit amongst my friends.
9. Donate to a favorite cause on behalf of your recipient, sending a festive letter or e-card to alert them to their good deed.
8. Create a basket filled with homemade foods, jams, cookies—whatever you enjoy preparing. Think outside the box, or in this case, basket, and try making homemade yogurt or mozzarella cheese.
7. Gather together your favorite recipes and create a recipe book or box. One year, I wrote down my brother-in-law's favorite cookie recipe and baked up a batch in a lovely Christmas tin. It was his favorite gift that year!
6. If your recipient is a gardener, purchase a few tulip or paperwhite bulbs so they can look forward to new life after the holidays.
5. This might seem strange, but I have a friend who loves to ransack her friends' closets for clothes they are tired of. With a friend of your size, do a Christmas clothing exchange to inject some new life into your wardrobe. Reduce, recycle, reuse!
4. If you subscribe to a magazine, such as Cooking Light or The New Yorker, gather together some old issues and tie them with a festive bow. They may be old news to you, but magazines are gifts that keep on giving!
3. Do you have a skill your friend or loved one lacks, such as the ability to knit or organize a closet? Give them a voucher for some time with you to pass on your knowledge. They'll appreciate your time more than anything money could buy.
2. Don’t be shy, REGIFT. Just because you don’t have a need for something given to you, doesn’t mean that someone else won’t enjoy it.
1. Invite the person for tea or coffee and tell them why you have appreciated them this year. Encouragement is one of the best gifts we can offer to each other.
Figamajigs
figamajigs.com
Maybe it’s because Halloween is just around the corner, or maybe it’s because I crave chocolate nearly every day of my life, but I must share these delicious, nutritious chocolates with you. Now when you eat as much chocolate as I do, you are truly desperate to justify your cocoa intake, and Figamajigs has the answer. These all-natural, high in fiber, low fat, kosher, and antioxidant-riddled treats come in dark chocolate covered pieces, candy coated pieces, and bars. My personal favorite is the original: delectable fig pieces covered in dark chocolate, but there are other flavors like raspberry, mint, or almond. I’ll bet you didn’t know that figs pack more calcium per ounce than milk and more fiber per ounce than, well, prunes. Yum.
Chronicbabe.com
"For Babes, who just happen to have chronic illness..."
It's disturbing but true—more and more young women are grappling with chronic illness, from Fibromyalgia to Celiac Disease to Biopolar Disorder. "Hottie" and founder Jenni Prokopy's cheeringly pink site offers advice, articles (often hilarious and sobering stories from her fellow "babes"), press releases, and medical links. Just a little poking around the site quickly fills you with a sense of community, hope, and joy. As Jenni and other chronic suffers will attest, disease (particularly invisible disease) can be isolating or embarrassing, especially for women navigating their twenties. Chronicbabe.com will bring out the "babe" in you in a moment, as you grapple with your own fears about your career future, sex life, or simply which jeans best conceal your insulin pump. Whatever your troubles, this site will make you giggle and exclaim, yep, I've been there before!
"Stirring up Trouble"
www.stirringuptrouble.tv
Cooking show lovers rejoice, there is a new chef on the internet, and it's Angela Shelton! But wait, isn't she the filmmaker/model/writer/actress/comedian who traversed the states, raising awareness about sexual abuse? Yes, multitalented doesn't begin to describe Angela. Say goodbye to E.V.O.O., and relish the culinary experience that helps you distinguish a chicken fanny from a chicken breast. Whether merrily fondling a bottle of MonaVie anti-occident juice, or discussing the merits of online dating with her friends over the dinner table, Angela delivers my kind of BAM!
The “Staycation”
Crappy name, cool concept. With gas prices running amok, in summer 2008 Americans everywhere are opting to park their cars and retreat to the paradise of home. Some tips on how to spend your staycation:
- Save up money in preparation, so you can enjoy local cuisine and events that are usually not in the budget.
- Just like a trip away, plan your time with activities and downtime. Check your local newspaper for events or local flavor you’ve been missing out on: wine tasting, a farmer’s market, art museums, massage therapy, whatever peaks your interest.
- Take along your friend/family/significant other/dog, just as you would if you were hitting the road.
- Consult Oprah for a great beach read, or choose from among that dusty shelf of Christmas gift books you’ve long neglected.
- Make sure you tell the appropriate people (i.e. your boss, your needy friend) that you will be on vacation and unreachable. Resist the urge to check email, and use your phone sparingly.
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