november 22, 2014

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

I am going to be moving my blog to a new platform. I am hoping that this will help me get more traffic and make the reading experience a little better for all of you. 

What that means, is that I am going to take some time off while I migrate my posts so far onto the new platform. Check back on December 1 and I'll update you all on the progress.

november 21, 2014

Today I received this in an email from my step mother.

After watching, I scrolled down to find an email within the same chain, from my sister. It read as such:

 This is really nice to see especially after an incident I witnessed yesterday that really broke my heart.  Its almost too perfect that this little boy's mom is the one who helped him write his rap because the mother son pair I saw yesterday was almost the exact opposite.  
     I was at the cutting counter yesterday at Joann's when a family walked by, a couple and their son.  They were buying some fabric and the little boy, probably two years old, said he wanted a tutu.  His mom said no and he repeated that he wanted a tutu, to which she replied "you can't have a tutu, boys don't wear tutus".  The little boy burst into tears and when his dad picked him up he said so broken hearted "I just want a tutu".  After that they walked off and I don't really know what else happened but the whole thing was very sad.  He was only two and they're already telling him what is and isn't OK for him to like as a boy and that was just very disappointing.
    I will say however, on a happier note, the family I was helping at the counter (a mother with her three children, two boys and a girl, and their grandmother) expressed their disappointment as well.  Specifically the Grandmother said, "that's so silly let the boy have a tutu for goodness sake.  He's only two its not gonna mess with his psyche, just let him be happy".  And I was really comforted by her candid response but also for the fact that she said it in front of her grandkids as well.  She then kissed her granddaughter on the nose and said playfully "I just want you to be happy". 
   It was two such opposite experiences one very sad and one restoring my hope a little.  Anyway I thought it was worth sharing especially in light of this adorable and fantastic video

And then there was a response from my dad:

Remember Kimo’s Maui rules:  “No rain,  no rainbows.”  If it wasn’t for that first, discouraging scene, you wouldn’t have been given the gift of the second, heartwarming one.  

I know that this kind of openness and love for each other and for other people. Many people don't have the experience that Alex did in this video and in the time leading up to his performance. But I want to take a moment to be thankful for people everywhere who allow both those they love, and total strangers, this sort of grace, respect, and love.

november 20, 2014

Tonight I had the opportunity to see Ta-Nehisi Coates speak at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. For those of you who don't recognize his name, Ta-Nehisi wrote the article "The Case for Reparations" that ran in the June issue of The Atlantic this summer.

In the piece, which you absolutely must read if you haven't, he points out that when we think of reparations, people often dismiss it as something that was talked about ages ago, but is no longer relevant. He argues here that though slavery may have ended over a century ago, there has continued to be state-sanctioned and systemic means of keeping black people down have been far more recent (at least until the 1960's, if you're being unbelievably conservative) and that those actions and their consequences need to be honestly and meaningfully reckoned with.

His talk last night was deeply moving and enlightening and a wonderful addition to reading the piece. Here it is in its entirety, please find the time to watch (or just listen) to this.

Author's note: Ta-Nehisi mentions H.R. 40 during his talk, otherwise known as the Commission to Study Reparation Proposals for African American Act. Find a link to that legislation here and take the time to let your Representatives know that this is a question that we need to reckon with.

november 19, 2014

Two women that I have an immense amount of respect for, talking about being badass.

I am going to nerd out...a little bit...but MOCKINGJAY COMES OUT SO SOON.

that was embarrassing...

november 18, 2014

The New York Times ran a story on the 14th of this month about the man behind a pretty cool project in Chicago's South Side. Rami Nashishibi is the founder of the non-profit Inner-City Muslim Action Network or IMAN, which seeks to create interfaith dialogue as well as nurture spaces for support between different communities.

Read the full piece about one man doing great things in a place very near (literally) and dear to me here.

november 17, 2014

ASH IS COMING BACK

Evil Dead is a franchise that has a loyal cult following. It has been rebooted within the last five years, to phenomenal results. And for those of you who, like me, have been jonesing for more - your wish has been granted.

Starz has just revealed that next year, it will launch a miniseries format reboot of the series, that will pick up where Army of Darkness left off.

All I can say is,

november 16, 2014

This is not new, at this point, but earlier this week President Obama spoke out in favor of net neutrality and posted his thoughts online for everyone to read.

This is still a very hot-button issue for millions of people, for obvious reasons. If the FCC decides to do away with net neutrality, that will mean some pretty big changes to the way that we are able to access different kinds of content.

Read the full piece, here. Make sure you keep your eyes peeled.

november 15, 2014

Azealia Banks finally released her much-anticipated album, Broke with Expensive Taste after years of delay and rumors.

Her first video from the video finally appeared, and it's dripping with references to several queens of pop and hip-hop.

I don't always agree with everything that Banks does, or says on Twitter, but I do think she has an unbelievable amount of talent and her drive and ambition. Read more about how we finally got this wonderful album here.

november 14, 2014

Here is a beautiful meditation on love and worth via On Being. Read it and remember the phenomenal power of love.

You Began in Love (or Someone Once Wiped Your Ass Over and Over Again)

november 13, 2014

Happy Endings. It was one of the best shows to be on TV in years! If you need proof, just watch this "Best of" compilation.

When Happy Endings was cancelled, back in 2013 I was heartbroken, and I was not alone. It was a truly devastating time, but the news isn't all bad. In the months since the show was cancelled, many of our favorite cast members have been popping back up on TV. Damon Wayans Jr. (Brad) popped right back up on New Girl, which he had done the pilot for before Happy Endings was picked up for its second season. Adam Pally (Max) became the newest doctor at Schullman and Associates on The Mindy Project. Casey Wilson (Penny) is a few episodes into her new show, Marry Me, which is created by David Caspe (creator of Happy Endings and her now husband).

Well Eliza Coupe (Jane) has joined the party with a new show on USA called Benched. She plays a high-powered attorney who loses her job and becomes a lowly public defender. I am so glad to see all of my favorites back on TV. Dave and Alex, we're waiting for you!

Read this profile of female lawyers on TV from New York Magazine.

november 12, 2014

Happy Hump Day, everyone! Today, the United States and China reached a deal to cut and cap (respectively) carbon emissions by 2025.

Listen to the full story, and its implications, here (via Democracy Now).

november 11, 2014

This evening, I was able to see a prescreening of Jon Stewart's first film, Rosewater.

It is a phenomenal film that tells the unbelievable true story of the Newsweek journalist Maziar Bahari. Fresh Air with Terry Gross ran an interview with Jon Stewart that offers some insight into the process of making the film, and on the role that humor played in every part of this story.

november 10, 2014

Back in early October, an episode of Real Time with Bill Maher got a lot of attention and enflamed some very passionate feelings on two sides of an argument. If you haven't seen the clip, you can view it here. Bill Maher, along with Sam Harris, makes some pretty offensive and ridiculous generalizations about Islam as a religion and about not only people who follow that faith, but live in nations that are primarily Muslim. The rest of the guests on Maher's show, including Ben Affleck, came to the defense of reason and tried their best to point out that these points of view are based on painting large swaths of the population with ignorant stereotypes.

This debate is one that happens in the media and in our own communities on a very regular basis. On Friday, On The Media ran a piece which takes a look at social media movements, coming from Muslim communities, that seek to stand up and declare that they are equally upset and disgusted by the actions of extremist groups, like ISIS, that claim to do what they do in order to follow religious teaching.

It is an issue that people of all races, religions, and nationalities must constantly make ourselves aware of. No one should have to defend the actions of others in this way.

november 9, 2014

Pico Iyer just released a TED Book called The Art of Stillness, discussing the merits and necessity of taking time to unplug and allow ourselves to relax. Medium shared an excerpt from his book called "Let's Go Nowhere" that is an absolute must-read for those of us living in this technological age.

Check it out here.

november 8, 2014

Oh Florida. 

On Wednesday evening, 90 year old Arnold Abbott of Fort Lauderdale was arrested for feeing the homeless. The city recently passed a city-wide ordinance that made "food sharing" outdoors much more strictly regulated, effectively making the work of Abbott's Love Thy Neighbor organization illegal.

Abbott could face fines or even jail time, because of his dedication to his cause. So clearly, I'm not glad that he was arrested, but I find this story to be an inspiration. Arnold Abbott is making me happy today.

Story via TwentyTwoWords. Watch Stephen Colbert cover this on his show this week, here.

november 7, 2014

For those of you who aren't familiar with Tig Notaro, prepare for a brief primer. Tig is a hilarious stand-up comedian/writer. She has a podcast with comedians Kyle Dunnigan and David Huntsberger called Professor Blastoff, which made Rolling Stone's list of 20 best comedy podcasts.

She recently did an interview with Jesse Thorn, host of the podcast Blastoff where she talks about her struggle with breast cancer in 2012 and how that experience has affected her life and her comedy. 

Here she is doing the first set I ever heard her do, when it was featured on This American Life:

Most recently, Tig was featured in a piece for The New Yorker about a set she did in NYC last night. It's a beautiful piece that really sums up everything I love about her. Give it a read here.

november 6, 2014

I am going to do something crazy. I'm going to talk (briefly and broadly) about religion. Let me first say that I firmly hold that everyone's religious beliefs and tendencies are their own and I don't seek to change minds or force people to speak to their feelings. It is, perhaps because of this, that I have so little patience for people who expound upon the profoundness of their faith in Jesus, while reading a laundry list of people that God wouldn't approve of.

Let me offer an example from one of my favorite movies, Saved:

I bring you the last graph you'll ever need on HELL.

Via Patheos, "Love God, and love your neighbors as you love yourself. Do that–spend every moment of every day doing that—and then see how much time you have left over to worry about what happens to people who aren’t you after they die."

november 5, 2014

Here's something else to be glad about after the elections yesterday. Four different states and two California cities passed laws to raise minimum wage, including Arkansas (which had the lowest minimum wage in the nation).

Take the victories where you can!

Via BitchMedia

november 4, 2014

VOTING DAY 

I hope that everyone got out and voted in the midterms. Writing this in the evening, I already know that many of the polls are closed and results are in. Republicans now have control of the senate and things are likely about to change.

For a day that had a lot of news that could be disheartening for some, there are things to be happy about. Like this.

Learn how to pledge to be a Gun Sense Voter here.

november 3, 2014

I am sure that I have written on here already at some point about this childhood friend of mine. Sarah McBride is a transgender activist working in Washington D.C. who continues to inspire me every day.

Today, the University of Delaware's online newspaper posted an article about Sarah's recent speaking engagement at the university.

Read the whole thing here!

november 2, 2014

I like to post a submission from PostSecret  every Sunday because it is one of my favorite sites on the internet and I think it represents something so much larger. The site updates every Sunday and I recommend that everyone add it to your internet adventures on Sundays.

Today, we have an especially unique entry. It features a secret that was posted long ago, and reposted more recently. The secret's author saw and sent a beautiful note to the site's administrator - Frank Warren.

Original Secret: 

 And the note:

november 1, 2014

Many people will tell you that if you're looking for something to watch on the internet that will make you feel all the feels, YouTube videos of returning U.S. soldiers being reunited with their dogs.

Today, a whole different sort of pet-owner reunion took place. Nina Pham, one of the Dallas nurses who contracted Ebola after treating the first U.S. patient, has been in quarantine for the last twenty-one days. While she has been quarantined, so has her dog Bentley.

This event is especially beautiful in light of the fact that the pet dog of a nurse in Spain who was quarantined for Ebloa was euthanized upon her diagnosis. We are glad that both in this story are well and ready go back home.

Read more here.