Questions of Eternal Significance: Do you believe love is a choice?
Mark and I went to a play at South Coast Rep this weekend called Trudy and Max in Love. It was exactly what I love about a good play – a character and relationship study that makes you evaluate your own beliefs. This particular play explored the themes of love and attraction, as the characters grappled with whether or not love is a choice or a spiritual connection that is outside the realm of our control. It was a fascinating play – if you are local, I definitely recommend it. The play . . .
Questions of Eternal Significance: Did you make New Year’s resolutions?
I am a goal-oriented person, and I love the idea of New Year’s resolutions. However, I have really struggling with meeting mine for the past two years. In part, I think it’s because my goals were less about “doing” and more about “being”. I could kick some butt with a task-related resolution list, but doing things like slowing down and being more present. Hard. So hard for me. [source] These are the resolutions I made and failed for the past two years running, and continue to need to work . . .
Questions of Eternal Significance: How did you ring in the new year?
I am always to hear how other people celebrate New Year's Eve. It's my birthday, which sort of skews my view of this yearly milestone. New Year’s Eve sucks as a birthday because it means double the build-up, equaling to double the let-down should the day play out in any kind of mundane way. I feel like New Year’s Eve is this looming holiday we’ve given so much import to . . . that there is some underlying meaning we’ve assigned to how we spend ringing in the new year. (Right? . . .
Questions of eternal signifigance: Do you get offended by people saying Happy Holidays (or conversely, Merry Christmas?)
According to a certain news outlet, a War on Christmas is waging. I always find this hype to be a bit curious because I have many friends, both religious and secular, and most of them seem to be pretty unfazed by what greeting others use around the holidays. In fact, I can only think of a handful of people I know that seem to be engaged in this “war”. So I thought I would throw it out here and test my hypothesis that most people don’t really care. Maybe I’m wrong? If you are . . .
Questions of eternal significance: Is it rude to ask people to remove their shoes at your home?
[source] There was an article making the rounds last month about shoe etiquette and I read it (and the reactions) with interest. I will admit: people making me take my shoes off in their home has a longstanding pet-peeve of mine. If I’m over for something really casual . . . a playdate, daytime coffee, a quick stop and chat . . . I get it. If I’m dressed in yoga pants or jeans and am asked to slip my shoes off, I’ll oblige. I’d personally rather leave my shoes but it’s not that big a deal. But . . .
Questions of eternal significance: What’s your favorite cookbook?
Last week was my friend Sarah’s birthday and I got her a cookbook from a restaurant we both like called True Foods. As a was buying it, the woman behind the counter told me how fast it was flying off the shelves and I decided I needed to buy one for myself. True Food has quickly become my new favorite cookbook. It’s full of healthy foodie recipes, but also interspersed with educational essays from Dr. Andrew Weil about food and health. It’s informative and inspirational, and I’ve . . .
Questions of eternal significance: What is the best play you’ve ever seen?
I know that not everyone is as big of a theater geek as I am, but I think that most of us have seen a broadway show or two that knocked our socks off. (And if you haven't . . . skip the Starbucks next month and get yourself to a local theater!) Today, I've been thinking back to some of my first theater experiences, in particular because we just bought tickets for the whole family to see The Lion King. (Incidentally, those tickets cost about as much as my first car. But as a family, we've . . .
An open letter to “in ear” earbuds
Dear earbuds, You've changed. It's been a small change, and it's not one that many people are willing to talk about. But I'm going to go there today. It's not me, it's you. It used to be that you nestled nicely into my ear. You were mostly external. You sat in my ear comfortably . . . just the right fit. You weren’t flashy or obtrusive, but we had a good partnership. You served me well. But lately you've gotten a little to forward. Your new body . . .
Questions of eternal significance: do you use a washcloth?
Last week my friend Catherine linked to a Gawker article on washcloths, and the conversation that ensued was hilarious. WHO KNEW that people hold such varied and passionate opinions on washcloths?? Apparently, according to Gawker, there is even a racial component: black people are more likely to use washcloths than white people. [source] Well, folks, I’m not the least bit embarrassed to say that I am decidedly pro-washcloth in the shower. In fact, I don’t even feel really clean if I haven’t . . .
Questions of eternal significance: Is the new gold iphone lame or awesome?
I have never had a new-model smart phone. Confession: I used a Palm Pilot phone for so long after they went out of production that I had to buy them used on ebay. For years. I finally converted from the Treo to the iphone a few years ago but I’ve always been a model behind, preferring to take advantage of everyone else’s impulse for new, shiny things by buying someone else’s still-working iphone when they upgraded. I’ve been totally satisfied with getting a cheap, new-to-me phone at a lower . . .