CherryPicks, a Rotten Tomatoes competitor, is trying to amplify female voices in film criticism
This year’s SXSW film festival revealed a new entrant into the film criticism portal sphere, CherryPicks, a film criticism site founded by filmmaker Miranda Bailey with a goal of putting a spotlight on the voices of women and minority film critics. Will it help?
Gun control explained with cats (to share before tomorrow’s March For Our Lives)
Tomorrow is a big day for everyone, and especially all of those Gen Z-ers taking the nation by the jugular to give rise to a voice in opposition to gun deaths, and in support of common sense gun laws and school safety. It’s the March For Our Lives.
Whether or not you support enhanced gun laws or not (and please keep it civil in the comments either way), it’s happening tomorrow, March 24th, 2018, in cities across the U.S. (and elsewhere). In the meantime, here’s a quick take that gives some perspective on the whole issue… with cats.
What would it take to get you to quit Facebook for good?
Cambridge Analytica, the U.K. data firm which acquired 50 million user profiles in the U.S., and may or may not have used them to help the Trump campaign, is just the latest in a long line of Facebook-related mishaps surrounding security, privacy, ye olde fake news, and so many other issues. But it remains almost as popular as ever, or at least it has been up until now. The online campaigns encouraging us all the quit Facebook are ramping up. So I wondered, what would it take for most of us to actually quit Facebook for good?
My brush with hate and how I am moving forward
We made a stop at a little diner in Kentucky to refuel after four hours on the road. The diner was empty except for a little white haired couple who were so offended by a couple of gay girls coming to eat near them, that they left the restaurant. They left their glasses filled and menus lying on the table. What did we do to deserve that little bit of hate? I was fully aware we were in a conservative area of the country; in a very small minority in that area but what about that fact made it okay for that couple to completely walk out simply because of our presence?
16 ways to expand your brain with free online courses
Are you a potential brainiac who can read/watch/absorb via online methods? Then free online courses may just be your window to the world. Or even the way you can get a professional certificate or an actual degree. You can be the brains of the ball with these 16 sites to take free courses and/or explore free ways to learn. Learn what exactly? Think coding, technologies, languages, music theory, social sciences, arts, and tons of others. Some of these courses are even through Ivy League universities! For you, for your kids, for your book club… anyone can learn if they’ve got the drive and an internet connection. Let’s see the sites, shall we?
Tarot: Your intuitive introspection tool
Tarot, like astrology, runestones, reading tea leaves, etc., are tools to help us to consider parts of our consciousness that are otherwise difficult to confront. What if you’re not entirely sure how to get started with tarot, or you’ve tried but come up against some blocks? You don’t need a degree, or even a fondness for symbols, or anything, really. Just a willingness to look openly and honestly, and a deck.
Here are my tips for tarot newbies…
How one woman tackled her body dysmorphia with pole dancing
I was completely inspired with hope as I sat across from Jillian and listened to her story. The room buzzed with her energy. She was dynamic and powerful. I would’ve never known that just five years before she was in the depths of her struggle with Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD). BDD is all consuming — a constant obsession about the shame of one’s appearance. This description did not characterize the woman who sat confidently before me. I asked what shifted. I was not prepared for her response.
What would be different if we were all allowed to have tantrums?
My daughter threw a 30 minute tantrum today. I say tantrum, but I look at it through more of an RIE parenting lens, so really, she had a 30-minute emotional release. When we were about 20 minutes in, I started to wonder what the world might be like if everyone were able to have such emotional releases. If there was a judgment-free, intervention-free place where adults, teens, or children could express their anger or frustration or confusion or sadness or whatever else they might be feeling and have others quietly and courageously bear witness.