Japanese Onsen – In Love with the Low-Key Day Spa Experience
A day at the spa is probably considered among the pinnacle of relaxing activities, with the primping of massages and manicures producing a polished sheen around one’s presence. But when you are worn-out, fatigued, and need some space to go inward, a far better method to producing an inner shine (and much less expensive) is…
Kid’s Book Review: “How the Goldfinch got his Colors”
Reading about real world Goldfinches has only made me appreciate our latest children’s book about how the rainbow colored Goldfinch got it’s colors. As I teach my daughter how to feed the birds in Winter, I’m hoping to spark some interest in bird watching when we get the Spring arrivals. The story starts when ‘the…
Guide to Nature Identification Apps: Part I
“PictureThis: Identify Plant, Flower, Weed, and More.” As an amaeuter naturalist, I am constantly scanning the surrounding area for birds, plants, insects, mushrooms, and more. For years, I have used the app “PictureThis” to categorize plants as I travel through Asia, Europe, the Levant, and the States. I’ve collected over 800 plants so far, and…
A Japanese Ceramic Collection and the Magic of Sharing
Falling in love with Japanese ceramics can be as easy as walking in to a community store in Japan and marveling at all the different textures, sizes, and colors available. Each piece is made so beautifully and with such care that the act of collecting ceramics deserves a place in the heart of sensing community…
Are you #TeamRecline or #TeamNoRecline??
With the latest viral news about an airline passenger punching the back of a women’s reclining seat, here is my take on how to keep everyone happy. First, of course, don’t be a douche. Second, as a reminder: the back of the plane can be especially miserable for everyone. Not only are you going to…
Exploring Patreon and becoming a Patron of the Arts.
Patreon is a community that has re-newed my love of supporting the arts. Started in 2013, it was designed to allow musicians and creators to directly connect with fans in a pay that allows them to make a profit on their work. As of 2019, it now pays out over $1 billion directly to creators…
Ditch the Plastic with these Natural Sponges
I have ALWAYS hated sponges. I hate them because they’re supposed to be used for cleaning, which makes me automatically want them to be CLEAN, which is impossible to do. In a world full of waste, I simply cannot accept the guidance to throw them out after only 1 or 2 weeks of use. Whether…
Easy DIY Valentine Cards for Young Kids: Learning through art
Living in Germany, they don’t celebrate Valentine’s Day like Americans, so there weren’t any pre-made cards at the local grocery store. Instead, we got some paper, cut and folded them up to a size roughly 3X5 inches, and got to work spelling out the names of class-mates. By the time we’d finished, we’d written every…
Very Opinionated about How to Organize Colored Pencils
In my house, color is very important. Rather than lump the pencils, we took an old office supplies 3-part divider and set them in three separate categories: Left: Reds, Orange, Pinks, and Yellow. Center: Greens, Blues, and Purple. Right: White, Black, Gray, Brown, and graphite. Okay, I admit that I have a 5-yr old and I’m…
#zerowaste: A System of Composting Habits, from rabbits, to scraps, to growing food.
Fortunately, our land-lady left us with one of those black dome-shaped composting bins. Clearly, the last tenants had tried to use it, but had clearly failed based on how much debris (and trash–and soot!?) was left in the area around the bin. Determined to use it, I bought a small, clean, and white kitchen bin–the…
Bansky art in Bethlehem
On a tour to see Jerusalem and Bethlehem awhile ago, I happened to snap two photos of graffiti art from the car seat window as we drove past. Looking closer, I was excited to see that Bansky was the creator. I had recently spent some time in Amsterdam enjoyimg the Moco museum featuring much of…
#not_my_plastic_challenge: What I learned in 30 days without a plastic water bottle
Since the beginning of 2020, I have yet to purchase a water bottle made from plastic. This has taught me several lessons that will make it even easier to avoid plastic in the coming months. After several weeks of testing this at work and shopping around the town, the capstone came during a transit by…
Defending Jodie Whittaker from a Time Lord’s perspective
With Doctor Who’s 12th Season behind us, can we finally end the debate on how well a female Doctor lived up to our expectations? For Jodie Whitaker as the 13th Doctor, her performance should prove that ‘anyone’ can play the Doctor, but critics have decried her lack of an “innermost life of moral conflict” and…
Waunder 