Bring on the female superheroes! | Christopher Bell (Video)

I found this TED talk educational and thought provoking, and I think you will too.

"Why is it so hard to find female superhero merchandise? In this passionate, sparkling talk, media studies scholar (and father of a Star Wars-obsessed daughter) Christopher Bell addresses the alarming lack of female superheroes in the toys and products marketed to kids -- and what it means for how we teach them about the world."



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

A taboo-free way to talk about periods | Aditi Gupta (Video)

Video Blurb: It's true: talking about menstruation makes many people uncomfortable. And that taboo has consequences: in India, three out of every 10 girls don't even know what menstruation is at the time of their first period, and restrictive customs related to periods inflict psychological damage on young girls. Growing up with this taboo herself, Aditi Gupta knew she wanted to help girls, parents and teachers talk about periods comfortably and without shame. She shares how she did it.

This is not just a problem in India, and not educating girls, and shaming them about their periods continues to this day. Watching this video gives me hope.



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

10 ways to have a better conversation | Celeste Headlee (Video)

I know I am not alone in thinking that all our ever present technology has had the downside of making people poor conversationalists, so this is a wonderful and timely talk.



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

Why people believe they can’t draw - and how to prove they can | Graham Shaw (Video)

This just makes me happy. Pick up some paper and a pen and watch this entertaining TED talk.

Why is it that so many people think they can’t draw? Where did we learn to believe that? Graham Shaw will shatter this illusion – quite literally - in a very practical way. He’ll demonstrate how the simple act of drawing has the power to make a positive difference in the world.



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

Elizabeth Lev: The unheard story of the Sistine Chapel (Video)

This TED talk hits all my sweet spots - a fun combination of art, history, travel and passion. Pour yourself a hot (or cold) beverage and enjoy.

The Sistine Chapel is one of the most iconic buildings on earth — but there's a lot you probably don't know about it. In this tour-de-force talk, art historian Elizabeth Lev guides us across the famous building's ceiling and Michelangelo's vital depiction of traditional stories, showing how the painter reached beyond the religious iconography of the time to chart new artistic waters. Five hundred years after the artist painted it, says Lev, the Sistine Chapel forces us to look around as if it were a mirror and ask, "Who am I, and what role do I play in this great theater of life?"



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

Why Humans Run the World | Yuval Noah Harari | TED Talks (Video)

I am currently reading a book that is blowing my mind, so went in search of finding out more about the author. Listen to his TED talk, and see if it does not whet your appetite to pick up and read the book too. This one is great on audio.

"Seventy thousand years ago, our human ancestors were insignificant animals, just minding their own business in a corner of Africa with all the other animals. But now, few would disagree that humans dominate planet Earth; we've spread to every continent, and our actions determine the fate of other animals (and possibly Earth itself). How did we get from there to here? Historian Yuval Noah Harari suggests a surprising reason for the rise of humanity."



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie: 2015 Wellesley College Commencement Speaker (Video)

This woman. She is a goddess in my pantheon.



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

"Weird Al" Yankovic - Word Crimes (Video)

This just makes me happy.



If the embedded video not work, click here.

Bryan Stevenson Extended Interview @TheDailyShow

The opposite of poverty in this country is not wealth. The opposite of poverty is justice.

I have a new hero to add to my pantheon.

Bryan A. Stevenson is the founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, a private, non-profit organization headquartered in Montgomery, Alabama, and is a professor at New York University School of Law.

You can watch his extended interview on the Daily Show here.

It's time for a Malala Festival

This just makes me so happy. 

Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi win 2014 Nobel peace prize.

Pakistani teenager and Indian children’s rights activist beat Edward Snowden, Chelsea Manning, the Pope and Vladimir Putin to the prestigious prize 

You can read the Guardian article here.

"Why is my daughter so strong? Because I didn't clip her wings." - Malala's father.
You can watch his TED talk here.

The 29-Year-Old Who's Chosen to End Her Life Speaks Out (Video)

Brittany Maynard, who is suffering from brain cancer, explains why this is the right choice for her. I am in awe of this courageous young woman, who has decided to end her life with dignity. It still boggles my mind that there are only 5 US states that allows a person this option. 

If the embedded video does not work, click here.

You can also read the interview she gave with Good Housekeeping here.

Strathmore Online Workshops

Have you heard of the Strathmore classes? They have three free classes a year, and you can watch them at your leisure. If you are interested in art, or sketching, or keeping a journal, these classes are should be right up your alley.

You can check them out here.

Coursera Journal page

One of the things I love about the net is the number of free classed offered online. There are many great sources, and I especially like Coursera. If you have never checked them out, do so and prepare to be amazed at their offerings. 

I am currently enrolled in 2 classes: The Fiction of Relationship, and Modern and Contemporary American Poetry. Have you ever taken an online class? 

Earlier this year I took a class on Andy Warhol, and this page was created while listening to the lectures.

Sharpie Flip Chart makers in my large cheapo art journal. As always, click on images to view larger.

You can see a video of my 2014 journal plans here.

Journal page

Part 2 of my homework assignment for Sketchbook Skool this week was to go out and sketch. I had plans to meet up with friends for Sunday dinner in Harvard Square, so decided to get there early and do some people sketching at The Coop. Love this bookstore.

 My first victim, I mean target, was this guy.

 A quick sketch with my G2 - don't have to worry about waterproof ink with colored pencils. Turned around and sketched this woman next.

Decided that I needed a third person to round out my session. Added some text and border and I was done.

It is always a little nerve wracking to sketch/paint in public. Interesting that I never have this issue while writing. Do it all the time. It is almost like I am waiting to get busted by the artist police: sorry ma'am, but we need to confiscate your art supplies. Like how this turned out. Am thinking that it would be fun to sketch the environs too. Next time.

This sketch was done in my cheapo writing/sketching journal using colored pencils and pen.
You can see a video of my 2014 journal plans here.

Journal page: Sketchbook Skool Week 2

The thing about taking a class is that it pushes you outside your comfort zone. This week our instructor is Koosje Koene, and one of the homework assignments is to sketch with colored pencils. Now I've got several sets around, bought years ago, and hardly ever used. Perfect nudge to use art supplies I already have in my stash. 

In case you could not tell, these are apples and a lime. I got the colors right, but clearly need to work on my form and tone. However, I realized that I love my Prismacolor pencils. So creamy, they glide on like butter on hot toast. Will certainly be playing with them this year.

This sketch was done in my cheapo writing/sketching journal using colored pencils and pen.
You can see a video of my 2014 journal plans here.

Sketchbook Skool

I signed up for Sketchbook Skool. Don't know what that is? Read more about it here. 

Other than one instructor, I already follow the blogs of everyone teaching. Love their work, and am so excited for classes to start on April 4. Are you taking this class as well? 

Maps that change the way you see the world

I love maps. Always have. Especially the old one that have areas that clearly state "here be monsters". Does that not send chills up your spine?

So fellow map lovers, here are some fun links to check out:

To see an interesting collection of maps that will have you looking at the planet in a completely new way, click here.

To watch a fun vlogbrothers video about some of the same maps above, click here.

Changes your world view doesn't it?

21-Day Meditation Challenge - Perfect Health

I so loved the 21-Day meditation challenge that Deepak Chopra ran in November of last year. The theme was Abundance. Looks like Deepak has teamed up with Oprah for a new meditation challenge which starts on March 11. You can learn more and sign up here.

Makers: Women Who Make America

I stumbled on this three part documentary series on PBS and absolutely loved it.
You can watch the series online here.

Tingling brain cells

If you are a regular reader of this blog (nice to see you again), you might remember that I am on a mission to give my brain cells a good workout this year. The eight week online Introduction to Astronomy class that ended last month did just that. 

I'm in the midst of a new class. This one is 14 weeks long and is called The Modern and the Post Modern. I'm currently in Week 3 of the class and that means Karl Marx. I love getting a chance to read authors I have not before, and learning about the giants whose shoulders we all stand on.

Here is the class description from the Coursera site:

In this course we shall examine how the idea of "the modern" develops at the end of the 18th century, and how being modern (or progressive, or hip) became one of the crucial criteria for understanding and evaluating cultural change during the last two hundred years. We shall be concerned with the relations between culture and historical change, and our materials shall be drawn from a variety of areas: philosophy, the novel, and critical theory (with possible forays into music, painting, and photography). Finally, we shall try to determine what it means to be modern today, and whether it makes sense to go beyond the modern to the postmodern.

The Modern and the Postmodern traces the intertwining of the idea of modernity with the idea of art or culture from the late 18th century until the present. Beginning with the Enlightenment, Western cultures have invested heavily in the notion that the world can be made more of a home for human beings through the development of culture (and technology). Throughout this period there has also developed a strong, sophisticated counter-movement that sees the Enlightenment effort as a disaster – destructive of both art and of the world.

The Western idea of modernity is linked to but not the same as the idea of modernism. We will examine both in this class and then consider postmodernism in relation both to the philosophical idea of modernity and to the aesthetic considerations of modernism.

This course covers a lot of ground, historically, conceptually and aesthetically. There is much to read, and very different kinds of reading: from philosophy to novels, from theory to poetry. Not all students will like all the reading, but if you digest it all, you should have a clearer sense of the cultural history of our present.