Introducing Esperanza Spalding Portland, Oregon-born jazz singer, bassist, and cellist Esperanza Spalding displayed prodigious talents from an early age playing violin with the Chamber Music Society of Oregon. She burst onto America’s jazz music scene with the release of her debut album Junjo in 2006, receiving favorable reviews from the likes of the New York Times’ critic Ben Ratliff. Since then,…
Read More Esperanza SpaldingGetting to Know Aaron Diehl Pianist Aaron Diehl is a jazz musician with a mission; he seeks to traverse the generational boundaries of the genre, and with compliments such as the New York Times lauding him as “a smart young pianist with a fastidious grasp of jazz traditions,” he is certainly proving his worth. A graduate of…
Read More Aaron Diehlexercise drink enough water avoid alcohol and other empty calories (hello, soda!) manage stress get enough sleep ( 6-8 hours every night) eat smaller portions lose weight avoid eating my favorite deserts Read more here and here.
Read More Ways to Lower Blood SugarWant to improve your vocabulary painlessly? Subscribe to Word of the Day or Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Day. Or get the Word of the Day app at the Google Play Store or the Apple app store.
Read More Need Some New Words?I love Mexican food. Not “spanish” food. Not Tex-Mex food. Mexican food. As in food like people eat in their homes in Mexico. One of my favorite memories comes from when I lived in California and had the opportunity to eat some real Mexican food, particularly food from Sonora. Carne asada tacos, arroz con pollo,…
Read More My Favorite FoodAre Bats Really to Blame for the COVID-19 Pandemic? Around the world, bats are blamed for disease. Bat scientist and conservationist Merlin Tuttle counters these fears and explains why these mammals are so important. Bats have been identified by some experts, and in the media, as the culprits behind the costliest pandemic in modern history, even though the source…
Read More Bats and COVID-19Over the past few weeks (and months) a number of retailers – including some of my favorites – have filed for bankruptcy. I suspect that some who closed because of coronavirus may fail to reopen or may go out of business within the next 12 months. Here is a list of retailers (and restaurants) I…
Read More Do You Like to Shop?World Fair Trade Day May 9 is World Fair Trade Day. Support businesses that sell Fair Trade goods. Peace on Fifth is one such store and belongs to my daughter London. She sells on line and has a variety of items including international chocolates. Check out Peace on Fifth.
Read More Peace on FifthDo You Know Gregory Porter? Hailed by NPR Music as “the next great male jazz singer,” California-born singer and songwriter Gregory Porter’s music career began over 20 years ago, though it wasn’t until he moved to New York City and performed regularly at Harlem’s legendary St. Nick’s Pub that his career really took off. Porter released his debut album, Water, produced by…
Read More Gregory PorterPresenting Cécile McLorin Salvant Born to a French mother and a Haitian father in Miami, Florida, Cécile McLorin Salvant was singing and playing classical piano before she reached the age of 10. A move to France in 2007 saw her study improvisation and vocal repertoire under respected reedist Jean-François Bonnel. Success followed the recording of her debut…
Read More Cécile McLorin SalvantPopular rider Oliver Lewis rode H. P. McGrath’s thoroughbred Aristides to victory in the first Kentucky Derby on May 17, 1875, at the Louisville Jockey Club. Continue reading. The pair won by a reported two lengths, setting a new American record time for a mile-and-a-half race. Fourteen of the fifteen jockeys in the derby, including Lewis,…
Read More Today in History – May 17Of course you do, right? Here are 4 different ways to cook rice. I usually use a rice cooker, but mine is not in quarantine with me, so I use the pasta method.
Read More Do you know how to cook rice?BY OLIVIA B. WAXMAN MAY 22, 2020 from Time.com Nowadays, Memorial Day honors veterans of all wars, but its roots are in America’s deadliest conflict, the Civil War. Approximately 620,000 soldiers died, about two-thirds from disease. The work of honoring the dead began right away all over the country, and several American towns claim to be the birthplace of Memorial Day. Researchers have…
Read More The Overlooked Black History of Memorial DayBritain and France conclude Sykes-Picot agreement On May 19, 1916, representatives of Great Britain and France secretly reach an accord, known as the Sykes-Picot agreement, by which most of the Arab lands under the rule of the Ottoman Empire are to be divided into British and French spheres of influence with the conclusion of World War I. The…
Read More This Day in History – May 19Trying to Do Fewer “Bad ” Carbs So…after going to my doctor for a physical, and seeing that I am both an inch shorter than I’ve been my whole life (!!!!) and have gained 8 pounds over the past 7 weeks (sigh) I decided to do something about all this. I can’t make myself taller…
Read More Tiny Peach Cobbler