Social Issues
October 3, 2012
A small paper bird dangles from the ceiling inside the tour bus.
Love letters from passionate fans adorn the narrow walls nearby. A collection of chapter books fills the single cupboard hanging near the entrance.
Vocalist and trumpeter Sarah Anderson fishtail-braids her hair in the small medicine cabinet mirror tucked behind the bus’ accordion bathroom door. She repositions the pins tucked inside her hair, her eyes smiling.
May 23, 2012
Eleven years ago on a sunny May day, I was helping my drama students with their last run-through before their final performance for drama class. The room was buzzing with energy and excitement and the stage was being set. But Miss Lucy, who hates to miss anything, had other plans. My water broke during class so I called Big Man who was conveniently on an OB rotation at the time. I barely got the words "My water broke" out before I heard the...
May 16, 2012
The culture wars are back. Truthfully, they never really went away but as Tea Party Republicans swept into state and federal legislatures in 2010 the presumption by the mainstream press had been that they would ignore cultural issues like abortion or civil rights and focus on the economy.
April 24, 2012
Small-town boredom, teenage angst and the desire to fit in led a good-natured girl down the destructive road of drug use.
April 3, 2012
Making money can be a gamble, especially when Texas Hold ‘em is paying for your college.
March 30, 2012
On a recent trip, I saw this t-shirt worn by a man between the ages of, I'm guessing, 17-23.
March 28, 2012
Sidonia Dudval sashays across the stage in her black chiffon, V-neck dress, bright red shoes with jeweled heels glistening in the spotlight and a frizzed out mane of hair. She demands attention from her audience.
She rules the stage and the backstage. She sits behind the curtain obsessively scanning the schedule of Rochester Girls Inc. dancers and performance times while rifling through her bags trying to find the right lipstick or perfect...
March 8, 2012
She wears black knee-high boots over skinny jeans topped with a rainbow sweater. Her long, brown, layered hair lightly bounces on her shoulders as she struts through campus. In most ways, she's an average 19-year-old woman-- except for the "M" marked on her license.
February 26, 2012
On today's episode of Sounds of Cinema I read an editorial about the (ir)relevance and (il)legitimacy of the Academy Awards. Here is an excerpt:
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