On a whim last night, I found myself at Cafe du Nord. Walking down their entryway staircase into an intimate venue, every step further filled the air with the sound of piano keys hitting their notes, their cords. The warm glow of the faintly lit stage, the rusticness of the dark-wooded interior and the sense that the audience was filled with friends, family and warmhearted supporters paired nicely with the acoustics. I’d never heard of any of the artists, but it was better that way. Amber Rubarth, the evening’s headliner, was the only person behind us in line as we trickled in late,...

Talking about sex never gets old. So when faced with the opportunity to do so for two whole days at Sex::Tech, how could I resist? The weekend, while enlightening, also decidedly startled me. I realized what is completely missing from our conversations about sexual health: passion and pleasure. We are lucky enough to be among the few species that can actually enjoy sex because it feels good, and perhaps take for granted that we don’t have to fight for survival when making love with a partner. And yet, we continue to omit from the sex education conversation our innate, normal and healthy drive...

I’ve always pondered the notion of “forever.” Of true love. Of what it takes to make a lifetime partnership work. When I think about marriage, about the thought of spending the rest of my life with one person, I continuously wonder: what does it take to devote yourself mentally, physically and emotionally to one soul … forever? My parents divorced when I was six, and I grew up with my mom’s boyfriends walking in and out of my life. I wasn’t raised in a functional version of “forever,” nor have I since encountered a seasoned marital relationship —...

Yoga has helped me figure out a lot of things. For one, that even people over six feet tall can touch their toes. (So yes, that means you can, too, with enough practice and encouragement.) One night, one lesson, one nugget of insight stands out in particular, though. Usually overflowing with bad jokes we can’t help but laugh at, my yogi was overflowing with wisdom, sharing with us his tidbits of knowledge as we struggled through Baddha Parivritta Parshvakonasana. His words became my mantra for the next hour — mostly just so I wouldn’t forget to write down what he said. He prefaced...

After the let down of California actually passing Prop 8, it’s nice to finally have equality and gay rights represented in the dictionary. Yup, that’s right. Merriam-Webster officially included a secondary definition of the term “marriage” to recognize homosexual relationships. While they officially defined it back in 2003, and other dictionaries even earlier, the news is only now receiving hype thanks to a post on (uber conservative) World Net Daily on Tuesday. While the redefinition doesn’t provide homosexuals with the rights they need to actually get married in...

Also published on BitchBuzz.com Today was a momentous day in history for many reasons, but after watching the Obamas dazzle everyone at their inaugural ball, it made me think: Today marks a victory for America. For Democrats. For the world, even. But with Michelle Obama officially the First Lady, today is also a huge day for tall women everywhere! Finally, we have a tall, elegant, fashion-forward woman to look up to who’s not a supermodel, but rather, a role model. What I love about Michelle Obama is the fact that she doesn’t shy away from fashion risk — from clothes or from heels,...