My blog has migrated to a new host and is being painstakingly reconstructed here. Please bear with me as I iron out wrinkles, hammer out the dents, and apply enough spit and duct tape to hold it all together.— Karen
Yasmin Radjy Every time the guy in the Oval Office does something that makes us all crazy, he creates countless new volunteers for the progressive cause. He is our best possible recruitment tool! But then what? Being all fired up is great, but what exactly are the next steps? First, we zero in on our…
I love to ask people, “If you could look the president right in the eye, right now, and say one thing to him, what would it be?” This always prompts a moment of silence, a glassy-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights stare, then a deep breath and a steely gaze, followed by something from the heart. When I posed…
“I know somebody you should interview,” a friend wrote me. “The Christian Coalition once called her ‘the most dangerous woman in America.’” “Oh, yeah,” I said. “I definitely want to talk to her .” With so many of us embracing political activism for the first time in decades – if not the first time ever…
A video of my conversation with Jen Hofmann, creator of the Americans of Conscience checklist. Every journey teaches us something, even if it’s only that pig’s ears really are as rubbery and tasteless as you’d imagine, or that the best time to check for bed bugs is when you arrive at night, not when you…
Feeling powerless isn’t in Tanya Halkyard’s DNA. She grew up hearing stories about her great-great-great-great aunt, Susan B. Anthony , who blazed a trail through 19th century American politics, championing the abolition of slavery, votes for women, and other causes considered radical, if not outright insane, at the time. But Tanya never imagined, when she…
The other day I was all wound up telling Rich about my latest Resistance project, and when my eloquence, passion, and ability to blather on was finally exhausted and I stopped talking, he said, “You know, I almost feel sorry for the poor bastards you’re going up against.” I like to think conversations like that…
These days it’s not uncommon to see cowboys, businessmen, and bikers bellying up to the bar in tutus. Yes, those frilly skirts ballerinas wear. And it’s all thanks to ultra-conservative Republican Senator Mike Enzi of Wyoming, who is still desperately trying to live down last month’s hideous homophobic gaffe and the maelstrom of protest that…
Until now, my most terrifying flying experience was taking a small plane out of Palenque, Mexico to visit the Mayan ruins at Bonampak . The plane, and I use the term loosely, was more like a winged golf cart with six seats. As we strapped in, I learned the other two passengers were from Spain.…
Every spring, Seville stages a week-long fiesta that includes, among its many outlandish traditions, the wearing of skin-tight polka dot gowns with enormous ruffled flounces. Afterwards, there is endless talk about how gorgeous we all looked, and everyone pulls out phones to compare photos. When I showed this one to a group of women in…
When we’re abroad, Rich and I strive to adapt gracefully to whatever bizarre stuff the world throws at us. One of my most cherished photos shows him in India, squatting in front of cobras, madly playing a grimy flute. The snake charmer, evidently feeling the scene requires more drama, is draping a large yellow serpent…
CELEBRATING GOOD NEIGHBORS These days I’m writing about Good Neighbors, exploring how the people around me are working to help each other get through these challenging times. My weekly posts appear on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on my travel and research schedule.
THIS BLOG IS A PROMOTION-FREE ZONE. As my regular readers know, I never get free or discounted goods or services for mentioning anything on this blog (or anywhere else). I only write about things I find interesting and/or useful.
