You may or may not know about the SOPA/PIPA bills that are floating around Washington right now. If you’re like I am, you let the latest political buzz make a little noise without really taking much interest at first. But after a while, certain bills make me sit up and take notice. This is one [...]
Something free! Is that why you clicked through? Just for the record, if you did, I don’t blame you one bit. I’m in the same boat. If it’s free, I’m potentially interested in whatever it is (though this can be incredibly dangerous for someone with multiple pack rats in their generational line! I’m learning the [...]
Seriously guys, New Year’s Resolutions are generally worthless. They’re made with the best of intentions at the start of each new year, but they last an average of six days before they’re broken or forgotten in the busyness of day to day life. Six days. Less than a week. Geez . . . So here [...]
Welcome to a new year! I thought I would take a moment to look back at 2011 and share some of the most popular posts here on Laurel of Leaves. It was a record year for me in the life of my blog. When we first embarked to the other side of the world to [...]
Lately I’ve become a bit of a Scrooge where the Christmas season is concerned. I get so fed up with the incredible amount of consumerism, greed, and waste that comes as a result of a commercialized holiday. Do we really need those cheap, plastic trinkets that will be cast aside in a matter of months [...]
I feel compelled to tell you a story. A story that has absolutely nothing to do with Almond Pasta Salad. A story set on an island somewhere in the Pacific. More specifically, a coffee shop in the sunny South Island city of Nelson, New Zealand. Once upon a time, I spent 5 days in a [...]
There are lots of great tips I could share with you about website & blog design (which I will do, don’t fret!) But really there is one big secret to great blog design. Blog design that is creative, unique, easy to navigate, and memorable. In a word, the secret to great blog design is: a [...]
26 today. What? How did that happen? Wasn’t it just a few years ago that we stepped into a new century and I was singing along to the Backstreet Boys? 25 Didn’t seem to be a big deal. A quarter of a century. Pretty cool, I guess. But 26 is closer to 30 than anything [...]
The ‘locavore’ movement has been gaining attention over the last few years. Plenty of people have documented their challenge to eat only local, all the time. Some may even call it a food trend (imagine that), but there are heaps of reasons why eating food that’s been grown in your area is definitely not a [...]
Or I guess the question I really want to ask is, ‘what if the homeless had food that was good for them?’ Don’t get me wrong-I love what homeless shelters, soup kitchens, and food banks are doing. They want to make a difference and help people who may not be able to help themselves. And [...]
That’s what we are! Homeless. Or I suppose the term would more accurately be house-less or apartment-less. Just one step closer to the other side of the world. Less and less holding us back. Moving out of our apartment posed some interesting dilemmas: What to keep (it all had to be stored in my brother [...]