Curated by Ed Boitano
Singer/Musician/Composer Stacey Kent on Hit Series, Our City Tonight
Hosts Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins ask Ms. Kent compelling question about her life as a musician during the Covid pandemic. Her answers are profound and thought provoking.
Global Rescue: Going into the Wilderness
Spring is here and people restless from the pandemic protocols will start hitting the trails, pitching camp site tents, and exploring the great outdoors.
“Going into the wilderness means you are entering some level of a survival situation. There are many emergencies and contingencies in the backcountry that do not have a medical requirement. For these instances, you need survival equipment,” said Harding Bush, a former Navy SEAL and the senior survival instructor at the U.S. Navy Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) Course in Rangeley, Maine.
What to Pack in a Survival KitAsian Americans Grieve, Organize in Wake of Atlanta Attacks
Asian Americans were already worn down by a year of pandemic-fueled racist attacks when a white gunman was charged with killing eight people, most of them Asian women, at three Atlanta-area massage parlors.
“It didn’t help with former president Trump referring to the COVID-19 pandemic as the Kung Fu virus. Recently there were seven propaganda incidents with direct anti-China references to COVID-19.” – Ed Boitano
Hundreds of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders turned to social media to air their anger, sadness, fear and hopelessness. The hashtag #StopAsianHate was a top trending topic on Twitter hours after the shootings that happened Tuesday evening.
MOREExtreme Places: A Night in an Ice Hotel Video
Courtesy DW Travel
Europe at its most extreme: the series “Europe to the Maxx” in DW’s lifestyle and culture magazine “Euromaxx” makes Europe’s superlatives experienceable ― from extraordinary architecture and spectacular landscapes to unique cultural phenomena. Accompanying the series, the book “111 extreme places in Europe that you shouldn’t miss” was published in cooperation with Emons Verlag. An alternative travel guide, both informative and entertaining. For avid travelers, fans of Europe and anyone who likes to show off with unusual pub quiz trivia. Full of guaranteed record breakers!
MORETwenty Essential English Language Films Noir (1940-2021)
T-Boy Society of Film & Music
But first, what is a Film Noir?
The term film noir, French for ‘black film’ (literal) or ‘dark film’ (closer meaning), was first applied to Hollywood films by French critic Nino Frank in 1946, but was unrecognized by the Hollywood establishment of that era. Marked by a mood of pessimism, fatalism, and menace; its style is often characterized by cynical heroes, stark lighting effects and set design, intricate plots, and an underlying existentialist philosophy. Highly influenced by German Expressionist cinema of the 1910s and 1920s, film historians generally define the genre retrospectively, focusing primarily on American crime dramas of the post-World War II era.
Earth’s Mountains May Have Mysteriously Stopped Growing for a Billion Years
Courtesy MAYA WEI-HAA, National Geographic
Starting about 1.8 billion years ago, the planet’s continental crust thinned, slowing the flow of nutrients into the sea and possibly stalling the evolution of life.
MORE8 Bizarre Reasons Why Passengers Get Kicked Off Planes
Courtesy Evie Carrick, Travel and Leisure
From smelling bad to wearing sagging pants, these are some of the most unusual reasons people have gotten kicked off planes.
MOREArchaeologists Discover What May Have Been World’s Oldest Brewery in Egypt
The remains date back to 3100 B.C.
Courtesy of Cailey Rizzo
Archaeologists may have found the remains of the world’s oldest brewery buried in Egypt.
The potentially 5,000-year-old beer factory in the city of Abydos dates back to the reign of King Narmer — around 3100 B.C. — the country’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities confirmed this month in a press release.
MOREFrom a Small, Rural Schoolhouse, One Teacher Challenged Nativist Attacks Against Immigration
Courtesy Ross Benes
In the wake of World War I, rabid anti-German sentiment led to the arrest, later deemed unjust by the U.S. Supreme Court, of Robert Meyer.
MOREHawaii Offers Tourists Free Hotel Stays in Exchange for Volunteer Work
The program’s goal is to inspire mindful travel
Written by Stefanie Waldek
If gorgeous beaches, an incredible cultural history, and active volcanoes aren’t enough to convince you to visit Hawaii, perhaps the state’s voluntourism deal for tourists will nudge you across the line.
As of Oct. 15, Hawaii has eliminated the 14-day quarantine requirement for visitors who partake in the official pre-travel testing program, which now means that the state is able to promote the Mālama Hawai‘i initiative to tourists.
MORE5 Things Science Says Will Make You Happier
Research-backed habits that will improve your outlook and positive attitude
By Nataly Kogan
Medically reviewed by Daniel B. Block, MD
It’s easy to assume that things like money and a luxurious lifestyle lead to happiness, but research shows that it’s the more simple experiences — like practicing gratitude or spending time with friends — that promote a sunny outlook.
Whether you need to shift from negative thoughts or want to continue a streak of positivity, here are five ways to boost happiness every day.
MOREWhat Americans Abroad Should Not Expect
Pancakes
The fluffy flour-based pancakes that American’s have come to love at breakfast time (or for brinner) just aren’t found abroad. French crêpes are too thin. The Japanese version (okonomiyaki) is too thick and most often topped with savory things like meat, seafood, and cabbage.
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The 16-Year-Old Chinese Immigrant Who Helped Lead a 1912 US Suffrage March
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee fought for the rights of women on two sides of the world.
Courtesy of Michael Lee
In 1900, at a time when the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 banned most Chinese immigration and reflected a climate of deep anti-Asian prejudice, 9-year-old Mabel Ping-Hua Lee came to America from China on a scholarship to attend school. At 16, she would cement her place in women’s suffrage history, helping to lead a storied New York City march.
But while she fought for women’s voting rights, she herself would not be eligible to cast a ballot for decades after the 19th Amendment was ratified in 1920. That’s because the Exclusion Act prohibited Chinese immigrants from obtaining any rights of American citizenship.
MOREExtreme Places: A Night in an Ice Hotel
Spending a night in ice and snow is possible in the far north of Europe. The “Icehotel” in Jukkasjärvi, Sweden, was built back in 1989, making it the first of its kind ― and therefore part of our “Extreme Places” series.
Courtesy Hendrik Welling, DW reporter
A visit to an ice hotel isn’t exactly the first choice if you prefer to spend your holidays under palm trees in warmer climes. But if you can manage to overcome your fear of freezing, you’ll be rewarded with a unique natural experience.
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Midnight on the Great Western
Thomas Hardy (1840–1928)
In the third-class sat the journeying boy,
And the roof-lamp’s oily flame
Played down on his listless form and face,
Bewrapt past knowing to what he was going,
Or whence he came.
In the band of his hat the journeying boy
Had a ticket stuck; and a string
Around his neck bore the key of his box,
That twinkled gleams of the lamp’s sad beams
Like a living thing.
What past can be yours, O journeying boy,
Towards a world unknown,
Who calmly, as if incurious quite
On all at stake, can undertake
This plunge alone?
Knows your soul a sphere, O journeying boy,
Our rude realms far above,
Whence with spacious vision you mark and mete
This region of sin that you find you in
But are not of?
Send Deb your favorite travel poems
Kimberly Truhler on Film Noir Style
With more than twenty years of study in film and fashion history, Kimberly Truhler is an author, educator, guest speaker, and host of screening series on the history of fashion in film. Her latest book, Film Noir Style: The Killer 1940s, should be on the top of the list for all cinephiles and lovers of Films Noir.
See Kimberly Truhler’s interview on Vancouver’s hit TV series Our City Tonight with Jim Gordon and Leeta Liepins:
Words of Wisdom from a Covid Survivor
By Grace Nakar
I am a Covid survivor. I was sick for 14 days.
I normally don’t get this personal… but I realized I have these tidbits of info that might help people.
MOREDNA From the Bible’s Canaanites Lives on in Modern Arabs and Jews
A new study of ancient DNA traces the surprising heritage of these mysterious Bronze Age people.
Courtesy Andrew Lawler, National Geographic
They are best known as the people who lived “in a land flowing with milk and honey” until they were vanquished by the ancient Israelites. But a recent scientific report reveals that the genetic heritage of the Canaanites survives
MORETrapped in Museums for Centuries, Maori Ancestors Are Coming Home
Courtesy Ye Charlotte Ming
New Zealand’s repatriation program brings human remains back and lays them to rest.
To the Maori people of New Zealand, the practice of preserving one’s head after death was an act of love and respect. Beginning in 1770, Europeans began trading the mummified and tattooed Maori heads, also called toi moko, spurring enemy tribal groups to collect the heads of enemies for sale. Now, European museums are sending the toi moko home. Since 2003, the remains of more than 600 ancestors, including toi moko, have been returned to New Zealand.
What’s New in Berlin: House of One – Three Religions in One House
Berlin is soon to become home to something truly unique. Jews, Christians, and Muslims are planning to build a house of worship here – one that brings a synagogue, a church, and a mosque together under one roof. The three separate sections will be linked by a communal room in the center of the building. This will serve as a meeting place, where worshipers and members of the public can come together and learn more about the religions and each other. The House of One is a contemporary expression of religious life, expressed in an equally modern architectural language.
The Future of History in the Pandemic Age
By Michael Creswell
Historians need to consider and prepare for changes to the profession that will follow the COVID-19 pandemic.
Attempting to predict the future is always perilous, and events frequently humble those who dare to try. Making predictions is especially hazardous for historians, who often struggle to explain the past. Peering into the future is not part of their professional training, and their efforts to do so are likely to fail.
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