A couple of years ago, I co-founded a major book club in my city. Because I was the facilitator, I felt it was my duty to read not only the chosen books but the study guides as well. It was like taking a literature class, without the term papers and oppressive overhead lighting.
Ah, those were the days. Now I’m in the middle of seven different books and can’t seem to finish any of them. Seriously. (I hope at least to finish Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix — yes, that’s Book 5, not even Book 6! — before the movie is released.) 
Posted March 17, 2006 by Mariva in books, community, education, innovations, resources, social
Thank goodness Fats Domino was found alive and well after the Katrina disaster in his native New Orleans. He was found in his home in the Ninth Ward, although some say he was actually found on Blueberry Hill. Domino is 78 years old, and despite losing his home, he’s in good spirits and still making music. He’s donating the proceeds from his latest album, Alive and Kickin’, to the Tipitina’s Foundation, an organization dedicated to rebuilding the music culture of New Orleans. On NPR’s All Things Considered, Domino demonstrates the rhythmic and tempo difference between rhythm and blues and rock and roll, a shift that occurred in popular music during the ’50s. 
Posted March 14, 2006 by Mariva in arts, community, entertainment, music, news
I hear all sorts of business ideas at the monthly Entrepreneurship Meetup — some OK but need further development, some not so good, some downright ill-conceived. At the last month’s Meetup, I met the CTO of Prosper.com, an innovative financial startup that facilitates person-to-person lending — for example, a blogger in California lending $500 to a cafe owner in Maine — via a system that CEO and E-Loan co-founder Chris Larsen hopes to become "the eBay of loans."
Prosper seemed to be in the "OK but needs further development" category of startups until I heard more about it. My first thought was, "How safe is this thing? Could I just be throwing money away to strangers asking for a ‘loan’?" Other Meetup attendees voiced similar concerns. "Are these loans in any way guaranteed?" asked the hotshot from OngoBongo (which, tangentially, may have bigger problems with the advent of Lala — or maybe not: see the update below).
Posted March 7, 2006 by Mariva in business, community, finance, innovations, news, resources
Mardi Gras is a bittersweet celebration in New Orleans today. If you’re not there, you can vicariously experience the sights and sounds through the All Things Considered New Orleans radio diary and make yourself a traditional Mardi Gras king cake. You can also listen to my friend Farai Chideya‘s moving News & Notes piece, "New Orleans Resident Revisits Levee Break."
Laissez les bons temps rouler.
Posted February 28, 2006 by Mariva in arts, community, edibles, holidays, news, travel
Sometimes what strangers say and write, taken out of context — especially when taken out of context — is fascinating. Overheard in New York publishes transcripts of random conversations overheard in the Big Apple. FOUND Magazine is a repository of personal ephemera — such as love letters, school notes, birthday cards, kids’ homework, to-do lists, ticket stubs, poetry on napkins, business plans, telephone bills, doodles and so on — that are lost by some and found by others.
Posted February 17, 2006 by Mariva in arts, community, fun, innovations, social
Some people love February 14, in all its pink-blouse-and-red-sweater glory; others resent its existence and wish it would just disappear from the calendar. For those not celebrating romantic love today, I offer some alternatives:
Posted February 14, 2006 by Mariva in community, edibles, holidays, music, resources, social
On Sunday, as I was walking up Telegraph Hill toward Coit Tower — admiring the colony of fluttering, squawking wild parrots in the treetops — I saw a group of work glove-clad hipsters with rakes and bags in hand, clearing twigs, leaves and other debris around the area. Who were they? They seemed too clean-cut to be performing punitive community service. But they looked too hip to be associated with a squeaky-clean church group. Was I about to have my stereotypes challenged?
Posted January 31, 2006 by Mariva in community, social
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
(January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968)
Posted January 16, 2006 by Mariva in community, education, holidays
Got an idea for improving the U.S.? Quit yelling at the talking heads on TV and submit your idea to Since Sliced Bread, an idea competition sponsored by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). Since Sliced Bread is looking for interesting and practical ideas on how to grow the national economy in positive and productive ways. The judges include CEOs, writers, technologists, nonprofit directors and scholars. Be sure to submit your idea by December 5, 2005.
Update (January 10, 2006): Over 22,000 ideas have been submitted to the Since Sliced Bread contest, and the judges have narrowed down that massive brainstorm to 21 finalists. This week, you can view the finalists’ plans and vote for your favorite three ideas.
Update (February 22, 2006): Now that the winners have been announced, you may send your favorite ideas to your elected leaders.
Posted January 10, 2006 by Mariva in community, innovations, news
