My dad was a great fan of Vonnegut's, and had all of John Irving's early work. He also had stuff by Woody Allen, and Steve Martin's first book.

Rachel Pink - amazed by the lives of the coffee cart guys, farmer's market vendors, and the people I ride the bus with every day.

Rachel Pink in Manhattan

My blog, Rachelpink Rides the Bus, started as a lark over a long weekend. At first it was an exercise in self-restraint. I thought I was talking too much, talking all the time. I figured if I wrote about what happened every day I'd be less inclined to talk about it.

What I write about is my life as a 30-year-old book publicist living in Manhattan with my freelance writer boyfriend. I grew up on Long Island, just an hour or so from NYC. Proximity did not dampen the mystery of the city and from the first moment I moved here, into a disorganized apartment share in Brooklyn, I've spent each day amazed by the lives of the coffee cart guys, farmer's market vendors, and the people I ride the bus with every day.

Rachel Pink, March 10, 2005 | Read full article

Boudreaux: I can't relate to trent reznor's angst and rage the way I used to when I was in high school.

Unapologetic from New Orleans

The Dark Side

Speaking of the dark side of New Orleans, I have to say i kind of like the new nine inch nails album. i got it last week when it came out, out of that nostalgic sense of devotion I have to certain bands, something between curiosity and caring about how an artist I once really felt attuned to has evolved, and where I am in my life in relation to that. I know it's cool to bash NIN at the moment, and it's not groundbreaking, but it's not a bad album. I can't relate to Trent Reznor's angst and rage the way I used to when I was in high school, but the more sanguine emotions, the longing and hopelessness and loss of love, well, I've got a better understanding of those….

Allen Boudreaux, May 19, 2005 | Read full article

I've vowed to never, ever work for a family business again. Of course, unless it's the Mafia. Then, at least, you know it's coming.

Sam in Mississippi

I go by my real name, Samantha, and I live in a college town in Mississippi. I grew up on Army bases in the South and in Germany. I have a very patient and loving Fiancé. We have a furry black dog, named Velcro. We are very involved in a loving, funny Methodist congregation. Living in the Bible Belt, we're far from an anomaly, but I find that I'm a bit of odd-woman-out in the blogosphere. Most Christian apologetic blogs leave me bored, so I don't frequent them. Maybe I just haven't found the right ones, but I'd rather read uplifting stories from real life people of all faiths than arguments or prove how well I know the Scriptures. (Quick, who was the fourth person in the fire with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendago?)

June 2, 2005 | Read full article

La CoQuette: I walk around in the summertime, past cafes with customers lunching at 4:00 pm, and wonder: is there anyone working in this city?

EliSabeth La CoQuette in Paris, France

I really couldn't speak French when I moved here. Yes, I'd had five years of French training in high school, but do you know anyone who became fluent from studying a foreign language in school? Perhaps the Swedish, but those people are robots when it comes to languages, and besides they invented Ikea. We cannot be held to their standards. The darkest day came around week two when I realized that I didn't know how to say my own last name. We sat on my French cousin's bed (the maternal, wonderful Jeanne lives right next door), and went through a round of protracted Eliza Doolittle--style coaching until I could say "Fourmont" in a way that the French might register as, er, an actual word.

July 7, 2005 | Read full article

My dad was a great fan of Vonnegut's, and had all of John Irving's early work. He also had stuff by Woody Allen, and Steve Martin's first book.

Landismom in New Jersey

Both of our kids have bookshelves that are crammed full of picture books, board books, and lately, chapter books. Over the years, we've read the Bee some books that were (at the time) way beyond her comprehension (The Hobbit, Alice in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass, The Wizard of Oz). When the Bee was born, I started reading kids' and young adult books again, so that I would be prepared when she was ready to read that stuff, and I've found some amazing things along the way (although nothing yet to dislodge my personal favorite, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, a book I must have read twice a year from ages 8 to 11).

Aug. 4, 2005 | Read full article

I thought, "What would Charles Ingalls do? Or John Walton? Mike Brady? How about Darren Stevens?!"

Phil Corless in Idaho

Hi, I'm a stay-at-home dad. Now, before your eyes glaze over and you slowly back away, let me just tell you why I am one. Most boys don't spend their childhood dreaming of one day changing diapers, emptying dishwashers, washing pee-soaked bed sheets, kissing boo-boos, and learning to make chicken broccoli casserole. They want to be firemen, baseball stars, soldiers. As they get older, most men strive for career, status, and a lower golf handicap. Me, I had early dreams of a Hollywood career, collaborating with the likes of Spielberg, Lucas, and Coppola.

Sept. 1, 2005 | Read full article