Music Makes The World Go Round

A Simon and Garfunkel record plays in the background as the clock announces that it is past midnight. I am not tired at all. It must have been all that coffee I drank earlier or perhaps – like any other parent – I stay up late because this is only Read more

Stephanie Ortez

Stephanie is a highly caffeinated mother of two wonderful boys. She is hopelessly addicted to non-fiction books and literature that moves her to tears. She is an admissions advisor for George Washington University online where she assists homeschooled students internationally. Stephanie lives with Bipolar Disorder, PTSD, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She is a passionate mental health advocate, member of Stigma Fighters. Her writing has been featured on The Elephant Journal, The Mighty, The Organic Coffee Haphazardly and Feminine Collective.

How Prince Helped Me to Know Myself

“Thinking about how we mourn artists we’ve never met. We don’t cry because we knew them, we cry because they helped us know ourselves.” – @ElusiveJ Bowie and Prince were difficult ones for me. Like Freddie Mercury. I think back to how every weekend in high school at the dance Read more

Laurie Hiatt

Laurie Hiatt is an adventure traveler, avid reader, music lover, mother, and chocolate connoisseur who gets to make her living by making a difference in her community. A community organizer and health educator for 28 years, she loves to get down in the trenches with all types of people to make positive changes in their neighborhoods. It’s taken her a while, but she’s finally figuring out how to find a healthy balance of the magic that chaos brings to life and the centering of herself. She is currently throwing a dart at a map to decide where to travel next.

10 Love Songs that will Stop Your Heart

We all know the effect that music has over us. A song can lift our spirits or bring us to our knees with melancholy.  Much to the chagrin of my inner circle, I fantasize about the music career that I did not have. Fantasy carries me along with every lyric Read more

Julie Anderson

Julie Anderson is the Creator and Publisher of Feminine Collective. Julie was inspired to create this safe place for women to share their secrets, desires, triumphs and pain as the antithesis of what mainstream media offers women today. In her column Pursuit of Perfection, she explores the importance of rectifying the balance of inner and outer beauty through essays, poems and articles on self-esteem, shame, family, and self- acceptance.

Discover the Magic of Your Life

Perla Batalla, a backup singer for Leonard Cohen for many years, was in concert in Los Angeles recently. In her second act she shared the story of the time Mr. Cohen asked her to sing one of his biggest hits, Bird On A Wire at a party. She demurred—panicked, actually—and Read more

Michael Kane

Michael Kane’s second career as a life consultant began in the early nineties after spending the previous twenty years as a professional dancer, choreographer and master teacher in New York. In his Los Angeles-based practice he helps both individuals and couples gain personal and professional clarity, increase their connection to themselves and the people they care about, communicate honestly, and unwrap who they truly are. Known for his seamless blending of the pragmatic and the spiritual, Michael’s central theme in his work is love. He believes that while loving others is deeply important, self-love is integral to our ability to live a compassionate, vibrant and fulfilling life. In addition to writing two blogs, Michael has also authored Heal Your Broken Heart—a book about love, healing and letting go—which was a finalist in the 2012 International Book Awards.