Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
Actor Sean Astin encourages travelers to “look up. It might sound like a simple thing to say, but don’t have your face in a map or your phone or your stuff. I think most people get to wherever they think they need to get to and then they look up.”
News organizations are making the claim that Korean culture is partially to blame for the Sewol ferry disaster. Some even insist that had these been American children onboard, they would’ve escaped death. Shame on them for blaming the young victims of this tragedy.
Born in Calgary, Alberta, sisters Tegan Rain and Sara Keirsten Quin are better known as the musical duo of Tegan and Sara. The twins, 33, won three Juno Awards earlier this year in Canada for their work on their seventh studio album, “Heartthrob.” But the song that has helped earn them a new (and young!) fan base is “Everything is Awesome.” They recorded the infectiously catchy song for “The LEGO Movie.”
Talk show host Wendy Williams’ idea of a vacation doesn’t include sightseeing: “We’re that family that doesn’t care about seeing ancient ruins or centuries old landmarks. All we want to do is lay down on the beach and eat $12 M&M’s from the minibar.”
I found this photo when I was looking for something to put up for Throwback Thursday. I love this picture. I see a little girl who loved getting dressed up and having her picture taken. That’s what I remember. That even during a time of turmoil, a less than pristine backdrop was the worst part of my childhood.
Musician James Durbin remembers taking “road trips to visit with my oma and opa (grandparents). We’d load up the RV and see the country with them. It was their RV. We rode on a ferry when I was three or four years old in Kentucky. I also remember going to Kentucky to stay at my great aunt’s house for a month and that was cool.”
Back in the day, Joseph Simmons was best known to music fans as DJ Run, one of the founding members of Run-D.M.C. Now 49 and a practicing minister, Simmons is familiar to a new generation of fans as Rev Run, the television personality. He and his wife, Justine, star in their current HGTV reality series “Rev Run’s Renovation.”
I was at a record release party for Elton John (back when they were actually records, rather than CDs even) and he was taking pictures with fans. I was off to the side observing. He must’ve mistook me for a fan, ’cause he grabbed my arm and put his arm around me, smiled that smile et voila! Just as I was about to say, “Hi,” he kind of just shoved me aside so he could take a photo with the next person in line.
“Raising Hope” star Lucas Neff says he prefers traveling to “someplace new. I hate returning to the same place. I always feel like I’m missing out. The unknown offers far more. I’m less about vacation, more about experience. I try to avoid places where beheadings are popular though.”
“Greece is unbelievable, and not just because it’s the motherland,” laughs Maria Menounos. “The food there is amazing. I was eating so much homemade food that had fresh ingredients in it.”
I have a slew of press passes from concerts and red carpet events. The event that I was thrilled to cover was the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. John Kennedy Jr. was there and, as could be expected, he was very charismatic and charming. But the celebrity I was most excited to see was…Chris Rock! He and his date were alone behind a roped off area.
Ballerina Misty Copeland has the distinction of being one of the few African-American soloists in the world of ballet. In her newly released memoir “Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina” (Touchstone Hardcover, $24.99), Copeland chronicles her tumultuous childhood, a late start in dance (she was 13) and joining the American Ballet Theatre’s corps de ballet as a teenager.
Who doesn’t like a nice freebie every now and again? 
It’s easy to win! Good luck!
I asked “Survivorman” Les Stroud if he ever felt he wouldn’t make it out of a situation. He said, “No. There are areas like in the middle of the Amazon jungle that have more than their fair share of dangerous moments. But I’ve done this a long time. I’m careful. I’m prepared and know how to survive.”
The worst book review I’ve ever read. Maureen Corrigan’s take on a Korean novel reeked of enthocentric entitlement.
Like a lot of Koreans of their age, my parents survived war and led very difficult lives. Books were an escape. My dad used to joke that had he learned Russian instead of English, we may have immigrated to the (then) Soviet Union instead of America.
RuPaul talks to me about some of his travels, including his early trips: “Well, my father was a gambler. We lived in San Diego at the time. He’d take us down to the race tracks. He’d take us to Tijuana. I would’ve preferred to do something else at the time. But looking back, they were good memories.”
If you’re going through withdrawal as I am, now’s the perfect time to catch up on the previous seasons of “The Good Wife.” And for one lucky winner, I’ve got a box set of the fourth season to giveaway. #WinWithJae
Surfer Alana Blanchard says the food in Sri Lanka was amazing: “We went to this town and went to this little restaurant that used to be a house and paid something like $2 for all-you-can-eat vegetables with spices. It was such a treat for me, because I’m vegan.”
Valentine’s Day is sold as a day of romance, where you buy each other romantic gifts. And, if you’re alone, well, too bad for you. But Valentine’s Day really should be a day about love, not just romance.