Smart India Students Blog

Essential The Change Blog of 2012

By This has been a good year for The Change Blog, and a massive year for me personally. In this post I will share some of the interesting things that happened in 2012, along with my favorite blog posts. Before I begin, though, I would like to say thank you for reading The Change Blog. Whether [...]

View Post

ABOUT CELL PHONES

Cellphones Are Great for Sharing Photos - and Bacteria

We love our smart phones and tablets - a lot. But the next time you take your phone to lunch, hand it to a coworker to share photos, or bring it to the gym, consider this: Bacteria from a phone can cause flu, pinkeye or diarrhea. Yuck. And people are just as likely to get sick from their phones as from handles of the bathroom. That's according to a physician interviewed by the Wall Street Journal about the hazards of taking your cell phone everywhere - and then passing it to friends to share an image or message. You don't have to be a germophobe to dread that bit of news. A lab tested eight randomly selected phones from a Chicago office and all phones showed abnormally high numbers of coliforms, a bacteria that indicates fecal contamination. Of the eight phones tested, there were between about 2,700 and 4,200 units of coliform bacteria. In drinking water, the limit is less than 1 unit per 100 ml of water. The tricky part?

View Post

CATS LOVE

24 December 2012

Merry Christmas from The Kofoeds!

Christmas Eve is here! We're feeling richly blessed - most of all - by all the people in our lives whom we love so much...our family, and so many Brooklyn friends that will forever feel like family. We hope to catch up with as many of you as we can over the holidays. We'll be in Arizona for a few days eating tamales, playing with nieces and nephews, going on cook-outs in the desert, playing lots of games (& ping pong), marveling at the huge grocery stores and parking lots, visiting with siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles, and eating lots of great Mexican food. :) Oh, and Les Miserables!!!! :) :) We are way too excited.

And, our hearts are full to the brim this year with amazement for what this last year has been like for us. I mean, how is it that I've been blogging now nearly every day for over a year? This is nuts (I seriously had never even thought about being a blogger before and knew nothing about it. I really never even had time to read blogs. ha! So it's just crazy that this has been my life now for quite some time.) BUT, we have been so surprised, delighted and really quite blown away by this whole thing that I can't stop. And I'm just SO grateful that somehow (by some miracle!) this blog has extended our connections to all of you. I'm so glad that we can have discussions here about things that matter so much and can help us be better/happier/brighter in our lives and relationships. It is my dream that as you see yourself rising to new heights, that you, too, may pass on any bit of wisdom or richness that you have received in your lives. We are all in this together. And together, we can (& are) changing the world.

We love you all. We're deeply grateful for the kindness, wisdom, and love you have shared with us.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of you. We'll see you back here in the New Year.

Mara & Danny

P.S. Just after Christmas, we'll start up the medications for IVF. We won't know the results of it for awhile as this will not be the traditional process (it will involve freezing the embryos in between some treatments.) And, who knows if we'll have any bumps or delays along the way (very likely, as is the case with these things :) But, we'll keep you posted here and there. This journey of infertility has been one of the greatest blessings of my entire life. Not a stitch of anything I write on this blog would be here without it. So it's a journey and a process I hold sacred. No matter what happens, we will embrace it and all will be well. That, I know. :)

Follow A BLOG ABOUT LOVE on:
Twitter @ablogaboutlove
Pinterest
Facebook (We so appreciate all the "likes"! thank you.)
ABAL Book Club
Babble Voices & The Equals Record

21 December 2012

Gift Guide 2012

I almost didn't do a gift guide. I had been collecting items for one, but to tell you the truth, after seeing all the gift guides on-line, I got gift guided out. haha. I figured the world didn't need another. But, now at the last minute, I decided to still go for it...because gifts ARE a wonderful thing. And even though this is late for Christmas shopping, perhaps you might consider these with some Christmas money you might get...or for your upcoming birthday...or for anyone special that you would like to share a gift with throughout this upcoming year.

In the spirit of gift giving...a few suggestions:

I adore these clocks by Twemco. I totally want one in my kitchen. (purchase here. $173) via Linsey Laidlaw.

This simple glassware is just perfection, in my book. Eggs and bacon would never look so good. The small plates are $7.50.

I love this fresh version of the classic silhouette, by artist Carter Kustera. Such a fun way to display the members of your household. Starting at $110. (via Little Green Notebook). You can also get some very affordable ones made here on Etsy.

Indoor plants would be such a great gift and they're fairly inexpensive. (I heard someone say that she doesn't have a green thumb, but at least her plants last longer than a vase of flowers and so she felt it was ok to replenish them a few times a year, if needed. I like her thinking. :) (photo via A Well Traveled Woman)

Love the idea of an unexpected jumbo barrette pulling my hair to the side. These would be the perfect sparkle for a party.

Brass stencils in your own words. Could be cute way to spell out a name, too. via Mary Matson.

For a handmade gift, you could make one of these for your family. (see here for materials; made by one of my favorite designers ever, Abby of Hi + Low)

My friend raves about the organic cotton sheets at Target. I checked them out when I was at her place and um...they are really, really, really soft/satiny/heavenly. $43.99 for a Queen size. I'm partial to white sheets. :)

These Ktaadn tea towels would be an upgrade to my white flour sack towels (see more on their website. I love them all. $26.) (photo and towels via The Daily Muse)

A ping pong table that doubles as a conference table or a big dining table. Perfect for a home or office. (My Dad is a major ping ponger :) via Swiss Miss.

I'm actually not a cat person, but I love these Maneki Neko cats found at the Gotokuji Temple in Japan (or in Chinatowns everywhere). Danny and I had our wedding luncheon at a Chinese diner in Boston (the place where we had our first Boston date!) and so I love having these little cats around

View Post