Discovered

I'll continue to post on my travel blog but I'm compelled to write something slightly non-related so I thought I'd come back here. Hi again. Here's a few things I've been enjoying the last 2 months that you can try too!

Rachael Yamagata. Seu Jorge. Manu Chao.
I've heard of RY before - she's a KCRW regular - and I knew that JS (who put her on my iPod) was a fan. Now I know why. And I agree. Rachael's husky, strong alto may remind you of Fiona Apple but a much less angry version (thus better in my opinion). Check her out. And JS also made me listen to Seu Jorge who is a bit harder to define but let's just say he probably presents a great version of Brazilian indie-pop. A bit of samba can't hurt. And as for Manu Chao, my friend Bas introduced me to him inadvertently when (in Cuba) we swapped iPods for the evening. AllMusic.com thinks he's Latin alternative (more on the rock/pop vein). I suppose that's one way to look at it.

Cafe o Te con Leche.
I'm such a fan now. Cuba makes good cafe con leche. And for some reason I keep drinking tea w/ creamer/milk. Have I turned British on my travels?! The past 2 days I've been putting condensed milk in my coffee. Yum! My mother looks at me as if to say: who are you?!

www.Kayak.com
Great website that searches multiple travel and airline websites. There's a networking component to it too that I haven't tried, so you can link to friends or people who are interested in the same areas.

Anne Lammott's Bird by Bird.
Great for writers as she takes you through the process of writing. It's like going to a writing workshop. Lammott is just so entertaining and insightful, even when you're not a writer, there's a lot in there for ya.
ECS (who gave me the book and requested his due recognition) wrote a bit about a few of the chapters, which makes for a good preview. I also highly recommend "Traveling Mercies" by the same Anne Lammott. Enjoy.

24. Season 6.
All I gotta say is: darn you, JS, for getting me hooked!!!

Skype.
Quite possibly my favorite thing in the world right now. Get it, friends. You can talk for free!!