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Watch These Movies While Stuck at Home!

Bored at home?  Looking for something to watch, but tired of cycling through the same Netflix options?   For those of you who have already burned through your queue, it's time to start looking for rentals, a nearly extinct concept in 2020.        Fear not, because there are plenty of exceptional films out there that are not on popular streaming services. This article is meant to dig into a few good choices that you might not have already thought of.    Explore these overlooked gems today, then go visit your…
Score: 4.32

Quarantine Playlist – Songs to Listen to While Stuck at Home

by CFC123

Music, with all its transcendent power, can help us through some tough times. For some, music helps those who need to assuage their anxieties caused by depression. Other times, it can just be for a troublesome problem sweeping the nation.   Since we all are experiencing that similar problem right now, let’s dive into some good music to help alleviate everyone’s cooped-up feelings. Skip to the right mood for you, or ride the whole wave beginning to end (I promise it will leave you will a…
Score: 3.11

Five Podcasts For When You Suddenly Have A Lot of Time on Your Hands

When I first began hearing the term Podcast, I thought, what is all the hubbub? It is just people having a conversation, not unlike a youtube video or talk show.  Then, as podcasting grew in popularity - rather rapidly, I must say - I went from skeptical to enamored upon discovering a few that interested me.      I realized podcasts could be creative, educational, inspirational, and downright hilarious. They are a great companion for long drives or days when you are doing work around the house (or in…
Score: 2.27

Top SEO Factors BESIDES Keywords

  Hi, I'm "Penguin" Pete Trbovich, and you overthink SEO!  That phrase is a tag on my own blog, for the occasional content marketing post. Really, I don't measure my expertise by my own website's ranking; I'm a freelance writer for the web who only needs a website as a virtual business card. Instead, judge my SEO expertise by the writing I do for clients - linked from my site on a regular basis.  In 20 years of freelance writing for the web, I have had the same argument with the majority of clients.…
Score: 2.01

Holding on to Hope: Ways to Cope in the Face of a Pandemic

“These are mad times we live in. Mad!”    These words, spoken by Professor Slughorn in The Half-Blood Prince, have been tumbling around in my head for weeks. In the film (and perhaps the book, I don’t recall), Slughorn relays this message to Dumbledore as the imminent threat of Lord Voldemort grows stronger. In this story, the imminent threat is COVID- 19, rather than an extremely powerful wizard.    I don’t know that there is a “chosen one” to defeat COVID-19 as Harry Potter defeated Voldemort, but…
Score: 1.85

Pandemic

Watch These Movies While Stuck at Home!

Bored at home?  Looking for something to watch, but tired of cycling through the same Netflix options?   For those of you who have already burned through your queue, it's time to start looking for rentals, a nearly extinct concept in 2020.        Fear not, because there are plenty of exceptional films out there that are not on popular streaming services. This article is meant to dig into a few good choices that you might not have already thought of.    Explore these overlooked gems today, then go visit your…
Score: 4.32

Quarantine Playlist – Songs to Listen to While Stuck at Home

by CFC123

Music, with all its transcendent power, can help us through some tough times. For some, music helps those who need to assuage their anxieties caused by depression. Other times, it can just be for a troublesome problem sweeping the nation.   Since we all are experiencing that similar problem right now, let’s dive into some good music to help alleviate everyone’s cooped-up feelings. Skip to the right mood for you, or ride the whole wave beginning to end (I promise it will leave you will a…
Score: 3.11

Holding on to Hope: Ways to Cope in the Face of a Pandemic

“These are mad times we live in. Mad!”    These words, spoken by Professor Slughorn in The Half-Blood Prince, have been tumbling around in my head for weeks. In the film (and perhaps the book, I don’t recall), Slughorn relays this message to Dumbledore as the imminent threat of Lord Voldemort grows stronger. In this story, the imminent threat is COVID- 19, rather than an extremely powerful wizard.    I don’t know that there is a “chosen one” to defeat COVID-19 as Harry Potter defeated Voldemort, but…
Score: 1.85
Podcasting

Five Podcasts For When You Suddenly Have A Lot of Time on Your Hands

When I first began hearing the term Podcast, I thought, what is all the hubbub? It is just people having a conversation, not unlike a youtube video or talk show.  Then, as podcasting grew in popularity - rather rapidly, I must say - I went from skeptical to enamored upon discovering a few that interested me.      I realized podcasts could be creative, educational, inspirational, and downright hilarious. They are a great companion for long drives or days when you are doing work around the house (or in…
Score: 2.27
SEO

Top SEO Factors BESIDES Keywords

  Hi, I'm "Penguin" Pete Trbovich, and you overthink SEO!  That phrase is a tag on my own blog, for the occasional content marketing post. Really, I don't measure my expertise by my own website's ranking; I'm a freelance writer for the web who only needs a website as a virtual business card. Instead, judge my SEO expertise by the writing I do for clients - linked from my site on a regular basis.  In 20 years of freelance writing for the web, I have had the same argument with the majority of clients.…
Score: 2.01

The Top SEO Tools For Content Marketing

  Hi, I'm "Penguin" Pete Trbovich, and you overthink SEO!  Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has been oversold for decades as the easy road to riches, subject to every snake oil tonic shuckster to roll into town. You shouldn't believe most posts about "best SEO tools," because they're usually trying to sell you something they make, and it's not the best.  Except you can believe this post, because it's selling nothing. In fact, most of these tools are free or at least "freemium." It's getting no…
Score: 1.85

Amazing New SEO Method Discovered : Write Like A Human Being!

    Are you an eCommerce entrepreneur depending upon content marketing to gain exposure for your product or service on the web?  Do you want to know the secret of having your site rank high on Google?  Do you want your website to shoot to the top of a Google SERP (Search Engine Result Page) like greased lightning?  If you answered "yes" to all of the above questions, TAKE A NUMBER, because everybody in the whole wide world answered "yes" to all of the above questions too!      No, but really, SEO content…
Score: 1.69
New Music 2020

February 2020 Listen List - Don't Miss These Albums!

by CFC123

Periodically over the course of the year, we will produce two lists to highlight a few of each month's new albums. This list spans multiple genres, with each album ordered best to worst. With about 40 albums in both lists, make sure you Don't Miss These Albums! - - -      ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Amazing    Katie Gately – Loom      Loom is only Katie Gately’s second release, but she can already craft a deeply moving, complex, and emotional album. Her experimental approach is less written than designed, shaping the sound to…
Score: 1.46

February 2020 Listen List - The Less Good Albums!

by CFC123

Periodically over the course of the year, we will produce two lists to highlight a few of each month's new albums. This list spans multiple genres, with each album ordered best to worst (here’s a link to the best albums of February). With over 40 albums in both lists, here are the Less Good albums of February! - - -        ⭐⭐ Satisfactory    Wrekmeister Harmonies – We Love to Look at the Carnage     This experimental duo has never feared to let the darkness creep into their music, but beauty often shows…
Score: 1.45

January 2020 Listen List - The Ones You Might Want to Avoid

by CFC123

Periodically over the course of the new year, we will produce two lists to highlight a few of each month's new albums. This list spans multiple genres, with each album ordered best to worst – the first list is the former, the second is the latter. Now presenting, with 50 total albums on both lists, the Ones You Might Want to Avoid - - -   ⭐⭐ Pretty Decent / Recommended to Genre Fans Only Alice Boman – Dream On Alice Boman is part of the “melancholic indie singer/songwriter” genre that has…
Score: 1.28
Book Review

The Wonder of Nature: Four Ecology Books Everyone Should Read

There are so many good books, yet so little time to read them - a thought I have often lamented, until recent developments. With the rise of Covid-19, many people have found themselves quarantined and in need of restful ways to spend some time each day   One way I have found stillness in the midst of chaos is through books.  Reading is a fantastic way to relax and find solace. Reading books about nature, perhaps even more so - which is why I have compiled this list of my favorite nature books with…
Score: 1.45

Doing Good Better by William MacAskill - The Best Charity is often far better than a Very Good One

  Most of us want to make a difference in this world in some way or another - whether it be through our career choices or donating to our favorite charities.  Are you aware that some charities are actually ineffective, even harmful?  Did you know earning to give can be a more beneficial avenue than working in a field that impacts people directly (i.e. The medical field)?  Have you ever wondered how you can make the biggest impact?  In Doing Good Better William MacAskill, author and co-founder of the…
Score: 1.22
Green Thumb: Tactics to Grow Annual Flowers

Green Thumb: Tactics to Grow Annual Flowers for the Beginner

              What comes to mind when you think of flowers? Wedding ceremonies? Valentine’s Day? The truth is, flowers are plentiful and have many abstract meanings and uses. I will also elaborate methods to plant flowers, introduce types of annuals, and mention which types of flowers I have planted myself.    Pansy Annual Types Flower More Easily                To begin, pansies are a great flower for the beginning gardener. They’re some of the first blooms you can plant to celebrate the start of the…
Score: 1.43
BBQ & Grilling

Cambodian Grilled Chicken (Mann Oeng K’tem Sor) Recipe

by ChefPerry

     This ancient Cambodian grilled chicken recipe, called Mann Oeng K’tem Sor, may look complicated, but it’s really just a series of simple steps.       The stone walls of the Bayon temple in Cambodia, built at the end of the 12th A.D, includes an amazing series of bas-relief pictures of the army supply trains, encampments, field kitchens, and some of the earliest depictions of Asian barbecue.   Specifically, you'll see chicken skewered on split sticks and grilled over pyramid-shaped fires. Nine…
Score: 1.6

10 Tips for a “Less Stress” Holiday Dinner

by ChefPerry

  The holidays are, hands down, my favorite time of year, but it’s no secret that (especially for us foodies) it can bring with it a lot of kitchen chaos and performance anxiety.  So many dishes, so many people, and so many “cherished family traditions” that must be upheld, it would be well-nigh impossible to make it through the season without at least some drama.  If you come from an Italian family, like mine, well… fugget about it!   So, if we can’t avoid the chaos, let’s at least try to get a rope…
Score: 1.31

Simple school lunch tips your kids will love!

by ChefPerry

  Good nutrition in the morning and early afternoon is vital for attention and learning, and it helps keep kids focused and alert all day. I’ve taught hundreds of youth to plan and cook for themselves, and the vast majority of them, given the opportunity, will choose healthy, nutritious foods, if They taste good Are offered in variety They feel like they are allowed to choose for themselves. Kids get bored with the same old, same old…and a variety of foods helps ensure more balanced nutrition.    …
Score: 1.19
South Dakota

A Closer Look at Western South Dakota

When my husband first told me he was offered a job in Spearfish, South Dakota, I cried.   At the time, we were ranch sitting near the Wind River Range in Wyoming, after having spent a season working in southwestern Colorado - now we were moving to South Dakota? Does anyone even live there? Where are the mountains? What if we hate it   Needless to say, I had a lot of concerns and preconceived notions about what western South Dakota was like - none of which made me want to move there.  However, it was…
Score: 1.76
Music Theory

Compositional Complexity in Technical Death Metal

by CFC123

INTRODUCTION  Outside of the realm of radio airplay and mass consumption, metal bands struggle to distinguish themselves while subjected to ever-shifting standards set by short-lived trends. All groups with media presence seem to have something to prove, and Florida native Chuck Schuldiner was no exception. When denounced by the other members of his band Death, Schuldiner arrived at a creative waypoint; he knew that he wanted something cleaner, and to “move forward musically.”  In 1991, Death…
Score: 1.7
Grief

Thoughts On Grief

While sitting in my favorite spot by the water, the last beams of sunlight warming my skin, I read these words (written by Lisa Gungor in her book The Most Beautiful Thing I’ve Seen) -    “But I’ve found my life is built on ordinary days of going in and coming out… This is where I’ve found grandness. This is where I’ve found what I believe about life and where I’ve found myself applauding others instead. It’s in long nights on a good porch, letting the silence sit next to you. It’s the hard things…
Score: 1.17